“Oh, thanks,” she said, smiling. “I’m glad chivalry is alive and well on the high seas.”
Her courage renewed, Serenity finished the climb to the crow’s nest.
She wasn’t sure how to climb into the small circle, until Morgan came up behind her and helped her in. She stood to one side as he squeezed himself in next to her, and she could feel his body bulging against her hip.
Her face flaming at the closeness of their bodies, she averted her gaze to the deck far below while he moved away from her.
The ship rocked and she grabbed the small rail that ran around the tight circular space. “How does Lou do this every day?” she whispered.
Morgan stepped out of her line of vision. “How can he not?”
Mesmerized, she stared off into the far horizon where the fading light of day met the waves of the ocean. The two of them blended together into the most wonderful symphony of harmonious color. “It’s beautiful.”
“Yes, it is,” Morgan breathed in a strange tone that made her take a look at him. It was then she realized he wasn’t talking about the sea.
Suddenly shy, Serenity looked back at the horizon. “Have you spent much time up here?” she asked in an effort to keep herself from noticing how handsome his face was, how dark the fading sun made his eyes.
The red highlights in his loose hair. Hair she was sure was soft and…
“I haven’t been up here in a long time,” he said, removing the spyglass from where he’d clipped it to his waistband.
After extending it, he handed it to her.
Then his arms surrounded her as he held it up for her to see. “Look through here,” he directed.
Serenity tried to focus on the sea, but all she really noticed was how pleasant he smelled, how warm his chest was against her back.
“I can see Jake,” she said as she swung the spyglass over to the Death Queen. “Captain Hayes’s crew doesn’t seem to mind his leadership at all. They actually look…dare I say, happy?”
Morgan smiled at her shock. “No doubt it’s because Jake tossed the captain’s daughter overboard as soon as he took over.”
Frowning, she looked at him over her shoulder. “He did what?”
“The lash. I’m sure he tossed it overboard as soon as he took over. Jake has never been one to whip his men into shape, if you’ll pardon my cliché.”
“Oh,” she said. “My brother wrote an article about such discipline. One of the captains he interviewed said it was the only way to keep order on board a ship. That it was no different than locking people in the stocks.”
“Jake showed me there’s better ways of dealing with your men. When it comes to finding punishment to fit the crime, I doubt Solomon himself could have equaled Black Jack’s justice.”
She gave an odd half laugh. “Who wouldn’t obey Black Jack Rhys? I’m sure he just kills whoever offends him and tosses him overboard.”
“Don’t be so harsh, Serenity. Jake has a lot of reasons to act the way he does.”
“Such as?”
Morgan sighed as he remembered some of the childhood stories Jake had imparted to him over the years. Terrible stories that defied belief. “His own mother tried to poison him twice when he was a boy to get rid of him. When that didn’t work, she sold him off for two bits to a tavern owner who wanted someone to clean out slop jars and spittoons.”
“What?”
He nodded, his heart heavy for his friend. “His mother was a prostitute who didn’t take kindly to the fact he didn’t die. She did things and allowed things to happen to him you can’t even begin to imagine in your worst nightmare. If you find any kindness in him at all, I assure you it is there by way of a full miracle.”
Serenity looked back at Jake as he directed men to swab the decks of the Death Queen. “What of his father?”
“No one has any idea who his father is.”
“Is that why he became a pirate?”
“I suppose. He once told me that if he was going to be accused of being the devil’s own, then he would give people a reason to believe it.”
Serenity shook her head in pity. “What made him stop pirating?”
He smiled. “A woman.”
“His wife?”
“Aye.”
“So, he gave up his life for her.”
“Nay, she gave him a life. Until Lorelei, he never knew kindness or love. She gave him back his soul.”
“And what of you?” she asked quietly. “Could a woman give you back yours?”
Could I be the woman who gives you back your soul?
He gave a half laugh and she flinched, half-afraid he’d heard her silent plea.
“Nay, I’m not like Jake. I actually tried to settle down years ago with a wife. But it was a mistake. A costly mistake.”
“You were married?” she gasped, her chest tightening at the knowledge.
He nodded.
“Did she die?”
His eyes turned dark, sorrowful. “While I was at sea.”
“I’m sorry, Morgan.”
He sighed and she ached for his loss, wished for a way she could ease the agony etched into his brow. “As was I. I thought I could be the type of man who could settle down and have a family. What I learned was that the call of the sea was more than I can deny. I can’t stay landlocked.”
By the look on her face, Morgan realized he should have kept his mouth closed. He had just put a wall between them that he didn’t want to build.
It’s for the best.
Yes, it was for the best. He knew he could never settle down. He belonged to the sea.
It was home.
“I think it’s time we headed back down.”
Serenity nodded.
No sooner had they returned to the deck than Barney approached him. “Might I have a word with you, Captain?”
Morgan watched as Serenity excused herself, and part of him longed to follow after her and try to bridge the sudden gulf that had sprung up between them.
Thinking better of it, he turned to his quartermaster. “Sure, Barney, what do you need?”
