“You be careful,” he warned.
“What?” she asked as she tucked her dishrag back into her sash. “With you, your men, and Karl? Who would dare harm me?”
He grabbed her arm as his gaze burned into hers. “Lorelei,” he cautioned again, pulling her closer to him. “This isn’t one of those stupid games we played as children. Black Jack Rhys would kill you in an instant.”
She crinkled her nose as she tried to pull her arm from his grasp. “He’d have to catch me first, and I’ve yet to meet a man who could.”
Justin sighed in aggravation and released her arm so that she could leave him.
As it had done almost continuously for the last two hours, the front door opened, ushering in a wonderful breath of fresh, clean air. Lorelei started to turn toward the door when all of a sudden, strong arms wrapped around her waist and hauled her back toward a darkened corner.
“Well, well, what have we here?”
The stench of ale and foul breath choked her. “Let me go,” she demanded in the same imperious tone that had made numerous grown men flinch.
She couldn’t see the man, but he raised one filthy hand up to grope at her breast.
“Ach, now, be nice. I’ll pay you well, I will.”
Terrified, Lorelei looked to Justin’s table. He’d risen to his feet and she could see his desire to help her. Just as he took a step forward, one of his men grabbed his arm and shook his head no.
Justin sank slowly back down.
How dare he!
She seethed, infuriated by his submissiveness to a man who ranked below him. Oh, when she got out of this, he’d be more than sorry. And get out of this she most definitely would. She wasn’t some meek little maid to be raped in the back room of a tavern.
Her desperation overriding her fear, she stomped the man’s instep.
He cursed sharply and released her.
Lorelei rushed out from the corner toward the door, which had just swung open again. Before she could reach it, the man seized her once more and slung her around to face him. For the first time, she saw his black beady eyes and greasy dark blond hair. His ugly face contorted by rage and lust, he shoved her back against the wall and started pawing her body with his huge hands.
“I said let me go!” she insisted, struggling hard against his grip. She tried to use her tray as a shield to force him back, but he wrenched it from her hands and tossed it to the ground.
“The woman made a request. You should obey her.”
Though low of tone, the deep-timbered voice seemed to roll across the room like thunder. Heavy, thick, and powerful. There was something very familiar about that voice.
She looked up and…
Her heart stopped.
The first thing she saw were eyes of deep, dark gray. Pewter eyes that held a smoldering fury inside their cold, deadly gaze. Pewter eyes that belonged to Count Arnaulf Hapsburg.
Instead of his impeccable court attire, he now wore a white linen shirt open at the neck, and his sleeveless, dark green embroidered waistcoat was unbuttoned and hanging open. Long blond hair fell midway to his back while the candlelight flashed against the long, wicked saber at his side.
He reached out and placed a hand on her accoster’s shoulder. “Did you not hear me?”
“This is between me and the girl.”
“The girl wants no part of you and you should honor her good taste.” One corner of his mouth turned up into a mockery of a smile. “Now unless you release her, it’s going to be between you and me.”
There was no compassion in his eyes while he waited impatiently for her attacker to decide.
The brute swallowed as sweat beaded on his forehead. He removed his hands from her and straightened his jacket with one hard tug at the lapels. “I beg pardon, miss,” he said at last. “I meant no harm.” And with those words spoken, he quickly rushed out the door.
Relieved, Lorelei stared up at the same handsome face she’d admired the night before. A face that, like Justin’s, was covered with a full day’s growth of beard. Instead of looking silly, his added a rugged quality to his chiseled features.
“What happened to your accent?” she asked.
The count faced her with a wry half-smile, then used the line men had been using with women since Adam and Eve. “I beg your pardon, what are you talking about?”
“You, why are you here, dressed like that? Speaking like that?”
He frowned at her as if she’d lost her wits. “I’m sorry. You must have me confused with someone else.”
Lorelei knew the game. It was the same one Justin had used when she’d caught him in an intimate embrace with Sophie Polke. The cad had actually tried to tell her she was seeing things.
