A day full of surprises
After Connor had told Consuela that he would accept the rank of Master and Mentor, they decided that the ceremony should take place soon. Connor had planned three weeks for the full repair of the Aquila and as soon as she could return to sea, we would finally sail home. So the date for the ceremony was set at this time. The last week of July, to be precise. I could hardly believe how long we had been here. At the end of April, I had received Consuela's letter and at the beginning of May Emily and I had arrived here. This was more than two months ago and we would be so much richer in memories when we came home. In memories, titles and family members. At least almost.
I still hadn't told Connor about the baby. After he had told me that he was going to be Mentor soon, it had suddenly appeared so random to mention that he could also call himself a father of two soon. No, I was still waiting for the right moment and took my time to plan it, if you could even call it that. I just tried to imagine, how I could tell Connor and how he could react to it. It wasn't as easy as I had thought, but one day I got the idea of how to tell him the happy news in a special, but hopefully not too romantically cheesy way. I came up with it when Olivia and I visited a tailor in Havanna, who had been secretly equipping the Assassins for years now. After all, even members of the Brotherhood needed clothes and this was the reason why I had turned to her. Two weeks had passed since our conversation by the waterfalls and the ceremony would take place two days from now. A week ago I had talked Connor into giving me his robes when I had accompanied him to Havanna. Officially I intended to have it mended because I didn't want him to make an oath or whatever in a tattered coat. Inofficially it was supposed to be the sample for a new one. Not a replacement, because I knew how much the old robes meant to Connor. I rather hoped that he would see it as an alternative and on top of that, I didn't want the new robes to be too different from the first.
I had asked Lucille, the tailor, to keep the cut as good as possible. Also because I liked it on Connor very much. It was perfectly fitted for him. Simply elegant but still it underlined its owner's desire for freedom. His strength and yes, also his deadliness. The old robes were made for Connor and that was why the new ones shouldn't be any different. What was good already, didn't need to be changed. I had only allowed myself to choose a different colour. I had never understood why white was the traditional colour of choice among the Assassins. It was terribly striking and I always wondered how Connor managed to disappear in the crowds anyway. Still, I had chosen a different colour for these robes.
When I entered the shop with Olivia and Emily by my side, to get them, I was very excited. On the one hand, I was curious to see what Lucille had created and on the other hand, I hoped that Connor would be at least a bit happy about the new piece of clothing and wouldn't refuse it entirely. While Lucille went into the back of her shop to get it, I couldn't stop myself from having a look around. Right by the entrance I had noticed a small mannequin, which was wearing a beautiful blue muslin dress with embroidered vines and blossoms and quilling on the sleeves. It was a very delicate piece, rather made for the church on Sundays than everyday life in this quite simple town. It was love at first sight, but unfortunately, it was still too large for Emily and I had no use for it. She would never wear it and even if she would, it wouldn't stay intact for long. So I could only let one of the sleeves slide through my fingers sighing, to admire the wonderful quality of the fabric, before turning to the display on one of the nearby shelves. There were simple, long undershirts, bodices and bonnets for children and for the first time, I did not only think of Emily, but also the baby. With a dreamy smile on my lips and one hand on my still inconspicuous belly, I grabbed one of the shirts on top of a pile of similar pieces. It was so tiny that I couldn't imagine anymore, that it would fit a babe. I could hardly remember Emily being so small. They grew too quickly.
Sighing I folded the shirt again and put it back as I was called to the counter by Olivia. Lucille had returned with the robes. She put it tidily over a mannequin that couldn't fill the area around the shoulders. Right at first glance, I knew that Lucille had copied the measurements of the old robes perfectly. I had held and seen them on their owner often enough to assess that. But I especially admired the work the tailor had put into the whole piece which was so close to the original. Lucille had managed to copy the lapels, trimming and even the embroidery on the sleeve. They were the same robes but in a different colour and made of a lighter, but not less sturdy fabric. Dark blue with dark red accents. The lapels were light brown, just like I had chosen. I thought the colours were beautiful and was sure that they would suit Connor. After all, I always adored him in his Captain robes.
"This is beautiful work, Lucille," I breathed while still admiring the robes with shining eyes and running my fingertips over the embroidery on the sleeve. It was perfect. Everything was perfect. Better than I could have imagined. "Gracias. Thank you so, so much."
