“No,” she said stiffly. “I stole this ship. Nothing has been handed to me.”
The Spaniard raised an eyebrow. “I am impressed. I would have thought you would steal jewels. Easier to pawn. Easier to build a life on land.”
Esmeralda glared. Leave the ocean? “The high seas consume me, body and soul, and have done so for every one of my twenty years. On my ship, a woman’s word is the law, and the place of traitors is on the brig.”
“And I am grateful for my release,” he said smoothly. “But surely, when you take a husband, he…”
He was prevented from continuing by Esmeralda’s laughter.
“You think I would step aside for a man?” she chuckled. “You have much to learn, Demonios. I am Captain Esmeralda le Brecque. No one is forcing me out of my command. I have no need of a husband to give me protection, wealth, nor power. I will never marry. It is always the high seas for me.”
She spoke proudly, knowing the truth of her words. She had not expected him to join in with her laughter.
“I can see that,” he said quietly.
Something in her snapped. She did not have conversations with traitors!
“Quartermaster,” she said, not bothering to use his name. “Do not forget that this is my ship and my rules.”
Javier nodded with a smile. “Yes, Captain.”
Esmeralda was not entirely sure whether he was mocking her but decided to take him at his word. “Tomorrow, I will take you around and show you the ropes, and you had better remember that. My ship. My rules.”
Chapter Five
Javier felt the light early morning breeze tug at his long hair and sighed deeply. It was not possible to feel so comfortable, so at ease on a ship he had only been on for a day.
He strode across the deck and grasped the wooden railing, eyes almost blinded by the dazzling sunlight reflected off the water. This felt more like home than any other ship he had been on.
He swallowed. He had crept out of the crew quarters, snores emanating from every bunk and hammock, to ensure he was awake before Captain Esmeralda. Never before had he wished to make such a good impression.
There was only one other person on the deck, a young lad swabbing early. Footsteps echoed around the desolate space, and Javier turned to see a figure march up the steps with the captain’s hat on.
“George,” she barked. “Good work. The Spaniard is not up, I see. We will have to wait for him to get his lazy bones out of —”
Javier stepped forward, his boots making a loud enough sound on the deck for the two figures to turn around.
Captain Esmeralda scowled. “You.”
He just stood there, trying to prevent a smile from coming over his face.
“Watch me closely,” she said, jerking her head toward the stern of the ship. “You will be doing this yourself tomorrow, and I do not have time to teach idiots how to perform simple tasks. You do what I tell you. That is all.”
Javier nodded and leaned closer, breathing in her scent. It was impossible to ignore the heady mix of leather and rosemary.
Captain Esmeralda stepped back hurriedly. “Not that close!” she snapped.
It was all he could do not to bring her into his arms and kiss the fury away, but Javier knew better.
“I apologize, Capitán,” he said quietly. “I will pay careful attention to your orders, and I am ready to learn. Shall we begin?”
She stared, evidently unsure what to make of him. Perhaps she was in two minds whether to cut him down or throw him back in the brig, but the appearance of a few more of the men on the deck perhaps swayed her opinion. They needed to care for this ship, and the sooner he learned how, the better.
It was a rigorous introduction. Sweat beaded on Javier’s forehead as they strode around, Captain Esmeralda shouting instructions and explanations as they went without pausing for breath.
Javier was impressed. She performed a check of every inch of the Periculum every morning.
It was not only the ship that came under her tender care. The questions she asked of her crew were equally illuminating.
“The shoulder, it heals?” she shot at a young lad who bowed before nodding. “Good. Let me or Bones know if it gives you grief. Tomorrow you pick up your additional duties.”
“What happened to his shoulder?” Javier asked.
She grinned. “First musket shot, wasn’t prepared for the pullback. He won’t ever forget again.”
He shook his head in wonder as they strode across the deck to the port side. “I do not think I have ever encountered a captain like you.”
She glared. “A woman?”
“No, one who cared so much about both ship and crew,” Javier said, noting how quickly her fiery temper came to the surface. “Your questions are…como se dice en inglés…pertinent?”
The captain leaned against the railing and looked out at the waves. “This is my vessel,” she said more softly now. “My responsibility. If something were to be wrong, and it caused an accident or harmed a member of my crew, it would be my fault.”
Javier stared. “Surely not, Captain.”
“You think not?”
He shook his head. This went against everything he had been taught. “It would be the shipmate responsible for that part of the ship, surely?”
“What is a captain for, but to take responsibility for the fate of her ship?” she said with a wry smile. “Blaming others is not my way. My ship, my rules, my responsibility. My father may have disagreed with me, but Poseidon’s League was never a democracy, and… Daniel, have you cleaned out that cannon before putting it back?”
Captain Esmeralda strode across the deck, and Javier tried to regain mental equilibrium as she interrogated the crewman.
It was impossible now not to be impressed by this woman. His father had never behaved like her. No other captain he had encountered ever had. Had something gone wrong, it would always have been anyone else’s fault.
She strode back to his side. “Old Bessie is temperamental.”
Javier looked around wildly. “I was not aware there was another woman on board!”
