by Aileen Fish
Pearla cursed and stood up. She headed over to the porthole and looked outside. The blasted man was right. They were already well on their way out of the harbor. How long had she been in the cabin before they tossed him inside with her? It didn’t matter. They were stuck together. She’d just have to make the best of it.
“Come cara and tell me how you found yourself in the company of such disreputable ruffians as those in the employ of Paolo, the Duca d’Sordillo.”
“Who?” Pearla sat down on the bunk and huffed out a breath. “I’m not familiar with that name.”
“No?” Damian frowned. “That doesn’t make sense. Why would they stick you with me? Tell me your story maybe I can figure it out once I have all the information. Why are you on this ship?”
“It’s kind of a long story.”
How to explain her failed wedding to a stranger… It wasn’t something Pearla looked forward to. She didn’t even want to think about it let alone put voice to it.
“I have nothing but time cara.”
“Quit saying that,” she demanded.
“What?” he asked confused.
“I am not your darling.”
“Ah well you have yet to tell me your name. What else am I to call you?”
Why did he have to have a valid point? More importantly why did she still refuse to tell him her name? Maybe it was the fantasy of it. There was a certain romanticism to it all. Instead of telling him her name she told him her story. This was exactly what she needed upon further reflection. A stranger was much easier to talk to then friends. Gemma had meant well but she could see the pity mixed with concern in her eyes.
“Today was supposed to be my wedding day,” she began. When she finished a loud whistle filled the room and then he cursed more colorfully than she had.
“Bloody hell you’re Lady Pearla Montgomery.” He scrubbed his hands over his face. “It all makes sense now.”
“Well I’m glad you understand what is going on. I sure don’t. I’m as confused as ever.”
Like how the hell did he know who she was? She hadn’t mentioned names. All she told him was her fiancé’s presumed dead wife interrupted her wedding. The desire to leave England had made her jump on the first ship available. Had rumors spread that fast already?
His next words made her heart almost stop.
“Rubina is my sister.”
She had the worst luck of anyone alive. Only she would have the misfortune of being stuck in a room with the brother of the woman who’d ruined her life. Someone out there truly hated her…
Chapter Two
“Ignoring me isn’t going to solve all of your problems.” Damian stared at Pearla. The sun was low in the sky illuminating her golden blonde hair. He could see why Noah had been attracted to the beauty. “I think we are going to be stuck with each other for a while so we might as well get to know each other.”
“I’d rather not.” She leaned against the cabin wall and folded her arms across her generous bosom. “If it’s all the same to you just pretend I’m not here.”
Damian chuckled. Stubborn chit… “Let’s talk this over a bit.”
She turned toward him her eyes a blue flame sparkling in the light. “I already told you I don’t want to speak to you. Why are you being so relentless?”
“Because we are in a bind and you may not like it, but you and I are in this mess together.”
They’d been on the ship for days—no weeks. Damian had no idea how long she stewed in silence. Each day had begun to blur into the next. It had to have been at least a fortnight, probably longer. It was time for her to stop being so bloody stubborn. They’d no doubt be reaching their port of destination soon.
“As soon as we reach port I will find a way out of this cabin and put as much distance between us as possible.” She lifted her hand and ran her fingers through her mess of curls. She cursed as they got stuck in a knot.
“Do you have a brush in your reticule?” he asked.
Earlier her eyes had been pure fire—the gaze she threw him was pure ice. How she could go from one emotion to the next Damian didn’t know, but he wanted to find out.
“Why do you want to know?”
Damian signed. “I can brush out the knots if you’ll let me.”
Pearla stared at him as if he’d grown three heads. Was it so odd for him to offer to help her? He just wanted to make her as comfortable as possible. Noah cared about her and if something happened to his former fiancée he’d blame himself. His sister was just getting her husband back. They didn’t need to unnecessary guilt of whatever Paolo had in store for him and Pearla. He was a devious bastard and was capable of doing anything.
“I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
Damian shrugged. “Suit yourself.”
He wasn’t going to force her to allow him to help. There would come a time he would need her to trust him. When they did reach a port they would have to rely on each other to escape. If he pushed now she’d be less likely to follow him to their own mutual safety.
Pearla dug through her reticule and pulled out a brush with a polished silver handle. She pulled all of the pins out of her hair and set them inside a small case and closed it. With a sigh she picked up the brush and tried to run it through her golden strands.
A bit of sunlight hit the handle of her brush and blinded him. Damian cursed and shielded his eyes. He couldn’t watch her with the sun daring to get in his way. Blasted sunlight… He wasn’t lost on the irony of it. He craved to be outside enjoying the sun’s warmth. But it was preventing him from enjoying the only lovely view available to him.
Another wince fell from Pearla’s lips.
“When are you going to give in and let me help you?”
He wanted to know if her hair was a silky soft as it looked. But he also wanted to help her and she was refusing something so simple. He could brush her luscious locks better since he had easier access to the long tresses. They were so long the fell past her waist in waves.
