The Pirate's Widow Read Online Free

Given my choice, I will always choose
practicality.”
       “Brava, Mrs. Jenkins,” Sir Thomas said from
the head of the table as he raised his glass. “You sound like a lady of
uncommon common sense than which I admire nothing more.”
       “Thank you, Sir Thomas,” Callie said,
wondering at such a statement coming from a man who hired a human being to
decorate his garden because it was ‘all the fashion’.
       A little whine came from the foot of the
table and Callie looked around in time to see a furry head appear, two limpid
brown eyes surveying the food on Venetia Louvain’s plate.   Sir Thomas’ former mother-in-law slipped a
piece of roast beef into the tiny dog’s mouth and it disappeared beneath the
table’s edge once more.
       Jem was fascinated.   “What kind of a dog is that, ma’am?” he
asked.
       Venetia fixed him with a stare that clearly
conveyed her disdain for his presence at Sir Thomas’ table.   “He is a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel.   His name is Sherbet.”
       Jem widened his eyes.   “Shark bait?”
       Callie lifted her napkin to her lips to hide
her smile but Venetia Louvain was not so amused.
       “Sherbet!” she snapped.   “Sherbet!   And I think we’ve heard enough from you, young man, if you don’t mind.”
       Jem looked at Callie and she bit her lips to
keep from smiling at his pleased expression.
    He
went back to eating his dinner and Callie saw him examine an ornate silver
spoon and slowly begin inching it toward the edge of the table.   She knew that in a moment it would disappear
into his pocket and she stretched out her foot under the table and nudged his
leg beneath the embroidered table cloth.   When he looked at her, she gave a tiny shake of her head and he
reluctantly returned the spoon to its place beside his plate.
       There was an awkward silence which Venetia
Louvain broke to say:   “Perhaps Flora
could entertain us at the pianoforte after dinner.”   She smiled thinly at Callie.   “My daughter is an accomplished musician,
Mrs. Jenkins.”
       “Is she?   How lovely.”
      “Do you play?”
       “No, not at all, Mrs. Louvain.”
       “What a shame.   Sir Thomas much admires musical talent in a
lady.”
       “That is very kind of you, Mrs. Louvain,”
Penelope Bates said, “but I fear my sister and I must make our departure soon
after dinner.   I am afraid Miss Louvain’s
playing is a treat that must wait for another time.”
       “Indeed,” Callie said, “how disappointing,
Miss Louvain, but I will so look forward to hearing you at another time.”
        Callie looked around the room with its
exquisite tapestries and elegant paintings. A solid silver ship under full
sail, an enameled pennant flowing from the tall mainmast decorated the center
of the table.   And all this, she
reflected, had its origins in piracy.   If
Kit had lived, they could have retired into anonymity and built a life like
this; their children and their children’s children could have one day been
grand ladies and gentlemen.
       “Tell me, Mrs. Jenkins,” Sir Thomas said,
“have you had any trouble finding domestic help here in St. Swithin?”
       “To be honest, Sir Thomas,” Callie told him,
“I haven’t tried.   With only Jem and me,
we have not felt the need of servants.”
       “Never say you do your own housework!”
Venetia exclaimed.   “But perhaps I should
have known.”   She stared pointedly at
Callie’s hands which showed all the signs of having known hard work.
       “I do my own housework,” Callie
confirmed.   “Having always been an active
person, I confess I would find it hard to sit idly by while other waited on me
like some pampered invalid.”
       “There is no shame in being an active,
useful person,” Sir Thomas decreed.   “Certainly it is a valuable talent in a lady to be able to undertake the
management of her own household. However, I should think you would not