“Then why did you? Why did you take me to Nassau?”
Maddox knelt with his head down and his eyes closed for a moment. When he raised his face to her, he appeared a broken and lost soul, exposed to the elements of her fury and angst at his hands. “Pride? Denial? Everything you can imagine a man feels when he knows he’s wrong and yet lacks the humility to admit it. Even when I knew I already loved you, I continued my charade and told myself there was no way you could love me once you knew the truth.”
“You were right,” she said through her gritted teeth as she ran off toward the skiff.
Maddox clambered to his feet and chased after her in the dark, following the glow of her white hair as it fell from the braid and tossed against her shoulders in her wake. “Stop, Ivory, please! I’m not finished explaining,” he called out as he reached out and caught her by the sleeve.
“Let me go! I need to get back and retrieve my diamond from Tobias.”
“You know Tobias took the diamond?”
“Well, of course I do. Who else could have taken it? Wait, how did you know?”
“I sent word to Tobias that I was in Charles Towne. I instructed him to take it. You see, my dear, Tobias was working for me. Jackson came to Kingston and tried to make a deal with me for the stones, but I wanted no business with him. Tobias was a spy I sent along to keep an eye on him.”
“Oh, this just gets more interesting by the minute. Please, Maddox, just let me go!”
Maddox had had enough. He took Ivory by the arms and held her still. “Ivory Shepard, you are going to stop this nonsense and listen to me. I knew Jackson was in Charles Towne when I saw the Jade. I paid Tobias to remove the blue diamond so that Jackson wouldn’t get his hands on it. When your men overtook Jackson’s, Tobias had no choice but to join my ship. He knew you were far too clever not to discover him.”
“Tobias took it for you? So, you got the diamond, after all. Isn’t that just perfect?”
Maddox slowly released her from his grasp and stepped back from her. “You truly do not love me, do you Ivory? How could you love a man you deem impossible to trust? Sadly, I am questioning my own loyalty to you at this moment.”
Ivory was like ice. She neither frowned nor smiled. Her posture was rigid, and barely a blond hair moved in the soft breeze. “What did you expect? Perhaps if you’d have been honest with me, none of this would have ever happened. You have only yourself to thank.”
Maddox leapt to her and pulled her flat against him. She resisted, but he would not relent. He tried desperately to kiss her, and she pulled back fast from him, slapping him hard across the face. “Do you find me funny? Am I some sort of joke to you? How dare you! And don’t think I didn’t feel how thrilled you are just now. Does my anger excite you? God, you’re not only a liar, you’re disgraceful.”
Maddox began to laugh. This wasn’t his usual chuckle, but a laugh like she had never heard… and like he had never experienced before. He doubled over, wheezing and holding his stomach, until finally he staggered towards her. She stood as ice again, but this time with edges like razors.
“Dammit, Maddox, stop this. Have you lost your bloody mind?”
“Give me your hand,” he said and continued laughing through short snorts and ragged breaths.
“I will not.”
“Just give me…dammit,” he said, reaching out and grabbing her hand from her side.
He held her tightly by the wrist and pulled at her as he reached deep into his pants pocket and pushed the blue diamond into her hand. “Here. I was saving it for later while we were hopefully naked—perhaps for even the second time— but you’ve forced my hand. Now, shall we return to our respective ships? As much as it pains me to admit it, I’ve had rather enough of you for one day!” he shouted; his laughter had transformed into exasperation and he marched off toward the skiff.
The ice cracked and shattered from her as she stared down at the big blue egg in her hand. She tossed it into the air several times and then turned and followed him. “Maddox, wait.”
He was bent over pushing the skiff back into the water. He blew out a heavy sigh and stopped, then stood with his hands on his hips and his mouth drawn down on one side in disappointment. “What is it now? I believe we’ve lost the wind, Ivory Shepard. But on a more positive note, at least this time I didn’t get anyone killed.”
“You do love me, don’t you, Maddox?” she asked softly, tossing the diamond a few inches into the air above her hand and catching it.
“You’re a damn fool of a woman, do you know that? I care nothing about that blasted diamond and for the record, I no longer wonder why you’ve been alone all these years.” Maddox turned and pushed the skiff until it bounced in the calm surf and drifted a few feet away.
“Just answer the damn question.”
“Yes!” he shouted at the sky. “For God’s sake, Ivory, I’ve humiliated myself, swallowed my pride, and given up nearly everything to chase you from the Caribbean to the bloody Atlantic. Twice! What more can I do to prove myself to you?”
Ivory leaned back, and with a windmill swing of her arm, she launched the blue diamond so far out into the black water, they barely heard the splash. She walked into the light surf towards him and smiled up at his wide-eyed, open-mouthed face.
“Let’s go, shall we?” Ivory leapt into the skiff and Maddox followed. He shook his head as he sat down, pulled an oar across his lap, and looked up at her as she stood over him. Her blond hair now danced about her face like clouds against the dark sky, and her smile fell away as she pulled the oar from his hand and tossed it into the water, followed by its mate.
“Is there anything else you’d like to toss into the water, Madame?”
“You know, I don’t usually take on men of your age, but I do have a reputation for finding them and leaving them much better than they were.” She straddled his lap and wrapped her arms loosely around his neck.
“Oh yes, I have heard that rumor. However, I don’t recall asking for the job,” he said, as she removed his hat and tossed it overboard.
“Hmm…I beg to differ but none the less, are you saying you’d disobey a direct order, sir? You know, you really could do with a good solid lashing.”
“Ahhh, yes, it’s coming to me now…but wait, only a lashing? I seem to remember something about being forbidden to tell you no, lest I feel your razor against my throat, and it appears we are rather stuck with each other at the moment. Two captains—one ship. This is quite a dilemma. Who shall give the orders?” he asked as he glanced at the oars floating in the distance.
“What? You cannot tell me no? Oh, I do seem to remember something of the sort but as far as who shall lead, it appears the tide is captain tonight,” Ivory purred as she pressed her lips lightly, and repeatedly, against his.
“Madame Shepard, yet again I believe you have me at quite a disadvantage. So, if the tide is our captain, where shall we go from here?”
“Does it really matter? And don’t worry, Maddox, I’ll rescue you…eventually.”
About the Author
P.S. (Peggy) has always had a love of books and writing. She also paints and draws and although writing takes up the majority of her free time by choice, she loves spending time with her friends and family.
Her first novel “Fireflies” was published in March of 2013 with GMTA Publishing and her second, “Hope From the Ocean” was published in March of 2014, also with GMTA.
Peggy’s goal is to become a full time writer and spend the remainder of her days creating worlds, characters and stories that will carry on long after she’s written her last word.
Follow P.S. Bartlett
Website: http://psbartlett.me/
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The Blue Diamond (The Razor's Edge Book 1) Page 31
