Pirate's Intent

by Sky Purington

“Yes, I suppose,” he conceded, forgetting how well she knew him.

  “Your father affected you as much as my uncle did me.” She rested her hand over his. “We always understood that about each other, didn’t we? Helped one another cope.” Her voice dropped an octave. “Then felt no relief from it when we were apart...which is why you had your man deliver that first letter to me.”

  “And why you wrote back,” he said just as softly.

  “Where did that pirate go off to that delivered our missives over the years?”

  “He chose not to leave the life.”

  “Do we trust him to keep our secret?”

  He couldn’t help a grin. “You would have made a good pirate thinking like that.”

  “You are a pirate, though.” She narrowed her eyes. “Is he still alive?”

  “He is,” he confirmed. “He will not share my secrets any more than Abigail will.”

  “You left him treasure, too, then?”

  He cocked the corner of his mouth, not overly surprised she had figured that out. Abigail and her girls were left very well off. “The pirate who delivered our letters was well seen to.”

  Done with talk of what was behind him, he looked ahead and cupped her cheek. “You have yet to answer my question.” He used the tone she responded to so well. “Will you tease and sin with me, Hannah?” Then he asked the same question he had years ago, not particularly of the mind to take ‘no’ for an answer this time. “Will you bloody well marry me at last, my little tease?”

  Chapter Thirteen

  SHE DIDN’T REALIZE until she said, “Yes, I will marry you, Luke,” just how much she had hoped to say those words again. Nor did she suspect that if she ever did, he would release a loud whistle through his fingers, wrap a blanket around her and plunk her on his lap.

  “What are you doing?” she barely got out before Robert flung the door open.

  “Aye, Cap’n.” He grinned. “She say ‘yes’ then?”

  Luke met his quartermaster’s grin. “She did.”

  “She said ‘yes,’” Robert hollered up only for a rambunctious round of hoots to resound. Unable to find her voice at the celebration, she remained tongue-tied as pirates filled the cabin.

  “You do not mean to—”

  He put a finger to her lips and spoke like a pirate. “I mean to marry ye ‘fore ye have a chance to say no again.” He gestured at everyone. “These are but my witnesses.” He winked. “I’ll not let ‘em have ye, but they can witness our nuptials.”

  “With you nude beneath me?” Though tempted to get huffy, she instead bit back a chuckle. “And I wrapped in a blanket?”

  “’Tis a bloody good look on ye,” Robert praised, followed by many nods and grunts of approval.

  “I think we best get on with this,” Luke commented. “I might not be able to fight ‘em off soon.”

  Fully aware of his erection pressed against her backside, she cocked the corner of her mouth, seeing a truly interesting future ahead of them. “Then we best get to it.” She frowned. “But who will marry us?”

  “That be me, missus.” A short, stocky pirate stepped forward with a bible. “I used to be more of a pious man, ye see.”

  Luke certainly had thought of everything, hadn’t he?

  Robert tossed him a stunning ring. “Don’t forget this, Cap’n.”

  “It’s beautiful,” she whispered, admiring the glittering diamond as Luke slid it on her finger. She narrowed her eyes. “Is it stolen?”

  “It is,” Luke confirmed. “I am a pirate, after all...at least for another day or two.” He arched a brow. “Will the ring be a problem?”

  She considered it, then him, of the mind it ought to bring someone joy. “Well, truth be told, I’m stolen too, so I’d say we are meant for each other.”

  So it was that she married on a pirate’s lap with a hearty erection waiting for her the moment everyone cleared out. Straddling him, she grabbed the rings and sank onto him with a ragged sigh of relief. Near painful pleasure curled in her womb then fluttered out as she moved. As she immersed herself in the feel of his burning shaft inside her. The way it stretched her and guided her to its will.

  Her eyes drifted shut, and she groaned, rolling her hips, feeling him everywhere, racing closer and closer to a pinnacle. There, almost, she struggled for breath then...

  He flipped her and pulled away.

