Belle and the Pirate

by Vivienne Savage

  “Bah, a mere triviality. What human needs wings?”

  “Ghost Hawk was able to do it without maiming her.”

  “Of course he was, and yet it’s merely a temporary solution to a long-term problem, isn’t it? Now that she’s tasted his poison once, it’ll never work again.”

  His hand fisted at his side. “What are you doing here?”

  “I came to save you from a broken heart, dear one. You may hold me in poor regard, but I’ve always protected your best interests.”

  He scoffed. “You care only for yourself.”

  Her spine straightened and her bare shoulders tensed. Damp hair stuck to the edge of her jaw, clinging like pieces of seaweed against her toned upper torso and slender arms. She wore nothing, as was common among the merpeople who inhabited the seas, but she lacked the sensual appeal of her comely counterparts. “Then why do I guard these islands from the very people who hunt you? Why save them from the slavers’ net if I care only for myself?”

  James averted his gaze and clenched his jaw, unable to answer. The blasted woman had a point, and everyone owed her their gratitude. There’d been a time long ago when the slavers of the Ridaeron Dynasty had made Wai Alei natives their stock on the flesh trade. “Everyone appreciates your protection, Caecilia, there’s no doubt of that.”

  “Everyone but you.”

  “I’ve always respected your care for Neverland. It’s your methods I don’t tend to agree with.” James wanted to wince the moment the words left his mouth.

  “Did you disagree when I capsized the King Peter’s Folly?” she hissed. A hint of mottled color spread over her shoulders and crept up her neck as her milky eyes narrowed into furious slits. “Should I have allowed them to fire on the Jolly Roger?”

  Chastened, James dipped his head. “Apologies. I know the good deed you did for us then.”

  The witch quieted. Spindly pale fingers reached out to touch the narrow strip of bare skin exposed by his shirt. “There are better things to discuss than Wai Alei. You’ll never have happiness with her, James. You know that, I know that, and your bug knows that. What good will she ever be to you once she’s a little firefly again?”

  He removed her hand. “That doesn’t matter to me.”

  “She’ll return to her friends in Cairn Ocland and abandon you. Don’t you realize that? Souls like ours belong to the sea, and I will always be here for you.”

  Unable to bite back the snarl rising in his throat, James growled as he thrust his hook at her. “Is that why you sent the crocodile after me? Because you care enough to always be there? I may respect the good deeds you’ve done while protecting my crew and the islanders, but I won’t allow you to manipulate me.”

  Her face fell. “He misunderstood my commands. I never meant for him to cause you harm. Never,” she murmured. “I could return your hand.”

  “No one can return the hand your pet took from me, and I’ve already seen the best mages and healers the Viridian Sea has to offer.”

  Her features darkened for a split second before a predatory smile spread across her damp gray face. “I can do what they failed to do. All you have to do is stay with me. Promise to remain here as mine, and I’ll protect your ship as I’ve always protected these islands. You dedicate your life to saving children, and I dedicate mine to defending Neverland. Don’t you see that this means we were meant to be together?”

  “Never. My heart may have belonged to the sea once, but now it belongs to Belle, no matter her size.”

  Caecilia snorted. “Do you think she can satisfy you? You’ll be ready to move on from her as soon as you grow thirsty for physical satisfaction, James. Like all men.”

  “I’m not like other men.”

  Her gaze ran over his body from head to toe, then up again. “No, you most certainly are not.”

  “Begone, witch. I’ve paid my price for your help in the past. You have no hold over me now, nor will you ever again.”

  The tranquil breeze became a turbulent wind. It ripped across the deck and tossed James’s hair in his face, stirring the sails above him. Her murky eyes narrowed. “You’ll never have a life with your glowing gnat. I’ve seen her future. Mark my words, you will live to regret this. A year from now, when her little light twinkles out, you’ll wish you had taken my offer.”

  Caecilia dove over the side of the ship and returned to the water, sending up a salty splash against the hull. Long after she was gone, the cold lingered in James’s bones.

