by Linda Ladd
Caitlin looked into his searching eyes."The Queen says I must marry, and I suppose he is as good as any other. When he returns to England as he says he must, I will be free again. I would never enjoy such freedom with any other husband."
"I only wish I could stop this!" Christian muttered, frustration roughening his voice. "I feel so damned helpless, watching while you are forced to do these things against your will."
Caitlin laid a gentle hand on the tensed muscles of his arm. "Is is not your fault that Queen Anne has taken an interest in me. If she had not ordered my capture, none of this would have come to pass. We must only be glad that Trey Cameron is infatuated with me for the moment. Otherwise, I might have been locked into a horrible marriage with no freedom at all. At least he has agreed to allow me to stay here on Windsway with you."
Christian nodded, but Caitlin saw the anguish in his eyes. She hugged him again, glad that he soon would be free, even if it meant for her a night in Trey Cameron's bed.
"Come, we must go now," she said, trying to sound cheerful, but failing miserably. "We will have all the time we want together after he sails for England."
Trey stood ramrod straight, masking his impatience as he waited for Caitlin and Christian to return. Now that the time was at hand to possess Caitlin at long last, to have her in his arms, willing and warm, his loins smoldered with longings that he could not control. He looked quickly up as brother and sister entered.
"I am ready," Caitlin said softly, and Trey nodded, motioning the priest forward.
"Richard and Christian will stand up with us, if that is agreeable to you," he answered.
Caitlin stood rigidly beside Trey, growing more tense as Trey repeated the vows in a deep steady voice. It seemed as if she were in one of her dreams where azure blue eyes haunted her, but never in her sleep had she become a wife to Trey Cameron. Every nerve quivered as the ceremony ended. Richard bowed and congratulated her, but the doubt remained in his eyes. Her own fears burgeoned as Christian hugged her, whispering words of encouragement. Trey said nothing as the three men left, leaning against his desk, blue eyes intent on his reluctant bride.
Caitlin's heart reacted erratically to his hot stare, and she wanted to squirm self-consciously as his gaze burned a slow path over her face, then lowered to her body. She could not move, trepidation rising. She had never known a man, but she had experienced the devastating effect of Trey's touch, and she was afraid what complete possession by him might do to her. The moment had come to find out, for very soon she would lie in his bed, his to do with as he chose.
Trey watched silently as a flow of revealing emotions flickered across Caitlin's lovely young face. She is afraid, he thought with surprise, noting the tense set of her shoulders and tightly clasped hands. Caitlin Alexander was a fiery hellion who knew her own mind, but there was no doubt she was an innocent in the act of love. He must be very gentle with her, for although he had coerced her into his bed this night, there would be many other nights when he hoped she would seek his embrace as eagerly as he sought hers.
He smiled. "I will leave you for a time while I see to the others. Christian will go to Windsway tonight, and you may join him there tomorrow."
Christian's problems seemed quite insignificant to Caitlin at that moment, under the growing sense of doom she felt. She waited for Trey to close the door before she looked around. She felt like a trapped animal about to be devoured, and she nervously wet her lips as her eyes fell to the heavy onyx ring that Trey had slipped upon her finger. His family crest seemed to brand her as his possession, and she suddenly felt very alone and very vulnerable.
Angry at her own cowardice, she clamped her jaw shut and walked purposefully to the bedroom, keeping her eyes resolutely off the bunk. The small trunk that Pearl had packed for her lay unopened at one end of the bed, and she raised the enameled lid, telling herself that the sooner he came to her, the sooner the ordeal would be over. She lifted a nightgown of pale blue lace, biting her lip as she placed it over her hand. It was very sheer, revealing her fingers as if nothing covered them. She shivered. She had to do it, she had to, she told herself firmly; however, despite her resolve, she could not bring herself to wear something that would reveal to Trey every inch of her body. She thrust it away, picking up instead one of Trey's linen shirts that lay neatly folded on a shelf affixed to the wall. At least the garment would cover her completely, she thought, trying to control her heaving chest as she began to unlace her bodice.
