He exited through the back door and stepped onto the spacious back deck. The sun was shining, and there was a light breeze. The thick black sweater he was wearing would keep him warm. She had stopped at the top of the dune and stared out at the ocean for a moment before she continued down to the beach.
Stepping off the porch, he slowly followed Tonya, giving her the space she needed. He followed her footprints in the sand to the top of the dune. He stopped at the ridge of the sand dune and pushed his hands into his pockets. The worry inside him melted when she turned and gave him a small, rueful smile. Returning her smile, he followed her footsteps until he was standing by her side.
Tonya paused and waited for Ashure to join her when she saw him standing at the top of the dune. He must have finished his magical cleanup in record time because she had only been on the beach for less than ten minutes. Her stony expression softened when she saw the worried expression on his face change to one of relief and pleasure when he saw her.
It was hard for her to stay upset with him. While she stood gazing out at the ocean, she had replayed his and Dan’s interactions over breakfast and couldn’t stop herself from finding humor in the situation. After all, there had never been two guys vying for her attention like that before. It was like watching a gentleman’s boxing match where they tried to outdo each other’s blows by using words instead of fists.
“The kitchen is clean as you requested, my Lady,” he announced with a regal bow and a grin.
She chuckled and shook her head. “And no dishpan hands—I’m impressed,” she haughtily retorted.
He held his hands up for her inspection. “Nay, I would never submit your delicate flesh to such abuse,” he teased before he lowered his hands and sobered. “I do owe you an apology for my behavior at breakfast. I may have been a tad—,” he stopped as he tried to find the correct word.
“Arrogant, possessive, a bit on the jealous side?” she suggested.
Ashure reached out, grasped her hand in his and pressed his lips against the back in a tender kiss. “You wound me with your astuteness, but I have to confess to all of those,” he acknowledged.
Tonya curled her fingers around his and sighed. “Why do I get the feeling that you have absolutely no remorse, though?” she asked as they turned and began walking along the beach.
“At least I admitted to my behavior and apologized. Did Deputy Dan?” he asked.
She shook her head. “No, he didn’t.” She was quiet for a moment before she spoke again. “Now that I know about the Seven Kingdoms, you, and the others that I’ve met, I don’t think I’ll ever be able to look at the world in quite the same way again,” she admitted, her voice barely audible.
Tonya’s softly spoken words resonated with Ashure. He remembered the feelings that had swamped him shortly after Simon had gifted—or cursed, depending on which day it was—the Kingship to him. She stopped again and stared out at the water. He paused next to her. He gently squeezed her hand in understanding.
“I felt the same way once,” he admitted.
She looked up at him with surprise. She pulled her hand free from his, reached up, and pushed her hair back when it blew across her face, temporarily blocking her view. He could feel her studying him.
“What happened, and how did you deal with it?” she asked.
He shoved his hands into the pockets of the black cotton trousers he had found this morning. “Ah, that is a bit of a story, because what happened doesn’t make any sense if you don’t know why I was chosen or what it meant. My father was a pirate. He was a miserable man who found fault in everything. My mother was a vengeful Sprite who took pleasure in causing as much pain as she could to anyone stupid enough to get close to her. By the time I was seven, both had met a horrible end. It was a relief finally to be free of them,” he reminisced.
“How horrible! What did you do?” Tonya asked with sympathy for the boy he used to be.
Ashure smiled at the memories. “I learned how to survive. Soon I could pickpocket a coin or steal bread from unsuspecting merchants and be off with my bounty before anyone realized it was missing. I listened and learned from others. The world was my playground, and I was determined to enjoy every moment of it. I quickly learned that bartering led to more valuable items than I could steal and…” He grew quiet for a moment.
“And,“ she prodded.
He briefly looked down at her before he took a deep breath and continued. “I learned that kindness was not a weakness as my parents had told me. Eventually, I found myself on one of the Pirate King’s ships. Unfortunately, my reputation as a softy, and my father’s as an incompetent louse, had preceded me. The Quarter Master assigned me one horrible job after another, and I attacked each with bull-headed single-mindedness. I was determined to prove him and every other pirate wrong. I was not the product of my parents’ faults but of my own honor and strength,” he said with a shake of his head.
“How old were you when you first started there?” she probed.
“Eleven. I was very full of myself, and I made sure that everyone knew it,” he chuckled.
“Eleven! You were just a kid…” Tonya hissed in dismay before her voice faded.
“I didn’t realize I was one. However, I did realize that I was faster and could fit in places that larger men could not. I had no complaints. As I mentioned before, I was free, and that was all that mattered to me. The ships sailed from port to port, and on each one, I learned more until the day I finally found myself aboard the Sea Wasp,” he said, murmuring the ship’s name with reverence.
“The Sea Wasp?” she urged.
Ashure looked at her again and smiled. “It was the ultimate achievement to a nobody like me. I was aboard the Pirate King’s personal ship. It was the largest, fastest, and most luxurious of all the ships that sailed from the Isle of the Pirates, and only the best were given a position on it,” he boasted.
“Wow, that must have felt pretty good for you to have proved everyone wrong,” she reflected, fascinated with his tale.
“It would have been if it wasn’t for the fact that I knew it had been in error. Two letters had been left on my former Captain’s desk for prying eyes to see. One was a letter of discipline, the other the transfer to the Sea Wasp. The Captain had a small vision problem, and he’d filled out the forms backwards. So, instead of being sent to the brig, I was dispatched to the Sea Wasp. Either way, my former Captain was thrilled to be rid of me,” he said with a wink.
She gave him an exasperated look. “What did you do to irritate him so badly?” she asked.
“He had two very lovely daughters that I might have come to know rather intimately,” he confessed.
“Oh!” She snorted.
“I was a young lad of twenty by then. Alas, my former captain had friends in high places, and I was once again assigned the worst duties. I had learned enough magic over the years to help make the chores entertaining. I planned to enjoy the prestige of being on the Pirate King’s ship with none of the responsibilities, and for a while, I did. That lasted all of twenty years,” he said, his voice dropping on the last words.
“Did the Pirate King have a lovely daughter that you seduced?” she sardonically demanded.