Blair crossed his arms over his chest. “I’m not going anywhere.”
“Your Lord Alban’s brother?” Constable McCleary asked, his hands tugging at his vest.
Blair stretched to his full height, towering over the man. “Aye.”
“He’s a hard man I hear, your brother. You two close? Will he come to your aid?”
The other man was choosing his side. Finding out how much of a threat Blair and his family posed. “As you said, my brother is a hard man.” He’d allow the constable to make up his own mind.
“I’ll see to it, right away, my lord.”
Blair gave a curt nod. If he wasn’t mistaken, the tide was shifting. “I’ll meet you here at four?”
“No need, I’ll come by first thing in the mornin’.”
“Excellent.” Then he turned and left.
Over the course of the day, he hired three more men. He didn’t have the same luck without Elle. Everything in his life was better when she was at his side. Her kisses this morning had held a promise that he was anxious to see filled. More than that, he just wanted to hold her close.
Chapter Sixteen
Elle stood on the beach and surveyed what they had accomplished in a day. One post stood in the sand of the beach. This would take forever.
At least the men had been elated with their pay. She promised them more tomorrow. Some had decided to lodge in one of Blair’s other ships while others returned to the village. While the house had burned, the stables had remained intact. Gratitude filled her heart. It gave the men a place to shelter their animals and their belongings. The men would guard it and the boats in two-hour shifts because there would be little help from the law.
The constable had come earlier in the day. He’d walked around the cannon, declared it stolen from the fort, and had left. Elle wasn’t sure what that meant exactly. She’d like to think that he was going off to inquire as to who might have stolen it but she doubted it. He likely knew. She’d lived here all her life and the constable and McKenzie were lifelong friends. One more reason she’d had little hope.
Sighing to herself, she was about to climb in a rowboat with Will to return to the ship when three riders appeared above the beach. She recognized Blair immediately. How could that man be her husband?
He sat on his horse, so strong and proud up above the dune. He took her breath away.
Handing the reins to one of the men who accompanied him, he made his way down the sand. Once he’d reached them, he leaned down and kissed her forehead. “Everything go all right, today?”
“Fine,” she answered. She had so much she wanted to tell him, but now didn’t seem the time.
He gave her shoulder a squeeze then turned to his brother. “I need to feed and water my horse,” he said to Will. “Why don’t ye drop Elle off and come back fer me?”
“Will do,” Will replied. Blair handed her into the boat and she settled herself on a bench. She wanted to be by his side but as she turned to call to him, Blair was already heading back toward his horse.
“Elle,” Will called to her.
Reluctantly, she turned her gaze from Blair. “Yes?”
His face tightened. “I was trying to help ye.” He swallowed, his Adam’s apple, visible bobbing. “With Blair.”
She gave a tight nod. “I ken.” She wasn’t angry with Will. But she wasn’t happy with him either. One hand rested on her hip as she narrowed her gaze. “I appreciate yer heart was in the right place though I wished ye’d left well enough alone.”
“Ye don’t want to be married to Blair?” His voice cracked on the last word, as though he were pained.
“Truth be told, I didn’t want to marry at all. It’s easier, sometimes, to think that ye’re better off not getting entangled. Now that I am, I can’t think of a man I’d rather be entangled with.”
Will cocked his head. “Then why do ye both seem so tense?”
The words had been bubbling inside her for some time. “What do I have to offer a man like Blair? What do I have to offer any man? A dark past, no money, a dependent to care for. I’m nothing but a burden to Blair. He deserved a woman who…” She couldn’t finish.
“Elle.” Will’s oars slowed. “Listen good. That man loves ye. Make no mistake about it. What ye give him is a chance at happiness.”
Elle’s mouth fell open before she snapped it closed. That couldn’t be true. Could it?