Always the High Seas: Pirates of Britannia Connected World Read online

  And before she could say a word, he plunged into her slowly, inching his way in as Esmeralda gasped, clutching at his shoulders.

  “I haven’t hurt you, have I?”

  His voice was anxious, but Esmeralda had no words to explain the feeling. He filled her so completely, it was as though she had been waiting her whole life for him, for this moment.

  “Love me,” she whispered.

  He did not need another invitation. Kissing her and moving slowly to build a gentle rhythm, Javier brought her closer, and closer to that exquisite pleasure Esmeralda now craved from his touch.

  She clung to him as she felt the climax rush through her.

  “Yes, Javier, yes!”

  Falling back onto the pillow, she tried to catch her breath. Surely it was not possible to experience this so many times? And yet her body knew what she wanted.

  “Do I please you?” Javier whispered, his hand caressing her side, teasingly close to her nipple but not close enough to spark more rapture.

  “Yes,” she breathed, looking into his dark eyes. “Javier, you know exactly what…what I need.”

  He nodded, kissing her neck before saying, “And now I will take my pleasure with a little more for you, of course.”

  It was not a little more. Esmeralda clung to him, her nails scratching his back as he rode her again, building his rhythm until she breathed out his name.

  “Javier!”

  “Esmeralda!”

  They crested the wave together, and Esmeralda felt him shudder inside her before he collapsed on top of her.

  ***

  Javier had bedded many women in his time, but no one had made him feel this way, so desperate for more, for an intimate connection.

  Esmeralda was nothing like what he expected.

  She was everything.

  “I did not expect any of that,” she murmured.

  Javier rolled over and tried to force his mind to cooperate. “Good,” he replied. “I am glad to be the first one to give you pleasure.”

  He reached out and touched her stomach lightly, and her whole body quivered.

  He laughed. “I do believe you are ready for more.”

  Her eyes flashed as she joined with his laughter. “Who would not want more pleasure?”

  She turned onto her stomach, giving Javier a view of her perfect buttocks, and he groaned. “Esmeralda. You are not like any other woman I have ever met.”

  “Of course not,” she said. “I am Esmeralda le Brecque. No one is like me.”

  It would be conceit from anyone else, but as Javier took in every inch of her, he knew she spoke the truth. He would never find anyone to care for like her.

  They were so similar.

  If only they wanted the same thing for their futures, but she was wedded to the ocean, and he was desperate for land.

  “What are you thinking?” Her gentle voice broke into his thoughts.

  “How fortunate I am to be here.”

  “I am happy, too,” she said, leaning over to kiss him.

  Javier returned the affection, but his desire for her was so strong that his body started to stiffen.

  Esmeralda broke the kiss and laughed as she looked down. “If I am not mistaken, it appears that you are just as interested in more loving.”

  There was a hint of mischief in her tone that he was starting to adore, and he smiled. “I am always ready to serve mi capitán.”

  Chapter Eight

  Bright sunlight broke into Esmeralda’s consciousness as a thump on the deck rudely awakened her. She opened her eyes and reached for the man who had spent the night with her.

  Javier was not there.

  She sat up, taking in the light pouring through the window and her clothes scattered across the floor.

  A smile crept across her face. They had spent most of the night discovering more ways to please each other.

  No wonder so many people were anxious to marry!

  She remembered the way he had looked at her as she straddled him. How his eyes had widened as she had lowered herself onto him. How his head had tipped back in uncontrolled bliss as she brought him closer and closer to the release she knew he wanted.

  “Esmeralda!” he had cried out when she had finally allowed him to explode within her. “Esmeralda!”

  Hearing her name on his lips had pushed her over the edge in turn, and that had been the last time before they had collapsed, whispering sweet words to each other before falling asleep.

  This bed. Her bed. This stranger had come onto her ship and changed her life.

  And now, every moment away from him seemed wasted. She needed to see him, to be close to him.

  It took but a few moments to dress, and then she stepped onto the deck, breathing in the fresh salt air. It had not changed, though she had.

  “Captain,” George said, bowing his head. “I thought you had—we expected you…good morning.”

  Esmeralda smiled. “As you were, George.”

  She watched him return to the rigging and forced her smile to disappear. He certainly did not know what she had been doing last night, to cause her to be so late on deck—if any of them could.

  But they must never know. This was to be her secret, hers and Javier’s. Only they would know what treasures they had unearthed together in that small cabin bedchamber. She would never share it with anyone, just as she knew he never would.

  Javier occupied her thoughts far too much as she began her morning inspection of the ship. Twice she had to show a bosun what she meant with the water supplies because she could not speak correctly.

  But for a full two bells, she did not see Javier. Disappointment tugged at her heartstrings, no matter how much she attempted to push it away. She could not expect to spend every moment of the day close by him.

  Far better to be closer to him at night.

  The heady thought was enough to get her through until luncheon when she dropped into a seat at the captain’s table, starving hungry. Dinner yesterday had been a long time ago.

