“I dragged all sorts of history books up here too, maps and atlases. Somewhere along the line, I started studying the cultures of all the peoples I was about to conquer.” He shook his head at the memory, offering her a wry smile. “And here I am now, still studying.”
“Still traveling too,” she said. “Will you be heading out again soon?”
Simon’s glance slid away, and he didn’t answer at first.
“That’s really none of my business, actually,” Caroline said hurriedly, but he shook his head, waving off her concern.
“I’m not sure what the next adventure will be,” he said at last. “Though I will say I do love to travel. Comes from living right on the edge of the ocean, I suppose.”
She nodded. “I can absolutely understand that. But your reputation as a ruthless pirate is in tatters now, with all this.” She gestured to the candlelit dinner. “You know that, right?”
His eyes widened slightly, his expression becoming somewhat abashed. “I blame you totally.” He paused, glancing around the room. “I guess this is somewhat over the top.”
“It’s beautiful—and thoughtful. And perfect.” Caroline set her glass down carefully. “And I suspect it’s closer to who you really are than you’d like anyone to believe.” She kept her voice steady as his gaze snapped back to focus on her.
“What happened, Simon?” she asked. “What happened to make you so sad and stern, anywhere but here?”
He should have anticipated the question, Simon knew, but Caroline had posed it so earnestly it caught him off guard. “You find me sad?” he hedged, all too aware of her keen, empathetic eyes on him.
“I do,” she said quietly. “And I don’t mean to pry, and yet—” she hesitated. “I feel like I already know you so well, yet I’ve barely met you. I don’t know why that is—it makes no sense. But I’d rather have you tell me—whatever you want, if you want.” She smiled. “So that this belief I have that we’ve known each other so very long can at least have some merit to it.”
Simon nodded, appreciating her attempt at levity, despite what he knew must be a more serious cast to his features. “It’s not really that interesting of a story,” he said at length. “One summer, like every summer, my parents dropped me with Belle and Bobo, then took off on one of their trips. I was ten years old, and there was talk that I’d go with them that year, but it came to nothing, like I’d expected.” He forced himself to smile, but the memory of that summer when his parents had dropped him off would be forever burned into his mind. He’d known—known—that it was a bad thing for them to leave this time without him, this time above all others.
“I was the pirate king,” he murmured, and Caroline stirred across the table from him, reaching out to cover his hand with hers.
“And you would keep them safe?”
Somehow, the unexpected question punched a hole in the carefully constructed wall he’d kept all these thoughts hidden behind, and Simon found sudden, hot tears burn in his eyes. “I would keep them safe,” he agreed. “Only, they didn’t see it that way, and off they went, with rushed promises about future adventures, that they’d be careful, that they’d call every week.”
He shook his head. “They did, too. For the first few weeks. But that trip took them to Africa, some dig south of Egypt, in the heart of Sudan. There was a conflict in a village near their encampment, and they got swept up in it. Here I was the king of the ocean, and they died in the middle of the desert.”
“Oh, Simon,” Caroline said. She’d somehow dragged her chair around to be closer to him, and her hands now held both of his in her lap, gripping them tightly.
More tears burned behind his eyes as he stared at their hands locked together. “It took days, honestly, before we heard what happened. For awhile we just knew that they hadn’t called. Belle hounded the university, sent up every alarm she could. But when the news finally came through to us we all…already knew.” He sighed. “Their bodies came back several weeks later, finally. I don’t remember much of what happened after that, but eventually, I came to live with Belle and Bobo here. I declared I wouldn’t stay in the observation room, after that. I’d failed to keep my parents safe, and I needed to be punished.”
Caroline’s eyes widened. “You thought that?”
“Yeah.” As bleak as the memory was, that had been a turning point for him. And now it came back to him, making his heart thud hollowly in his chest. “But it was Bobo who insisted. He said I was still the pirate king, and no one could take that away from me, but me. That I’d done everything I could to warn my parents, to protect and keep them safe, but sometimes adventures didn’t go the way we wanted them too. That didn’t make adventures bad, just…just not for the faint of heart.”