She’d seen things all right—seen her fiancé’s hand groping Sophie’s backside!
The whole thing was the old Let’s make the woman feel stupid so that she’ll leave it alone ruse. A man only used it when he was hiding something.
In that instant she knew what it was.
Dear Lord, he’s Black Jack Rhys.
She knew it. Deep in her bones and with every ounce of instinct she’d ever possessed, she knew this clever man was the only one who could thwart so many attempts to capture him.
And you danced with him!
Taking a deep breath for courage, she realized the only way to get out of this would be to play along with his lie. Let him think that he’d convinced her she was wrong.
“Oh,” she said, trying to look contrite. “You’re right. I…I must be mistaken. Thank you for helping me.”
Jack stood aside as she rushed away from him like Satan himself was in pursuit. He’d seen the recognition in her eyes just moments before she’d vacillated to his logic.
Damn the intelligent wench.
Watching her cross the room, he saw her head straight to her pasty-faced Englishman.
Jack growled low in his throat. He’d come here tonight to meet Morgan and the Patriot spy who wanted them to run supplies through a British blockade. Only the three of them knew Black Jack would be here tonight.
So then, who, of the three of them, was the traitor?
Well, he could easily account for himself. He hadn’t told a soul he planned to come here. And though he’d had plenty of people betray him over the years, Jack knew Morgan would never act dishonorably.
But the spy would.
Which meant Morgan was sitting in a trap and didn’t know it. Jack sighed. Once again, he was going to have to pull Morgan out of the fire. Damn that boy’s Patriot heart. Causes were for fools.
Heading for Morgan, he went to tell him the wonderful news.
Morgan was sitting at a table to the right of the bar. He looked up and nodded at Jack’s approach. “There you are.”
Jack ignored his greeting and slammed his fist straight into the jaw of the spy.
Morgan arched a curious brow as the man slid slowly to the floor. “What did he do? Wear the wrong color coat? Or is it his stock you find offensive this time?”
Jack leaned over the table. Resting his fists on the rough top, he narrowed his gaze on Morgan. “I’m assuming he’s the one who told the Regulars we’d be here tonight. Did I hit the wrong man?”
Morgan’s eyes widened. “What?”
Satisfied the shock on his friend’s face was sincere, Jack smiled grimly. “We walked into a trap.”
Lorelei looked triumphantly at Justin. “See. He’s Black Jack. He just struck a man for no apparent reason.”
“For all you know, Lori, the man seduced his wife.”
Lorelei straightened and eyed Justin with malice. “I’m telling you it’s him. Don’t you recognize him from last night? He was playing Count Hapsburg no doubt to gather information about—”
“Lori, please,” Justin said, his voice laden with stressed patience. “That man doesn’t look anything like the count. He’s obviously just some poor sailor come in to get a drink. The count was a good head taller and fair dripped with princely bearing. Tha
t man there is obviously a bluestocking. Besides, use your head, why would Black Jack Rhys come to the aid of a tavern whore?”
“I beg your pardon,” she ground out. “I’m not a whore.”
“You know what I mean.”
She threw her hands up. How could he be so dense?
Infuriated, Lorelei turned on her heel. “You want proof. I’ll give you proof.” She took three steps toward Jack and shouted. “Hey, Jack Rhys.”
The man she watched didn’t move.
“See,” Justin snapped. “He didn’t even flinch. I told you it wasn’t him.”
Lorelei bit her lip. He hadn’t moved, but everyone else in the tavern had looked. She had her proof.
She returned to Justin’s side. “Just go arrest him. If I’m wrong you can let him go.”
“If you’re wrong, I’m a laughingstock.”
What are we going to do?” Morgan asked Jack, trying to look nonchalant and failing miserably.
Unfortunately, Jack was all too used to dealing with these situations to be rattled by this latest bout of treachery. “I want you to walk out of here like nothing’s wrong. No one, other than our unconscious lump on the floor, knows who you are, so you’re safe.” He glanced to the spy on the floor. “At least until he wakes.”