  The food smelled delicious and was clearly of higher quality than what Cook treated them with. And from what she could see, it was not just a preferential plate for the captain. The whole crew was tucking into the fish stew that smelled incredible.

  Esmeralda smiled. The idea of Cook being shown what to do in his kitchen was a strange one, but evidently, it was working. This meal was perhaps better than the last.

  Halfway through her meal, Tiny stood before her, waiting silently to be noticed.

  Esmeralda raised an eyebrow.

  “Looking at the charts, Captain, I would say we were only two days away from Southampton. Maybe less,” said Tiny. “Then, we can rid ourselves of the Spaniard.”

  “What?” Chequers looked around wildly, and there were chuckles around the room.

  Tiny rolled his eyes. “Not you. The quartermaster.”

  Esmeralda felt her heart start to sink.

  The wonderful experience in her bedchamber had changed her more than she had noticed. The fact that Javier would be leaving the Periculum at the next port had utterly disappeared from her mind, but not the minds of her crew. It was clear they could not wait to be rid of him.

  She looked around quickly but saw he was not present and leaned back in her chair.

  Despite the feelings of her crew, she had undoubtedly discovered a different side to him. More than the lovemaking, there was something else to Javier than met the eye. He was gentle, far gentler than a Demonios had any right to be. If his father had been anything like hers, he had weathered great storms at a young age.

  Javier was not what she had predicted, and her mind rebelled at the idea of just dumping him at Southampton.

  But it was more than that. She wanted him to stay.

  Damn her blasted heart. She had thought herself immune to his charms, even as he brought her body to heights of pleasure she had never known.

  Until the reality of him leaving the ship was forced before her, she could not have known how
much she wanted him to stay.

  Keeping her voice steady and strong, she said, “I am reconsidering whether we leave him at Southampton.”

  Tiny frowned. “You have a different port in mind, Captain?”

  Esmeralda looked him in the eyes as she said, “No. I am considering whether to keep him as quartermaster.”

  She had known the reaction her words would create. A few rose to their feet in outrage, while others banged their knives on the wooden tables.

  Tiny was shaking his head. “He cannot be trusted,” he said with a scowl. “He is a Demonios.”

  “Yes, and I was a le Brecque,” Esmeralda shot back. “Should I be trusted?”

  Tiny looked discomfited. “That is different.”

  “I am not so sure,” she said carefully. “He could prove a keen ally if we give him a chance to demonstrate his loyalty to this ship, to this crew. He could be a good quartermaster.”

  Her words had silenced some, but there were still shaking heads and mutterings echoing in the mess hall.

  “He is a troublemaker. I can see it in his eyes,” said George heavily. “He has made trouble before. What is to say he would not do it again?”

  “We have no evidence he is not a spy,” Daniel pointed out.

  Esmeralda nodded. “That is all true.”

  Her tired mind attempted to separate the Javier she had discovered in her bed and the man that really existed. If their night of passion had not occurred, what would she do?

  What would the captain of this ship do?

  She sighed and rose. The mess hall became silent at once. “This ship is not a democracy, but your opinions matter to me. We leave the Demonios in Southampton.”

  The crew murmured their agreement and returned to their food, quiet conversations breaking out.

  Esmeralda, on the other hand, had completely lost her appetite.

  Damn and blast it!

  She should never have permitted herself to succumb to pleasure and temptation. Now her emotions were utterly beyond control.

  It would be a sad moment when she would have to say goodbye to Javier.

  ***

  Javier knew it was Esmeralda before he saw her. No one else walked like that.

  As she came around the corner, he reached out and pulled her into his arms, placing a kiss on her lips.

  He did not, however, get the reception he had expected. After accepting the kiss for the merest moment, Esmeralda wrenched herself away and then pushed him.

  Javier stared, startled by her reaction. When he had left her side in the early morning, it had been difficult, but he had duties to attend to.

  He had crept out of her bedchamber and ensured, most importantly, that no one else had seen him leave her cabin.

  He had expected a warm welcome back into her arms, but Esmeralda was glaring.

  “I had not thought a kiss would be so offensive to you.” He was not a young fool, expecting to have whatever he wanted, but she had not rejected him last night.

  “It is not offensive,” she said quietly, looking around to ensure they were completely alone. “It is just…it cannot happen again, that is all.”

  Esmeralda refused to meet his eyes. Something had gone wrong between them, and he had no clue what it could be.

  “What has happened, Esmeralda?”

  “None of your affair,” she snapped. “And that is Captain Esmeralda to you.”

  “Dios mío,” Javier cursed under his breath. “Of course it is my business, woman! You may be my captain, and I will happily bow to your will in all areas. But that does not mean I do not deserve to know why you shy away from my touch!”

  Despite his frustration, he had not permitted his voice to rise above a whisper.

  “This is precisely why I was unsure about this. I am the captain, and I give the orders here.”

  Javier could feel the irritation bubble in his stomach, but he was not on the Doloria. Fists and swords were not the answer here.

  “I know that, and I would never want to be the captain of this ship,” he said as reassuringly as he could manage. “What I want is to know what has happened between us.”