The Spanish-speaking woman didn't need Olivia to translate. She smiled pleased and gave me a benevolent nod. You are welcome.
After shortly regarding the goods, I decided to buy Connor a few new shirts as well. His whole wardrobe had seen better times, but I had never dared to hope that he would allow me to invest money into a new one. Especially since he thought that clothes didn't need to be replaced as long as you could mend them. He just tended to forget that I was the one, who was struggling not to make his clothes look like rags every time. So I chose two simple linen shirts, just like the ones he always wore and another one, made of a lighter fabric. Perfect for the warmer seasons. While Lucille wrapped the clothes, my eyes wandered to Emily, who was roaming through the shop and stopped at the shelf where I had regarded the tiny shift for a baby. At this moment, I knew how to surprise Connor with the joyful news.
"Wait," I asked Lucille with a movement of my hand and hurried to the shelf to take the shirt. I smiled when I touched the soft fabric and indicated to Lucille, that she should put it between the second and the third shirt, which she had just wanted to wrap in paper. She appeared confused at first, just like Olivia, but did as I asked. After I had paid her, I thanked her again and was incredibly happy when we left the shop with our rich haul.
"Do you think, Connor will be pleased with your purchase?" Olivia asked me and I was surprised that she didn't ask me about the shirt for the baby since no one, except for Sabana, knew about it, yet. But I could only shrug at her question while smiling at the same time. I didn't know what he would say about the shirts and especially the robes, but he would certainly be happy about the much smaller shirt and the reason I bought it. Very happy.
On the whole way back to the Aquila, I felt an anticipating but nervous heartthrob and butterflies in my stomach and even quickened my steps when I saw the ship's masts. It lay in a separated pier that had been nearly drained with an obscure construction made of stones and tarred wooden boards. The Aquila rested on some kind of scaffold and was fastened at several spots by impressive ropes so that she wouldn't get unstable while the men worked on her. In the normally uneventful harbour, the ship was a real attraction. Many stopped on their way past and watched curiously, how men, secured by ropes, climbed down to the hole in the ship's side to close it. A work that took longer than expected. But the hole was quite big and Connor had explained to me, that it wasn't easy to repair it unfailingly. Whole planks needed to be removed and replaced and these replacements had to be fitted correctly so that everything got in place like it needed to. I didn't understand anything about this work and trusted that it was done perfectly and that no one got hurt in the process. Sometimes it made me uneasy to see the men climbing around the ship.
Also today some spectators had gathered close to the Aquila, but most peculiar was a group of young women, standing by the pier, giggling and chatting while glancing at the Aquila. They were prostitutes who often roamed the harbour to lure in men with their dancing and singing like sirens. Now it was obvious that they were the ones lured here and I found the bait when we reached the women and I could look past them to the ship. This time it was Connor, who had tied a rope, wrapped in cloth to protect his skin, around his hips to climb down to the hole, where he nailed up a board with strong hammer blows. Because of the heat, he had taken off his shirt, like many of the other working men, and even from the distance, you could see the powerful play of his muscles under the dark skin that shimmered in the sun like bronze. Even the nasty scars that were much lighter than the rest of his skin, couldn't destroy this alluring fascination this sight caused not only in me. Suddenly I felt much warmer and even the fluttering in my stomach had grown and spread through my whole body, while I swallowed several times to get rid of this dry feeling in my mouth. It was crazy. I had fallen in love with the whole soul of this man, had spent four years with him, had seen him quite often with much less on his body than now and still, there were moments like this that left me headless and made me stare at him as if I was dying of thirst and he was an oasis in the desert. It was so ridiculous and it was even more ridiculous that I was bothered by the fact that I wasn't the only one staring at him like that. That these women had gathered here like vultures and drooled over him. It was ridiculous that I felt like a wolf protecting its territory. Especially when I noticed that Olivia stood next to me, with her head cocked and pulling her lip through her teeth while watching Connor grabbing for the board that was let down to him.
"I think we can go on," I said, sharper than necessary. "The pier isn't here for gawking."
Olivia's brow snapped up and the amused look in her blue eyes turned at me while I was already walking towards the ship and Connor.
