build of his body that his suit didn’t hide. When he stopped to talk to the fisherman and motioned back at her, she quickly looked away, hoping he hadn’t caught her ogling. Instead, she feigned interest in several fishermen in another boat shoveling piles of silvery fish into crates, although the very sight made her stomach churn.
Thankfully, Tom didn’t speak to the old man long before turning and trotting back to her. “We’re all set.” Beads of perspiration had formed on his forehead beneath the rim of his hat. Evidently, he was hot, too.
“Let’s go get something to drink,” she urged. “Perhaps a cold glass of lemonade? Wouldn’t that be lovely?”
He was already picking up the bags, but he paused and regarded her, his brows slanted in empathy over his lusciously dark eyes. “I’m sorry, Victoria. It’s best if we keep to ourselves. The more people who meet you, the more suspicion we’ll attract.”
“But we’re not staying here.”
“It’s close enough.” He started back to the stooped shouldered fisherman.
But she didn’t move. She had the sinking feeling he wasn’t planning to take her to Boston or Philadelphia or any other big city where she could amuse herself with new activities and events. In fact, she had the horrible suspicion he wasn’t taking her anywhere near civilization.
“Tell me where we’re going first,” she said.
His steps halted. His muscles visibly tightened, and then he turned, his expression rigid and ready to do battle. “We’re going with a friend in the cutter.”
“Where is he taking us?”
“Somewhere you’ll be safe.”
“I’ve willingly gone along with your plans all day. But I’m not taking another step until you tell me exactly where we’re going.”
Tom glanced at the group of fishermen in the nearby boat. They leaned on their shovels watching her interact with Tom and were silent except for the creaking of their dock line and the slapping of the waves against the hull.
With his jaw rippling—likely from the effort it cost him to stay silent—he crossed the distance back to her. “You’re causing a scene.” He spoke through gritted teeth. “Just come with me.”
“No.” She attempted a stomp of her foot, but the effect was lost in the sand. “I should be consulted on the final travel arrangements.”
He clamped his lips together, a motion that said quite loudly that he wouldn’t divulge anything.
“I’d much prefer to be somewhere more metropolitan and exciting than a small town in the middle of a sandy desert.” She waved around at the sandy cliffs and dunes that rolled endlessly down the coastline. “Even if it happens to be a friend’s lovely cottage or resort, I’m not a country girl.”
“You’ll adjust,” he whispered with a nod at the fishermen who were still staring.
She knew she needed to stop drawing attention to herself, but the cockiness of Tom’s attitude irked her. “You can’t take me somewhere I don’t want to go.”
“Don’t make me pick you up and carry you.”
“You wouldn’t dare.”
“Try me.” The hard set of his features told her he would indeed, and that if she didn’t want to be totally humiliated in front of everyone, she’d have to get in the waiting boat, whether he answered her questions or not. She had no choice but to go along with him for the time being. But that didn’t mean she couldn’t make arrangements to leave once she got there.
With a sniff, she started down the beach, holding her chin as high as she could and hoping to maintain some of her dignity, even though she was tired and hot and frustrated. When she reached the boat, she was momentarily taken aback by the small size of the old, rusty vessel.
“Jimmy,” Tom said behind her. He’d raised his voice as if his friend were hard of hearing. “This is my wife.”
Wife. The word startled her. If she hadn’t been fuming, she might have liked the way it sounded.
The old fisherman smiled, revealing a mouth devoid of most of his front teeth. His leathery face crinkled like a well-worn pair of gloves. But his eyes were kind. “Very pleased to see Tommy finally has a bride. And a fine one at that.”
“Thank you,” she replied, giving him a friendly smile. After all, it wasn’t his fault she was in this predicament.
Tom placed their bags in the boat and then reached out to assist her. But she ignored him and climbed down by herself, which was no easy feat, considering the fact that her feet tangled in her train, causing her to plop ungracefully