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them.”
    “And what about girls like me?”
    “We haven’t had a girl like you before.” He took the glass out of my hands since I wasn’t drinking it. “So in this case, you’ll come with me and Captain Brown. This way, even if you don’t like me, you’ll be with someone who isn’t a stranger.”
    “How much longer is it until we dock?”
    He looked out the window. “Soon.”
    “How soon is soon?” The momen t it was out of my mouth, I heard the ship moan and then a shudder ran through it as we came to a stop.
    He looked back at me with a small smile. “Now.”
    “So, now what?”
    “We’ll wait a little bit for the crew to unload cargo and then we’ll leave.”
    How was it that he had time to sit in here with me all day, every day, and didn’t have to help with unloading or regular maintenance?  My father would never let any member of his crew get away with it. They’d be gone in the blink of an eye.
    “Is there anything I need to do?”
    “Well,” His focus went to something off to the side, and I followed his gaze to a box by the door I hadn’t noticed before. “It has been suggested…”
    “What has?” I sat up straighter.
    He looked back at me. “That you come off the ship wearing a dress.”
    I must have made some horrendous facial expression because he started to laugh. I turned back to him.
    “Are you serious?” I snapped.
    He stopped laughing quickly. “You’ll look just like everyone else and you won’t be bothered with strange stares and attention you don’t want.”
    “Absolutely not.” I folded my arms across my chest.
    “I thought you would agree,” he mumbled as he stood.
    I got to my feet too. “Why on earth would I agree to something like that?”
    He continued over to the box.
    “Did you hear me? I will not wear a dress. You cannot make me.”
    “Actually I can, but I don’t think you want me to.” He stopped at the box and pulled the lid off. I couldn’t see what was in it, but it was obvious that it was the dress in question. He pulled it out and shook it. It was a pale red color with a high neck. It looked fairly simple, but I still thought it was hideous.
    “No. I won’t do it.”
    He set it on a chair and walked back over to me. I straightened up; bracing myself for whatever it was he was going to do to me. He stopped right in front of me and locked his ey es on mine. I stared right back. I was waiting for a struggle or a hand grab or anything.
    “You’re a beautiful lady.”
    I blinked. Nobody had ever called me beautiful before, let alone a lady. “Excuse me?”
    “There is nothing to compare you to. Not a sunset over the ocean; not a lone flower in a field of dirt, although that one is slightly closer.” He tilted his head. “Why do you want to hide it?”
    I stepped back. I wasn’t sure how to take what he was saying, even though I knew he was just trying to convince me to put the dress on. I was quickly becoming flustered. “Stop that. I will not wear that dress, no matter what you say to me. Maybe to you I’m beautiful, but to me, I don’t see it nor do I care.”
    “Why not?”
    “I go around wearing men’s clothing on a regular basis. I’ve seen women in other towns, and I look nothing like them. I’m not beautiful.”
    “I think you are.”
    “I don’t care what you think.”
    He groaned. “Please just put it on?”
    “No.”
    He sighed again and lowered his head. He slowly took a step closer, and then another until he was so close I could feel his breath on my face. He lifted his eyes to catch mine, and I noticed he wore a softer expression. It was mesmerizing. “Please?”
    It took me more than a few seconds to realize that I was nodding. I quickly snapped out of it and shook my head instead. “I can’t.”
    “Why? What’s wrong with wearing a dress?”
    “I just can’t.”
    “Can you at least try it on? Would that really be a problem?”
    I tried to step back, but I was up against the bench. I sat down instead and