“I wanted to know why you kept such a secret from me. Why you never once told me you were the Marauder.”
First one, now the other. He was getting really tired of explaining himself to people. “It’s not something I’m proud of, Barney, nor is it something I wanted people to know.”
“But I thought I was different. We’ve been through a lot, you and me. And you let me just babble off about being pirates when you knew the truth. Made me look like a blooming ninny, you did.”
Morgan placed a hand on his shoulder. “That’s not true, Barney. You’re the closest thing I have to a father, and I didn’t want you to know that about me, any more than I’d want my real father to know.”
Barney nodded. “You’re still a good lad. Pirate and all. ’Course, I won’t be saying nothing else ’bout being a pirate. At least now I know why you were always so squeamish.”
Thank God Barney didn’t hold it against him, Morgan thought.
It shouldn’t bother him that Serenity did. Yet for some reason he couldn’t fathom, he wanted to regain her respect. It mattered deeply to him that she not hate him.
He glanced over to where the Death Queen sailed, and smiled. He knew what Jake would say if he were here. And for once, he agreed with the surly pirate.
Aye, he’d bed the wench. One way or another.
Chapter 11
Late that night Serenity came awake with a start. “Who’s there?” she whispered, her heart thumping against her breastbone as she strained to see into the darkened room.
“It’s all right, Serenity. It’s just me.”
She calmed as she realized Morgan stood just to the side of her bunk, his lean body silhouetted by the faint moonlight that spilled in through the windows. His faced was masked by shadows, but she could feel his gaze on her like a physical touch. It was as if he searched her features for something.
“Is something wrong?” she asked, wondering what
had brought him to her bed in the middle of the night.
“No, I just wanted to show you something.”
There was a hint of mystery to his voice, and if she wasn’t mistaken, there was also a note of playfulness. A playfulness that she’d never before heard from him.
Grateful she was still dressed in her brother’s clothes, she climbed out of bed. Morgan lit a small lamp and held it up over his head so that she could see.
“I thought I told you to lock the door,” he said in a chiding tone.
“I honestly forgot.”
Instead of the glower she expected, he smiled. “For once I’m glad you didn’t listen to me.”
Then he took her hand. A strange warmth fluttered in her stomach at the gentle pressure of his callused hand wrapped around hers.
The only sounds she could hear were the gentle lapping of the waves, and the thundering of her own heart.
Morgan led her topside. He blew out the lamp and pointed up to the sky.
Following the line of his hand, Serenity gasped. Above her head a thousand stars twinkled. But more surprising than that was the shower of sparks in the sky. It was as if a hundred stars were falling at once. Never in her life had she seen anything so miraculous.
“It’s incredible,” she said breathlessly.
“I thought you would enjoy it.”
“What is it?”
“Old sailors call it the star dance. It doesn’t happen often, but when it does…”
“Oh, thank you,” she said. “I’m glad you woke me.”
His smile widened.
Serenity stared up at the stars that twinkled and fell. They were breathtaking.
Morgan pulled her by the arm and led her over to where he’d placed a blanket on deck along with a small midnight picnic. Serenity laughed at the sight. “What is all this?” she asked suspiciously.
He shrugged. “Who says we can’t enjoy a quiet evening alone?”
“The town gossip, Mrs. O’Grady, were she here. I say, Captain Crook, but it looks like you’ve got more than the stars on your mind.”
“And if I admitted that I did?”
Her heart stilled at his deep voice.
How easy it would be to succumb to him. And how disastrous. Biting her lip, she reminded herself of Chatty, of the horrible things people had said and done to her after she’d been caught alone at the lake with her beau. She’d done absolutely nothing and yet everyone in town had treated her like Jezebel.
Even so, Serenity couldn’t quite silence the nagging voice in her head that told her a night in Morgan’s arms would be well worth the price.
If only it were that simple.
She gave him the only answer she could. “Then I would have to say you’re wasting your time.”
He blew the lantern out, then set it down on the deck and bent close to whisper in her ear. “Am I, Serenity?”
The seductive tone of his voice sent shivers through her.
Kiss me, Morgan! Please, just one small kiss, then I shall return to my room and have sweet dreams of you in a safe world where no one can harm us. Where no one can mock me.
“You are an incredible woman.” He brushed her braid off her shoulder.
Run, Serenity. Run back to your room now before it’s too late!
But it was already too late.
She couldn’t move. Like a lamb trapped by a deadly wolf, she was hypnotized by his voice, held spellbound by his touch.
“A curious woman.” He moved to stand behind her, and she could feel his breath fall against her throat as he ran one long tapered finger down her cheek. “I’m quite sure you’ve wondered what lies between men and women. Why it’s forbidden for them to be alone.”
“Never.”
His rich laughter filled her ears. “You’re a terrible liar.”
His arms came around her suddenly, and holding her tightly against his chest, he rested his chin on her head. Ribbons of pleasure spiraled through her at his touch, and she wanted to lose herself in this one moment in time.
He raised one hand up and gently stroked her cheek. Never in her life had anything felt so wonderful.
If only this could last forever.
