The Reverend's Daughter (Book 2 after The Duke's Daughter)

Chapter Five

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Violet led Betsy up the freshly scrubbed hallway. She was pleased, it seemed Violet had taken control of the filthy ship situation, and she need not worry about that problem any longer.

"Violet?" She glanced up, and found him looking at her with his eyebrow quirked in question, so she forged ahead with her inquiry. "Is that our supper in the kettle on the beach?"

"Only if we can find something to throw in it," He decided to tease her and let her think for a moment or two that it was, "What about you, shall we toss you in the pot and have some cannibal stew?" He leaned over and started smacking on her neck again.

She laughed, as it tickled, and he could be so silly sometimes, she knew he was teasing her about her being dinner, but she really did want to know what the men and boys were doing on the beach.

"Seriously, Violet," She scrunched her head down to her shoulder to stop his silly antics as she giggled and swatted at him. "I cannot think it would be good to make a stew from the ocean water, and do we have anything to put in a pot for supper? We will need to eat something, sooner or later."

"Tis not your supper, lovey, though I can make no promises on what your supper will be, I can assure you Paulie knows better than to use seawater for his stew." He replied.

"I hope so, as he sure does not seem to know, salt does not replace sugar." She said a bit testily, as she was very hungry by now, she was ready to storm the galley to see what they did have to relieve her hunger. Her stomach chose that moment to growl, embarrassing her, and causing Violet to chuckle.

"I am sorry, Kitten, I should have gone and beaten that man to a pulp, imagine, serving my beauty an unpalatable meal, he should be hung by his thumbs, he should be whipped with the cat, he should...."

"Enough Violet," she said with laughter in her voice, "You shall do no such thing! However, marking the containers of salt and sugar may help your cook to keep them straight." She suggested.

"Our." Violet said simply.

"Our what?" Betsy asked.

"Our cook, not mine. All you see around you, Kitten, is now ours. Our ship, our men, our boys and our cook! When you married me," He grinned at her, "You got the whole package, good and bad."

She allowed a possessive smile to grace her face, "So, tis my galley, too?" She asked hopefully, as she would like to go see if there were any provisions for her rolling stomach.

His face grew extremely serious and theatrical. "Believe me Kitten, when I tell you, that you do not want to go there. There is a troll, a mean ogre who dwells there, and I would not have you learn his language." Violet laughed at the thought of Betsy catching an earful of Paulie.

"But I am hungry, Violet." She said so forlornly, he had to take pity on her.

"Tis your own ears, lovey, I can only make a suggestion, you however, can chose to believe me, or not. You want an introduction to the galley, I shall oblige." He turned around and led her back to another hallway leading off of the one they traveled. This hallway gleamed with freshly scrubbed wood also, Violet found himself feeling better and better with every inch of gleaming wood they traversed. At least now he did not have to worry about her running to a barrel to escape the filth and vermin anymore.

Luckily for them, Paulie was nowhere to be seen, or heard. Josh was leading the galley crew in the clean up, and it had been a peaceful time, as Paulie had retired to nap away his headache.

Josh looked up as Violet and Betsy entered the room. "Captain, Miss, I would like to apologize for the scones, I had no idea when I brought them...."