Moss Forest Orchid (Silver and Orchids Book 1)

by Shari L. Tapscott

  I lean forward, meeting his eyes, and I lower my voice. “There was this one time…”

  His eyebrows shoot up, and he too leans forward. “Color me intrigued.”

  “I delivered a package containing an illegal dagger to a clever sea captain.”

  “Hmmm,” he murmurs, letting his gaze drop to my lips. We’re close, so close. “This man sounds familiar. Do I know him?”

  Perhaps I should pull away, cling to the stubborn loyalty I feel for Sebastian, but I’m listless. My business partner has all but ignored me the last few days. Avery’s right. If he cared so much, why would he do that? Because it’s not about me; it’s about his honor—this odd he-knew-me-first-so-I’m-his-to-protect sort of mindset. Whatever Sebastian was about to say to me that night, it must not have been what I thought. Or maybe hoped. He thinks of me as a friend only. And the man in front of me isn’t looking at me that way at all.

  “You might know him,” I answer, letting the magnetic attraction I feel for him pull me closer.

  Avery’s mouth quirks to the side, making him look like the rogue I know he is. “Is he handsome? Dashing? Charming beyond reason or belief?”

  “He’s incorrigible.”

  “I like it.” He laughs softly.

  “And handsome,” I admit.

  Avery cocks his head to the side, his eyes widening with mild surprise. “Oh, really?”

  Trying to disguise how nervous I am, I clasp my hands on the table. In response, he draws nearer until our breath mingles, and my mind becomes fuzzy.

  “And dashing?” he asks.

  I nod, nervous.

  “What about charming beyond belief? That’s very important.”

  “Dangerously so,” I whisper.

  In one smooth move, Avery pulls me from the stool, into his arms. I gasp out a startled squeak, but I don’t pull back.

  My fingers fist in the silk of his doublet as he silently dares me to close the distance between us.

  Somehow, I know Avery’s kisses would be urgent…reckless…sublime. My legs go weak at the thought, but Avery supports me, holding me close. He watches me, tawny eyes locked on mine, lips parted, eyebrows slightly lowered.

  It’s almost too much. The captain’s a force, a tempest, and I’m so close to giving in. But then a little voice of reason whispers in my ear: What about Sebastian?

  Sebastian.

  Just his name shakes me to the core, and I yank back, horrified. What kind of girl thinks of one man when she’s about to kiss another?

  What is wrong with me?

  I’m saved from my thoughts by someone clearing their throat loudly from the door.

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  Almost Kiss

  “Sorry to interrupt, Captain,” a galley boy says from the doorway. The boy’s probably fourteen years old. He wears the rough clothing of the crew, but over the top lies a ridiculous apron. In his hands, he carries a tea set, something silver and fussy and probably very, very old. I would laugh at the hilarity of it if it weren’t for the way he’s gaping at us. Word of my position with the captain is sure to get around the ship—and quickly.

  Unconcerned, Avery keeps me in his arms.

  The boy hurries toward the table, sets down his tray, and makes a hasty exit—likely in a hurry to go gossip to the other ship boys about what he’s seen.

  “Where were we?” Avery murmurs against my ear as soon as the door swings shut.

  I pull away. “About to have tea.”

  Racked with guilt, I straighten my belt and brush back my hair. I let myself get a bit carried away.

  A bit?

  What will Sebastian say when he finds out? What will he do? What will he think?

  And he will find out. Of that, I have no doubt.

  Avery catches my hand, gently pulling me back. “What’s going on in that pretty head of yours?”

  “Hmmm? Nothing.”

  His thumb brushes over my knuckles in a distracting way. “You’re suddenly acting aloof, while I’m here thinking there was a definite spark between us.”

  If you define spark as a raging forest fire, then yes, I suppose there was a “spark.”

  “Was there?” I give him a radiant smile. “I suppose.”

  He frowns, but his eyes are still shining as if he knows how affected I am. “You suppose?”

  With a one-shouldered shrug, I pour the tea—a difficult task on a constantly rolling ship. “Perhaps.”

  “Perhaps?”