"Oh, my apologies," the young woman said theatrically and mockingly. "There I was: Thinking you were enjoying the view as well."
"Because I am entitled to it." I adjusted the package with the robes in my arms, only to appear as casual as my words had sounded. But Olivia laughed.
"I didn't know you were so jealous about food."
"Food?" Now I was the one arching my brows while feeling incredibly foolish. Foolish and caught.
"Well, as if you had a plate full of delicacies in front of you which you are shielding with your arms so that no one can take something from you." Olivia grinned cheekily and after I had stared at her for a while, lost for words, I couldn't help but laugh. This conversation was so absurd and the worst thing was, that she wasn't entirely wrong. Shaking my head I turned my eyes back to Connor, who was still concentrating on his work. We had almost reached him and so I wanted to turn this topic down as quickly as possible.
"Well," I started and gave Olivia the most disarming smile I was capable of. "Maybe it is time for you to find your own plate to eat from."
The look Olivia gave me was priceless. I had managed to leave the young woman speechless. At least for a short moment because she quickly broke out in loud laughter that made Emily stop in surprise and look at Olivia with wide eyes.
"Lillian Kenway! I never thought you were capable of saying something like that, increíble."
I just smirked and stopped to caress Emily's head who was still looking up at me in confusion, the package with the shirts pressed against her chest. Until now, she had carried it proudly and as if she had forgotten it for a moment, she seemed to remember her important task and kept waddling beside me, as if nothing had happened. We had almost reached Connor who was still busy with his work and hadn't noticed our approach, yet. That was a good thing because when we were already within earshot, Olivia leaned over to me and murmured: "But does that mean, you're comparing Connor with dirty dishes?"
Her cheeky grin reached from one ear to the other and would have made me utter an indignant laugh if I hadn't been able to suppress this impulse. So I just shook my head grinning, as Olivia continued to walk over to the plank, while Emily and I stopped at the edge of the pier. I needed to compose myself, before clearing my throat to carefully make Connor aware of us. I didn't want him to hit his hand with the hammer instead of the nail. Luckily he didn't as he paused and glanced at us over his shoulder.
"You are back already?" he asked and turned his eyes to the sky to assess the position of the sun. It seemed like he had lost his sense of time. We had explored the town two or three hours before visiting Lucille.
"It shouldn't keep you from your work, though." I watched Connor pushing the hammer into his belt and grabbing the rope with one hand to turn to us. His gaze brushed the gawking group of prostitutes, who seemed more attentive than before.
"Do they not notice that they would be more successful somewhere else?" he mumbled and I smirked since it seemed like he wasn't aware why these ladies were standing there, more attentive than before. But I decided not to say anything. Instead, I nodded towards the shrinking hole and said: "When you're done here, could I talk to you in private? I wanted to show you something."
"Of course." Connor nodded. "Go ahead into the cabin. Or shall I take something off your hands?"
Smirking he looked at Emily who just readjusted the package in her short arms with a huff. But it didn't look like she was going to give it away anytime soon.
"We can manage." I smiled and ran my hand through the black locks of our daughter and after Connor had nodded at me again, we made our way to the deck while the regular strikes of the hammer indicated that he had continued his work.
In the cabin, I put the heavy package with the robes onto the desk, released Emily from her load and put this package down as well. Pulling my bottom lip through my teeth, I thought about which surprise I wanted to start with. With the one he would certainly be happy with, to pave the way for the more critical one? Or the latter at first to brighten his mood if necessary?
"Mama."
I raised my head and saw Emily standing by the dresser, where she pointed at the bottle of water and the cups that were only waiting to offer some refreshment in these temperatures. I pushed the package with the shirts aside for now, before walking to her to pour her and myself. She grabbed her cup with both hands and emptied it in greedy gulps, only to almost drop it coughing.
"Slow down, Emily," I said, shaking my head and kneeling down to gently pat her back. She coughed a few more times but had hardly recovered when she already stretched her cup out to me.
"Want more."
I cocked my head and would have reprimanded her for this demand and the missing "Please", but I had to laugh about this situation so that every reprimand would have been unnecessary.
"But drink carefully," I said anyway and waited for her nod, before handing her the second cup of water. At this moment, the door opened and Connor entered, his discarded shirt hanging over his arm. Face and chest were covered in sweat and I wordlessly handed him my cup when he stepped to us. He needed it more than I did.