“What about you?”
“Don’t worry about me.”
“Jack…”
“I may have been spawned in the gutter, Morgan, but I’m not going to die in it. Now go on, get yourself to safety.”
Reluctantly, Morgan rose from his chair and did as Jack wanted.
It was only after Morgan had closed the door behind him that Jack dared a look to where Lorelei stood arguing with Justin.
Now this was amusing.
The moron had brought her here, no doubt, to listen for word of Jack Rhys, and as soon as she found him, the moron refused to believe it.
What did she see in that man anyway?
Women. He’d never understand them.
Jack knew he should leave before Justin realized who he was. But in truth, he was enjoying this little drama too much to leave. Besides, there was no trap from which he couldn’t escape. No man or woman who could hold him.
Well, a naked woman in bed could hold him for a little while if she appealed to him.
And Lorelei Dupree appealed to him greatly.
He slid his gaze appreciatively over Lorelei’s back. The short skirt fell several inches from the floor, giving him a nice view of her trim ankles. They were shapely and petite, and he wondered if they were covered with freckles like the bridge of her nose.
She gestured furiously toward him, then fell silent when their gazes met and locked.
Jack felt as if he’d been struck by lightning. Time seemed suspended as they stared at each other. The droning conversations faded until all he could hear was the thrumming of his own heart.
Jesus, but there was magic in that woman’s gaze. Some unknown alien power he’d never before encountered.
All he wanted to do was cross the room, pick her up in his arms, and carry her off to a bed somewhere and make love to her for the rest of the night.
And it was then he made a decision.
He’d intended to leave Lorelei out of this. But if Wallingford wanted her involved, so be it. He wasn’t the kind of man to look a gift horse in the mouth. Fate had thrown her into his path twice and far be it from him to question what fate had in store for him.
Justin came to his feet. His face flushed with rage, he walked stiffly to where Jack stood.
It took all the control Jack possessed to break eye contact with Lorelei so that he could meet Justin’s peeved expression.
“Forgive me, sir,” Justin said before casting a quick, superior glance toward Lorelei. “I’m sorry to disturb you, but could you please tell me, are you Jack Rhys?”
“Aye, lieutenant,” he said with a wicked grin. “You have your man. The question is, can you keep him?”
Justin’s eyes widened and he fumbled for his sword. “It’s him, men!” he shouted. “Seize him!”
Laughing at Justin’s ineptitude, Jack reacted in an instant. He shoved Justin out of his way. The two men who had been sitting with Justin led Lorelei toward the door.
Jack unsheathed his sword and raced after them with only one thing in mind.
Lorelei Dupree.
Two plain-clothed Regulars emerged out of the crowd and blocked his path to the door. He laughed at them. Did they really think they could stop him? He’d thwarted entire fleets sent out to destroy him.
Black Jack Rhys was not so easily taken.
With only a handful of moves, he disarmed them and was back on the trail of his target.
Jack rushed through the door to see Lorelei being helped into a cart. One of the soldiers with her turned to face him and unsheathed his sword.
This was rich, Jack thought with a smirk. Did the man honestly think he could protect her? That anyone could keep Jack Rhys from taking what he wanted? No one stood in his way.
Ever.
Just as they crossed swords, a shot rang out. Jack felt a sharp pain across his right shoulder blade. Glancing behind him, he saw Justin holding a smoking flintlock.
His jaw locked in anger, Jack sidestepped his foes and leapt to the back of the cart to survey the damage. Blood seeped from the wound, but the bullet appeared to have been deflected by a bone. Though painful, it wasn’t enough to kill him.
It was just enough to make him mad.
No one drew blood from Black Jack Rhys! Tasting vengeance on his tongue, he took three steps toward the front of the cart, tossed the soldier next to Lorelei to the ground, then took his seat. Before she could move, Jack grabbed the reins and slapped them across the horses’ backs.