“The faint of heart,” Caroline echoed. She squeezed his hands again. “So that’s what you did, didn’t you. You chose the adventure and walled up your heart.”
“I’m sure I didn’t work it out quite so neatly back then,” he said, grimacing. “But close enough. Over time it got easier too, to shut everyone out but my grandparents, focus only on school, then my degrees, then getting a position in academia—and traveling, always traveling.” He gave a rueful sigh. “I visited the Sudan, finally, exorcising that demon too. But not entirely, I guess.”
“And you’ve never had a serious relationship?”
“Not one that—no,” he cut himself off, shaking his head. “I never wanted to hurt anyone, the way I’d been hurt. To leave them behind. And I suppose I never wanted to be hurt again like that, either. But it’s not something I really gave much conscious thought to, to be honest. There was always simply—more work to be done. More adventures to take.”
“As long as you took them alone.”
Her words weren’t intended to be cutting, but Simon winced anyway, feeling the urge to apologize but unable to find the right words. How did you apologize for the person you’d spent so long becoming?
“It was just—easier,” he admitted at last. “I’m surprised Belle and Bobo put up with me, all those years.”
“They’re your family—beyond more than blood. They love you,” Caroline said simply. “Your parents’ death may have brought you together, but I only have to look around to see you in this house—the building, the grounds, the very dunes. You’ve been here for them, Simon, too, in all the ways that matter. It’s those little things that held you close year after year, season on season. That’s what makes a family real.”
A rush of emotion chased through him, his heart suddenly heavier now, too big, too full.
Caroline seemed to feel it too. She lifted her hand to his cheek, its cool touch a soothing balm to his overheated skin. “And, well…I can think of one adventure that might be better if you took it with someone else,” she murmured. “It’s more fun if you do, anyway.”
He glanced at her sharply, but there was no rebuke in her gaze, no challenge. Simply a clear and obvious desire that it didn’t take an anthropologist to discern.
“Caroline,” he whispered, and he leaned down to her quickly, tasting sweet tea and sunshine on her lips. She kissed him back every bit as hard, her other hand reaching up to frame his face, and he could hear the thudding of her heart now, beating almost in tandem with his own. He stood up, pulling her with him. It took only a few steps to reach the couch, and he sank down into its overstuffed embraced with her, cradling her in his arms.
“We don’t—I mean if you don’t—if this room—” Caroline couldn’t seem to finish her thought, but he wasn’t giving her much chance as he rained kisses down over her face, her neck, the collar of her dress. When his mouth moved further down to the curve of her breast, kissing her through the fabric, she arched beneath him with a low cry, cutting off her words completely.
He pulled back then grinned down at her, suddenly understanding what she was asking. “This room is a pirate’s stronghold,” he informed her. “I think it’s safe to say I can make love to you here.”
Her eyes widened at the proc
lamation, and Simon lifted his brows. “If that’s what the lady wants?”
Caroline’s broad smile was all the affirmation he needed, and he pushed back, quickly divesting himself of his button-down and tee shirt, his skin warming as Caroline paused to watch him rather than remove her own clothing. As it seemed to every time she got within fifteen feet of him, Simon’s body responded to her frank appraisal with rapid and obvious interest, and he slid off his pants and briefs with almost palpable relief, his erect shaft springing free of the restriction.
He bent to reclaim his pants but Caroline was suddenly in front of him, kneeling on the couch, her cool hand circling his shaft. Before he could do anything but stiffen further she kissed the very tip of it, then slid her mouth alongside its length, tasting him with her tongue.
“Caroline,” he rasped out, his legs beginning to shake as she drew herself back up and did the same languid movement down the left side. His hands were out, balancing himself, then her hand slipped further down to cradle him and he almost exploded right there. “This could end very badly for you if you aren’t careful, Caroline,” he managed.