Damian clenched his fists at his side. These were not thoughts he should entertain. He needed the lady to trust him. It would do no good for her to know exactly how much he desired her. If she’d allow it…
No he wouldn’t go there. She was not for him. His life was far too dangerous for a wife and children. He couldn’t risk a family when they’d only be at constant risk.
Another wince filled the room. Bloody hell when would she just give in? He thought Rubina was stubborn—Pearla took it to all new levels.
“Fine.” She threw the brush at him. “See if you can do a better job.”
“Why cara you beg so sweetly.” The corner of his mouth twitched. He fought the smile that wanted to form on his face. “Since you asked so eloquently…”
She glared at him. “Don’t make this even more difficult that it already is.”
He winced as he stood and walked over to her. Pain shot through his side with each movement. Paolo’s men had done a number on him. He’d begun to heal, but it would still take several more days for him to be at full strength.
“Turn your face away from me cara.” He sat down on the bed beside her. “I will be able to get the knots untangled better with full access to your lovely hair.”
“Quit trying to be charming. I am immune to the likes of you.” She threw the words at him as she turned her body.
Damian wanted to see if she was as immune as she claimed to be. He doubted it. Noah had told him he was only marrying Pearla so he could have children. The Duke of Huntly needed heirs. His brother-in-law believed he was incapable of loving any woman other than his sister, Rubina. Seeing his former fiancée in the flesh he found it hard to believe he wouldn’t have fallen in love with her eventually. Hell he was half in love with her already and he’d only been in her company for a matter of days. He shook his head. What was this nonsense he was thinking? He didn’t love her. Lust? Definitely. Love was an entirely different thing.
“Your hair is as silky as I thought it would be.”
He picked up a few strands and ran the brush through them. “You shouldn’t have let them get so tangled. We could have avoided this if you had tried to brush it days ago.”
“Forgive me for having more pressing matters on my mind,” she spat out. “My hair was the last thing on my mind.”
Damian chuckled quietly. It wouldn’t do for her to know how her anger amused him.
“Rightly so. This is a precarious situation we are in.”
She sighed. “Tell me why they put us together.”
“Why are you suddenly interested in your fate?”
It was about bloody time. She needed to know everything if she was going to be fully armed for the battle they were going to face. They’d wasted too much time with her stubbornness.
“I wasn’t ready to admit I needed to know. When Rubina…” She paused and took a deep breath. “It was more than I could deal with. I had to get away. You wouldn’t understand.”
“So you loved him?” Damian asked softly. He cursed inwardly. Of course she did. From what he understood many women had coveted the title of Duchess of Huntly. It would take someone extra special to catch Noah’s eye. Even he had standards even if it was wife only meant for breeding. So he’d wooed her without giving her his heart—Pearla apparently hadn’t been so lucky.
“I thought I did. Maybe I was in love with the idea of love.” She turned her head slightly. A tiny tear fell from the corner of her eyes. “I had plans. I wanted to heal his heart. Oh I know he didn’t love me… But I thought in time he’d at least come to care for me. It’s just taken me a bit of time to come to terms with what I’ve lost.”
Damian paused, holding the brush against her hair. He could understand that a little bit. It wasn’t easy to lose a dream. Noah wasn’t the love of her life, but that didn’t make the plans she’d made any less important. He resumed brushing and inhaled her scent—a whisper of lilies mingled with vanilla.
“I suppose we should start at the beginning.” Damian needed a distraction and talking was the best one he could come up with. “Paolo is obsessed with my sister. She didn’t leave Noah willingly. He held her captive and arranged for everyone to believe she died.”
Pearla gasped and jerked her head to look at him. “That’s terrible. How did she manage to get away from him?”
“It was pure luck.” He sighed. “We’ve been watching Paolo for different reasons. He’s an evil man and has ties to the Sicilian mafia. We don’t know how deep he’s in…”
“So you rescued her?”
He shook his head. “No, my man Arturo did. He discovered her presence by accident. He’d been working undercover as their gardener. When Paolo left for business one night Arturo brought Rubina to me.”
“That must have been quite a shock for you. I remember the look on Noah’s face when she showed up to the wedding… Everyone else disappeared for him. I knew then that he never would have loved me—at least not the way he loved her. It hurt a bit to see it.”
“You deserve to have that kind of love cara. Don’t sell yourself short.”
“You’re right. I just needed time and distance to see that for myself.” She smiled. “Are you almost done brushing my hair?”
Damian stared at her lips. He wanted to kiss her. The desire flooded him to his depths and he fought for control. “Almost cara.”
“When are you going to cease calling me that?”
“Never,” he replied.
“I wish you would. That is a lover’s term” She frowned. “We are not lovers.”
Not yet anyway… Damian had no doubt they would be someday. It was not longer a matter of if, but a matter of when. Something about her made him want things he shouldn’t. This all might not end well. Perhaps he should just give into his desires and take what they both wanted. He wasn’t ignorant to the little looks she kept throwing him. She had a bit of desire growing inside her too.
Instead he finished his story. “To make a long story short we knew Paolo was in England. We were hoping to find him before he did something to Noah or my sister. It looks like we were too late—there is no better way to hurt both of them than to kidnap us both.”