The cart lurched sharply, then sped forward.
Lorelei turned in the seat to stare back at Justin as they sped away, her face frozen in a state of shock.
“Lorelei!” he heard Justin scream as they left him behind.
Her cheeks paling, Lorelei faced Jack. “What are you doing?”
“’Twould seem, fair lady, that Black Jack Rhys is abducting you.”
3
Lorelei’s heart hammered in fear and yet as she stared at Jack, there was an air of playful good humor about him. His eyes were alight. He didn’t seem to be the cold-blooded killer of legend. He seemed more like a mischievous child completing a prank.
“What are you going to do to me?” she asked.
He looked at her, his face boyish and charming. “Believe it or not, and I’m sure you won’t, I mean you no harm.”
She scoffed. “Am I supposed to believe that the most wanted pirate on earth has abducted me and means me no harm? Surely, sir, you take me for a fool.” And Lorelei was anything but a fool. It was time she parted company with Black Jack Rhys.
As she attempted to jump from the cart, the pirate grabbed her arm and pulled her back toward him. “I told you you wouldn’t believe it.”
Struggling against his hold, Lorelei drew back to slap him.
His face turned dark, foreboding. “Don’t.” That one word carried more power in it than a raging hurricane.
Not willing to test his brutality, she settled down and eyed him warily. “You don’t really expect me to just sit here quietly while you abduct me?”
“That’s exactly what I expect you to do.”
“You haven’t been around many women, have you?”
When he spoke, his voice was empty and strange to her ears. “I’ve been around enough.”
“Well,” she said, “they certainly didn’t teach you any manners.”
“I’m a pirate,” he scoffed. “What, would you have me spout poetry?”
She stiffened her spine at his reprimand. “You didn’t appear the pirate last night at the party. You were a gentleman then.”
“Yes, well, you didn’t appear to be a tavern whore last night, but—”
“Don’t you say it,” she snapped, her vision dulli
ng at the second time someone had insulted her so.
He laughed again. “I apologize, Miss Dupree. I have no doubt of your innocence.”
Her fear multiplied. “Is that why you intend to rape me?”
He pinned her with a furious glare. “I have no intention of raping you.”
“Then why this elaborate abduction?”
“Why not?” he asked flippantly. “I was there, you were there, Lord Pasty Face was there. It seemed like a perfect opportunity.”
The knot in her stomach drew tighter. She tightened her grip on the back of the seat as the cart rattled along the dirt road. “An opportunity for what?”
He didn’t answer as he veered the horses to the left fork in the road that headed toward the docks. He glanced back over his shoulder, then he looked at her. “Let’s pretend it’s a game, shall we?”
Was he serious? Or just insane?
“A game?” she gasped in indignation. “A game of what?”
“Of chance and chase.”
Could the man never answer a straight question? At any other time, she might have respected his quick thinking; however, it was her future they were talking about and she wanted to know what this man had planned. “Meaning what?”
“Meaning you, my little guppy, are the bait I intend to use to lure a shark out of his nest.”
“I don’t understand.”
“I know you don’t,” he said, his gaze veiled. “I don’t want you to. Suffice to say, you’re going to be my guest for awhile.”
Lorelei could see the docks up ahead. She had no intention of allowing him to take her on board his ship. She’d heard too many tales of what men like Black Jack Rhys did to the unfortunate females they captured. “Thank you for the invitation, but I really must decline.”
This time his laughter was evil. “I’m afraid I really must insist.”
As soon as Jack slowed the cart to a pace that wouldn’t injure her, Lorelei leapt from her seat. A loud rending of fabric sounded as the hem of her dress caught in the cart and tore a gaping hole in her skirt. Ignoring it, she hit the ground on her side with a fierce thud that knocked the breath from her. Even so, she refused to succumb to the pain. She pushed herself up from the ground and ran. Her legs trembling, she prayed she could make it to the alleys of the warehouses before he caught her.