She laughed, the sound low and silken against the base of his shaft. “Spoken like a true pirate,” she murmured. She leaned back long enough to pull her own dress over her head, and Simon caught the flash of creamy pink silk as he dived for his pants and pulled out the foil packet tucked discreetly away. By the time he rejoined Caroline on the couch, she’d divested herself of her bra and panties as well, and he growled with deeply obvious pleasure as he sank down into the soft cushions, laughing as Caroline maneuvered to the side and then pushed him to his back.
When she slid over his thighs, however, until their bodies were nearly joined, the laughter died in his throat. She pressed against him, the heat of her core enveloping him in waves, but he could only stare. Perched above him like that, her hair tumbled over her shoulders, her body illuminated by dozens of tiny candles, she was quite possibly the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen—ever would see, too, no matter how long he lived.
Caroline’s smile deepened as she watched him, and she shifted her body slightly, letting him nudge inside her. Simon’s eyes almost crossed as she slid down the length of his shaft, seating him inside her.
“I think living the pirate’s life has some definite advantages,” she grinned as he groaned something he’d meant to be actual words. She drew up, then sank down again, and Simon felt the tide already surging within him, demanding release.
“You’re right about one thing,” he finally managed, his body now lost to the building roar of need he was stoking. “There are some adventures that definitely shouldn’t be taken alone.”
Chapter Nineteen
Caroline and Simon lay in a tangled heap when the sound finally broke through her consciousness, but it took her several moments to process it. It was an instrumental version of a song that seemed vaguely familiar, but only on the barest fringes of her memory.
“Is that your phone?” she mumbled, not sure exactly where to direct her question, though she was fairly certain Simon’s head was somewhere above her shoulders, since she was nestled deep in his arms.
He shifted around her and beneath her, and she slowly oriented herself. “Yes—yes,” he mumbled gruffly. Then he groaned as he sat up. “That’s Belle’s number.”
Caroline’s gaze went to the clock on the wall—they’d been asleep only about thirty minutes, she realized with some surprise. It was barely eight o’clock.
She eased over and Simon padded across the room to where he’d draped his jacket over a chair. The room still smelled faintly of scented candles, though they’d managed to blow all of them out in a breathless race around the room that had ended in an even more breathless embrace. She sighed happily as he shook his phone out of the pocket, but when he swiped it on, he frowned.
“Missed,” he said, punching a few buttons to get back to the home screen.
Then he froze, his eyes rapidly scanning what had to be incoming texts. “What the…”
Caroline sat up straighter as Simon’s face went white with shock. “What is it?” she asked, scrambling upright herself and instinctively diving for her clothes.
“Bobo fell, he’s hurt, he’s—hospital,” Simon bit out tersely while typing into the phone. He thrust it under his ear as he grabbed his briefs, yanking them on. The phone connected.
“Belle,” he said, and to Caroline’s surprise, his voice was calm, measured. Then she understood why as she heard the sputtering voice on the other end of the phone. “Belle. It’s okay, I’m coming. What happened?”
In the pause, Caroline pulled her dress over her head, found her shoes. She’d shouldered her bag and was already clattering down the stairs as Simon finished the call with his grandmother. Another ten seconds and he was down the stairs after her, reaching her as she hit the front door.
“Please let me come with you!” She gasped, and he halted on the stairs, swinging round as she hurried down them. “I can’t run as fast—but—“
“Of course, of course.” Simon visibly took hold of himself, slowing down his long strides. “I’m sorry. Of course I wouldn’t leave you behind here, Caroline. I’m sorry, I just…” he broke off, and they walked for another few minutes before he drew in a deeper, steadier breath. “My grandfather was coming back from the printer with a box of flyers for the party.” He grimaced, passing a hand over his face. “Fake flyers for a fake party, all to make it seem more real in case someone does actually come calling from the preservation office. He slipped and fell on the stairs, fractured his leg—not a full break, thank God, but bad enough. And he hit his head. That’s the worse injury.”