  Something about her words hadn’t struck him as a mere threat against Belle’s life. It had been a warning filled with truth.

  * * *

  Tink paced the bedroom a dozen times while awaiting James’s arrival. He’d promised on the third night there’d be no more excuses or delays. Despite her anticipation, she couldn’t fault the legitimate reason for refusing to bed her right away.

  According to her pirate, Eislanders courted their beloved for weeks and sometimes even months before moving forward. Given the circumstances, he’d settled for three days and treated her to two amazing evenings.

  A chill traveled over her body and raised anxious goose bumps beneath her robe. It was the prettiest thing she’d ever owned. Too bad she’d never be able to wear it again. She snuggled within the silk and breathed in the scent from the natural dyes used to paint it, and then she closed her eyes.

  Hers. Even if she could never wear it again, she’d never let it go. Much like James.

  If she had only a year or two left in the world, she’d have to do her best to divide it between her loved ones in Cairn Ocland and sailing the high seas as James’s companion.

  Decorating the room had given her an outlet for her nervous energy. Since she and James had already dined on the quarterdeck, she’d taken the liberty of pouring wine. Candles scented with fragrant oils burned around the cabin, giving every adjacent surface a romantic glow. While she had intended to gift them to Conall and Sorcha when she returned home, the night had provided an ideal opportunity to use them.

  Outside, the wind howled and the ship heaved. Tink stumbled and grabbed the bedpost to remain upright until the rocking ship began to settle. Before the motioned evened out, the door opened and James stepped through.

  “Is everything all right? I heard the wind pick up.”

  “Everything is fine,” he assured her. “A rough patch is all—” He stopped to gaze at the room with an appreciative half smile on his face. “You did all this?”

  “Do you like it?”

  “It’s lovely.” James crossed over and ran his fingers through her hair before tucking the strands behind her ear. When he traced the curve with his calloused thumb, a pleasant tickle raced down her spine. “You’re lovely.”

  Tink rose on her toes and leaned in, met halfway by James. He claimed her mouth in a gentle kiss while drawing her closer, holding her anchored against him with his hand at her nape. The sash around her waist loosened, pulled free with the utmost care by his hook, and allowed the silken robe to part. Bare skin awaited him beneath.

  “I don’t know what to do,” she confessed on a whisper. For all her previous eagerness and boldness, she found herself suddenly shy. James tipped her face up, his thumb rubbing across her lower lip, and smiled. “I mean, I know what happens, but I don’t know how to begin—”

  James silenced her with a kiss. “I know enough for us both.”

  He stepped away long enough to remove his hook and set it in the case beside the bed, but when he reached toward his waist to remove the sash and gun belt, Tink stopped him with a touch of her hand.

  “Please. Let me.”

  One by one, articles of clothing tumbled to the floor and pooled around their ankles. By the time James lowered Tink to the crushed velvet comforter, her entire body buzzed with excitement. With his weight braced upon his right arm, he introduced her to the reassuring weight of his body and the sensation of bare skin to skin. He stretched over her, long and lean, his bottom shapely beneath her exploring fingers.


  There had been no shortage of cuddles since her transition to human that first night, but the promise of advancing their relationship placed Tink on pins and needles. Each nerve ending tingled, and desire ached between her thighs. She wanted him to touch her.

  Craving that contact more than anything, she grasped his left hand and guided his fingers where she needed them most. James made an appreciative sound in his throat before exploring her downy, golden mound.

  “I knew I wanted you to be mine from the first moment I saw you,” he said, voice a husky murmur against her cheek. “You were bathed in this breathtaking, vibrant purple glow and as curious of me as I was of you. At the time, I was selfish enough to dare hope I could keep you as my companion.”

  He hadn’t called her a pet—not as the Liangese had while discussing their illegal cargo—but a companion and cherished friend. Rapidly blinking away the tears burning in the corners of her eyes, Tink raised one hand to cup his face when he leaned back to gaze upon her.