"Thank you." He smiled flatly and put the cup to his lips to drink in slow, regular swallows. Emily, still drinking as well, watched him like a hawk as if she wanted to see if it wasn't legitimate to gulp down one's drink after all. Again her sight made me laugh and Connor smirked, too, when he lowered his eyes to his daughter and ran his hand through her hair. "What is it, Tsiktsinenná:wen?"
Emily cocked her head and sounded almost precocious when she said: "Drink slow, Baba."
I covered my mouth with my hand to cover the silent snort that escaped my lips and had to keep myself from giggling or laughing because Emily was entirely serious about her scolding.
"Oh, really?" Connor kneeled in front of the little one. "Did I not?"
She shook her head and Connor put his cup back to his lips, only to tilt it exaggeratedly slowly and take a sip. "Like that?"
Emily nodded and appeared pleased with herself, especially when her father leaned forward to kiss her forehead with a smirk. To see them together like this was heartwarming and I shortly laid my hand on my belly, when I imagined how loving he would be with our second child, as soon as he knew about it.
"What did you want to talk about?"
I winced when Connor's voice tore me out of my daydream and felt my cheeks blushing while my caught mind slipped from one thought to the other. Talk? Now? About what? Ah, yes…
Clearing my throat I pointed vaguely at the desk, where the robes and shirts were waiting to be unpacked.
"I wanted to show you something," I explained and went to the desk to take the package with the robes inside. With the thick paper and the weight in my hands, I got nervous again and shifted from one leg onto the other, while giving Connor an undecisive look. He appeared attentive and also curious.
"Do you remember that I brought your robes to the tailor?"
He nodded. "Of course. To have it mended."
I nodded, too, rather hesitantly. "But the real reason was…" I paused and then shook my head sighing. "Just have a look."
Connor questioningly raised a brow as he grabbed the package I handed him. He didn't seem to guess at all, what I had done, while he opened the strings that held the paper agonizingly slowly. Suddenly my nervousness turned into doubts that I had done the right thing. After loosening the strings, Connor stepped to the desk to place the package on it and unpack it. I chewed on my bottom lip and even held my breath for a moment when Connor finally flipped the paper open and revealed the robes. He frowned before lifting them by the shoulders and unfolding them. Except for Emily's quiet babbling coming from the sleeping area, where her doll had been waiting for her, it was unbearably silent in the cabin. Connor's look slowly ran over the robes and I cursed him for making it so difficult to guess his thoughts. His face revealed nothing and it made me even more nervous than I was anyway. In the sudden urge to say something, I took an audible breath and began to explain.
That I didn't intend to replace his old robes. That I knew how many memories were connected to it, but that I had thought that it couldn't be so wrong to have a second option at hand. Also because I had no idea how often I would be able to mend them. When my flood of words had ended, Connor lowered the robes and looked at me.
"Why did you not tell me?"
"Because it was supposed to be a surprise. For your appointment. But you don't have to wear it if you don't want to." I had murmured the last sentence. Once again I noticed how hard it was for me, to suggest changes to Connor. I always feared he could feel pressured into one direction without it being my intention. However, this was only about a piece of clothing that was now spread on the desk by Connor to have another close look at it. He ran his fingertips over the fabric, the lapels and the embroidery.
"They are very similar to the old ones," he said. "A great work."
"So you like them?"
Connor raised his eyes after my question which had sounded strikingly hopeful. He nodded lightly. "The colour is unusual, but yes. I like them."
He took the robes from the desk and put them on. I saw at first glance that they fitted like a glove and Connor noticed it as well when he rolled his shoulders, bent and stretched his arms and finally gave a pleased nod. "I feel no difference. Except that they are a bit lighter."
I smiled. Bit by bit, I lost my concern that Connor could refuse the robes. He appeared pleased, indeed and that was the least I had wanted to achieve. The new robes were a sight to get used to, but the colours suited him well.
"So you would wear them?"
Connor nodded. "Of course. Otherwise, all that work would have been for nothing, would it not?" He approached me and took my hand to slide it through his own. "Thank you."