  I plunk the antique pot down with excess force, making the captain wince, and set my hands on my hips. “Why do you insist on parroting everything I say?”

  With no warning, Avery tugs me against his chest yet again and looks me directly in the eyes. “Because one minute ago, I could have sworn you were a siren in disguise, sent from your haunted island, bent on my demise. And it didn’t matter, because I was at your mercy—fully and completely lost to you.” Then, almost laughing, he raises an eyebrow wryly. “And you’re trying to tell me you didn’t notice a connection?”

  My heart all but stops, and after several moments, I clear my throat. “Yes…?”

  A wicked grin lights his face, and he lets me go. “Well, then. At least we are clear. Now, let’s have that tea.”

  The moment he turns to choose a bottle of something stronger to lace his drink with, I brace a hand against the table and draw in a ragged breath.

  ***

  “Hello, Sebastian,” I call when there is a loud and impatient knock at my cabin suite.

  The door flies open, and Sebastian strides in, his footsteps sounding formidable. Well, they’d be formidable if I didn’t know him so well.

  Who am I fooling? I’m terrified of what my friend is here to say.

  “Please tell me the crew’s rumors are not true…” He trails off when he can’t find me. Less patient, he demands, “Lucia?”

  I’m behind the folding partition. I’ve finished dressing after a hot bath, and now I’m pulling on the tall, heeled boots I’ve come to adore. I poke my head around the side. “Which rumors, Sebastian? Men can be such peacocks; I have no idea which one you are referring to.”

  Sebastian balks when he realizes where I am, and his gaze rises to the ceiling.

  Flink, who’s claimed the very center of my bed, opens a sleepy eye to see what the commotion is about. Satisfied it concerns neither dinner nor an attacking sea serpent, he doesn’t bother rising.

  The little dragon’s a lazy creature, and he’s getting quite fat on scraps. His little, scaled belly bulges as he takes in a deep breath. With a long, high-pitched whistle of contentment, he sighs and goes right back to sleep.

  “Lucia,” Sebastian growls. “Have you gone completely daft? You can’t let a man in while you’re changing.”

  I roll my eyes as I check that my corset belt is straight.

  “You’re not a man…” I say, but I instantly regret my words and change tactics. Cringing, I finish, “You’re, you know…you.” Then I step around the partition and hold out my arms. “Besides, I was already dressed. Exactly what kind of girl do you think I am?”

  Sebastian’s eyes drop to my tall boots, and he frowns. “I’m hoping you’re not the type who goes about getting herself into compromising situations with the captain in his cabin—I’m hoping you’re not the kind who gets caught in said situations by a loose-tongued galley boy.”

  I shrug and check my reflection in the vanity mirror. After several days of using the expensive soap Avery provided, my hair has a nice shine to it. It’s sad how much that pleases me.

  Sebastian rubs his temples. “Please, Lucia, tell me the rumors aren’t true.”

  “It wasn’t a ‘compromising situation.’ It wasn’t even a kiss.”

  Oh, but it almost was.

  Irritated and embarrassed, I turn from the vanity to stand in front of him and cross my arms. There’s something about Sebastian showing up here, all high and mighty, that irks me. “And why do you care?”

  He lets out a slow ex
hale. “Because your reputation—”

  I step closer, making him meet my eyes. “That’s exactly what I’m talking about. Why do you care about my reputation?”

  Sebastian narrows his eyes at my tone, but I don’t back down.

  “I’ve never interrogated you about the girls you’ve carried on with,” I continue, on a roll now. “Did I demand anything of you when you were enamored with Sir Eldinard’s silly daughter? Or the librarian in Renbright? What about when you fawned all over the black-haired girl on the island? No—I didn’t say a thing.”

  “What black-haired girl?” he asks, momentarily perplexed.

  Uncomfortable, I fidget. “You know. The one on the pier.”

  It takes him a moment to remember who I’m speaking of, and then he lets out an incredulous noise that sounds an awful lot like a snort. “Nothing happened with that girl. From the sound of it, you seem to be—”

  “I am not jealous,” I spit out before he can finish.