  “My desires haven’t changed, Belle. Stay with me here. It matters none to me what size you are. You bring light to my life I haven’t seen in so long.”

  To stay with him, even as a sprite, and leave her old friends in Cairn Ocland… With so little time remaining in her sorrowfully short life, the temptation grew into a terrible, selfish desire.

  Was it so selfish to do what she wanted with her remaining time? To love and be loved by someone who saw her as an equal?

  Or would she miss her wolven friends, her dear brother Conall, Sorcha, and their little one? Why did he have to make the decision so difficult?

  “I want to,” she whispered.

  His mouth traced a scintillating path from her throat to her breasts. A whisper of his lips circled one nipple then the next, wet by a stroke of his tongue. Then he teased her body with his fingers and held her on the precipice again, proving he only needed the one hand to introduce her to limitless pleasure.

  The moment of their joining came on a painless thrust, uniting them in blissful intimacy that sent trembles of ecstasy coursing through Tink’s body. Startled, she arched beneath him and raised her hips into the next movement.

  How could one body endure so much sensation and so many conflicting emotions, each one warring against the next? Triumph for attaining what she’d wanted, satisfaction because their puzzle-perfect fit surpassed her expectations, and profound sadness that it would be only a single night.

  There was no shortage of kisses and whispered promises, the Eisland tongue never sounding prettier than it did in those moments when James swore he would give her the world.

  True to his word, she learned the rhythm of their lovemaking, and those awkward, uncertain raises of her hips became a timed dance of give and take. She curved one calf above his rounded bottom and traced her fingers down the back muscles bunching beneath her touch. Tension wound within her, stretched to an impossible limit.

  And each time she came within seconds of reaching the peak, her lover ceased all movement then slid free of her to saw the delicious length of his manhood against her slick skin.

  “James,” she wailed. “I need… I need…” For lack of knowing what to call it, she buried her fingers in his dark hair and sobbed in frustration.

  “What do you need?” The seductive whisper skimmed against her ear, and her core tightened, empty and aching for him again.

  She wanted the delicious completion he’d given her in the shower, so desperate for it she reached between their bodies and guided him home where he belonged as she arched her hips off the bed. Tink savored the long, sweet moan of her name that fell from his lips.

  For a while, they met one another stroke for stroke, giving and receiving mutual pleasure until James stiffened above her and swore under his breath, releasing a low, guttural groan of pleasure. He ground against her, and, in the next thrust, Tink saw the stars. The tension unraveled with a snap, introducing her to golden bliss. Together, they coasted on a turbulent sea of pleasure, each second of climax more intense than the last.

  Eventually, the sweetest relief settled over her exhausted limbs, turning her body leaden and useless beneath him. Even James appeared reluctant to move, as he did nothing more than kiss her throat and remain buried inside her.

  “My magnificent sprite,” he whispered. “I never want to let you go.”

  And in a perfect world, he wouldn’t have to. Instead of answering, Tink laced her fingers through his ebony hair and enjoyed the beautiful warmth he emitted.

  After all, a few more hours were all that was promised to her.

  * * *

  James resisted sleep while the sweat dried on their skin. He trailed his fingers through her golden hair and basked in the afterglow, wondering when he’d last felt at peace with absolute contentment in his world.

  Never. Not even when he’d first taken command of the Jolly Roger, on what had been the proudest day of his life.

  “I want to do it again,” Belle murmured, interrupting his thoughts. He’d thought her to be asleep until then.

  “Already?”

  She pounced on him and straddled his hips, leaning forward on both palms. “Yes.” Her hair slipped over one shoulder and tickled his chest. “Right now.”

  “A man needs a moment afterward to recover,” he muttered.

  “No, you don’t. Look.”

  His body proved hardier than his mind and stiffened at her touch. Groaning, James surrendered to her zealous hunger for him. No matter the activity, Belle proved to be a quick learner.

