“Which are?”
Jacqueline raised a brow when Damon refused to answer. Because he was angry now? What the devil did he expect?
“Did you really think this would be an easy conversation and that we wouldn’t be skeptical of what you’re telling us?” she asked Damon. “All things considered, you haven’t even got to the heart of the matter yet and revealed what your objectives are regarding our father. Getting angry because we still have valid doubts is a bit pointless, don’t you think? Why don’t we eat this meal before it gets cold, then you can finish your explanation over dessert?”
Percy looked down at his empty plate. “Was I supposed to wait?” Then it started to slide off the table.
The wind had picked up, making the ship pitch. Jacqueline grinned at Percy’s remark, though she held her own plate in place. Damon’s visage was a little less dark. Jeremy scowled and reached for the wine bottle to refill his glass, apparently not giving an inch in his suspicions. Jack wasn’t either after being a hostage to this man twice.
While they ate, she introduced a less provocative subject, asking Damon, “Why didn’t you invite your first mate to join us?”
“I did, but he declined. I believe he’s embarrassed about the black eye you gave him.”
Jeremy laughed. “Good for you, Jack.”
“He deserved it” was all she said.
Dessert was being ignored. The wine bottle on the table was empty. Jeremy fetched the brandy from Damon’s desk without asking permission, nor did he offer it to anyone else. He was a keg of unpleasant emotions and probably furious that he wasn’t getting to trounce Damon yet. But Jacqueline’s feelings were no better. She felt angry that she couldn’t believe Damon and frustrated because she wanted to, which was self-serving because it had nothing to do with the situation and everything to do with her prurient feelings for the man. But that door would stay closed for her because the truth damned him as a pirate, or at the least a kidnapper and an accomplice to a pirate, and he hadn’t even explained why yet!
But then Damon asked, “Why would I lie at this point?”
“When you get to the punch line we’ll probably know,” Jeremy shot back.
“I suppose you can consider this your punch line: I don’t have full control of my ship. Well, I do, as long as I don’t deviate from the pirates’ plan. So far I haven’t, because until we left London, our goals were the same—to get Jack aboard.”
“Why capture her just to let her escape again?” Jeremy said derisively. “Or this time you’re really going to hand her over to Lacross?”
“Neither. I took her again because I still need your father’s help. She’s my leverage to get it.”
Outraged, Jacqueline pointed out, “You could have just knocked on the bloody door back in London and asked him for his help!”
“No, I couldn’t. He would have no incentive to cross the ocean again just to help a stranger. You were safe, you were enjoying the Season, you were never actually harmed by Lacross. By all accounts, Jack, and especially since two months had passed since the abduction in Bridgeport, it appeared you and your family were done with the matter, so, indeed, I needed leverage to get your father involved again. But the note I had delivered to him a week after we sailed this time assured him you would be released to him if he met me in St. Kitts to talk. He should be a week or so behind us by—”
Jeremy’s laughter cut Damon off. “Think again, mate. He sailed out of London two days before you did. He won’t be getting any note, won’t even know you have us.”
Damon looked alarmed. “That’s—unfortunate. The note wasn’t threatening, but if he doesn’t receive it—”
Jeremy was still laughing. “He’s likely to kill you on sight?”
Damon gave Jeremy a dark look. “That’s my problem, this one we share: The pirates want Jack. Once they saw what a beauty she is, they’ve been trying to get their hands on her. They know Lacross wouldn’t begrudge them some enjoyment on the voyage home. I’ve been able to restrain them so far, but it won’t be long before they decide they don’t need me to finish their mission.”
“I can vouch for that,” Jacqueline put in.
Jeremy was already on his feet, furious again. “If everything you’ve said is true, you need to get rid of them before you approach my father for your parley, so why the hell are they still aboard? You need them to sail the ship?”
“I did on the way to England, but no longer. I hired a new crew in London.”
“Then you have armed men on your side?”
“Only a few. The pirates have intimidated most of the new sailors.”
“Hell’s bells, man, you could have gotten rid of those blackguards the night you took us. You had a small army with you that could have helped you apprehend them. Why didn’t you?”
“That’s what I planned to do. But Catherine’s parting gift to me was to warn her father’s men not to trust me. So while the pirates aren’t Oxford dons, they’re not stupid, especially when it comes to their own survival. Five of them stayed on the ship that night and kept enough of the new crew I’d just hired with them so they could pull up anchor and sail off if they saw that little army heading their way.”
“How many pirates are we talking about?”
“Fifteen.”
“But you expected to only capture Jack, so what was your alternate plan for getting rid of them?”
“They rarely all come topside together, so as soon as we got to the Caribbean and the first island was in sight, I was going to start tossing them over the side. I can no longer wait for that. And make no mistake, I will be brutal about disposing of them if I have to be. But I’d rather imprison them and then turn them over to the authorities when we reach St. Kitts, not kill them.”
“Commendable, but not when my sister’s life hangs on your succeeding. Is this why you mentioned an alliance? You want my help in getting rid of them?”
“If you wouldn’t mind,” Damon said drily.
Jeremy laughed, but Jacqueline told Damon, “You could have told me this to begin with to gain my cooperation. Why did you keep it from me?”