But her feelings were just the enchantment of the night. The sight of the stars dancing, of the gentle rippling of the waves, the music of the wind caressing her body in time with his hand. This wasn’t real. It was an illusion. The same kind of illusion that she’d had about him to begin with.
The Sea Wolf wasn’t her noble prince. He was a man with a black past. A past that would mean Morgan’s life if he were ever caught.
Aye, that was the argument she would use to safeguard her heart. The argument she would use to drive him away. “You are a crooked pirate, Captain Drake. I could never give myself to a man who killed for pleasure.”
“And if I told you I never killed for pleasure?”
Serenity closed her eyes, trying to squash the part of her that took delight at his words. She mustn’t listen to that part of herself.
She needed to push him away. To make herself seize her denial.
But the dreadful thing was, she couldn’t lie to herself.
“I don’t know if I could believe you.”
But she wanted to. Desperately. It hurt so much to learn that her prince was a bandit.
He tilted her face toward him and splayed his fingers along her neck. Over her shoulder she looked up at him, and the intensity and need in his eyes took her breath. Never had a man looked at her with such raw, unbridled longing. She was at a loss as to how to deal with him.
With a terrifying need of its own, her body leapt to life under his skillful hands.
“Haven’t you ever done something wrong that you later regretted?” he asked, his voice thick and deep. “Something that made others think terrible thoughts about you?”
“Yes,” she whispered, her voice breathless. “I ran away with a pirate.”
His deep laughter filled her ears, quickening her blood as his smile softened the hard edges of his face. “And is that the worst thing that ever happened to you?”
“Nay,” she said, her throat tight. The worst thing that had ever happened to her was being held right now by a man she knew she could never have. Feeling things for him she knew she shouldn’t feel.
Morgan felt her pulse race beneath his fingertips. Her fear reached out to him, but more than that he felt her hunger. The same hunger that throbbed through his body as he battled himself to keep from taking from her what he wanted most.
She needed seduction. He would have to move slowly. Hold her for tonight. Kiss her. Introduce her to her body’s delights one step at a time.
Slowly.
You’re a selfish bastard, Drake. This is wrong. You have nothing to offer her except a broken heart.
And as wrong as it was, he couldn’t stop himself. Maybe it was because he’d been too long at sea without a woman, or maybe it was her unique charms. He didn’t know the reason, he just knew he had to have her.
He bent his head down and nuzzled gently at the soft flesh of her neck while wisps of her hair teased his cheek, his lips.
Serenity moaned in pleasure and buried her hand in the soft curls of his hair. Never in her life had she experienced anything like this. Her entire body burned and ached. Her breasts swelled and her nipples grew taut.
His lips were so warm against the flesh of her throat, felt so incredible. His tongue stroked the fold of her ear, and her legs turned to jelly. His arms tightened around her, and she knew they were the only thing that kept her on her feet.
“Oh, Serenity,” he breathed in her ear. It was half a curse, half a caress.
His hand slid inside her shirt and cupped her aching breast. Her breath caught in her throat at the intimate contact that was half pleasure and half torture. Her breathing rapid, she bit her lip as an aching need thrummed through her body, pooling itself between her legs.
Then he moved his hand away from her breast, and just when she thought she was
safe, he cupped her between her legs. She moaned in pleasure as his hand did the most incredible things to her body.
Tell him to stop! her mind demanded. But she didn’t want him to.
He had been right, she was too curious for her own good. And this just felt too wonderful to stop.
Then he moved in front of her, his lips claiming hers. Serenity opened her mouth to taste the full essence of him. She buried her hands in his hair.
He slid his hand down into her pants and touched the most intimate part of her body. Her legs collapsed and only his arm around her back kept her from falling.
Morgan pulled back from her lips and ground his teeth. His entire body burned until he feared he’d go mad from it. All he could think of was burying himself where his hand played. But he knew he couldn’t. Not yet.
He wanted her as he’d never wanted any other woman, and the best way to have her as hot and ready for him as he was for her would be to show her what pleasure her body held. Let her hunger for him as much as he did her.
He returned to her lips and drank of the only pleasure he knew he would have tonight, as he quickened the strokes of his fingers against her tender folds.
Serenity didn’t know what was happening to her body. All she could focus on was the rhythm of his touch. The burning heat of her body as he teased her with his fingers. As he gently stroked and probed her body, his fingers sliding in and out of her, faster and faster.
She gripped his hair in painful need as her pleasure built and built until she was sure she would die from it.
And just as she could stand no more, her body burst. A thousand tendrils of pleasure rippled through her and she cried out in ecstasy.
And still his fingers continued their exquisite assault.
“I can’t take it,” she begged, her entire body convulsing and trembling.
He removed his hand and leaned against her, trapping her back against the ship’s railing. It was only then she realized he was covered in sweat, his body shaking as much as hers.
“That is only one small taste of what I can show you,” he whispered hoarsely in her ear.
And then he left her.
“Morgan?” she called softly, her body still pulsing. “Where are you going?”
A Pirate of her Own Page 14
