Miss Minerva's Pirate Mishap Maggie Dallen (top books of all time .txt) 📖

amusement. But there it was again.

Something different about her that he hadn’t been able to identify before.

Concern and a sensation he cared not to name had his chest tightening. She looked paler than usual. The area around her eyes a little swollen. A little pink.

“I have six children with me, Mr. Calhoun. I hardly think I am in grave danger of being caught alone with you.”

Caleb. He went to correct her again, but stopped himself. It was for the best that she keep some sort of distance between them, even if she disregarded every other propriety.

“We’ll watch out for her, Mr. Calhoun,” Nicholas added. Apparently he’d been paying attention after all, even though his gaze was fixed firmly on the tools, turning them over in his grubby paws as thought they were his own.

Abigail smiled brightly. “So, you see? I have no need for my sisters or our maid as a companion with Nicholas here to look out for me.”

He stared at her hard, and this time her gaze wouldn’t quite meet his. He’d have liked to think it was because even she knew that her actions were folly. That no-good smuggler was still out there. And even if he wasn’t, Caleb was here.

And Caleb was dangerous. He was a retired pirate, for heaven’s sake. Did she not realize yet that she should not trust him?

“You ought to have a chaperone,” he said. Wonderful. Now he was sounding like a fretful mother hen.

Her smile was slow and sweet. “Do you really think Hattie would be much protection, Mr. Calhoun?”

He had a vague memory of the youngest sister. Blonde like Abigail, but even more slight, with her nose forever stuck in a book.

“I love my sister dearly, but she is roughly the size of your pinky.” They both looked to his smallest digit and he had the oddest urge to...laugh.

He never laughed.

Well, rarely.

As it was, a soft coughing growl came out and he supposed that was how he laughed. It’d been so long, he hardly recognized it himself.

But this was no laughing matter. She ought not come to his house alone. He glanced around at the urchins. Well, nearly alone. No one to save her from him, and that was what mattered. That’s what this was about.

She should be scared of him, and she wasn’t. The woman had no sense.

Or maybe she had a little because as he drew closer, she kept her gaze on the basket, talking quickly. Too quickly. “And besides, Hattie is under the weather. And Minerva is gone, as you know, and Sally...” She reached out to brush a crumb from the table’s edge. “Well, Sally has left with Rebecca to go to the earl’s manor. I told you that he’d requested her there, did I not?” She didn’t wait for an answer. “It seems he’s in need of her medical knowledge more than you are, and Rebecca was all too happy to accompany her to a grand country estate. And so you see, with Sally not here to minister to your injury, you must allow me to—”

“No.” He interrupted too harshly. Curse it. Of course he’d been harsh. He’d never done anything gently in his life. And right now, his heart was thudding as a primal rage stirred in his gut. Something was wrong.

She was not okay.

“No? But surely your bandage—”

“My leg has healed,” he said. “I do not need your sister to nurse me and I certainly don’t require your help either.”

She blinked and he had the unnerving sensation that he’d unwittingly hurt her.

Curse it all. He just barely held back a growl of annoyance at his own bad behavior. But for once his behavior wasn’t the real issue. Something was the matter with her if she was prattling on like this.

The girl could talk. In fact, he’d come to grow somewhat used to her filling the air with that sweet voice of hers. But this was different.

If only he could see her eyes again. But she was still looking away from him, fidgeting with her apron. “I suppose if you don’t need my help, I still ought to bring you food now and again. After all, a gentleman like yourself—”

She went silent and still when his fingers touched her jaw. Lightly. He was as gentle as he knew how to be as he turned her cheek so she was facing him.

There it was.

He could see it now, and the sight of it made him filled with so much anger it was all he could do not to tear down the walls of this cottage. “You’ve been crying.”

To keep reading, check out Miss Abigail’s Beastly Beau!

About the Author

MAGGIE DALLEN IS a big city girl living in Montana. She writes romantic comedies in a range of genres including young adult, historical, contemporary, and fantasy. An unapologetic addict of all things romance, she loves to connect with fellow avid readers. Subscribe to her historical newsletter at http://eepurl.com/dgUNif or her contemporary newsletter at http://eepurl.com/bFEVsL

Don't miss out!

Click the button belowand you can sign up to receive emails whenever Maggie Dallen publishes a new book. There's no charge and no obligation.

https://books2read.com/r/B-A-YDEF-COPJB

Connecting independent readers to independent writers.

Also by Maggie Dallen

Bluestocking Battalion

Miss Minerva's Pirate Mishap

Miss Abigail's Beastly Beau

Miss Sally's Unsuitable Soldier

Crazy Crush

Tall, Dark, and Nerdy

Too Nerdy to Handle

The Man, The Myth, The Nerd

Dashing Lords

A Rake's Redemption

A Duke's Distraction

A Gentleman's Gamble

Falling in Friar Hollow

The (Not So) Perfect Day

The (Not So) Perfect Fiancé

The (Not So) Perfect Match

Fall in Love Like a Princess

A Shot With Prince Charming

No Place Like Homecoming (Coming Soon)

Never Have I Ever Land (Coming Soon)

Geeks Gone Wild

Love at First Fight

My Virtual Prince Charming

Once Upon a Comic-Con

Geeks Gone Wild Series

How to Catch a Crush

Striking Out with the Star Pitcher

Saved by the Crush's Brother

Playing Hooky with the Hottie

First Kiss with the Quarterback

Sleepover with the Enemy

Love's Imposters

The Reluctant Spy

The Reluctant Bride

Summer Love

Senior Week Crush

Senior Week Fling

Senior Week Kiss

Summer Love Boxset

The Bet Duet

Charming the Cheerleader

Dating the Quarterback

The Bet Duet

The Glitterati Files

All-American Princess

Princess of Hollywood

Wicked