Page 33 of The Swan Syndicate #1

Jamie’s grin faded, though Beckworth doubted it had gone far.

The man thought this was a joke. No. That wasn’t right.

He, of all people, understood the dangers.

But he had a mission. And while the crew of the Daphne , mostly Irishmen, had no particular love of England, they had no desire to live under Napoleon’s yoke.

At the end of the day, they desired coin that could be sent home to family.

If MacDuff and Cheval were making plans with France and using their smuggling operation as a ruse, it had to be uncovered.

Jamie, similar to what Hensley had once told him of Finn, never took a job that would hurt Ireland or its people. Break up a smuggling operation? Locate spies who weren’t good for Ireland? They were there—happy to oblige—for a decent payday.

And like his predecessor on the Daphne , Jamie’s crew wasn’t above a bit of smuggling themselves. They had even colluded with Sebastian, the French monk, who ran his own smuggling syndicate once their team had rid the monastery of the duke.

At the heart of it all, Jamie was above reproach when it came to a mission. And he would do whatever it took to keep his crew safe as well as his team. That included himself and Stella. But still.

“We have no other way in with MacDuff.” Jamie laid it out for him.

“She only had one run-in with the man. I doubt he’d even remember her.”

Jamie barked out a laugh. “A blind man would remember her.”

Beckworth growled. He had to put this in perspective. If it were Libby or any of the other women who worked with the London crews, he wouldn’t hesitate. The best decision would be to put her off the ship first thing in the morning. He should go with her. But this was an important mission.

God’s blood, why had he fallen in love?

“What would she have to do?”

“We need to plan another accidental meeting. From what Lando told me, MacDuff found Stella intriguing. I have no doubt he’d invite her to dinner if they crossed paths.

She mentioned she was running cargo up the coast. He’s bound to ask what type of cargo.

She just needs to drop a few hints. Perhaps mention some important names. ”

Beckworth nodded. “I can think of a few. And I suppose the Daphne is her ship.”

“Naturally. With any luck, she can entice him into a trade.” Jamie pointed to the swan Beckworth was holding. “Lando called her Lady Swan. I think we need a stash of those. They’ll be her calling card.”

“This is a bad idea.”

“You started it, mate.” Jamie’s grin was back.

“And I’m regretting that decision every day.” Beckworth had started it. He’d used the swans when they’d been running from Gemini. Then Barrington had used them again when the team searched for him. It had seemed such a good idea at the time.

He stood and dropped the swan, now with a bit of a bent wing, on the desk.

Before he left, Jamie said, “We’ll protect her.”

He nodded and closed the door behind him.

His first inclination was to find where Fitz had stashed Jamie’s case of whiskey, but his feet took him back to their cabin.

Jamie’s words echoed in his ears. They’ll protect her.

He had to give Jamie credit for giving it a go, considering his own attempts, Beckworth had never seemed capable of doing it himself.

B eckworth gave a light tap on the cabin door and held his breath before entering. Would she be defiant? Curious? Demanding to know every detail? He wasn’t expecting what he found instead.

He closed the door behind him. She took his breath away as she’d never done before.

She sat in the middle of the bed, her arms locked around her knees. At that moment, she appeared so tiny until his gaze locked on her face surrounded by untamed auburn locks. Her green eyes were huge, which would give most men a false idea that she was wounded.

Fragile.

He almost snorted. He knew this face. Stubborn. And though he caught a spark of fear, she was ready for a fight.

She didn’t speak as he removed his jacket and then his boots. He let the gentle sway of the ship keep the peace between them as he crawled onto the bed and sat next to her. They didn’t touch, but he was close.

His first thought was to immediately tell her what he and Jamie had spoken about. To explain what they needed from her in the next phase of the mission. Hell, he wanted to tell her how worried he was for her, but that he’d be there to protect her.

Instead, he said nothing. Something was troubling her, and he wanted to know what it was.

While they’d been in Baywood, it seemed there wasn’t any thought they didn’t share.

He wasn’t sure if that was normal or because their relationship was still young.

Yet, the minute they traveled to this time, walls went up.

Would that have happened if they had arrived and hadn’t found Hensley waiting with a mission? He could assume or rationalize, but the truth was, he didn’t know. All of this was so new. He’d never had anyone care so much when he left for a mission. Not the way she did.

He continued to wait.

After another minute of silence, she rested her head on his shoulder.

“Are you sending me back to Waverly?”

God’s blood. It never occurred to him that she’d think that. But why not? He’d thought it dozens of times.

He took her hand and gently rubbed it with his thumb. It was a small hand. Delicate. He turned it over and ran a finger across the fine lines of her palm. There were thin callouses from her gardening shears and perhaps from helping with the lines as Michelson showed her how to trim the sails.

“It crossed my mind.” He waited while her body tensed then slowly relaxed. “But I’d have a fight on my hands, wouldn’t I?”

With her head still resting on his shoulder, she said, “Damn straight.”

He chuckled and slowly moved her so he could wrap an arm around her. He kissed the top of her head. “You know I worry for you.”

“I worry for you, too.”

“What a pair we make, Lady Caldway.”

“Indeed, Lord Beckworth.”

He held her for some time. Her simple presence, the feel of her in his arms, soothed him.

Settled him. And he wanted the moment to last as long as possible before he told her.

She’d be excited, which would only increase his worry.

He suddenly wished they were at Waverly, dealing with the madness of preparing the manor for a weekend of friends.

He released a slow breath. They had a mission. She would do her part and play her role, but asking her to do this would be the most difficult thing he’d ever done. Even more than when he’d stood in the woods at Waverly and watched her disappear into the fog with AJ and Finn.

The day his heart broke. He couldn’t lose her again.

He gave her a long hug then released her.

“Jamie has an assignment for you.”

She popped up, her face as bright as if the sun was shining on it. “Really?”

He grimaced at her excitement. “We need you to continue your persona as Lady Swan.”

Lines appeared across her forehead as she considered the statement. Then she slowly nodded. “You need me to get close to MacDuff.”

“We need him to believe you’re another smuggler with cargo that would be of interest to him.”

“Why? Oh, you need me to find out when and where he’s meeting with Cheval to trade cargo.”

“It’s a bit more delicate than that.”

She gave it more thought, and he gave her the time. She liked to figure things out for herself and typically did so with exceptional speed.

She moved, rising to kneel, then sitting back on her heels. No question as to whether she would accept the assignment. Her answer was written all over her shining eyes and breathtaking smile. “You want me to find out what his end game is.”

He grimaced again. She was going to get herself killed.

He rose to face her. “You need to move slowly. This is a very dangerous game.”

Her face relaxed, her expression instantly changing to one of concern. She placed her palm on his cheek, and he couldn’t help but lean into it.

“I understand the stakes. I’ll take this seriously and do exactly what the team tells me. I won’t do anything to risk myself or the crew.”

He nodded, thankful she understood the risk. Then she destroyed his calm.

She wrapped her arms around him and almost shrieked her words. “I’m just so damn excited.”