Edward and I walked to the shore. Ships moored at a distance bobbed in the waves. My dancing friend had invited me to see his ship. No one had been more shocked than me to discover that the captain of the Pegasus, Captain Henry as I’d called him, was actually Prince William Henry, son of England’s king. Me, Dolly, freed two years, kicking up my heels with the son of the man who owned the world, well, most of it.
Cells once said that a man couldn’t have power with a Black wife. Yet here was a man with power using it to extend his time in Dominica to court me.
Humbling, exciting, the sheer pleasure of it trembled my soul. I had no choice but to go to my prince and see his Pegasus.
“Mama, look at the big boat, the one flying the English flag.”
Red, blue, and white, the square hung from the forward sails and flopped in the breeze.
Edward knew his colors and the flags of the nations from the flood of visitors coming to Dominica.
“That big one looks fit for a prince.” I peered at my little prince, my six-year-old son. He was getting taller. Mamaí’s mixtures had made him stronger. His wheezing only happened in the wet season. “Come on, Edward. Polk is waiting.”
My Demerara friend waved at us and we climbed into the Dolus.
“Miss Dolly, Master Edward. Morning. Ummm . . . You sure about sailing close to a frigate? They have guns, Miss Dolly.”
I patted the side of the boat. “Yes, take us to the Pegasus.”
“Our people don’t do well on those big ’uns. Don’t be going below.”
“It’s not a slaver boat. The only man singing from the deck is a prince.”
Polk shrugged and straightened his wide-brimmed straw hat. “Come on, Edward, you row with me.”
My boy’s face lit up as he grasped the oar.
“Mr. Cells asked about you and Charlotte and Edward.”
The look I threw Polk must have been sharp. He threw up his hands as if to protect himself. “I’m just doing what Massa wants.”
“Tell him we’re fine and I’m visiting men on frigates.”
Polk shook his head. “Not sure he’d like to hear that.”
My shoulders lifted and I stared again at the Pegasus. It was huge, enormous. It could swallow Polk’s sloop whole.
The guns on the side—intimidating. The three massive pole heads stood like giants. Hooked to it, yards of tanned fabric rolled up as if it could hide from the wind.
The whipping air swept away the scent of salt, even the perspiration from my brows. I could see how those big ships could fill their sails and travel the world. Thomas’s Mary had caught some. I last heard, he was in Scotland.
The closer Polk’s boat came, the more we were gobbled up in the ship’s shadow.
I saw Captain Henry looking down at us through a scope.
Blue jacket painted in gold braiding, he looked regal, standing at his wheel.
A raft with women passed us. They were heading back to shore.
I almost wanted to cover Edward’s eyes at the scantily clad souls. Such pretty brown and white faces with tunics showing off their bosoms—prostitutes. I’d heard that they visited soldiers at their boats. I thought it a joke.
I looked down. Didn’t want these women to think I judged them. I didn’t. They did what they had to do. I was lucky my path changed.
“Miss Kirwan.” The prince’s voice boomed. “You coming aboard?”
“I was invited.”
“That you are, lass, but I didn’t think you’d show.”
He put the scope into his jacket and waved to a fellow who tossed down a rope ladder.
Polk piloted the Dolus closer until I could clasp the last rung. “You sure you about this, Miss Dolly?”
“Yes. I’m going to show Edward that there’s nothing scary out here in the water.”
“Mama, I’m not afraid of much. Mr. Thomas used to take me.” My boy’s head fell back as he eyed the frigate. “Mama, this doesn’t quite seem safe.”
“It’s high, Edward. But I’m going to do it.”
I had my boots on. My striped dress was short, exposing my ankles. I used to climb trees in Montserrat, until Nicholas showed me Cudjoe’s feet.
The niggling fear of my brother’s terror was mostly gone. I climbed the wobbly thing like I was Mamaí’s powerful goddess, Èrzulie Dantòr, one she’d learned about from neighbors.
Edward needed to see me brave again. “Polk, you journey about the coast. Be back in an hour.”
He grunted. “Not a minute longer, Miss Dolly.”
When I made it to the top, I knew daring me had returned. I waved at the Dolus as they floated away.
The prince held his hand to me. “Welcome aboard.”
A few men seemed to laugh. Others stared, but I wasn’t there for them.
“Captain, you have a very big ship here.”
“Better to sail the seas than your little boat.” He took me along his deck and gangplanks. “This is a frigate, one of His Majesty’s most powerful weapons.”
It was beautiful, a celebration of wood and fabric and metal.
“The foremast, main mast, and mizzen harness the power of the wind, Miss Kirwan.”
My heart couldn’t imagine what it felt like crossing the sea. “Where’s the farthest you’ve been, Captain?”
“Here, the Americas, many places about the sea. I can say I’ve seen the world.”
With his men looking on, the prince led me from stem to bow, from larboard to starboard, and everywhere in between. He pointed and puffed out his chest. “Now, Miss Kirwan, let me show you below. Down the ladderway.”
My pulse pounded. I gripped my elbow and twisted the ribbons on my smooth half sleeve. “Below? That’s where they keep cargo.”
“Yes, cannonballs, bread, my sailors and gunports. Nothing else.”