Captain Esmeralda laughed. “The cannon. I…liberated her from a French galleon. Now, ’tis time for the lads’ training. Come with me.”
It was an order, not a request, but Javier went with her willingly. He was starting to feel he would go anywhere with this woman, to the jaws of hell if it came to it. How could Shepherd and those other blaggards have even considered mutiny?
There were three lads on the ship, and they were standing at attention in a line. Each of them saluted as Captain Esmeralda and Javier approached, but she stepped to the side before they reached them.
“Daniel, you’ve double knotted when you should have threaded,” she said quietly, pointing out the mistake in the rigging to a rough-looking man with a dark beard.
Javier had expected the man to snap or color at the correction. Instead, he nodded and started untying the offending knot.
Was he dreaming? Javier could not understand it. While focusing on the lads, Captain Esmeralda had managed to spot one knot in a thousand that was incorrect, and instead of punishment, she quietly corrected the crewman.
“Morning, boys,” she said, forcing Javier to quicken his steps to return to her side. “Five laps of the deck, please.”
They started jogging, and Javier took advantage of their temporary absence. “No comprendo. I do not understand.”
Captain Esmeralda shrugged. “’Tis an active life on a ship. They need to be on their feet for…”
“No, the knot,” Javier interrupted. “You did not punish him? Daniel?”
She looked in surprise. “Punish him? Embarrass him, perhaps.”
Her tone made it abundantly clear what she thought of that, and Javier felt his cheeks redden. “I-I just thought…”
Captain Esmeralda allowed his voice to trail away before shaking her head. “What would be the point? How will he learn?”
Javier tried to gather control o
f his thoughts. Well, he had utterly sunk himself, and it was not Old Bessie who had hit him. Every conversation with the captain felt like a cannonball to the gut. Intelligent, witty, kind, this was not the captain he had expected.
And the deep attraction he was now feeling…
Javier swallowed. He needed to fight that particular desire. All the women he had encountered had been servants. It had never occurred to him that a woman could be in command, but what a woman she was—born to it.
“—if our new quartermaster will lend a hand?”
Javier blinked. All three of the lads, along with their captain, were staring. “Wh-What?”
Captain Esmeralda glared. “I told you to pay attention. Do not take from his lead, boys. Our quartermaster should know better. I said we were moving to sword fighting, and you would be willing to assist me. Is that not right?”
Javier almost gaped. They were going to give him a sword? Were they mad?
Apparently not. Captain Esmeralda handed out wooden sticks, thrusting one at him.
“Let’s review the basics while our quartermaster here remembers how to use one of these,” she said with a grin. “Ben, you first.”
Javier watched as she reminded them of previous lessons, at once gentle but firm, with encouragement given fairly as they demonstrated their skills.
It was a world away from his time on a ship at that age. He could not remember a day that had gone by without a beating.
He shuddered. No child should suffer that life.
“It appears our quartermaster is frightened of you, boys.” Captain Esmeralda’s words cut through his memories and brought him back to the Periculum.
“Not at all,” he said smoothly. “I was just thinking how much there was I could teach you.”
It was an unguarded moment, an instinct to protect himself, and he regretted it almost immediately. A flicker of mischief brightened the captain’s eye.
Javier swallowed. She drew him in more with each passing moment. He needed to control himself if he was still going to attempt handing her in at the next port.
“Well then,” she said with a smile. “Why don’t you show these lads how it’s done?”
***
Foolish woman! Esmeralda knew it had been a dumb idea to challenge Javier, especially when he was taller than she. Muscles could be seen through the shirt he had been lent by Cook, and he probably had more experience with fighting dirty, the Demonios traitor.
But something within her just wanted to fight him, put to bed all the strange emotions that were stirring in her, quickening each time she looked at him.
Esmeralda had been surrounded by men all her life. It was hardly strange to have another one on board, but this one…
No man had ever made her feel like this before. Like her clothes were too tight, like at any moment her heart would thunder so quickly, it would burst.
Javier was surprised at her challenge, and she hoped he would decline it. Then he twisted the bit of wood around in an impressive arc.
Esmeralda smiled and thrust quickly, but he parried before she had drawn enough breath to think. Gasps echoed behind her, and she knew without turning around that her lads were enthralled.
Javier stepped forward, his footwork impeccable, but she had already twisted to the side and thrust out again with her wooden stick. Javier was there to block her in a heartbeat, as though he did not need to think, just feel the fight's movements.
She had never fought anyone this intuitive and caught her breath hurriedly. Her bodice dropped down, revealing her cleavage, and Javier’s left foot slipped.
Esmeralda smiled. All men were the same, after all. Distracted by her breasts, was he? Well, she could heave them a little more, or…
Reaching up with her free hand, she pulled at the bandana keeping her hair back and allowed it to flow down her shoulders, caught in the gentle breeze. Javier’s eyes dilated, and he swallowed.
She almost laughed aloud. Her crew knew better than to even consider touching her, but this fool knew no better. A clear advantage, and one she was more than happy to take.
