As she straightened, a beautiful blond lady in a lilac gown stopped in her tracks at the edge of the ballroom. Her eyes widened, and her mouth fell open, just for a second before she clamped it shut again, almost the picture of ladylike restraint.

Oh dear, with that hair and the delicate features, she had to be Governor deLacy’s daughter. Hadn’t Barrels said deLacy would be dangling her as a carrot before the officers?

The woman stiffened, glared at Vice, and spun on her heel, stalking away into the crowd.

Bad luck, Miss deLacy—this officer was taken.

With a feline smile, Vice slid her gaze back to said officer. “So, Captain Blackwood, what brings you to the shores of Xaymaca?”

“A woman.”

Blast. She raised her eyebrows in question, and his cheeks flushed.

“Not in the way you might imagine. She’s a pirate—perhaps you’ve heard of her. Even back in Albion, she’s rather notorious.”

Her throat constricted with the threat of a laugh. Oh, this was just too—

“They call her Lady Vice.”

Of course they did. She chuckled, shaking her head.

He cleared his throat. “Though I’d wager that isn’t her real name.”

She scoffed and drained the rest of her punch. “You’re the pirate hunter.” She’d come to find him, hadn’t she?

Damn the gods and the Lords and Ladies, they had sent her a truly tempting huntsman.

Blackwood

Knigh Blackwood eyed Lady Lyons as she finished her drink, gulping the last mouthfuls in a most unladylike way.

An odd woman. Alluring with her wide eyes and easy smile. And yet she was far more forward than society allowed. Perhaps she was from Lunden. He’d heard the ladies there enjoyed a different lifestyle to those in the country—and as a widow, albeit a young one, she had the independence unmarried ladies didn’t. Maybe that was it.

She’d said other strange things, though. She knew ships, she knew the sea. Her bright turquoise eyes, the colour of the clear, shallow waters around the island, had lit up when she’d spoken about the movement on a ship compared to the dull, deathly existence inside ballrooms. Life on board didn’t agree with many ladies.

Something about the pink gown was incongruous. Her hair had been pinned up in a style that showed off her high cheekbones, pointed chin, and the bare skin of her neck. The deep aquamarine of her teardrop-shaped earrings and necklace set off her tanned complexion. With that dark hair and bright eyes, she’d suit vibrant colours. So why choose a pale pink when she’d made every other choice about her appearance so expertly?

She raised her eyebrows at him, their arch impish.

Damn, he was staring. He dragged his gaze away and lifted the glass to his lips. Empty.

Get a grip, Knigh.