  “Did you think it would be that easy, my little sinner?” he murmured, strapping her down. “What fun would there be in that?”

  So it was, and as it should be for their first time as man and wife, that he took her in a way that satisfied both their dark and loving sides.

  There was something wickedly delicious about feeling the intimacy without being able to touch him. She relished the long, thorough kisses then drowned in the erotic torture of having no control.

  It was a sinful combination of taboo and poignant love.

  On and on it went, him tasting, teasing and nipping, driving her to the edge only to pull back. When he finally came between her spread thighs and thrust deep, she was gone, crying out in the freedom of climax and lack of control. He waited for her to come down, kissing her all the while, before he began moving.

  Yet for all his patience, her pleasure had been his torture, and his thrusts came hard, territorial, hungry, until he released a strangled roar and let go, taking her with him once again.

  Then it was all a blur of intimacy and loving, sin, and ecstasy.

  Every scroll was read, and many fantasies lived out thanks to his contraptions.

  Their contraptions.

  She awoke on the evening of the third day to discover Luke gone. Something she thought nothing of initially. He had gone on deck several times to check on his men. This time, however, he was gone too long. So she slipped into a dress he had provided, compliments of a wench no doubt, and made her way on deck only to find it considerably cooler. Her heart leapt into her throat when the first thing she saw was a Royal Navy ship in the distance.

  “Oh, God,” she whispered, putting a hand to her chest, fearful for Luke and his crew.

  “Oh, God, what?” came a soft voice moments before Luke wrapped a cloak around her shoulders from behind and murmured in her ear, “It is done.”

  “What’s done?” Then she realized what he meant. She bit her lip, afraid to hope though he seemed happy when she turned. “You received a Royal Pardon?” She gazed around the ship at men going about their business. “All of you did?”

  “Yes.” He shook his head. “I am no longer a pirate.”

  “But you will always be Luke.” She rested her hand on his chest. “And you will always be my husband.”

  Desire flared in his eyes. “As you will always be my wife.”

  Lost for a moment, more than ready to be carried back to bed, it suddenly occurred to her she had no knowledge of her sister. “Where’s Rose?” She bit back panic, ashamed that she had barely thought about her over the past few days where worry should be at the forefront. “Have you heard anything?”

  “I have,” he assured. “More so, I saw the signal off the coast of the Carolina’s that all was well.”

  “Signal?”

  “Yes,” he replied. “Thomas and I have done it for years by tying off a yellow ribbon to a tree to communicate. I had a man row closer to Ocracoke Island, and his signal was there, Hannah. The one we hoped to see.”

  “That Rose is all right?”

  “Most definitely,” he replied. “And that Big Devil and his rats are no longer a problem. Thomas is readying his ship and will be following soon.”

  She blinked back tears of relief. “You are sure?”

  “Never more positive.” He pulled her close. “Soon enough, we will all unite in Plymouth and start life anew.”

  “Will you miss it?” she said softly. “Will you miss your life of piracy?”

  “No,” he said with more assurance than she expected. “It was a means to an end. One that was always you, Hannah. Or so I hoped
.” He squeezed her backside and pressed her against his unfailing erection. “Besides, there is plenty of excitement ahead.”

  “I imagine there is.” Her eyes slid from his cabin to him. “They let you keep your ship then?”

  “Unfortunately, no,” he said. “We are being escorted until we make landfall, then the ship will be confiscated.”

  “What a shame.” She already mourned the loss of a cabin that would likely make even a sea hardened navy man blush.

  “Trust me,” he said, referring to the brooch, “I will use one ridiculously expensive treasure,” he brushed his lips across hers, “to build another ship for my priceless treasure.” A knowing gleam lit his eyes. “And in it, our own special spot.” He winked. “One where children are not allowed.”

  She chuckled. “They can frequent Thomas and Rose’s ship.”

  “I am certain it would be less alarming.”

  “One would imagine.”

  She thought of her mousy sister and the deep love she once felt for Thomas. Perhaps her pirate adventure would help Rose blossom at last. Perhaps, even, embrace a more daring character from one of her books.

