Chapter 14
Sharing accommodations with Nathaniel turned out far better than Kate would have thought.
Because their interior room had no windows, it was good for nothing but sleeping, so they did not spend any significant time there.
On each of the two nights of their voyage, Kate climbed into her bunk in her shirt and trousers and slipped beneath the blanket.
She would have liked to loosen the linen band she used to bind her breasts, but judged this too great a risk.
Oh, well—she could manage for a few days.
They took their meals in the captain’s quarters, and, as the weather was unusually fine, passed most of their days as they had the first one—standing at the ship’s railing, watching for animals or interesting sights.
Although they would sometimes talk, they also spent long stretches in companionable silence.
This was something that Kate appreciated.
She found constant chatter exhausting. Whereas her sister, Pippa, was happier nowhere than at a large party, Kate found the experience draining after the first hour.
She inevitably had to go off in search of a quiet corner where she could recover her equilibrium.
Nathaniel seemed to possess a similar nature and seemed genuinely untroubled if they passed a half hour without exchanging a single word. Kate was grateful she had stumbled upon a traveling companion with whom she was so well matched in terms of temperament.
On the third day, they stopped overnight at Kirkwall on the Orkney Islands.
While the ship’s crew was busy unloading cargo bound for Orkney and loading a shipment of kelp intended for the mainland, Kate and Nathaniel set off in search of Orkney’s signature vole.
Alas, the vole proved elusive in the three hours of daylight they had, but Kate made sketches of birds and flowers, and of Orkney’s strange, treeless landscape.
They spent the night in their bunks and set off for the Isle of Lewis the following morning.
As they sailed across the North Sea, a humpback whale breached the water some fifty yards off the ship’s starboard side, landing with a tremendous splash.
It happened too quickly for Kate to make a proper sketch, but it waggled its fluked tail at them long enough for her to trace a quick outline before it slipped beneath the waves.
After one more night aboard the ship, they arrived at the port town of Stornoway. It was a small but bustling town with its own assembly room, reading room, and several streets of slate-roofed houses.
“We’re at the Star Inn,” Nathaniel said as they disembarked from the ship. “Ah!” He nodded toward a whitewashed building just opposite the quay with two small gables on the roof. “I believe that’s it.”
It was a modest establishment, but Kate’s heart soared at the sight of it.
Sharing a room with Nathaniel had been manageable, but what a relief it would be to unbind her chest for the first time in six days!
She wondered if she could get a proper bath.
Perhaps not, but even a thorough scrub at a washstand and a fresh change of clothes would be most welcome.
Inside, the proprietor, a Mr. MacRitchie, greeted them in English. “Good afternoon. How can I help ye gentlemen?”
“I should have a reservation for Nathaniel Sterling.”
“Ah.” A cheerful smile came over his round, red cheeks. “Ye’re the professor out of Edinburgh, then, here to look at our eagles.”
“Not professor,” Nathaniel said quickly. “Just a fellow.” He gestured to Kate. “This is my colleague, Mr. Kit Witherspoon.”
Mr. MacRitchie inclined his head. “A pleasure to meet ye, Mr. Witherspoon.” He turned and removed a key from a row of hooks behind the bar. “Yer room’s all ready, gentlemen, if ye’ll just follow me.”
“Our room?” Kate sputtered, hoping she had misheard. Surely, he meant rooms. And why had he taken just the one key?
Mr. MacRitchie laughed. “Of course!” He gestured for them to follow. “I believe ye’ve contracted with Dougal MacIvor to take ye to the far side of the island. Is that right?”
“That’s correct,” Nathaniel said. “We’re departing tomorrow.”
“About that,” Mr. MacRitchie said as he mounted the stairs. “Dougal took a load of lobsters down to London. Left on Tuesday, he did.”
Nathaniel frowned. “When will he return?”
“Monday, at the earliest.”
Kate’s thoughts scrambled. It was currently Thursday. She was dreading the prospect of spending even one night sharing a bedroom with Nathaniel. But four? How would she survive? “Is there anyone else who could take us?” she asked.
Mr. MacRitchie shook his head as he led them down a corridor.
“Nae. Going around the Butt of Lewis—the northernmost part of the island, ye ken—requires a boat of a certain size. There’s no one in the harbor at the moment who’s equipped to take ye.
” He slapped Kate on the back. “But dinnae look so glum. Ye’re naturalists, aye?
Well, we’ve plenty of nature for ye to observe near Stornoway.