Esmeralda saw Javier’s arm drop slightly. She lunged, taking advantage of the distraction, catching him off guard. Another few thrusts with the wooden sword and her new quartermaster was on his knees, her sword at his throat.
He stared up, his dark eyes fathoms deep. “Going to kill me?”
Esmeralda was still breathing heavily, but the heady power that came with defeating an opponent made her grin. For a moment, he was every Demonios she had ever encountered, and she wanted to hurt him. Or kiss him. The two sensations were inexorably linked.
“That was amazing, Captain!”
Applause rang out across the deck. The remembrance of her three lads brought Esmeralda to her senses, and she removed the wooden sword from his throat.
Javier stood up, his legs a little shaky. “I was not sure whether you were going to allow me to live.”
Esmeralda turned away, forcing herself to ignore him. “What did the quartermaster do wrong?”
“Footwork,” Ben piped up. “His left foot wasn’t stable enough.”
She nodded curtly, relief seeping into her veins. She rarely used her femininity to win a battle, but sometimes your opponent left you no choice.
“And that is why we will complete today’s lesson with some footwork practice,” she said calmly.
After leaving them with careful instructions, she strode away, Javier at her side.
“That,” he said, “was cheating.”
“I have no idea what you are talking about.”
“Do you not?”
Javier reached out and touched her arm, and it was like she had been branded. Fire poured between them, his fingertips on her wrist, and it was like home.
Esmeralda swallowed and allowed herself to look into his eyes, which blazed as he drew closer to her.
“Esmeralda,” he said. “I…”
What he would have said and how she would have replied, Esmeralda would never find out. Shouts and cries from below deck poured up from the steps, and without another thought, she ran toward them.
An all too familiar sight met her eyes as she entered the mess hall, two of her crew using fisticuffs instead of frank conversation to solve a debate. Several others surrounded them, cheering.
“Que…” Javier began, but Esmeralda knew better.
Striding forward, she pushed the two men apart. “No fighting on my ship unless I get to be involved,” she said roughly. “You know the rules. Now, whose side should I take? Who is in the right?”
The two men looked at each other.
“I thought Tiny stole my rations,” George said sullenly.
Tiny looked outraged. “You know I would never do that, Captain, and so should he!”
Esmeralda looked between them. “Food? Do we not have enough here? You disappoint me. I had thought this fight over something meaningful. Both of you, no dinner tonight. That will teach you the true value of food. If you have a problem with that, take your complaints to…to our new quartermaster.”
The entire room looked over at Javier, and Esmeralda tried not to grin at the startled look on his face.
“Yes, Captain,” both Tiny and George muttered.
“Carry on,” she said firmly. The room slowly emptied, and she jerked her head at Javier.
It was not until they were both inside her cabin, and the door was shut, that she dropped into her chair.
“And ’tis only three bells this morning,” she said with a wry smile.
Javier was standing by the door, examining her closely. “They respect you, perhaps love you.”
Esmeralda tried not to smile at the praise. It was from a Demonios, after all. “Perhaps.”
“And yet, you do not command a bigger ship?”
She swallowed. Why did Javier’s questions always become so personal? His presence was intoxicating, and he must know he had this effect. The last thing she needed was an entire day in his company. She
had to be rid of him, had to allow her mind to stop and think.
“There is no need for you to shadow me this afternoon,” she snapped. “The crew will obey you, I think. If not, tell me.”
Javier nodded, taking a step toward her. “I understand, but you cannot avoid me completely.”
How could he read her mind so easily?
“Just stay out of my way,” she reiterated.
He took another step forward, and Esmeralda fought the instinct to rise from her chair just to step away.
“I will make you a deal,” he said quietly.
She frowned. “A deal?”
He nodded. “If I leave you alone this afternoon, you will honor me with your company this evening when we dine.”
Esmeralda felt her shoulders relax. That was no hardship, though she would be forced to sit beside him at the captain’s table. She nodded.
“In here,” he said with a smile. “Just the two of us. Alone”
Chapter Six
Javier swallowed as he stood outside the captain’s cabin. Night had fallen two bells ago, and the Periculum rocked gently as they continued sailing toward the port where his life would, most probably, end.
The last time he had been standing outside the captain’s cabin was during his attempt to stowaway. He had hidden there, waiting to grab Captain Esmeralda and drag her to justice for his freedom.
Now he was waiting outside, hoping to meet her for a different reason.
He smiled in the darkness. No, he had to control that particular desire. Delightful as it was to take in her beauty, to hear her speak, and command her men, he had to ignore the passion she stirred.
He must not act on his wish to kiss her, make her moan his name, turn her away from all other men, and devote herself to him…
Javier shifted, now rather uncomfortable in his breeches. No captain like Esmeralda would ever allow such a thing from her crew.
But he was not her crew.
Perhaps he would succeed where others had failed. Maybe he would be permitted to do what no one else had ever done.
The thought of giving her the first taste of pleasure made his whole body stiffen, and some of it more than the rest. He could not allow his base desires to get the better of him.
Always the High Seas: Pirates of Britannia Connected World Page 4