  “Will it be enough for the four of us then?” she said, referring to the brooch.

  “More than enough,” he replied. “Plus, plenty for our crews.”

  “How perfectly executed then,” she murmured. “It seems you truly did think of everything.”

  “No, my little tease.” He swept her up in his arms and cocked a brow. “Or is it sinner?” He strode for their wicked cabin. “My thoughts were only ever of you.”

  Epilogue

  One Year Later

  Salem, Massachusetts

  “THEY TRULY ARE STUNNING,” Rose praised. She smiled and waved at Thomas as he disembarked one of two brand new ships. “The men did a wonderful job building them.”

  “I could not agree more.” Hannah cooed at her little one before eyeing Luke’s new boat. “Everyone really came together to make this happen.”

  Rose rested her hand on her swollen stomach and nodded. “Yes, they did.”

  Where they had thought Thomas’s and Luke’s crew would go their own way to start a new life, they’d decided to stay on with their captains. Men of the sea, they were launching an impressive fishing company that would undoubtedly prove lucrative.

  They had bought land and built houses, establishing themselves in the seaside town in very little time. But then as they had during their years of piracy, their husbands’ men worked well together, building toward a prosperous future. Not just homes for the lot of them but these first two glorious ships.

  Now everyone had gathered together to celebrate how much they had accomplished.

  How far they had come against the odds.

  Hannah had become pregnant shortly after they arrived here, and Rose wasn’t far behind. Thomas had been counting down the days to their baby’s arrival since they learned she was expecting. Meanwhile, Luke proved to be a doting father, showering his daughter with affection.

  “By next summer, we will have ourselves a proper fleet,” Charles declared, preening as he and the others admired the ships. He’d been such a good first mate to Thomas, her husband had asked him to captain one of the boats they would build, and he gladly accepted.

  “A proper fleet indeed.” Luke’s first mate and upcoming captain, Robert, chuckled, eyeing the townswomen joining the celebration. “To be enjoyed with a—”

  “Group of friends,” Hannah cut in. She shot him a look then a wink before he said something that might drive the proper women in the opposite direction.

  In truth, most of the crewmen had found women and settled down, ready to start anew.

  “And we are friends all,” Abigail echoed, holding her glass up in a toast as Thomas and Luke joined them. She offered a wicked smile, batting her lashes at any man looking her way before she nodded at Luke. “Here’s to prosperous years ahead to be sure!”

  “How else could it be with Cap’n Luke and his brother at the helm?” Remmy praised, holding up her glass too, blushing like the bride she was when her new husband kissed her cheek.

  In the end, Abigail, Remmy, and several of the women in Luke’s brothel headed north, eager to start over. While some still lived the lifestyle they were accustomed to, most had settled down.

  “Congratulations to Cap’n Thomas and Cap'n Luke.” Young Phillip toasted as well. “Here’s to all of us!”

  Everyone hooted and hollered, drinking to a bright future. Thomas kissed her deeply then pulled her back against him, resting his hands on her swollen belly.

  “Is it all you imagined it might be?” he murmured in her ear. “This life we have found?”

  “That and more.” She smiled, watching her niece babble and smile up at her parents from her carriage. “It’s all so perfect.”

  “And only bound to get better,” he said softly, chuckling when their unborn child kicked.

  When Hannah’s eyes met Rose's in question, she smiled and nodded, knowing what her sister was up to. After all, Luke had promised her a captain’s quarters on their new ship fit for a queen. Or fit for something anyway.

  “Go ahead and see your new ship, Sister,” she urged. “My niece and I will do just fine on our own for a while.”

  Hannah grinned and laughed when Luke swept her up, and the two left, off, no doubt, to make more children.

  “You know it will likely be more than just a while with those two?” Thomas warned. “We may not see them for days.”

  So very true. She chuckled and rested her head back against his chest, never more content. Life had taken them all down hard roads and over rough seas, but they had at last found calm waters. A beginning that would see many children born and an ancestral tree that would span throughout New England for centuries to come.