"You're welcome," I smirked and reached out my hands to adjust the collar. An unnecessary effort since Connor would take the robes off anyway. He could hardly walk through this door in a coat with no shirt underneath and that was my cue.
"I got something else for you," I said quietly, my heart beating violently again. The next surprise was bigger and much more important. "I thought, while I'm already taking care of your wardrobe…" I gave him a cheeky smirk. "...I could get you some new shirts, too. You were in desperate need of them."
Connor huffed, probably because new shirts had been the least of his priorities. But I had known him for four years now, we had lived together for three of them and since then, only one new shirt had joined the two in his possession. It didn't matter that these shirts were the cover for another surprise.
"Open it." I shoved the second package towards him and chuckled when Connor yielded with a sigh and loosened the strings to open the package. He picked up the first shirt, unfolded it, regarded it, looked at the one underneath and nodded.
"I am sure you chose well," he said and put the shirt away. I pursed my lips. That didn't go as I had imagined it.
"Are you sure?" I asked and pointed at the stack. "There are three of them and I want to be sure that they fit."
Connor raised a brow. "Until now, you proved to have a good sense of proportion." Still, he finally grabbed the second shirt and picked it up. My heart skipped a beat as the shirt for the baby got revealed and Connor cocked his head when he noticed it. Then he chuckled, put the shirt in his hands aside and took the much smaller piece of clothing.
"I need to rectify. Are you sure, this will fit Emily?"
Well, I hadn't expected him to know immediately what I wanted to say with the shirt. So I shrugged and said: "No, it won't fit Emily. But it's not supposed to, anyway."
"Well, it will not fit me either."
Clever clogs.
"You are not supposed to put it on you."
Now I had managed to confuse Connor entirely. His face was a single question mark, even when I raised my eyebrow meaningfully because I hoped he would slowly understand. Normally he wasn't so slow-witted. Well, it seemed like today was an exception. So he needed another push in the right direction.
"I'm pretty sure it will fit," I said and took the shirt from him. Cocking my head and with a growing smile, I held it in front of my belly and asked: "Or don't you think?"
The confusion on Connor's face remained for a while longer so I was close to giving up and confronting him with the joyous news. But I didn't have to. Suddenly his eyes grew wide and his lips parted as he took a sharp breath. He stared at the shirt which I was still holding in front of my belly, while my smile turned into a beam. Yes, he had understood.
"Are you saying that we…I mean that you…" Connor ran his hand over his face and seemed to be unsure about what to say. As if he feared he could be and say something wrong. But when I kept smiling at him and nodded encouragingly, he composed himself. "You are pregnant?"
I nodded again and found myself in a firm embrace, that lifted me onto the tip of my toes and coaxed a laugh from me. It was such a relief to finally have told and share my joy and happiness with him. I didn't care that his chest was covered in sweat. I was too enthralled by the smile he gave me. A smile full of joy, love and with shining eyes.
"For how long do you know?"
"Since we were at the fort. After you kicked out the doctor. At least that was the first time it came to my mind."
A chuckle escaped Connor's lips as he nodded slowly. "The upset stomach."
"The upset stomach." I grinned confirmingly and laughed loudly when Connor grabbed my hands and led them to the back of his neck so that my arms were resting on his shoulders and my feet lost touch with the ground again. But Connor had wrapped his arms tightly around me and held me as he lifted me until he was the one looking up to me and I simply had to lean forward to place my lips on his. He returned the kiss passionately and made every spoken word unnecessary. We dwelled in this special moment of happiness, not thinking about what was behind, or ahead of us in the near future. Worries and uncertainty didn't matter right now. Only we mattered and I enjoyed it to the fullest.
But even when there was a knock on the door and Faulkner stepped inside, I wasn't thrown off the cloud I was floating on. Connor gently put me back on my feet but didn't pull away from our embrace. Even when Faulkner regarded his strange attire with confusion, before smirking and pointing at the open door behind him.
"Well...I don't mean to interrupt, but we need you outside, Captain."
"You do not interrupt anything." Connor cleared his throat and lowered his eyes to me. "Lillian just...told me something wonderful."
I could read the question in his eyes. Should we tell others already? It was Bobby, so why not? Right now I felt so intoxicated that I would have wanted to shout it into the whole world, after keeping my secret for so long. Furthermore, Connor had awoken the old sailor's curiosity anyway. He looked back and forth between us almost demandingly and I just couldn't keep it to myself.