Topdecks, Trey stood motionlessly at the stern balustrade, watching the longboat that carried Christian and Father Runyon toward the beach. His thoughts had little to do with them or where Richard had gone, but dwelled on the woman awaiting him in his cabin. She materialized before him in the wispy shadows of his mind, her exquisite beauty capturing his breath as it had his heart. He felt her beneath his body, the satin softness of her skin on his own, and the fire-silk of her hair slipping through his fingers.
He paced in agitated impatience the breadth of the railing, then stopped, his hand gripping the carved rail. Every fiber of his body urged him to her, but he forcibly restrained himself. He wanted her to harbor no unpleasant memories of this night. After he had left for England, he wanted her to count the days until he returned to her.
He looked up at the stars, glittering like silver threads upon a black velvet tapestry, and took a deep cleansing breath. He retrieved a narrow cheroot from his pocket and held it to the flame of the stern lantern. He would bide his time, he decided, and take a moment to enjoy his cigar. By that time, Caitlin would be ready for him. His vow, however, was not to be met, for the narrow cigar was barely lit when he flicked it over the side and strode with eager footsteps to the quarterdeck hatchway.
Caitlin's muscles turned to stone as the door in the main cabin opened and closed softly. She sat in the bunk now, the coverings drawn carefully up over her breasts. She had wanted to pull them to her chin, but realized that would certainly show her fear, which she did not want Trey to see. She gritted her teeth, determined not to cower or cringe, no matter what he did to her. She turned her head as Trey appeared, unaware that her fine eyes glowed with unique golden beauty in the dim light.
Trey found he could not look away, and Caitlin watched him warily as he pulled off his coat, then slowly untied his cravat. He walked toward the bed, blue eyes burning into her as he loosened his shirt and pulled it over his head to reveal his bronzed muscular chest.
When he sat beside her on the bunk, Caitlin stared straight ahead, not seeing the glint in his azure eyes as he noted the huge man's shirt she wore primly tied at her throat. Most women wore filmy gowns of gossamer lace to entice him to their beds, but not Caitlin. Yet the garment only made her appear small and soft and innocent and all the more appealing to him. She kept her long black lashes lowered, but the pink blush on her cheeks alerted Trey that she was well aware of his presence.
One corner of Trey's mouth lifted as he observed her slender fingers nervously bunching the covers. For once she was completely without the swaggering confidence she had displayed to him from their first meeting, and her obvious fright sent a tide of tender emotion welling against his chest, dissolving his own impatience to bed her.
Caitlin jumped detectably as one large hand settled over both of hers, quieting her fidgeting, but she did not look up until his palm cradled her chin and lifted her face so that her eyes met his. Her lips parted in a silent gasp as warm lips settled into her open palm, and she was thoroughly unnerved at the streak of raw response that shot like liquid lava into the deepest core of her body. Her heart sped out of control as he bent his dark head and pressed his mouth to the inside of her slim wrist.
"Do not be afraid of me, Caitlin," he murmured, his lips still caressing perfumed flesh where Caitlin's pulse hammered wildly. "I would never hurt you."
"I am not afraid," she managed somehow, her quavering voice belying any belief Trey might have had in such a statement.
Trey released her hand and stood, lo
oking down at her a moment before he crossed the room to the cabinet where he kept a prize bottle of fine champagne.
"Would you care for a glass of wine?" he offered, hiding his smile at her quick nod.
He filled two goblets with the bubbly amber liquid, then walked back, handing a glass to Caitlin. She took it, downing the contents in one lengthy draught.
Caitlin sat stiffly, careful not to look at him as he picked it up and moved back across the cabin to refill it. She hazarded a glance as he returned, her eyes darting away from his naked torso. She drank the second glass almost as quickly as the first, and Trey laughed, but was immediately sorry as she jerked startled eyes to him.
A flush rose in hot waves beneath Caitlin's skin as he continued to watch her, and she wished he would just get on with it! She changed her mind at once as he sat down close beside her, bracing one arm across her covered legs. Shivery spasms rippled her flesh as his other hand settled on her knee, then moved slowly up her thigh.
