Her Very Strict Captain by Carpenter, Maggie (best book club books of all time TXT) 📗

“A couple of days ago, Peter Griswald was arrested on child pornography charges.”

“Who’s Peter Griswald?” Rosemary asked, leaning across the table.

“He’s an extremely wealthy man who owns a software company in Silicon Valley,” Elizabeth answered, slowly retrieving another photograph from the envelope. “This was found on his computer. He’s pictured with the two missing girls. Rosemary, the hills in the background have been identified. The picture was taken in Santa Barbara.”

“Dios ten piedad…” Rosemary muttered under her breath.

“I’m sorry, Rosemary, I don’t speak Spanish.”

“God have mercy,” Rosemary breathed, still staring at the image.

“Girls are being abducted off the streets near your charity, and if they’re being sent to the brothel your son owns in Santa Barbara, their fate is in your hands. Please, for them, tell me where it is.”

“Si,” she whispered, snatching up the picture. “370 Vista Drive. It was an abandoned convent. There are high walls, armed guards, but you must save my girls!”

“I will,” Elizabeth said earnestly, “but Rosemary, I have to ask, why would you send women into sexual slavery?”

“Don’t you see? It hurt the men,” she exclaimed, her voice rising. “Stop wasting time. Save my girls!”

“I’m on my way.”

Quickly rising to her feet and hurrying out the door, Scott closed and locked it behind her, then threw his arms around her.

“Damn, you did it. You were brilliant.”

“She’s so damaged,” Elizabeth said, grateful for the hug.

“Yeah, she is, but you just saved all those women.”

“Scott, I want to do more,” she said solemnly, pulling back and staring up at him. “I want to get back to work and help you catch as many bad guys as I possibly can.”

He smiled down at her. “Frank wants you on my team.”

“He does? What did you tell him?”

“Try and stop me.”

* * *

Two months later

Elizabeth had moved into Scott’s home above Coral Bay, and he couldn’t imagine life without her. Though she was still learning the ropes, literally on his yachts, and figuratively with the team, she had a natural aptitude for sailing, and soaked up information like a sponge. It was the middle of a relatively slow morning at the sailing school when she called and asked him to join her at the safehouse.

“I didn’t know you were going to the island?”

“I have a surprise,” she said excitedly. “Can you get here around three o’clock?”

“I think I can manage that.”

“Great, call me when you’re ready to drop anchor at the beach.”

“Will do,” he replied, picturing her waiting in a salacious outfit lounging seductively on the bed.

The hours passed much too slowly, and as finally he set sail he was wishing he was in a speedboat, but the trip to the island was idyllic. As he entered the cove, he lifted his phone from his pocket and called her.

“Hi,” she said breathlessly.

“You sound like you’ve been running.”

“I’m just excited,” she replied. “You need to motor about a hundred yards east.”

“Okay…” he said, tickled by the intrigue as he followed her directions. “What are you up to?”

“You’ll find out in a minute. Stop there, that’s perfect,” she exclaimed, “and up is the operative word. Look over at the cliff.”

Lifting his gaze, he spied a lone figure standing on a narrow ledge.

“What the—are you crazy? Get off there.”

“That’s the plan,” she replied with a giggle. “I’m on the plateau. It’s not as scary as it looks from down there.”

Hastily grabbing his binoculars, he discovered she was wearing a swimsuit, goggles, and a swim cap.

“No!” he yelled, abruptly realizing she planned to dive. “Don’t! You can’t. The water’s too shallow.”

“I’ve followed the tides. It’s perfect. Here I go!”

His heart in his mouth and holding his breath, he watched her leap into the air. A moment later her body miraculously twisted, then formed a perfect dart and disappeared into the ocean.

Terrified something might have happened to her, he hastily steered the boat toward her entry point, but her head suddenly broke the surface. Her expression was jubilant as she waved him over.

“That was fantastic,” he exclaimed as she climbed on board, “but you can never, ever scare me like that again.”

“Anything’s easy if you know how to do it, like you sailing through a storm.”

“You so need to be—”

“Don’t say it!” she said, breaking into a laugh as she wrapped her soaked body around him.

“You’re right, why waste words,” he retorted, grinning as he bustled her into the salon and dropped down on the bench seat.

“Scott, will you please just wait a second? I have something to tell you. It’s important.”

“You can talk while I spank your ass.”

“No, you have to listen,” she said urgently, sitting next to him. “I’ve been wanting to do that dive for you ever since I was on that plateau with Danny, I just never got around to it, but a couple of days ago I got some news, and I realized if I didn’t do it soon…”

“Hey, baby, what’s wrong?”

Catching her breath, she stared at him, her eyes wide. “You’ve never called me that before.”

“Uh… it just felt right.”

“That’s so weird.”

“Why?”

“Our roll of the dice…”

He paused.

The phrase registered.

His heart leapt.

“Are you saying…?”

“Yeah, we’re going to have a baby.”

* * *

For a single, fleeting, terrifying moment, Elizabeth thought he was horrified, but abruptly jumping to his feet, he lifted her up and spun her around.

“We have to celebrate, but no champagne for you,” he exclaimed, setting her on her feet. “Shit. I’ll be right back,” he suddenly muttered, turning and heading for the cabin. “Stay there, I’ve got something for you.”

Curious and excited, she sat down to wait, but he reappeared empty-handed.

“When you said you had a surprise and wanted to stay in the safehouse overnight, I made a decision,” he said, sitting back down. “Elizabeth, you know I love you, but I also love living with you. I love sleeping with you, I love waking up next to you, I even love watching a corny movie on television if you’re with me, so, uh, I bought you this,” he finished, reaching