Pearla gasped. “But—I don’t mean that much to Noah. That’s ridiculous.”
“You keep telling yourself that cara if it makes you feel better. He may not have been in love with you but Noah did care about you.”
Her mouth fell open at his words. “I…”
“It’s all right to accept you meant something to him. You were going to get married after all.”
Damian was rather glad that wedding didn’t actually happen. The lust flowing through his blood wouldn’t have bode well with his relationship with Noah. The man would have killed him if he’d touched his wife. Lucky for him she was unencumbered and he could let his desires run free.
“You’re right.” She bit her lip. “Of course you are. It’s just a lot to let sink in. What does this mean for us?”
He finished brushing her hair. It shimmered in the fading sunlight. “It means that you and I have to rely on each other to get out of this mess. You have to trust me and let that stubborn streak you are so fond of go.”
“I am not stubborn.”
He laughed. “Cara, trust me. You are the by far the most obstinate woman I have ever met.” He leaned down and kissed the tip of her nose. “But don’t worry I rather like that side of you.”
She folded her arms across her chest. “Stop that.”
“What?” His eyebrow rose. “I’ve done nothing.”
She stomped her foot and glowered at him. “Quit making me like you.”
Women? Would he ever understand them? “Cara maybe you should just accept what is between us and make things easier on yourself.”
“I wouldn’t know what you could possibly mean.”
“Perhaps it would be better to just show you…”
Damian pulled her into his arms and found her lips with his. A small gasp fell between her lips allowing him to take advantage of her open mouth. He touched her tongue with his. She tentatively touched his with her.
That’s it cara let me in.
Damian deepened the kiss and was rewarded with the sound of her moans filling the cabin. He cupped her breast in the palm of his hand and her moans grew louder. He could have her if he pushed—but he didn’t want her like this. They may be living on borrowed time, but he would rather her not regret being with him. Pearla deserved to be wooed.
With every ounce of control he could muster he pulled back. He groaned at the sight of her. Her lips were plump from his kiss and her cheeks were flushed a bright pink.
“Why did you stop?”
“You deserve better than a quick tumble on a tiny cot in a dark musty cabin. When I make love to you cara—and I will—it will be with on a soft bed with at least a hundred candles lit so I can look my fill.”
Her eyes softened. “Maybe one day I will let you do that too. But you were right to stop this now. I want so much more than to lose my virginity in a hasty act of foolishness.”
“Oh cara trust me there would have been nothing hasty involved.”
She smiled. “If it makes you feel better to think so.”
Damian cursed. It was as if she was baiting him to give in and make love to her. He couldn’t allow her to get the upper hand. He meant what he said. Pearla should be loved properly. He still wasn’t sure he was that man, but he wanted to be.
“Cara…”
The door swung open and they both turned to see who was barging in on them. Damian frowned. This couldn’t be good.
A dirty man with a full black beard filled the doorway. “Oh good you’re both awake. The captain has something planned for you both tonight. Come with me you both are about to witness something you will never forget.”
Damian cursed. Whatever it was it couldn’t be good.
Dawn Brower holds a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology, a Master of Arts in Education, and is currently working on a Master of Arts in Liberal Arts with conc
entrations in Literature, History, and Sociology. She works as a substitute teacher and enjoys the flexibility it gives her to concentrate on her other endeavors.
Growing up she was the only girl out of six children. She is a single mother of two teenage boys; there is never a dull moment in her life. Reading books is her favorite hobby. There is nothing like a nice glass of wine and a good book to relax with at the end of the day.
For more information visit her website at: www.authordawnbrower.com
Books by Dawn Brower
Broken Pearl
Deadly Benevolence
Marsden Romances
A Flawed Jewel
A Crystal Angel
A Treasured Lily
A Sanguine Gem
A Hidden Ruby
A Discarded Pearl
Novak Springs Series
Cowgirl Fever
Unbridled Pursuit
Sensual Games
Linked Across Time Series
Saved by My Blackguard
Searching for My Rogue
Coming Soon
Seduction of My Rake
Heart’s Intent Series
One Heart to Give
Rules For Reforming A Rake
Meara Platt
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
To Neal, Brigitte (my fair Gigi), and Adam, the best husband and kids ever. I’m so lucky to have you as my family. To Bertrice Small, a friend and mentor to so many of us. To my intrepid first readers: Barbara Hassid, Lauren Cox, Megan Westfall, Rebecca Heller, and Maria Barlea. To my large and supportive extended family, who continue to show me just why I love you all so much. Sincere appreciation to longtime friends and terrific authors in their own right: Pamela Burford, Patricia Ryan, Jeannie Moon, Jennifer Gracen, and Stevi Mittman. To my wonderful web designer, Willa Cline. Heartfelt gratitude to the best support team that any author can have: Laurel Busch, Samantha Williams, Patricia D. Eddy, and Greg Simanson. I look forward to working with them on many more projects. To the wonderful management at Booktrope: Kenneth Shear, Katherine Sears, Jesse James Freeman, and Jennifer Gilbert.
