The Captain's Cornish Christmas

By Catherine Curzon and Eleanor Harkstead

For a lonely Cornish lifeboatman and an author who's more used to crime scenes than love scenes, this Christmas is going to be very merry indeed!

When Jago Treherne agrees to man the Polneath lifeboats one snowy Christmas, he knows he can forget turkey and all the trimmings.

Yet when he boards a seemingly empty yacht and stumbles upon sexy Sam Coryton enjoying an energetic afternoon below decks, Jago soon realizes that he might be unwrapping a very different sort of Christmas gift this year!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Pride Publishing
• Release date: Dec 11, 2018
• ISBN: 9781786516947

Catherine Curzon

Catherine Curzon is a royal historian who writes on all matters of 18th century. Her work has been featured on many platforms and Catherine has also spoken at various venues including the Royal Pavilion, Brighton, and Dr Johnson’s House. Catherine holds a Master’s degree in Film and when not dodging the furies of the guillotine, writes fiction set deep in the underbelly of Georgian London. She lives in Yorkshire atop a ludicrously steep hill.

Book preview

Authors

Pride Publishing books by Catherine Curzon & Eleanor Harkstead

Single titles

An Actor’s Guide to Romance

Captivating Captains

The Captain and The Cavalry Trooper

The Captain and The Cricketer

Pride Publishing books by Catherine Curzon

Anthology

I Need a Hero: The Angel on the Northern Line

Captivating Captains

THE CAPTAIN’S CORNISH CHRISTMAS

CATHERINE CURZON &

ELEANOR HARKSTEAD

The Captain’s Cornish Christmas

ISBN #978-1-78651-694-7

©Copyright Catherine Curzon & Eleanor Harkstead 2018

Cover Art by Cherith Vaughan ©Copyright December 2018

Interior text design by Claire Siemaszkiewicz

Pride Publishing

This is a work of fiction. All characters, places and events are from the author’s imagination and should not be confused with fact. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, events or places is purely coincidental.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any material form, whether by printing, photocopying, scanning or otherwise without the written permission of the publisher, Pride Publishing.

Applications should be addressed in the first instance, in writing, to Pride Publishing. Unauthorised or restricted acts in relation to this publication may result in civil proceedings and/or criminal prosecution.

The author and illustrator have asserted their respective rights under the Copyright Designs and Patents Acts 1988 (as amended) to be identified as the author of this book and illustrator of the artwork.

Published in 2018 by Pride Publishing, United Kingdom.

No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the authors’ rights. Purchase only authorised copies.

Pride Publishing is an imprint of Totally Entwined Group Limited.

If you purchased this book without a cover you should be aware that this book is stolen property. It was reported as unsold and destroyed to the publisher and neither the author nor the publisher has received any payment for this stripped book.

THE CAPTAIN’S CORNISH CHRISTMAS

For a lonely Cornish lifeboatman and an author who’s more used to crime scenes than love scenes, this Christmas is going to be very merry indeed!

When Jago Treherne agrees to man the Polneath lifeboats one snowy Christmas, he knows he can forget turkey and all the trimmings.

Yet when he boards a seemingly empty yacht and stumbles upon sexy Sam Coryton enjoying an energetic afternoon below decks, Jago soon realizes that he might be unwrapping a very different sort of Christmas gift this year!

Dedication

CC: For my good friends on the farm.

EH: For my Dad, whose love of lifeboats and rugged coasts is infectious.

Trademark Acknowledegements

The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of the following wordmarks mentioned in this work of fiction:

Maserati: Maserati S.p.A.

BBC: The British Broadcasting Corporation

The Great Gatsby: F. Scott Fitzgerald

Volkswagon: Volkswagen AG Corporation

The Daily Mail: DMG Media

Coastguard: Maritime and Coastguard Agency

Little Donkey: Eric Boswell

Millennium Falcon: Lucasfilm Ltd.

Star Wars: Lucasfilm Ltd.

A Streetcar Named Desire: Warner Bros.

Chapter One

Jago frowned as he heard the weather warning come in over the radio. It was the last thing he needed on Christmas Eve.

He barely noticed the cold sting of the sea spray striking his face as he powered the rescue boat over the waves. There hadn’t been an SOS, but he had left Polneath harbor anyway. Sam Coryton and his yacht, Morveren, hadn’t returned to the marina, and with bad weather moving in and little daylight left, Jago knew he would have to go out to find him.

No response on the radio. No distress flares sighted.

Jago kept his grip firm on the wheel, his jaw set with determination.

He rounded the rocky headland, so beautiful and yet, he knew only too well, so dangerous—and he saw it. The white hull and sails of the Morveren. And it appeared to be in distress. The yacht rocked from side to side in the water, the depths already boiling in anticipation of the oncoming storm. In the windows of the vessel bright Christmas lights twinkled merrily, but there was no other sign of life, no indication that Polneath’s favorite son was anywhere on board.

A chill ran through Jago’s blood as he steered closer to the yacht, and it wasn’t just at the thought of what this oceangoing Maserati must have cost. No man with an ounce of sense in his head would be so stupid as to still be out here now in the dying hours of the Christmas Eve daylight, with the maelstrom somewhere on the horizon. He remembered from summer Sam’s bad habit of swimming alone from the deck of his yacht, but surely he wouldn’t be so stupid as to do it in the depths of winter?

Even Sam Coryton wouldn’t be so idiotic as that.

Jago pulled up alongside the yacht and let the engine idle. He called over the sound of the waves and the seabirds, Sam! Sam Coryton—it’s Captain Treherne. Are you there, Sam? Can you hear me?

He paused, but heard no reply. There was no sign of anyone in the water, and Jago wondered if Sam had been taken ill, alone in a cabin on the yacht. I’m coming aboard!

Jago lashed the rescue boat to the Morveren, then heaved himself onto the deck. His boots squeaked as he crept along the deserted craft.

Where the bloody hell is he? Jago muttered to himself as he lifted the hatch on the companionway and stared down into the vessel. The Christmas lights were the only illumination in the stairwell, but from beneath he could hear the gentle strains of light classical music and smell fresh coffee, suggesting that someone was or, in the worst-case scenario had been, aboard until recently.

Jago called Sam’s name again, carefully descending the stairs into the yacht’s living quarters. He had seen some impressive vessels in his day and this was certainly high among them, a sleek craft from the outside and a comfortable home within. The hallway that stretched ahead of him was brightly lit, the walls decorated with enormous canvases showing cheery riots of color, but that made the scene feel somehow even more uneasy. There was something in the