  His eyebrows shoot up. “I was going to say that it sounds like you’re attempting to justify your behavior.”

  “You’re missing the point.” I stick out a finger at him. “I’m a grown woman. I don’t need to ‘justify my behavior,’ especially to you. We are business partners, but we have no familial relationship. You have no duty toward me.”

  For whatever reason, he obviously disagrees. We stare at each other, at an impasse.

  The seconds drag on, and I begin to fidget. There’s a question I’ve wanted to ask him for days. A question he knows he’ll have to answer eventually—and has been avoiding. Now is not the right time, but it’s the first chance I’ve had him alone since Avery’s great rescue.

  The silence grows heavier.

  One of us must relent first, or we’ll be right back to where we started before we set out on this journey.

  “What were you going to say to me before the serpents attacked?” I blurt out. My ears grow hot, and I catch myself holding my breath.

  Sebastian looks startled, and he turns his attention to the vanity. “When?”

  When? Surely, he’s not asking me that.

  “Before the ship showed up.”

  He rubs the back of his neck, avoiding eye contact. Sebastian suddenly looks exhausted, and I wonder if he’s been sleeping well. Where I have a beautiful bed with a down-stuffed coverlet, he’s been lodging with the crew—both on The Greybrow Serpent and The Sea Star—for almost a month now.

  “Lucia, listen…people say all kinds of things in those situations. I was caught up in it. The night is such a blur at this point. I don’t even remember now.”

  “Please, tell me,” I say, softer than before.

  Reluctant, he meets my gaze. “If you must know, I was going to tell you that you’ve always, whether you have doubted it or not, been…a good friend.” He glances away as if he cannot look at me and finish the rest. “My closest friend, when it comes down to it. Family, really.”

  He clears his throat, uncomfortable.

  “Oh,” I say softly.

  I know how much this admission must be costing him. When you have a pride as gigantic as Sebastian’s, there are things that are difficult to admit. But…maybe part of me…the part that regretted almost kissing Avery and soared sky-high when Sebastian and I lay together in the tiny dinghy…

  Well, that part might be the tiniest bit disappointed.

  Still, I carefully cross the room and wrap my arms around his waist, squeezing him tight, the same way I would embrace my father or brothers. He freezes, startled by the contact, but relaxes when I say, “Aw, Sebastian. Even if you’re awful most of the time, I like you too.”

  He swings his arms over my shoulders, clasping his hands loosely behind my back, and rests his cheek on my head.

  “By the way, I never realized you are so sensitive.” I grin against the fabric of his doublet as I say the words and steel myself for his inevitable attack. “Perhaps you are in the wrong profession. You should join the minstrel’s guild, construct sonnets and poetry all day.”

  Not about to let me get away with that, Sebastian jabs me lightly in the ribs, tickling me. I try to yank away, but he locks me in place, and I squirm until he tires of his pestering.

  “Please don’t get involved with the captain.” His voice is muffled by my hair. “I swear to you, it’s not because I don’t want you to be happy; it’s not because I don’t want you with a wealthy man who will take care of you.”

  “Yes, it is,” I tease. “Because who will you torment once I’m married? Admit it. You’d miss me.”

  “Maybe.” I can hear the smile in his voice. “But, Lucia, haven’t you noticed how many illegal items he has on this ship? The man’s a pirate.”

  I pull back and look Sebastian in the eyes. “You don’t think he’s an actual pirate, do you?”

  Sebastian fights a smile and tries not to laugh. I snort out a giggle and bury myself next to his chest. A few moments go by, and neither of us moves. I can feel the steady thrum of Sebastian’s heart, beating under my cheek. I shift slightly, and his muscles tighten for half a moment before he relaxes again. That tiny part of me, the tiny disappointed part, purrs with contentment, and I squeeze my eyes shut.

  Stop it, Lucia.

  Idly, Sebastian raises his hand to the ends of my hair and twines his fingers through it. Repeatedly, I feel the soft tug of it as it falls from his hand. My fingers, moving almost on their own, slide from his side to his taught stomach. Gulping, refusing to think about what I’m doing, I run my hand up, letting my palm skim the fabric of his doublet until it’s pressed against his chest. His hand goes still in my hair.

