Jane Orcutt - All the Tea in China

“Yes, of course. Let me escort you to the cabin.”

We hurried now, though I was certain we had ample time before the ten o’clock bells. The thought of putting the canvas sail between us promised security and perhaps, at least on my part, better reason. We passed several crew members, but no word or expression on their part indicated that we had been observed near the bow.

Phineas held the door open for me. “I will join you shortly,” he said, handing me the candle. “Extinguish the flame when you are ready for sleep. Do not leave it lit on my account.”

I wondered at his words, but he was already shutting the door behind me. I readied myself for bed and did wait for a few moments, but when he did not appear, I snuffed out the candle. I tried to sleep, but my heart still pounded so that I was certain I would not be able to rest at all that night.

At last I heard him enter and saw him, briefly, before he ducked behind the canvas. I could not read the expression on his face, and he spoke not a word. When I heard the creak of his hammock and he blew out his candle, I thought then that he would say something. He did not.

Since the battle with the privateers, we had not returned to the story of Wo-Ping and Mei. It seemed an unspoken agreement that the reality of combat was too close to us still to return to the mythical land of Hu-King. Tonight, however, I needed myth not only as an escape but also as a reassurance for our own relationship. “Will you not tell the story tonight?” I said, hopeful and faltering.

“I do not have the heart,” he said in a weary voice. “Though I regret that it is so. Tomorrow, perhaps?”

“Yes, perhaps,” I echoed doubtfully. I could not believe that he was unwilling. “I hope so.”

In the morning, I was not certain what to expect when we first saw each other, which was at breakfast. It was already a momentous day, for Mr. Gilpin joined us, looking somewhat pale but more fit than I had seem him in many days. We all welcomed him back with enthusiasm, but none more so than Captain Malfort.

“It is good to have you back, Mr. Gilpin,” he boomed. “Cook will fatten up those bones in no time, as well.”

“Thank you, sir,” he said. He nodded at us all. “It is good to be in your company again. I look forward to resuming my duties.”

“We are only a few weeks from Macao, then on to Canton and tea, then homeward sails the Dignity,” Captain Malfort said.

“I do hope we’ll encounter no further privateers,” Mrs. Akers said. “A nasty lot, those Frenchmen… if men they can be spoken of at all!”

“I am pleased at your recovery, Mr. Gilpin,” I said. “You gave us all a dreadful scare.”

He glanced at Julia Whipple, who sat to my left, then back at me. “No matter how many times one faces privateers, it is always a test of fortitude. With God’s blessing, we all not only survived but retained the Dignity under Britain’s flag.”

“Hear hear,” Captain Malfort said. “And now, man, eat up, eat hearty!”

Phineas sat at the far end of the table, engaged in conversation with Mr. Akers, probably about East India Company business. Or what Mr. Akers thought was Phineas’s interest in the company anyway. I wondered if Mrs. Akers or her husband would give Phineas the cut the way they did me if they knew his true intentions. Indeed, I had not thought of his scheme in quite a while. Perhaps his silence indicated a willingness to abandon his thoughts of revenge. I could only pray.

After breakfast, our company dispersed. Mrs. Harrison was no doubt eager to retire to her bed (as usual), Mr. Harrison and Mr. Akers to make further business plans, and Mrs. Akers-I could not begin to say what she did with her idle time. I had never been invited to her cabin, but I understood that she had insisted upon bringing much of their furniture. Perhaps she spent her time rearranging it…

“Isabella.”

I felt a hand at my elbow. “Yes?”

Phineas stood beside me. “May I have a word with you?”

He seemed so formal, so serious. Had I done something wrong? “Yes, of course.”

Confused, I let him lead me to a corner of the cuddy where it was quiet. He had never asked to have “a word” before we began lessons. Oh my, in all the excitement over Mr. Gilpin’s appearance at breakfast, I had forgotten about last night! Did Phineas seek an apology? Did he seek to berate me? I should never have agreed to the dance…

I studied him as he watched the last of our group heading out, Julia and Mr. Gilpin among them. The servants moved into the room to clear the tables, and Phineas spoke in a low voice. “I wish to speak to you about last night.”

Oh dear. It was my fault. I knew little of men, but I knew enough to act as a lady should, and I had failed.

He cleared his throat. “I have done a great deal of thinking since our time together at the bow. I can scarcely believe a ship to be romantic with so many people occupied with their own business and lives.”

I said nothing, still confused as to his intention. Why did he speak of romance? And why must he have such dark eyes? I could read nothing there whatsoever.

“The truth is,” he said, then faltered. “The truth is that you must know I care greatly about your welfare. I hope I have exhibited that, if nothing else, during our acquaintanceship.”

“I believe you have.”

He looked relieved. “Then you will understand that I am in earnest by my declaration. I cannot bear the thought of either your unhappiness, your lack of security, or a bad reputation attached to your name.” He drew a deep breath. “Isabella Goodrich, will you marry me?”

“I… You want to marry me?”

“Did I not say I was in earnest?”

“Water spaniels are earnest, Phineas. So are clergymen and Parliament. Well, perhaps we could argue about Parliament… But come, it is too early in the day to jest with me.”

“I speak the truth, Isabella. I seek your hand in marriage. I have given it much thought, and I believe it is the only way.”

“The only way for what?”

The servants clattered the dishes as they went about their work. Phineas drew two chairs into the corner and bade me sit. “I did not believe anyone saw us last night at the bow, but suppose they had? Brother and sister do not dance so closely. Nor kiss as we did.”

I flushed. “That is true.”

“And our entire charade about being related… suppose it were found to be false. What would happen?”

“We would not only be pegged as liars but as…” I trailed off, my flush deepening. “Do you suspect that the truth has been discovered?”

“Julia Whipple informed me that one or two of the seamen suspect our relationship. She gave them a few coins, enough to buy their silence until we reach China, but even after that, gossip could prevail.”

“So your solution is marriage?”

“Yes. The Dignity must leave Mrs. Akers, Mrs. Harrison, and Julia Whipple in Macao, as foreign ladies are not allowed in Canton. We, too, will disembark. There we will marry in secret and find another means of transportation to Canton.”

“And from there?”

“You will find the missionary work you seek. It is the best plan to protect your reputation, Isabella. Even if someone should discover our ruse later, they will know we have done the honorable deed by marrying.”

“If I find my missionary work, as you call it, where will you go?”

“With you, naturally. And you, with me. I know a Christian couple in Macao who are Chinese. They can help us.”

I rose, trembling. “This is… this is too soon. It is too sudden. Sir, you take me quite unawares by your declaration.”

Why oh why had I allowed him to dance with me? My foolishness had gotten me into trouble yet again. And what of him? Had he not enticed me into that most intimate of dances, one that I had heard was not even accepted without permission at balls at Almack’s in London? For the first time in my life, I felt that I might swoon not only from the memory but from what he asked of me.