"We are expecting our second child," I said and beamed immediately. Had I ever stopped?
Faulkner's reaction to this news was almost as amusing as Connor's, although its course took an unexpected turn. After he had stared at us with wide eyes, he grinned and approached us, to pat Connor's back and put a hand on my shoulder, while telling us how happy he was for us. Then he abruptly turned around, marched to the cabin's door and shouted: "Gentlemen! Everybody listen! We got something to celebrate!"
"Oh, no." Connor was the first to get over his surprise while I still wasn't realizing what Faulkner was up to. I simply followed when Connor grabbed my hand and went after his first mate with wide steps, while he was already having the full attention of all the crewmembers present. I wasn't quite sure if he had already drunk too much, if he didn't cope with the sun or if he was just himself. Either way, it was blatantly obvious that Faulkner was in the perfect mood for a speech.
"We're sailing towards better times! The Aquila's flying again and as I just heard, our Captain and his lady are expecting again!"
So it was out and the hand Connor had reached out for Faulkner's shoulder was pulled back with a groan, that was drowned out by the cheering men. But while Connor felt uncomfortable in this situation, I couldn't help but laugh and let myself be pulled into a tight embrace by Faulkner, while the crewmembers came to us, one after another, to mostly pat Connor's shoulder, which amused me even more. As if he had accomplished something great. Men.
Still, I was glad that they only showered me with small gestures and best wishes, just like Olivia who hadn't joined the row of shoulder-pats but stayed smirking by the reiling. At this point, it was surprising how many of these rough shells had soft spots underneath. Something I had often witnessed with Emily. Although I hadn't planned for so many people to learn about my pregnancy at once, I enjoyed being surrounded by people who were as happy for Connor and me as we were. Even though right now, Connor made a rather strained than happy face.
I quietly closed the door behind me and left the guest house, to sit in the soft grass in front of the fence that separated me from the steep cliff, looking at the bay and yawning heartily. I was tired and could have stayed beside Emily after I had brought her to bed. But I wanted to wait for Connor's return. After we had come back from Havanna and had eaten dinner in the villa with the other Assassins, he wad walked back down to the harbour, where he had wanted to talk about the repairs to the part of the crew, who hadn't stayed with the Aquila.
My look wandered over the water, shimmering in the moonlight and sighing quietly, I pulled my legs up to my body and bedded my chin on my knees. The calm I felt was heavenly. I could recall the day and especially thought of the moment when I had told Connor about our second little mite, who I had decided to call by the old, loving nickname. It was hard to believe that it was only a few hours ago. But I wished I could end this special day with Connor by my side. Where was he? I turned my head and looked over my shoulder to the sparsely illuminated path, that led downhill to the villa. The usual sounds of the night surrounded me. The chirping insects in the grass and bushes, mingling with the distant crashing of the waves and distant voices. It was one of the typical warm nights I had gotten used to by now, but while I would have enjoyed sitting here and letting my thoughts wander, I didn't feel like it. I was just waiting for Connor to come up the path. But he didn't come. Someone else did.
I recognised Olivia's silhouette before she even stepped out of the shadows. When she saw me, she raised her hand in greeting and called out to me: "You're the one I was looking for."
"Connor isn't here anyway."
"I know." Olivia stopped in front of me and I saw the grin on her face. "I came here to tell you that you should better go and pick him up."
I raised a brow. "Pick him up? Since when does he not find the way back?"
"Since the crew made him toast your good news. I think he wanted to leave it at one ale, but then came the rum and he couldn't turn down the men…"
I began to guess what she wanted to tell me, but I couldn't believe it. Connor didn't drink. At least not more than said ale. That he had been talked into drinking more and the local rum at that…I couldn't believe it. Olivia's grin remained. Despite my scepticism.
"So you want me to believe that he doesn't find the way back because he's drunk?"
"Drunk as a skunk."
"Great. I want to see it before I believe it."
