Megan's mate

she told Megan, and rushed to answer.

Feeling smug, Megan shut the door of her office. She was rubbing her hands together in anticipation as she crossed to her briefcase. She'd show Nathaniel Fury the true meaning of the word

shipshape.

Three hours later, she was interrupted by the thunder of little feet. Obviously, she thought even before her door crashed open, someone had given Kevin the directions to her office.

Hi, Mom!

He rushed into her arms for a kiss, and all thoughts of balancing accounts vanished from her mind.

We had the best time. We played with Sadie and Fred and had a war in the new fort. We got to go to Suzanna's flower place and water millions of plants.

Megan glanced down at Kevin's soggy sneakers.

And yourselves, I see.

He grinned.

We had a water battle, and I won.

My hero.

We had pizza for lunch, and Carolanne she works for Suzanna said I was a bottomless pit. And tomorrow Suzanna has to landscape, so we can't go with her, but we can go out on the whale boat if you want. You want to, don't you? I told Alex and Jenny you would.

She looked down at his dark, excited eyes. He was as happy as she'd ever seen him.

At that moment, if he'd asked if she wanted to take a quick trip to Nairobi and hunt lions, she'd have been tempted to agree.

You bet I do.

She laughed when his arms

flew around her and squeezed.

What time do we sail?

At ten o'clock sharp the next morning, Megan had her three charges on the docks.

Though the day was warm and balmy for June, she'd taken Suzanna's advice and brought along warm jackets and caps for the trip out into the Atlantic. She had binoculars, a camera, extra film.

Though she'd already downed a dose of motion-sickness pills, her landlubber's

stomach tilted queasily as she studied the boat.

It looked sturdy. She could comfort herself with that. The white paint gleamed in the sun, the rails shone. When they stepped on board, she saw that there was a large interior cabin ringed with windows on the first deck. For the less hearty, she assumed. It boasted a concession stand, soft-drink machines and plenty of chairs and benches.

She gave it a last longing look as the children pulled her along. They wouldn't settle for a nice cozy cabin.

We get to go to the bridge.

Alex strutted along importantly, waving to one of the mates.

We own the

Mariner.

Us and Nate.

Daddy says the bank owns it.

Jenny scrambled up the iron steps, a red ribbon trailing from her hair.

But that's a joke. Dutch says it's a crying shame for a real sailor to haul around weak-bellied tourists. But Nate just laughs at him.

Megan merely lifted a brow. She had yet to meet the infamous Dutchman, but Jenny, clever as any parrot, would often quote him word for word. And all too often, those words were vividly blue.

We're here.

Alex burst onto the bridge, breathless with excitement.

Kevin, too.

Welcome aboard.

Nathaniel glanced up from the chart he was studying. His eyes fastened unerringly on Megan's.

I was expecting Holt.

He's helming the

Queen.

He picked up his cigar, clamped it between his teeth, grinned.

Don't worry, Meg, I won't run you aground.

She wasn't concerned about that. Exactly. In his black sweater and jeans, a black Greek fisherman's cap on his head and that gleam in his eye, he looked supremely competent. As a pirate might, she mused, upon boarding a merchant ship.

I started

on your books.

There, she thought, the ground was steady under her feet.

I figured you would.

They're a disorganized mess.

Yeah. Kevin, come on over and take a look. I'll show you where we're heading.

Kevin hesitated, clinging to his mother's hand another moment. But the lure of those colorful charts was too much for him. He dashed over, dozens of questions tripping off his tongue.

How many whales will we see? What happens if they bump the boat? Will they shoot water up from that hole on their back? Do you steer the boat from way up here?

Megan started to interrupt and gently tell her son not to badger Mr. Fury, but Nathaniel was already answering questions, hauling Jenny up on one hip and taking Alex's finger to slide over the lines of the chart.

Pirate or not, she thought with a frown, he had a way with children.

Ready to cast off, Captain.

Nathaniel nodded to the mate.

Quarter speed astern.

Still holding Jenny, he walked

to the wheel.

Pilot us out of here, sailor,

he said to her, and guided her eager hands.

Curiosity got the better of Megan. She inched closer to study the instruments. Depth sounders, sonar, ship-to-shore radio. Those, and all the other equipment, were as foreign to her as the cockpit of a spaceship. She was a woman of the plains.

As the boat chugged gently away from the docks, her stomach lurched, reminding her why.

She clamped down on the nausea, annoyed with herself. It was in her mind, she insisted. A silly, imaginary weakness that could be overcome through willpower.