The Captain Takes a Bride — Lily George

~Originally published in the Outwitting the Duke anthology~

Lord Richard Carew has just returned from his last ocean voyage with more cargo than expected â€" a fortune to call his own and a child entrusted to his care. Unsure if he should settle down or heed the call of the sea once more, he enlists the help of governess Laura Stephens to raise his young ward. As Laura quietly turns his house into a home and his ward into family, Richard wonders if perhaps his existence as a wandering rake is as appealing as it used to be.

Miss Laura Stephens has nothing to call her own â€" raised a penniless orphan, she must make her way in the world. Thanks to Captain Carew, she has a roof over her head and some measure of independence â€" as long as she doesn't do anything so foolish as to fall in love.