We’ll find something to occupy ye for a few days. Do either of ye speak Gaelic?”
“We do not,” Nathaniel said. “I’ve spent the last nine years in Edinburgh. And Kit here hails from Yorkshire.”
“I figured as much.” Mr. MacRitchie stopped in front of one of the doors lining the corridor. “Ye’ll find some people who speak English here in Stornoway. But as soon as you get out of town, ye may have some trouble.”
“What would you suggest?” Nathaniel asked.
“While ye’re based here in Stornoway, ye’d better take my son, Murdo, with ye when ye go out,” the innkeeper said. “He’s ten. He can show ye where to find some animals as well.”
“That would be much appreciated,” Nathaniel said.
“Very good.” Mr. MacRitchie inserted the key into the lock. “I thought this room would be best for yer artist friend,” he said, inclining his head toward Kate. “A little more light. What do ye think?”
Nathaniel made a sound of pleasure as he stepped inside. “This will do nicely.”
Kate peered inside the doorframe. Blast. The room was relatively spacious, with a table big enough for four beneath a large, six-paned window.
But there was only one bed.
She heard Nathaniel’s footsteps on the floorboards. “Is there any chance of a bath?”
Mr. MacRitchie cringed apologetically. “That’ll be difficult at the moment, as we’re in the middle of preparing dinner. But I’ll have an ewer of warm water sent up.”
“Thank you,” Nathaniel said.
Just then, four sailors arrived, bearing their trunks. Mr. MacRitchie stepped out of the doorway so they could enter.
Kate gulped, then followed him out into the corridor.
She dropped her voice low. “Mr. MacRitchie, sir, is there any chance I could get a separate room?” Kate had plenty of the pin money her brother-in-law, Jasper, allotted her squirreled away.
She never spent it on anything but art supplies, after all.
Whether it would be sufficient to cover the cost of a stay of unknown duration at an inn, she was unsure. But she had to try.
Alas, Mr. MacRitchie’s face fell. “Is the room not to yer liking?”
“The room is wonderful,” Kate hastened to reassure him. “It’s just that I”—she waved her hands, struggling to come up with an excuse—“snore. Loudly.”
“Ah. I see.” The innkeeper rubbed his ear. “Thing is, we haven’t any other rooms free at the moment.”
Kate’s heart sank like zinc oxide pigment in water. “You haven’t?”
He shook his head. “I could check for next week, but I know we’re full at least through Tuesday.”
She stepped back as the four sailors exited the room, having finished their delivery. “Not even a garret in the attic, or—”
Mr. MacRitchie clapped her on the arm. “I’m afraid not. But I’m sure yer friend will manage to make do.” He stepped back. “Now, if ye’ll excuse me, I need to have that warm water sent up.”
He disappeared down the corridor, leaving Kate alone with her panic.
Tentatively, she stepped inside the door. What she saw made her want to rush back out again.
Nathaniel had kicked off his boots. His jacket, waistcoat, and cravat were hanging from a hat-stand next to the wash basin. He lay sprawled on the bed in his trousers and a loose shirt that hung open to his sternum.
She couldn’t seem to tear her eyes from the exposed vee of brown skin.
She would have thought that he would be…
hairier. Not that she was a great expert on the subject, but she had grown up in the country, and on a hot day, the laborers might remove their shirts, and she had also on occasion seen men bathing in the river, and most of them were quite—
“Are you going to shut the door?” Nathaniel asked, interrupting her train of thought.
“Yes! Of course!” She wheeled around and almost collided with a maid bearing a large ewer of steaming water. She also had a couple of white linen towels draped over her arm.
“Ah!” Nathaniel said brightly. Kate heard the bed creak, and then he was standing beside her, taking the ewer from the maid. “Thank you very much.”
“Ye’re welcome.” Her gaze dropped to Nathaniel’s chest for a beat, and she added in a rich voice, “Let me know if there’s anything else I can do for ye.”
Kate drew herself up, outraged, but Nathaniel did not seem to have noticed her suggestive tone. He was busy filling the washstand’s basin with warm water. Setting the ewer down, he pulled the hem of his shirt free from his trousers.
The maid was still standing there, looking a little too interested. “Thank you!” Kate said in a clipped voice, seizing the maid by the shoulder and propelling her toward the door. “We’ll send word if we need anything else.”
The maid leaned around Kate, trying to see. “Hold a moment. I—”
Kate shut the door in her face. Bracing herself, she turned to face the room.