“I had hoped you’d stop fighting me—for other reasons.”
Her cheeks lit up with color, but Jeremy turned deadly serious, warning Damon, “Don’t even think about it. You might have had other reasons for getting involved in this, but you still did and she still suffered for it. And I’ll give you the one reason why she’ll never be yours. My father. So if you want my cooperation, she moves out of this cabin tonight and into mine.”
“I can’t, Jeremy, at least not yet.” They all stared at Jacqueline, making her blush more deeply, but she still pointed out, “If the pirates think I don’t have his protection anymore, they’re going to come after me again, and they’re all down on your deck, you know. Damon has forestalled them for the last week by keeping me by his side on deck, and—well, we also made them think I’ve been sharing his bed. I’m not!” she quickly added when her brother started to scowl again. “But it was working until he let me talk to you yesterday and there was another confrontation with a few of them afterward because they were hoping to trap us down there. But until you and Damon decide on the best approach to getting rid of them, nothing can look out of the ordinary, so I’m staying right here.” Then she turned to Damon, her eyes flaring with the realization. “So we’re allies?”
Chapter Thirty-Six
REALLY, YOU CAN STOP frowning, Jeremy,” Jacqueline said with a tsk. “I’ll be fine here. He’s been a perfect gentleman this whole time, and now I know why. So are we his allies now or not?”
“He’s defecting, so I suppose we are.”
“I object to ‘defecting,’ ” Damon said tersely. “I was never Lacross’s man.”
“We’re not quibbling here, mate. You’ll have our help, but without sharing the motives for your involvement, you can’t very well expect me to believe everything you’ve said when your part could as likely be this: You went along with the pirate’s
plan for your own reasons—until my lovely sister became part of that plan. Now you’re against it and so against him. You were willing to sacrifice our father, but now you’re not, now you want his help instead. If you want to object to my view, hand over your reasons—or don’t. I really don’t care, since you had my cooperation the moment you said my sister is in imminent danger.”
“And once she’s safe?”
Jeremy stood up and moved closer to Damon, offering his hand. “The alliance will stand firm until my father says otherwise. But be warned,” Jeremy added with a chuckle. “If you ever do get to talk to him, he’ll demand a full accounting from you, not the vague explanation you’ve given us.”
Damon nodded and shook hands on it before he finished off the last of his wine. Jacqueline was still coming to terms with being allies with him and what that meant for her. Now that Damon was on their side, he was no longer her enemy. He was no longer—off-limits. Her pulse beat faster with that thought. It was all she could do to keep her eyes off him, but she couldn’t keep the smile from her lips.
“It’s late.” She stood up to give her brother another hug but had to grab the edge of the table to steady herself when the ship pitched again. Thunder cracked in the distance, suggesting rain was imminent. “You might want to get back to your cabin before the rain arrives. We can discuss plans for an ambush or a full deck-sweeping in the morning.”
Jeremy signaled to Percy they were leaving, but put his arm around her shoulders to take her to the door with him, whispering, “Are you okay with an alliance?”
She chuckled. “Now you ask? Yes, absolutely.”
She leaned her back on the door as soon as it closed and didn’t get out of the way when Damon came over to lock it. “That went well, all things considered,” he said.
He wouldn’t meet her eyes. Did he have the same problem she had? She was gazing up at him and remembering what he tasted like until he added, “I’ll be right back. I need to confer with Mr. Thomson about the approaching storm and make sure he’s up to manning the wheel tonight.”
Damon set her gently aside and walked out, leaving her utterly frustrated. She’d been about to wrap her arms tightly around his neck and kiss him the moment he locked the door! Bloody storm. And there was no telling how long he’d be.
With a low growl she moved to her trunk to undress for bed and grabbed one of his shirts to sleep in, but paused as she put it on, then suddenly removed it and removed her underclothes as well. She slipped the shirt back on and doused the lanterns as a precaution due to the pitching, then climbed into bed. She’d wait for him to return. Come hell or high water, he was going to be hers tonight. The decision was made. She’d desired him for too long. Even when he was her enemy, she’d been unable to stop those feelings. But now that they were allies, she didn’t have to.
She hugged that thought to her, fully intending to stay awake. Yet the sound of his returning woke her. He’d been gone long enough for her to fall asleep? He’d brought a lantern in with him. He didn’t notice that her eyes had opened, wasn’t even looking toward the bed. He went to the washstand where the towels were stored to remove his wet clothes. He’d gotten soaked on deck. Nonetheless, she was surprised by what he was doing because she’d never seen him undress in the cabin before.
She slipped out of bed and quietly approached him from behind. His shirt was off. He was briskly rubbing the towel over his head when she grabbed it from his hands. “I’ll do that.”
He immediately turned and faced her, trying to take the towel back. He got his hand on it, but seemed arrested by the sight of her wearing his shirt and nothing else, his eyes moving down to her bare legs.
She tugged the towel back. “I insist.”
She quickly began to rub the towel over his chest before he tried to stop her again. When he didn’t, she slowed down to enjoy what she was doing, moving the cloth over his muscular arms, his neck and shoulders. She didn’t move around him to reach his back, she just stepped closer and swung the towel around him, catching it on his other side so she could slowly tug it back and forth across his back.