Trey frowned as his fingers touched a familiar shape beneath the sheet, and he jerked back the covers to find a very lethal-looking dagger strapped to her leg.
"Do you really think a weapon is necessary this night?" Sarcasm tinged his words, and Caitlin tried not to shiver as his long fingers slid beneath her shirt and deftly unfastened the scabbard.
"I feel more secure with it."
"And I feel more secure without it," Trey returned, tossing the knife to a nearby table. His eyes returned to scorch into her, and Caitlin flinched as he lifted his hand to stroke the softness of her cheek with one finger. Her breath came shallow as he traced a gentle knuckle along her jawline to her trembling bottom lip. His eyes followed his caress, and Caitlin could no longer bear the nerve-tingling tension.
"Must you ogle and paw me forever?" she cried, throwing his hand from her. "It's my body you want! Do the damned business and be done with it!"
Trey stiffened, and his blue eyes delved into hers with a look that Caitlin could not meet. She lowered her eyes to her lap.
It's true, Caitlin," he said quietly after a long, uncomfortable moment, "that I have wanted you for what seems an eternity in my mind. But regardless of what you apparently think, you can rest assured that you will not look back with revulsion on what we share together this night."
Caitlin did not look up or answer, but she was relieved to hear him say it, if he was speaking the truth. On the other occasions when he had kissed her, his lips had been hard and punishing, as if he meant to devour her.
Her whole body went rigid as he reached out, long fingers circling her wrist. She resisted his attempt to draw her closer by leaning away. One dark brow arched in question, then Trey pulled her to him again, gently but firmly, and Caitlin found herself lying sideways across his lap. She lay stiffly against his arm, her face strictly composed as he let his blue eyes roam over her face, admiring her eyes, her hair, then lingering for a long unnerving moment on her mouth. He raised his hand, sliding his fingers into the fiery gold of her hair, then lifted it, watching it sift slowly to her shoulder in a silken shimmer. His eyes sought her wary gold ones.
"Don't fight me, sweet. Let me have this one night with you."
Caitlin's lips parted at the tenderness in his whispered entreaty and the warmth in his eyes. He bent closer to test the trembling sweetness of her lips, and her eyes fluttered closed as his mouth began to mold itself to hers, shaping, caressing, gently, softly, warming her, rousing her, confusing her. As his questing search moved lower, his mouth hot and moist against her throat, a breathless sigh escaped her before she could stop it.
He had been holding her tightly, one arm beneath her shoulders, his other hand stroking her hair. He raised his head and smiled at her, blue eyes glinting like sapphires in the dusky light. Caitlin returned his smile dreamily, raising one small palm to rest it intimately against his bare chest. She blinked in surprise when he suddenly put her aside and stood, and she looked away quickly as she realized he was about to remove his trousers. Her heart began to thud again, and she resolutely kept her eyes off him. Her voice was low and uncertain.
"Could we please douse the candle?"
There was a momentary pause, as if he were considering it, then the cabin was plunged into blackness. Caitlin waited tensely as her eyes adjusted to the dark. Gradually, she could make out shapes in the pearly glow of moonlight flooding through the outside windows, and her gaze fell on his silhouette at the bed beside her, tall, broad-shouldered, and narrow-hipped. His arms came around her, lifting her up, then guiding her down gently with him, his voice hoarse in her ear.
"God, how I have dreamed of this."
Then he was lying beside her, leaning over her, and kissing her again, tenderly, expertly, while his fingers slid lightly over the lush curves beneath her shirt. She felt the buttons plucked free, the garment pushed away, then his hands on her bare flesh. He began to caress her, his hands warm and knowing, his lips hot, touching, stroking, all so gentle, so infinitely tender that a moan sounded deep in her throat. He was in no hurry, exploring the soft hollows and silken planes with the confidence of a man who knew women well. He touched her with reverence, as if he cherished each part of her, worshipped her skin and hair and lips, until Caitlin felt she could not bear the quivering pleasure for another moment. She felt dizzy, cold, then hot, then cold again. So this was what Christian and the other men did when they sought out their women. This lovely, languorous feeling of floating in a sea of pleasure. No wonder women pressed themselves against men and yoked themselves into marital servitude to attain a pleasure such as this.