  Afterward, she stretched along his lax, exhausted body, feathering lazy kisses over his pulse. She traced her fingers through his hair and hummed a quiet lullaby. “I don’t want to sleep,” she murmured. “The sooner I sleep, the sooner…” She blinked a few times, unable to disguise the moisture in her eyes. “I don’t want it to end.”

  “It will never end if we hold it in our hearts. Besides, the morning and day remain for us. Sleep, my love.”

  She sighed and pressed her face against the warm hollow of his throat. “Okay.”

  Even if it’s only tonight, this single night will be enough, James thought as the gentle motion of the ship lulled him to sleep.

  When morning came, they showered together and made love another time with desperate urgency, speaking none save murmurs of affection and pleas for more. They tenderly washed each other afterward in the semi-cramped space, the moment full of laughter and giggles whenever they knocked into one another.

  “You took all of the hot water,” she accused while toweling her hair dry outside of the box.

  “That entire thing was your idea,” he quipped before dragging her up against him. He’d already donned his wardrobe while she pranced around the stateroom in nothing. “Would you like help with your dress laces or shall you be a pirate again? This is your day, so the choice remains yours.”

  “The dress, please.”

  James helped her into the two-layered dress and tightened the laces, securing it around her ribs and slender waist. It was all white save scarlet blossoms and windblown pink petals over a sea of blue covering the lower half of the outer skirt.

  Belle spun in a circle, letting the ankle-length skirts swish around her calves. “I’m ready. But… I… We need to talk. I can’t face the day without telling you.”

  “Yes?”

  “I… I have something to confess, and I’m afraid you’ll be upset with me if I do.”

  James cupped her chin and gazed into her eyes. “Unless you plan to set fire to the ship or run away with Nigel, there is nothing you could say to make me upset with you.”

  “I’m afraid it’ll ruin our final day together.”

  James wrapped his arms around her. “It won’t.”

  “I’m… older than I thought myself to be. I don’t think I’ll live much more than a year or two.”

  His heart stopped as she spoke the words he’d already known, confirming a terrible suspicion. “I know, Belle. I’ve known since yesterday,
and… I’ll…” His arms tightened around her, and he buried his face in her hair. She smelled so good. “I’ve decided to pass over command of the ship for the next year once we return you to Cairn Ocland. If you won’t remain on the seas with me, then I will go where you go.”

  “James—”

  “I’ve made up my mind and discussed it with Nigel. If you’ll have me, I’ll follow you anywhere to cherish every day, every hour, down to the last second your stars bless me with your light.”

  As her green eyes brimmed over with tears, Belle’s voice came as little more than a choked whisper. “Of course I’ll have you.”

  “Thank you.”

  “But... tell me how you found out. Who told you?”

  “The sea witch herself. She visited last night after you retired to our cabin. I know she meant to cause me pain, but she’s only strengthened my resolve. I won’t leave you when you need me. Not because you’ll grow little, not because our time is limited. I won’t run away from this, even if it scares me.”

  “James—”

  “Because you’ve shown me what love is about. If the children taught me self-sacrifice, then you’ve taught me to love—to truly love—and I would rather have that love for one year than to have an entire life without it.”

  Unable to utter another word, Belle threw her arms around his neck and hugged him tight.

  “Now, shall we go fire those cannons one last time?”

  Sniffling, she leaned back and wiped her cheeks with one wrist. “Your pistol, too?”

  “And my pistol, too,” he grudgingly agreed before they stepped from his cabin and into the noon sun.

  * * *

  When sunset approached and Tink’s final day as a human reached its conclusion, she retreated to James’s cabin to endure the transformation’s reversal in privacy. Three days had been too short, but she had reveled in each moment given to her and cherished every unique experience.

  James shut the door behind her and shrugged from his coat. Silence had fallen between them over the last half hour, and they’d done nothing more than hold hands on the quarterdeck and watch the dwindling hours paint the sky in watercolors.