“Your boots,” she said a little breathlessly.
He braced an arm against the wall and bent to remove them. She moved the towel to his head again as he did so, caressing him with her fingers through the cloth. Having carte blanche with his body was stimulating her senses, making her crave more. If she couldn’t kiss him soon . . .
He straightened. “I can finish.”
“So can I. Take off your wet trousers.” When he didn’t, she added, “Did you think you were the only one who could give orders? Take them off.”
He still didn’t comply, but he was staring at her in fascination—no, much more than that. Such desire was in his eyes that she could no longer control her own. She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him passionately. But she’d surprised him, maybe a little too much. He started to raise his hands to pull her arms down, which surprised her. She held on tighter.
“You don’t need to seduce—”
“I’m Jack Malory, too bold for subtlety.” She kissed him again, more hotly.
All the frustration of wanting him was in that kiss, now that she didn’t have to deny herself anymore. That he was trying to resist compounded that frustration. This was no bloody time for him to be a chivalrous pirate! But then he groaned and lifted her, pressing her back to the wall. She curled her legs around his hips, thrilled that she’d just won this little battle.
Yet he still made one last attempt at gallantry, warning her, “Are you sure, because I’m two seconds from—”
“Shut up, pirate. I’m taking what I want.”
He laughed. “I am so defeated. . . .”
Within seconds they were rolling around on his bed, both trying to rid themselves of the last pieces of their clothing. The buttons on her shirt went flying when he ripped it open. He stopped, looking startled, as his gaze roamed over her naked body before returning to her breasts. Cupping them in his hands, he said, “No chemise, no drawers. You are bold, Jack. And so beautiful.” As his hands moved over her, she worked at the fastenings on his pants and ended up breaking them. At least now she could kiss every part of him within her reach. She couldn’t keep her hands from wandering, either.
But he sighed deeply as he looked down at her. “We’ve done enough ripping. What’s left has to be done slowly.”
“You’re not stopping—?”
“Not a chance. Believe me I’m more eager than you, Jack, but let me ease the way for you.”
Gently he pushed her back down on the bed and began caressing her, which didn’t ease anything and just made her want him now, right now! But she would give him a few minutes to show her what he was talking about because she felt a little too embarrassed to ask when she probably ought to know.
His mouth was so hot on her breasts that she was close to screaming. She did moan. A lot. Yet he was still behaving as if he had all the time in the world now, which was driving her crazy. But then he raised his head and gave her a sensual grin. Finally! she thought. She started to wrap her legs around him again, but he slid down her body until his head was between her thighs and . . . oh . . . my . . . God!
The very moment his mouth touched her there, she felt out of control, her pulse exploding, spreading through her, lifting her hips and leaving her trembling, melted, and so utterly amazed. So that’s what he’d meant? Good grief!
“Now you’re wet for me.”
She was? But she was now replete. Were they really not done? But the moment he climbed on top of her, bracing his arms on either side of her head and moving his hips against hers, she gave him the most brilliant smile. She wanted him again. No, they definitely weren’t done.
Chapter Thirty-Seven
DID WE SLEEP AT all?” Jacqueline wondered aloud the next morning.
Waking up wrapped alongside Damon, lying on her side pressed against his chest, had given her an instant, dreamy smile that hadn’t yet gone away. He hadn’t
closed the drapes or turned off the lantern in the room last night. The lantern had burned out and the sun was streaming in. But the sunbeam on the wall was rather high. She had a feeling Mr. Thomson was doing a lot of yawning at the wheel, waiting for Damon to relieve him.
He had one arm across her back, keeping her close to him. His other hand was softly caressing the arm she had draped across his chest, moving from her shoulder to her fingers and back again. She could tell without looking up that he was grinning when he said, “Yes—I think.”
She would have laughed about his not being sure, except she wasn’t sure, either. But they must have slept a little, since she wasn’t tired. She ought to be. It had been a night for education of the nicest sort. In fact, she felt quite energetic and exhilarated with him caressing her as he was doing. She decided she needed another kiss from this man and straddled his hips, grinning widely before she gave him one. He didn’t hesitate to kiss her back, and before she knew it, he was on top of her, kissing her deeply, his hands stroking and exciting her in wonderfully sinful ways. Not until they lay beside each other breathless and satisfied, her not feeling a single regret—definitely her father’s daughter—did she think about Jeremy and how furious he would be.
She sat up abruptly. “Is my brother going to be let out before you’re on deck? The pirates might think he’s escaped.”
“No, Mort doesn’t know about the alliance yet.” With a sigh, likely due to the reminder of her brother, he got up to sit on the side of the bed. “But your brother might be wondering by now why he hasn’t been let out.” Damon leaned down to pick up something on the floor, then handed her a button with an abashed grin. “I’m sorry about your shirt. But I’ve seen you rip up clothes before, so I didn’t think you’d mind.”
She laughed. “It was yours.”
“No, as soon as it’s on your body, it becomes yours.”
“Does that include you? I did notice you were a nice fit.”