  Esmeralda continued to glare, and then her gaze dropped. “The crew…they are not happy with you being here.”

  This was such an obvious statement that Javier waited for her to continue. When she did not, he shrugged. “I knew that.”

  “No, you do not understand. I was considering not putting you off at the port. I had thought…” She sighed heavily. “I thought you could stay here with me.”

  Something strange lurched in Javier’s stomach as her words sank in. Stay on the Periculum? It did not seem possible, and it was not what he had wanted when this whole adventure had begun.

  The only reason that he was on the ship in the first place was that he wanted to escape the ocean.

  “Do not concern yourself,” she said quietly, evidently noticing his hesitation. “The crew does not wish you to stay either. They made that quite clear when I suggested it to them.”

  Surprised that she would even consider voicing that opinion to her crew, Javier smiled. “We could always find a new crew.”

  Esmeralda laughed. “This is my ship, my crew. It always will be, and I could never leave it.”

  “Even for a better life?” Javier was unsure what had possessed him to say those words, but they came from a place deep in his soul. She was what he wanted, not an old ship.

  “There is no better life than this,” she said simply.

  Javier knew he could never explain his desperation to leave the ocean; how could he to a captain?

  Words would not help him, but actions would. Pulling her into his arms, he kissed her again, and this time, she did not resist. Javier gloried in how she felt in his arms, so passionate, so fiery, and untamed.

  He was not fool enough to think he could tame her. He had no wish to.

  Eventually, he broke the kiss and sighed heavily. “I suppose I probably need to go and inspect something.”

  She chuckled in his arms. “I suppose you should. I cannot believe it, a Demonios, on my ship! And I am trusting you!”

  Bitterness slipped into his heart. Though she did not know it, he was a traitor.

  He would have to tell her soon. When the right moment came up. But he would worry about that later.

  Chapter Nine

  Esmeralda tried to let the waves rock her to sleep. Another bell had chimed and gone, and yet she was still lying awake, staring at the ceiling.

  Rest had escaped her, and she had curled up under her sheets, frustrated.

  She could not stop thinking about Javier.

  She turned over, hoping the coolness of the other side of the bed would give her relief, but no. Every time she closed her eyes, he was all she could see; Javier swabbing the deck or kissing her up against the door.

  Esmeralda sighed and turned over again. How was it possible that after just one night with him, she considered the bed too empty?

  She missed him.

  Another bell chimed. Another hour, and still no sleep.

  Just when she was starting to drift off, curled up into a corner by her pillow, the door to her chamber creaked open.

  Her hand inched slowly to her pillow, fingers closing over the warm steel of a knife. It took only another second to turn it around so that the handle was gripped in her hand.

  It was always there, waiting just in case. It had never been necessary before, of course. Esmeralda kept her eyes closed as she gripped the knife tightly. Waiting for the right moment to attack the intruder.

  The person creeping into her room was trying desperately not to make a sound and had not brought a candle, but Esmeralda did not need light to know precisely where they were. There, that was the creak of the plank just by the end of her bed. She knew this room perfectly.

  She slowed her breathing, ensuring she was perfectly calm. She would need to be accurate.

  Just as she lunged, knife in hand, ready to stab whoever dared to
creep into her bedchamber in the early hours of the morning, a voice said, “Esmeralda!”

  The figure had darted back, almost tripping over one of her boots.

  “Who is there?” she said aloud, although she was almost sure she knew.

  “Esmeralda, damnit, it’s Javier!”

  She smiled in the darkness. What a fool he was, thinking she would not act to defend herself at a moment’s notice.

  He was leaning against the wall now with a smile on his face. “I can protect you from midnight attackers.”

  She snorted and leaned back against the headboard of her bed. “I have never needed a man to protect me before, and I am not going to start now.”

  It was strange, Javier being here again. She was so accustomed to being alone. No other man had taken a step inside, and yet just a day ago, he had pinned her against that door and given her such pleasure.

  She cleared her throat. Now he was here again, and they were not in the throes of passion. Parts of her were still sore, and though she longed for his touch, she was not sure whether her body could take another evening like that so soon.

  “I should have never underestimated you,” Javier said softly.

  “No, you should not,” she said. What was he doing here, if not for her body?

  “The real question is,” whispered Javier, his dark eyes sparkling, “when are you going to invite me back into your bed again?”

  Esmeralda swallowed. “I…I am too sore to…”

  Javier seemed to understand without any words. “All I want to do is hold you, Esmeralda. There is so much more about intimacy than mere pleasure. Let me show you.”

  He was not pleading, but there was a hint of desperation in his tone. Esmeralda could not help but feel desired, which was a wonderful feeling.

  “If I had known, I would have made room for you when you entered,” she said lightly. “Here.”

  She moved over, pulling back the bed linens for him. He joined her in the bed.

  Had she ever felt safer or more protected than this? Knowing Javier was there, feeling his heartbeat, the gentle stroke of her neck…it was in some ways far more intimate than what they had shared the previous evening.

  Javier was good. A good man. A good lover. A good quartermaster.