A Tempting Voyage (West Meets East Book 6)

by Merry Farmer

  In the end, it was her who said, “I can’t wait any longer.”

  She shifted over him, sliding her hips into contact with his, then taking hold of him and guiding him to her wet and aching entrance. She bore down on him, and they both moaned with pleasure as he pushed inside of her to the hilt. His hands gripped her hips with sudden and undeniable power, and as she began to move, he surged into action.

  The strength it took for a man to thrust so perfectly with her on top was impressive. Domenica gripped the narrow ledge that ran around the top of his bed. Her moans of pleasure grew faster and higher pitched as he pounded her. She leaned down, her breasts barely raking across his chest with the thunderous pace he set. That friction only added to the pleasure that was quickly drowning her. The coil of heat and need inside of her squeezed tighter and tighter as he thrust hard and fast, and with a surprised gasp, she came apart.

  She couldn’t remember the last time sex had ended in orgasm for her. The sensation was heartbreakingly beautiful, and it went on and on, even when her capitán cried out before his thrusts began to slow to a stop. And yet, it was no surprise that this amazing man had been able to give her as much enjoyment as she hoped she’d given him. More than just her body, her heart had been engaged fully in their lovemaking. She’d wanted him, truly wanted him, and he hadn’t disappointed.

  With the flush of orgasm past, they both loosened, and Domenica relaxed atop him. He was still lodged inside of her as he softened, and she wasn’t in a hurry to change that. He felt good, filling her, becoming a part of her. She rested her head against his shoulder, kissing his neck and praying he wouldn’t be in a hurry to cast her off, now that the deed was done.

  But no, he wrapped his arms around her, managing to cover them with his quilt, and said, “That was extraordinary.”

  “It was,” she agreed with a happy sigh.

  There was a pause, then he said, “You don’t have to stay if you don’t want to.”

  Her brow went up, and she lifted herself to look at him. “Do you want me to go?”

  He opened his mouth to say something, but thought better of it. His slightly anxious expression melted to tenderness, and he brushed a lock of her hair back. “No.”

  Domenica’s heart burst into a shower of butterflies. “I don’t want to go either,” she said, smiling. “I want to stay right where I am.” She ground her hips against his to prove her point, and was rewarded as he twitched and grew inside of her.

  His hands brushed down her sides, settling over her backside with a possessiveness that felt divine. “I keep telling myself that I should feel like a cad for taking you that way.”

  Domenica arched an eyebrow. “If you will recall, Capitán, it is I who took you.”

  A rakish grin that made him seem years younger spread across his face. “Call me Albert,” he said.

  “No, no.” She shook her head playfully. “You are and always will be mi capitán.”

  His grin turned heated. “I must be insane.”

  She laughed, tracing the line of his mouth with her finger. “Why?”

  “Because I’m actually considering staying awake and praying that these old bones have it in them to go again.”

  The joy that bubbled up from Domenica’s soul was entirely new. She bent to kiss him, lingering where she would have fled before. She undulated her hips, hoping to help him with his so-called mad resolve.

  “Let me see if I can help you with that.”

  She shifted to the side, letting him roll atop her. He kissed her, one hand stroking her side, and began to rock slowly into her. Domenica began to wish that she could stay forever at sea, in Albert’s arms.

  A thump in the cabin next to them put a dent in the sensual fire that was beginning to burn between them once again. She gasped at the noise, and Albert stopped moving.

  “Don’t worry,” he murmured, kissing her lips, her cheeks. “The cabin walls are not as thick as they should be.”

  “Then we should be quiet,” she whispered, teasing.

  Albert chuckled low in his throat and resumed his teasing, tempting thrusts.

  A moment later, another thump sounded, along with a voice. It was a voice Domenica knew.

  “Is Lord William in the cabin next to yours?”

  Albert winced and let out a sigh. He lowered his head until his forehead touched hers. “I forgot. He is.”

  The irony was enough to make Domenica giggle. She moved her hips, encouraging him to continue moving inside her.

  “He demanded the best room I could provide when arrangements were made to give him passage,” Albert went on. “I didn’t think there could be any harm in giving him that cabin.”

  “Do you think he knows we’re in here?” she asked, her breathing growing shallow as the pleasure of being joined with Albert increased.

  “Does it matter?” Albert asked.

  “No,” she answered, lifting her hips to meet his increasingly insistent thrusts. “It doesn’t matter at all.”