His mouth found hers again; his fingers tangled in her hair, and Caitlin gave way to the flickering fires springing alive within her. She began to respond, hesitantly touching her fingers to his broad shoulders, then burying them in the soft black hair at his nape. She pressed herself closer against his chest, wanting something, craving something more. What, she knew not.
"Please . . ." she murmured as his lips nuzzled against her throat, and Trey moved, bringing his lean body atop hers. Caitlin gasped beneath the feel of his weight, beneath the strength of his body, then stiffened in alarm as an alien hardness pressed like a brand against her thighs. The lethargic floating sensations fled her as his hips lowered to hers, and she tried to twist away, her hands pushing ineffectually against the wide expanse of his chest.
Trey's embrace tightened around her, his breath hoarse and ragged against her temple. "Trust me, love. It has to be." His lips were more urgent then, fevered, desperate, and his heart thudded a wild cadence over her naked breasts. As she became a slave once more to his intoxicating touch, relaxing beneath his hands and lips, he moved, and she gasped as a quicksilver pain erupted in her loins. She hid her face in his neck, biting her lip, but Trey held her securely, murmuring soothing words as his warm mouth touched her brow, her cheeks, leaving a fiery trail of sensation until the tingling hurt subsided. Slowly, ever so slowly, he began to move deep within her, as if he were indeed a part of her, and a slow undulating wave of warmth took the place of her pain. Her breath came faster as she instinctively molded herself to him, an unknown, expanding need urging her to press upward against him, to strive for some greater ecstasy in his arms. They attained it together, then rose above it, soaring ever upward in a twisting, hurtling flight to the heavens, where the shining, shuddering burst of their rapture fused them into one. Caitlin cried his name, her fingers tightly clenched in his hair, and Trey groaned with a pleasure he had never known before, as they drifted back from infinity, clasping each other tightly, as if they could not bear to let go.
For a long time neither spoke, neither knew words to express what they felt as they lay close together in the darkness. Caitlin was bewildered, wondering what it meant, what it would mean. She felt different about him, felt different about herself, and a little frightened at her own confusion.
Trey turned slightly, pulling her softly curving form closer. He smiled as he feathered kisses around her small ear. He had alway
s thought experience in a woman was what made lovemaking worthwhile, but Caitlin had been a virgin and had given him a joy he found hard to describe. He wondered if it had been so for her, smiling as he remembered what she had said earlier.
"Was the ‘damned business' as abhorrent as you had thought, my love?"
Caitlin was quiet for a long moment. "It was a wondrous thing, I think. Not at all as I expected."
Tender feelings curled inside Trey as she sighed and laid her head against his shoulder. The thought of leaving her now cut across his heart like the swipe of a razor.
"It was wondrous to me as well, sweet."
His husky admission spread a warm glow over Caitlin, for she had wondered if he could possibly have felt what she had. A rippling quiver coursed through her as his lips moved like fire along her arm.
"Let me love you again, my pretty, for when the sun rises next over the sea, I must leave you for many a month."
Caitlin caught her breath as his head moved across her breasts to nibble at the deep curve of her waist. She had wanted only to be rid of him, had prayed to hear such words of his departure, but now the thought of such plans brought a host of conflicting desires to rage inside her heart, Had she come to care for him? Could it be? Was it love that squeezed so painfully around her heart? Or something else?
"Must you go?" she whispered, and Caitlin knew that her words had pleased him by the tender thoroughness of the kiss that followed.
"Oh, my Caitlin, you cannot know how such words from you warm my heart, but as much I want to stay here with you, I must go. Anne awaits my explanation of our marriage." He twisted until he could look down into her face, bathed in the dim moonlight.
"Why do you ask me to stay, Caitlin? Was it not our bargain for me to sail out of your life after this one night together?"
"I don't know," she whispered, reaching up to cup his face in her palms. "I only know that now the thought of it hurts my heart."