  Slowly, I splay my fingers, thinking of nothing but the sensation, of the way the smooth, warm fabric and embossed threads feel against my skin.

  I glance at his face, half-expecting him to wear the look of a caged animal, wary and uncomfortable. Instead, his features are unnaturally blank, as if he’s concentrating very hard on keeping them that way. I search his eyes, wondering why he hasn’t stepped back.

  Suddenly, Flink sits up on the bed. He blinks as if still half asleep and sneezes green sparks into the air. Satisfied, he yawns once, flops onto his side, and snuggles deeper into the coverlet. After wrapping his wings around his face, the dragon goes right back to sleep.

  Sebastian shakes his head and gently lets me go.

  “Does he look bigger to you?” I ask, shaking off my chaotic, wayward thoughts.

  I’m afraid Flink’s almost doubled in size just since we boarded Avery’s ship. A niggling worry has been plaguing me for the last week. He’s growing much too quickly. How large is he going to get?

  Sebastian studies the dragon, looking none-too-pleased. “Yes, I believe he has.”

  Flink’s the size of a large munchkin now, bordering on too large to carry in one’s arms.

  “What do you think he is?” I ask quietly, not wanting to hurt the odd creature’s feelings—which is a bit absurd.

  “He’s a menace.”

  I give Sebastian a chastising look, and then I turn back to Flink, concerned. Common dragons are the size of an average dairy cow, but greater dragons…

  Well, they are much larger. And I’ve never, not in my life, heard of a tame one.

  ***

  I stand on the deck, staring out at the tiny kingdom growing in the distance. After all this time, we’ve finally reached Grenalda. I’ve never been so relieved to see land. My time aboard The Greybrow Serpent, as short as it may have been, has worn on my nerves. My emotions are jumbled, and my heart’s as fickle as a puppy, going this way and that, begging for anyone and everyone to give it affection.

  It’s time to move on, slip back into a routine. I am a scout, an adventuress. I sneak into dragon caves and fight trolls. I can shoot an arrow across a meadow and hit my target nine times out of ten. I am not a flighty, high-nobility, baubles and giggles, kind of girl. And it’s time I remember it.

  Sebastian steps up beside me. He, like me, seems eager t
o be off the ship. “We have something we need to discuss.”

  I glance over, a bit concerned by the solemn tone of his voice.

  “When I paid for your passage aboard The Sea Star—”

  “Paid for my passage?” I interrupt. “It’s not as if they gave us another cabin; you slept with the crew. They made you pay extra?”

  “Yes,” he says, brushing me off. “Now, we’re a bit short on money.”

  “How short is a bit short?” I ask.

  Sebastian frowns and looks out at the water. The sun’s bright, and his eyes look lighter in the afternoon light. “We have enough for tonight’s lodging and meal, but after that…”

  “I’ll find a tavern to work in when we reach land,” I say. “And then perhaps we can find a few odd jobs.”

  “We’ll need to buy a map of the wildlands, and then we’ll have to secure some form of travel as well.”

  Avery walks across the deck and joins us. “I couldn’t help but overhear your conversation, and I might have the answer to your troubles.”

  Sebastian looks like he wants to heave Avery overboard and solve all kinds of troubles right now. He leans against the railing. “Please, Captain, do tell.”

  “Let me join you. I will gladly invest in your expedition into the wild heart of Grenalda’s untamed land.”

  Sebastian turns to Avery, oddly suspicious. “How do you know where the orchids grow?”

  For one brief second, Avery looks taken aback, but he recovers so quickly, I might have been mistaken for thinking it at all.

  “Where else would they be?” Avery chuckles, his expression neutral and friendly.

  Sebastian crosses his arms and studies Avery. “And how, exactly, do you expect to profit from it?”

  Avery shrugs. “I’ll take a few cuttings. I’m sure I can pawn them off somewhere.”

  A moment goes by and then several more. Finally, Sebastian says, “We are very grateful for your offer—”

  Avery claps his hands together, grinning. “Well, now that’s that. I’ll inform the—”