All's Fair

By Gabriella Mahoney

Part 1 of the Island Temptress story.

The dashing Captain Stephen Garrott has never known bad luck until the fateful day his ship is attacked and run ashore by French privateers. His crew is dead and he is stranded on an island full of savages. With his uncertain fate hanging in the balance the last thing he expects to find is the woman of his dreams...

This short novelette is approximately 15,000 words.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Gabriella Mahoney
• Release date: Nov 10, 2014
• ISBN: 9781311756947

Gabriella Mahoney

Gabriella Mahoney is a California girl that has been writing since grade school. As an incurable bookworm, she remembers when her best friend first introduced her to Georgette Heyer and the world of Regency romance like it was yesterday. Gabriella likes to write in a variety of genres but she is especially fond of short form fiction and exploring the new romantic possibilities it creates.

Book preview

All’s Fair

Part 1 of the Island Temptress Story

By Gabriella Mahoney

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Published by Gabriella Mahoney at Smashwords

Copyright 2014 Gabriella Mahoney

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

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Chapter 1

May 1st, 1803

It was a miserable morning. The dawn sunlight could not pierce the clouds that seemed to be ever present around the English Channel. Cold waves slapped themselves against the sides of the boat as it sliced through the water at a steady clip. But the gloom of her surroundings could not penetrate Clara Bursnell’s mood. Each bitingly icy breath she took in seemed to hint at the promise of adventure.

She turned from her perch on the deck when she heard the dull thud of boots approach from behind. Her father nodded an absent minded good morning to her and then stood there, tall and erect, as he starred off into the undistinguishable horizon. Captain Edward Bursnell’s alert blue eyes—a color that matched Clara’s own—missed nothing about the surroundings. Every crewman and every gust of wind was accounted for and later documented in his meticulous logbooks.

This life suited Captain Bursnell. It probably would have suited Clara had she been born a boy but for an entirely different reason. Clara’s father was a man who appreciated routine and order. Being in command of one of his majesty’s ships where his will was as good as the law suited him like a well-made glove. Captain Bursnell’s knack for strategy along with an almost obsessive attention to detail when it came to his ship allowed the otherwise obscure baron to rise to some prominence. Young men waited for years to be assigned to his command.

Clara had always thought it a bit ironic that everything that made Captain Bursnell such a good captain and sailor were the same qualities that made him lack as a father. The captain could best be described as disinterested when it came to his family. He married Clara’s mother during peacetime. Though he had never spoken the words out loud, Clara had long suspected that his decision to marry was a result of boredom rather than love.

Still, Clara had little reason to complain. Her father had been absent during most of her childhood but his occupation supplemented the income from his property nicely, allowing his family to have a comfortable if not lavish mode of living. Clara had lacked for nothing save adventure at her quiet home in the country.

But what a thing it is to crave adventure!

Her acquaintance always laughed and her mother had simply frowned every time Clara expressed an interest in travel. To have her world so defined and restricted was the worst sort of prison. More than anything she longed to see the world. Her friends had always seemed content with the endless series of teas, supper parties, picnics and balls. But Clara knew that there had to be more to life. She used to hate her father for his refusal to take her on his voyages. Though she understood that his line of work was dangerous, it didn’t change the fact that she was denied those experiences merely because of her sex.

At least, that was the opinion of her younger, rebellious self. At nineteen she now had the sense to see the error of her ways. Captain Bursnell, in his distant way, had only done what any father would do. A woman had no place on board the deck of a warship. Clara was infinitely better off staying on dry land and spending her time finding a suitable husband.

All that had changed three weeks ago.

Clara shared her father’s stout constitution but her mother had always been a frail creature. Clara could not remember a time when her ailing parent had actually been healthy for more than a few weeks at a time. Her mother only ever recovered enough to be susceptible to the next bout of illness.

This frailty eventually caught up