  Lord William said something else muffled in the room beside them, but what it was and who he was talking to didn’t make a lick of difference to Domenica. Let Lord William do what he wanted—and whatever it was, the noise he made settled down eventually—she was going to enjoy every moment she spent in Albert’s arms. He had her sighing and mewling with pleasure in no time. It was almost a disappointment when she shuddered into another powerful orgasm, with his release following quickly. Almost. When at last they collapsed in each other’s arms and gave in to sleep, Domenica was more contented than she’d ever been.

  CHAPTER 4

  Domenica slept like a log, exhausted from her and Albert’s nocturnal activity, rocked by the ocean, and soothed by the constant hum of the ship’s engines far below. But even before the sun rose on a new day, she awoke with second thoughts.

  Had she given in to passion too easily? She was supposed to be starting a new life, after all. Ellie liked to say that accepting Bonnie, Mr. Gunn, and Mrs. Strong’s offer for employment in England was wiping the slate clean, but what she and Albert had done wasn’t exactly pure. What must he think of her?

  That thought shocked her fully awake, not out of fear of the answer, but because it had never dawned on her to care what the man in her bed thought of her. She extracted herself carefully from Albert’s sleeping arms and sat on the side of his narrow bed. A wistful smile fluttered across her lips, and she brushed his hair away from his face. It made her heart ache just to look at him, her capitán. She’d never met such a good man, such a patient and giving lover. In a perfect world, she would have stayed in bed with him, stayed by his side as long as he would let her. But the world was far from perfect.

  Taking extraordinary care not to wake him, Domenica slipped out of bed, tucking the quilt around him so that he wouldn’t get cold. On a whim, she leaned over to kiss his lips, lingering longer than she should have.

  Albert drew in a breath, and his eyes opened. It was still dark, but the moonlight pouring in through the portholes was enough for her to see the depth of caring in his eyes. She smiled at him, stroking his hair with the utmost tenderness, then straightened. Albert smiled back at her, giving her the slightest nod. He wasn’t going to drag her back into bed or force her to stay. He was going to let her go when she wanted to go.

  And that made it harder than ever to break away from him.

  She gathered her things as quickly as she could in the near dark, slipping into her dress without buttoning it. Her cabin was just down the hall, and if she were quick, she could slip inside before anyone saw her. No one would be out so early anyhow.

  Barefoot, hair a mess, clasping her petticoat and underthings in front of her undone bodice, she blew Albert one final kiss, then snuck out into the hall. As she’d hoped, it was empty. A few, dim lanterns hung at intervals to light the way for nighttime wanderers, but they did nothing to heat the hallway. Domenica shivered at the cold, her nipples tightening, and rushed from one end of the narrow corridor to the other as swi
ftly as she could.

  She had almost made it to her room and was fumbling to find her key in the pocket of her dress when the doorway leading to the outer deck opened. The blast of icy air was only part of what made Domenica gasp as she turned to face whoever had caught her in such a state.

  To her surprise, it was Lady Patterson who stepped into the hall, swathed in a fur-lined coat and hat. She took one look at Domenica and started with as much surprise and guilt as Domenica had. The two women gaped and blinked at each other, then Lady Patterson burst into peals of laughter.

  “My, my. Someone has enjoyed quite an eventful evening, I see,” she said.

  Domenica opened her mouth to make some sort of excuse as to why it wasn’t what Lady Patterson thought it was. She gave that up for pointless right away. No respectable woman wandered the halls of a ship in the pre-dawn with her dress gaping open at the front and her corset and drawers in her arms.

  “Don’t gawp like a fish on dry land, my dear,” Lady Patterson went on, waving toward Domenica’s door. “It’s ridiculously cold in this hallway, and neither of us will fare well if we’re discovered right now.”

  “Yes, ma’am.” Domenica couldn’t think of anything else to say or do. She finished unlocking her door and pushed it open, leaping into her cabin.

  To her surprise, Lady Patterson followed her. She shuddered as Domenica shut the door behind her. “It’s a shame they don’t keep the cabins heated more efficiently.”

  “I forgot to light the fire last night,” Domenica said, dropping her load of underthings on her bed.

  “Hmm.” Lady Patterson arched a brow at her, moving to light the lantern that hung from a sconce in the wall. “You had other things on your mind, perhaps?”