Caroline nodded, not interrupting Simon with questions until they reached the outskirts of the town. “How far away is the hospital?”
“Not far—they took him off island though, into Charleston, to be safe. The head trauma didn’t seem bad at first, but now…” Simon’s pace picked up again, and she broke into a trotting run to keep pace. “He’s lost consciousness.” He turned to her. “I’m going ahead to get the boat—”
“Go,” she said, and she hastened after him, instinctively knowing he needed to do something as quickly as possible to feel like he was making the most of their time, cutting every corner. The ride back to the marina on Sea Haven passed in a blur, and the drive into the city was tense, with Simon telling her story after story about his grandfather over the years.
“He never did know when to stop,” he said as they reached the outskirts of the city. “People always thought Belle was the driving force behind Pinnacle House, since it was handed down through her family. But Bobo bought into the entire enterprise wholeheartedly. It was his idea to put the lights on the observation tower, his idea to expand the little collection of fairy houses in the clearing.”
Caroline watched him from the passenger seat, her heart wrenching as he worked through the stories, his fingers alternately gripped tight and then easing off the steering wheel. Every time a new text came through on his phone, he had her read it to him, and she gave him updates from the myriad members of the Retirement Center who’d all managed to Uber to the hospital en masse.
“They’re taking him into a more critical care unit,” she said tightly, and Simon cursed, picking up his speed a notch. “There’s swelling of the brain and they want to ease the pressure. Not go so far as surgery, but doing things with oxygen, fluids—and maybe a drain tube. According to whoever is typing this, it’s fairly routine is what they’re saying, but still, obviously, scary.”
“Right,” Simon said tightly. “Thank you.”
“Of course,” Caroline said as they pulled up to a light.
“No. I mean thank you,” he said, turning to her. “Thank you for being here with me, tonight. I know it’s just, well, chance that you came over today and I asked you to dinner and we chose Pinnacle House and then this happened—but—in this case, I owe a debt of gratitude to chance. Because being able to talk like this, b
eing able to drive without having to field texts or calls, and having you here to listen means more than you can possibly imagine.”
Caroline nodded quickly and the light changed, Simon’s attention swinging back to the road. The hospital finally hove into view, and as he pulled in, she put a hand on his arm. “Do you want me to park the vehicle, so you can go in?”
To her surprise, he barked a laugh at her, then leaned over and kissed her hard. “No,” he said definitively, and he swung the SUV into the visitor’s parking area. “Unless I am very much mistaken, they drive on the wrong side of the road in Garronia, and God only knows how tiny your vehicles are. Another three minutes won’t matter. But thank you for the offer nevertheless.”
They parked in short order and he leapt from the car. “Go, go!” Caroline said, waving him on. “I’ll catch up. You’ll be bombarded with questions anyway.”
He hugged her hard, then pivoted and ran for the hospital.
Caroline stood for a long minute, watching Simon run. His jacket flapped in the wind as his long legs ate up the pavement, and his flight didn’t falter as he dashed around vehicles and people and orderlies, his headlong race for the doors of the hospital broken only by his shouted cries for where he should go next. He disappeared into the hospital and she sagged a little against the SUV, her own adrenaline finally catching up to her.
Fumbling in her bag, she pulled her own phone free and swiped it on.
Prudence picked up on the first ring as Caroline slowly began making her way across the parking lot.
“What is it, what’s wrong?” her cousin demanded, before Caroline could speak.
“I’m fine, Simon is fine,” Caroline said, surprised to hear the shake in her voice. “But Simon’s grandfather has been in an accident. We’re at the hospital…” she gave Prudence the important details, and then broke off. She didn’t know what to say, or what to do.
Fortunately, she didn’t have to.
Charmed: Gowns & Crowns, Book 6 Page 17