Olivia's grin widened and she waited until I had stood up, had patted the grass off my skirt and had made sure that Emily couldn't leave the house before we went down to the docks, where the island's tavern was located. Olivia seemed to be looking forward to whatever we were going to find there, but I still believed that she was playing a trick on me. Or I rather hoped so. But already from the distance we could hear the joyful commotion coming from the tavern. Shanties were bellowed and there was a lot of laughter going around. Not unusual for a night like this but I couldn't imagine Connor in the middle of it. He always backed down whenever his crew left for the harbour taverns. He simply wasn't that social and he especially didn't enjoy the company of drunk men. But when we came closer, I could clearly hear a familiar voice among the shanty singers. Not that I had ever heard Connor sing. At least not out loud and full-throated. He used to sing quiet songs in his mother tongue to Emily, but this singing had nothing to do with the way he was now chanting the sometimes coarse texts of the shanties.
When we approached the tavern and climbed the few stairs to the terrace, I couldn't only hear, but see Connor. He was sitting around a table with most of his crew, a jug in his hand and loudly performing the lines of "Billy Riley". The air was filled with their singing and the rhythmic beating of their jugs on the table. Everyone was boisterous and joyful and it was somehow strange seeing Connor in such a mood. He was smiling from ear to ear. His cheeks were red from the alcohol, his eyes were shining and I had never heard this kind of loud laughter he uttered from time to time. It was obvious that he was drunk, but could I be mad about it? Could I be mad while Connor was in the best mood? Still, I knew he was going to regret this night tomorrow. Not only because of the headache was going to have. He always tried to keep his composure. He never allowed himself to lose control, especially not around others. Normally a reason more for him not to drink. But today, it seemed, his men had made him throw his resolutions overboard. He, the most respected Captain of the Aquila, had never been more part of the crew than now.
"I almost don't want to take him with me," I murmured and was heard by Olivia, who had watched the merriment as silently as me. But she didn't seem to understand what I had intended to say.
"I'm sure he can still walk. I mean, he stood straight the last time they toasted. He has no high tolerance, but he's keeping up." Grinning she looked at the men who had started to chant "Rolly, Boys, Roll". Shaking my head but smirking, I watched Connor singing along wholeheartedly. As if he had never done anything else. I hadn't even known that he knew the lyrics so well…at least he did until he noticed me. His expression brightened even more, he raised his jug in my direction and stopped his men's singing.
"There she is!" Connor called with a heavy tongue. "Come to me, Tiakení:teron." He moved his chair back and patted his lap. I raised a brow and wanted to refuse as some of the men agreed to Connor's request, grabbed my arm and towed me towards Connor. Before I knew it, I was sitting on his lap and he had wrapped his arms around me, a pleased expression on his face. A crooked smile appeared on his lips when he raised a hand to brush a strand of hair behind my ear. I wouldn't have minded the closeness and loving touch, but these weren't the right circumstances.
"Connor, please, I wanted to take you home. It seems like you already made the best of this night."
Connor cocked his head and grinned. "I did. I toasted us both."
"Yes, I…noticed." I could smell it, too.
Connor's grin widened and he turned to his men, raising his jug.
"Men, now that she's here, I would like to raise another glass to my gorgeous wife, who once again made me very happy. May she stay healthy, just like our child." His words found general approval and there was a sudden silence when the men took deep gulps from their jugs. Connor's jug was placed back on the table with a thud and he put his other arm around me, to fold his hands at my back and give me a wide smile. I was torn between the emotion his speech made me feel and a certain irritation because he was completely drunk. But I couldn't be angry.
"Can we go now?" I asked quietly and fleetly caressed his cheek, which made him close his eyes for a moment.
"Are you unwell?" he asked and despite his heavy tongue, you could clearly hear his concern. It seemed like the alcohol didn't change the care he always had for me. I smiled.
"I am well. I'm just tired but I was waiting for you to come back. Can I convince you to end…this?"
Connor blinked several times but finally nodded, released me from his embrace and stood up, after I had risen to my feet, as well. He staggered a bit but stayed upright. "Good night, men", he called. "I have to make sure that my wife gets home safely."
I raised a brow because I doubted that he was the one who had to escort me home. But I didn't say anything and bid farewell as we left the terrace. When we passed Olivia, who had stayed in a safe distance, I mouthed a silent "Thank you" and got a grin in answer.