His gaze at me wasn’t ignorant to my true question. Just ’cause no singing boats were in port today didn’t make them not exist. Just ’cause my skin was covered in lace and silk didn’t mean the slave songs weren’t in my soul.
As if flutes played, his palm waved before me. Then his fingers froze. He waited as if it was an easy thing to follow him.
We’d spent enough time together these past weeks. I was in no more danger from the son of the king than I was his crew.
“Trust me a little more, Miss Kirwan. Down you go.”
Remembering I was brave, I clasped the wooden ladder and went below. Soon my boots planted on flooring, more decking.
The prince zipped down and seized my waist. Within the circle of his arms, he held me, smiling in the darkness, the low light.
“Oh, yes, back to our tour. You’re in the wardroom bulkhead. To port is the first lieutenant’s cabin. Let me show you.”
He danced me into a room, one with a hammock tied to each wall and a desk for writing. “See? Much better.”
His arms were about me again. The way he touched me, the way I swayed—we didn’t need music to share this rhythm. It was too much to feel for a man about to leave. I wriggled from William, scooted under the hammock, and looked out a window hole.
He joined me with his chin on my shoulder. “Will you miss me when I’m gone?”
“Yes. You’ve made Roseau come to life. Is this the bowels? Is there more?”
The prince spun me. The passion in his eyes made them jet. “I want to look at you.”
His cologne water or soap teased of lavender.
His tightening embrace said he wanted more than a kiss.
Wasn’t sure what I wanted.
Skittish, I dipped underneath the hammock sliding to the other side, readying for the door. “Where’s your next port.”
“Barbados.”
Fingering the tan canvas and the jute rope that anchored it, I pushed the hammock. It swung from me to him. “People sleep on this? Doesn’t look that comfortable. Couldn’t you put a bed in here?”
“We could, but then the Pegasus wouldn’t have enough room for all my men. A hammock provides a certain amount of stability.”
He slipped beneath the thing and stood beside me. “A demonstration?”
Thinking he’d climb on I nodded, but his hands went about my waist and he cast me on it.
I bounced as the thing moved. “This would be comfortable, if I were a fish.”
He laughed and swung it faster. There was no getting out without tumbling.
“See, very stable. In fact, Miss Kirwan”—he climbed atop and straddled me—“It’s cozy enough for two.”
His eyes found mine. The rhythm of the rocking danced in my head. He sank toward me. I almost rose to him, with him looking at me, readying to devour me.
“I should be going. You have—”
A young man stepped into the quarters. “Captain, sir? Hmmm. That’s my bunk.”
“You’ll have it back in a moment, Lieutenant. I’m just showing Miss Kirwan a thing or two about a sailor’s life.”
I hid my face, pulling into his jacket. That must’ve made it seem worse.
“Lieutenant,” the prince said with a chuckle, “I just need to say good-bye to Miss Kirwan.”
The fellow covered his eyes, peeking through his fingers as he spun and darted away.
“He’s new.” The prince hopped down. “He fumbles over titles but has such a nose for gossip.”
“I don’t think you care much about your princely title, only that you dance better than most men.”
Prince William lifted me high then brought me to the floor. His hands remained on my thighs.
I patted his fingers away. “Thank you for the tour.”
“Now, Miss Kirwan, don’t be like that. You can’t blame a man for searching.”
I looked up into his eyes and the grin that made him seem boyish and misguided. “I think you brought the wrong woman on board.”
“No, I brought the right one. I don’t have the time to show her.”
“My son and my boat captain will return shortly.”
He brushed his lips along my cheek. “I’ll need a proper good-bye. See me off with a kiss.”
“That sounds like a command.”
“I sense you’d rather give orders. That won’t do with me.”
With my pinkie, I flicked a ribbon adorning his uniform. “Then how will this end, my dear prince?”
His arms wound around me. The medals on his jacket made a tingling noise. “One of us must bend.”
“Maybe it’s a tie for evenly matched friends.”
“Tied to a friend is better. Miss Dorothy, if I can manage port again in Dominica, will you call on me?”
“I must do the seeking? I thought that was princely business.”
“Yes, to search for a queen or a princess or a slipper, so I’ve heard.”
“I’m not a shoe, and I am too old to be a princess.”
“Well, Queen of Dominica, let this simple sea captain be sent away with the memory of the beauty he left behind.”
My fingers clasped his thick lapels. I saw a month of laughs and lightness in his face. No love at all. That was fine by me. I’d be his Dominica kiss.
I took his square chin in my palm. On tiptoes, I claimed his gaze. “Then I can pretend, too.”
I kissed him, kissed like a woman sending away a lover, like a woman hungry for affection, like a woman owning her need.
When his hands fingered the edge of my bodice, I pushed away. “Time to go. You must ready your crew.”
“Sometimes being a dutiful sailor is dull.” He dipped his chin. “I’ll be back. Finish what I start. That’s a motto to live by.”
After climbing back to the top deck, the prince walked me to the wobbly ladder. It didn’t take long for Polk and Edward to return. In the safety of the sloop, I waved.
My prince watched from his deck. It made me smile, knowing a prince wanted me and would think of me every time he approached Dominica.
That made me smile bigger.
Polk, sweet Polk grimaced, and I grinned even more.