  Descendants who would forever tell the tale of two dangerous pirate rescue missions that resulted in treasure, a fresh start, and best of all, true love.

  Just Curious?

  First off, I’d like to thank all of you who have kept reading my books and followed my characters over the years. As I always say, without you, they’d be voiceless, their stories forever untold. I’d also like to thank those of you who just found me. I hope you’ve enjoyed spending time with all my various characters. Enough so that you might share your experience.

  To that point, if you enjoyed this story, would you consider leaving a review? Just a line or two. It would mean the world and would make such a difference when it comes to reaching more readers and continuing the craft I so love. If you’re up for it, thank you in advance. I appreciate it more than you know, as do my characters.

  Fondest Regards,

  Sky

  Exclusive Invitation

  If you enjoyed my stories, I invite you to join my private Facebook group, where I’ll be sharing things I don’t normally share on my Facebook Page or Profile, including never-before-read excerpts, upcoming projects, exclusive giveaways, advanced review copies and so much more. If you would like an invitation, please message me on Facebook or email me at Sky@SkyPurington.com with the subject line Facebook Group.

  Previous Releases-Best Reading Order

  ~The MacLomain Series- Early Years~

  Time Travel Fantasy Romance

  Highland Defiance- Book One

  Highland Persuasion- Book Two

  Highland Mystic- Book Three

  ~The MacLomain Series~

  Time Travel Fantasy Romance

  The King’s Druidess- Prelude

  Fate’s Monolith- Book One

  Destiny’s Denial- Book Two

  Sylvan Mist- Book Three

  ~The MacLomain Series- Next Generation~

  Time Travel Fantasy Romance

  Mark of the Highlander- Book One

  Vow of the Highlander- Book Two

  Wrath of the Highlander- Book Three

  Faith of the Highlander- Book Four

  Plight of the Highlander- Book Five

  ~The MacLom
ain Series- Viking Ancestors~

  Time Travel Fantasy/Shifter Romance

  Viking King- Book One

  Viking Claim- Book Two

  Viking Heart- Book Three

  ~The MacLomain Series- Later Years~

  Time Travel Fantasy Romance

  Quest of a Scottish Warrior- Book One

  Yule’s Fallen Angel (spin-off novella)

  Honor of a Scottish Warrior- Book Two

  Oath of a Scottish Warrior- Book Three

  Passion of a Scottish Warrior- Book Four

  ~The MacLomain Series- Viking Ancestors’ Kin~

  Time Travel Fantasy/Shifter Romance

  Rise of a Viking- Book One

  Vengeance of a Viking- Book Two

  A Viking Holiday- Book 2.5

  Soul of a Viking- Book Three

  Fury of a Viking- Book Four

  Destiny’s Dragon- Book 4.5

  Pride of a Viking- Book Five

  ~The MacLomain Series: A New Beginning~

  Time Travel Fantasy Romance

  Sworn to a Highland Laird- Book One

  Taken by a Highland Laird- Book Two

  Promised to a Highland Laird- Book Three

  Avenged by a Highland Laird- Book Four

  ~Pirates of Britannia World~

  Historical Romance

  The Seafaring Rogue

  The MacLomain Series: A New Beginning Spin-off

  The Sea Hellion

  Sequel to The Seafaring Rogue

  ~Viking Ancestors: Rise of the Dragon~

  Time Travel Fantasy/Shifter Romance

  Viking King’s Vendetta- Book One

  Viking’s Valor- Book Two

  Viking’s Intent- Book Three

  Viking’s Ransom- Book Four

  Viking’s Conquest- Book Five

  Viking’s Crusade- Book Six

  ~Spin-off Novella~

  Historical Romance

  Highland Yule (A MacLomain and MacLauchlin Hogmanay Tale)

  ~The MacLomain Series: End of an Era~

  Time Travel Fantasy Romance

  A Scot’s Pledge