We followed the dark path up to the villa and I kept glancing at Connor from the side. He seemed amazingly fine if you ignored his burly walk and the occasional stagger. I smirked. I had known him for more than four years now, but it seemed like I didn't know him well enough. I had never believed I could ever see him drunk. But at the same time, I knew that this was the first and last time and I was already looking forward to having my reserved, calm husband back.
Connor noticed my glances and grinned at me. "Wanna make sure that I don't fall?"
"Something like this, yes." I couldn't hold back a grin of my own but uttered an appalled scream when Connor suddenly leapt to the side, pushed an arm under my knees and picked me up.
"I'm perfectly able to walk, thanks for your concern," he laughed while I clung to him, terrified. I didn't doubt that he could walk, but he had stepped off the path for a moment and I was a bit scared that we were going to fall into the thicket, that was growing everywhere around the path.
"Connor, let me down," I demanded, but Connor's grin only widened when he looked at me.
"Forget it. I'll never let you down. I'll do anything for you. Just like I swore it."
"When did you swear this to me?"
"Not to you. To myself." Connor adjusted his grip around me, which made me cling to him even tighter. Scared I glanced down at the ground. If Connor dropped me, it was going to be a hard fall. But Connor didn't seem to notice my concern. He kept walking, his eyes directed forward and smiling.
"I swore it to myself just before we got married. When Faulkner and you came down the path and you smiled at me. I swore I'd do anything to make you happy after everything you did and gave up and I'll take this oath into my grave."
He said it so fullheartedly that I forgot for a moment, that he was drunk. Because he still meant it and it was too rare that he spoke openly about his feelings if he didn't tell me that he loved me. But when he did, it surprised me every time. Just like now. I didn't know what to reply and so I stared at him wordlessly until he put me down by the stairs to the villa and looked me over.
"Everything alright?"
I nodded slowly. "Yes, I…everything is fine." I smiled hesitantly and immediately saw a pleased expression on Connor's face. He kept following me, but when I climbed the stairs, he stopped on the first step and called me back.
"Why does no one say that the stairs are broken? Someone could get hurt."
I frowned in confusion. How could solid stone stairs be broken? But it seemed like Connor wanted to demonstrate it. He spread his arms like a bird spread its wings and started rocking his knees. I watched him with raised eyebrows.
"It's loose. It's shaking." He took the next step and uttered an indignant huff. "This one, too! Just imagine Emily falls down here."
Now I had to hold back a laugh. He couldn't be serious. "Connor, the stairs aren't broken. Believe me. The shaking…it's you."
A confused look, another rocking of his knees. "You sure?"
"Very." I chuckled. "Come now."
I waited until Connor had stopped his sceptical eyeballing of the stairs and watched him follow me very carefully. As if he feared they could give in after all. Of course, they didn't and Connor seemed relieved about it. The rest of our way passed without further incidents and when we finally entered our room, he seemed to be overwhelmed by exhaustion. He shuffled to our bed, dropped onto his knees and then onto the blankets. An appalled sound escaped my lips since the thud he caused sounded very concerning and had almost woken up Emily. But Connor simply hummed when he fell onto the metal parts of his weapons and the weapon belt and when I realized that he hadn't hurt himself, I laughed while turning on the lamp on the dresser.
"Sit up. You can't sleep like this." I kneeled beside him and waited for him to follow my order mumbling. Connor blinked several times and endured word- and motionlessly that I took off his weapons, freed him from his robes and shirt and finally unlaced his legging to slide off his moccasins. When he was only wearing his pants I allowed him to drop back onto our bed, where he rolled on his belly and buried his face in his pillow. I smirked while getting ready for the night and checking on sleeping Emily. When I lay down next to Connor minutes later, he was still awake but seemed close to the land of the dreaming. He lazily waited for me to turn off the light and spread the thin blanket over us. Only then he moved closer, put an arm around me and buried his head against my shoulder.
"Konnorónhkhwa, Tiakení:teron," he mumbled and bedded his hand on my belly. I smiled and lowered my lips to his black hair.
"I love you, too, Ratonhnhaké:ton."
Sober and drunk. But I kept this addition to myself. I ran my fingers through Connor's hair and smirked about the fact, that this was the first time he had cuddled up in my arms. Shortly afterwards, I heard him snore quietly.