  There was no mistaking the impish glint in Lady Patterson’s eyes as she struck a match from the box on the table under the lantern. Domenica let out a laugh and relaxed. “I would pretend to be someone I am not with you, my lady, but something tells me you would see through it.”

  “Only because I have ample practice in the art of playing the role that suits me when the time is right,” Lady Patterson answered. She blew out the match, then went to light the room’s other lantern.

  “Would you mind if I wash and dress?” Domenica asked.

  Lady Patterson sent her a look over her shoulder, then continued lighting the lantern. “It would be a damn sight better than having you converse with me in a state of dishabille.”

  “Thank you, my lady.” Domenica chuckled and wriggled out of her wrinkled dress. There was a pitcher of freezing water on the washstand near the bed, but she couldn’t stand to do more than splash a bit of cold water on her face and to run a damp cloth under her arms. She would have to take advantage of the ship’s modern marvel of running water to bathe more fully later.

  As she dressed in clean clothes, Lady Patterson lit the small coal stove in one corner of the room. “So, you are not scandalized?” Domenica asked.

  Lady Patterson made an ironic sound. “My dear, if you knew half of the mischief I got into as a younger woman, you wouldn’t ask.”

  Domenica smiled, stepping into her petticoat from the day before. “I would love to hear your stories.”

  “And I would love to tell them.” Lady Patterson finished with the fire and stood, brushing coal dust from her gloved hands. “I was considered impetuous, scandalous, and not to be trusted in my day.”

  “But I am certain you were invited to all the parties.”

  Lady Patterson answered with a proud smile. “I was. Even though having me there was considered shocking.”

  Domenica slipped her dress over her head and adjusted it to fit over her skirts before doing up the buttons. “Did you have lovers?”

  Lady Patterson laughed. “Did I ever,” she answered with a wink.

  They shared a giggle as though both were schoolgirls.

  “What were you doing out on the deck so early in the morning when it is so cold?” Domenica asked once her dress was buttoned, crossing the room to fetch her hairbrush.

  “Alas,” Lady Patterson sighed. “In my old age, I find it hard to sleep. I barely caught a wink all night.”

  “I’m sorry. But shouldn’t you have taken your maid with you?”

  Lady Patterson snorted and rolled her eyes. “Polly? She would have sniffed and grunted the whole time and done everything short of whinge to go back to bed. I thought it was best to leave her to her own devices, whatever those were.”

  Domenica made un understanding sound.

  Lady Patterson shook her head and brushed away the sympathy. “I find that wandering alone, considering the events of my life, is enough to keep me company. And it’s not as cold out there as you might think. The ocean water keeps things milder than they would be otherwise. Besides, the stars out at sea are magnificent.”

  Domenica blinked, putting down her brush to braid her hair. “How long were you out there?”

  “Oh, most of the night.” Lady Patterson let out a contented breath. Outside the portholes, dawn was breaking, bringing new light to the new day. “The ship is so peaceful at night. But that’s not what concerns me.”

  “Oh?”

  Lady Patterson grinned, stepping closer to Domenica. “What I want to know is if our good captain is as fit without his clothes as he appears in them.”

  Domenica gasped, then dissolved into a peal of laughter. “How do you know that’s whose bed I was in last night?”

  “Pfft!” Lady Patterson made a face. “You don’t get as old and experienced as I am without being able to read the currents running between people.” She arched an eyebrow.

  Domenica finished pinning her braided hair back, then inched closer to Lady Patterson and whispered, “He is magnificent.”

  “Go on.” Lady Patterson winked and nudged Domenica with her elbow.

  “He is as fit and firm as a man half his age, and very skilled.”

  “Do tell!”

  Domenica giggled. It was the sort of conversation she had had with the other women at Bonnie’s place. It wasn’t at all the sort of thing she expected to talk about with a titled British woman. “He’s a capitán,” she shrugged. “He knows how to navigate.”

  “And I suppose he knows how to bring a ship into dock satisfactorily.”

  “Most certainly.” She hooked her arm through Lady Patterson’s. “Will you join me for breakfast?”

  “Of course, my dear. You haven’t shared enough details for me to leave you yet.”

  Domenica laughed and headed to the door with Lady Patterson. They left the cabin and walked along the hall to the side corridor that led to the grand dining room at the center of the ship. Domenica shared as many details as she could come up with clever euphemisms for as the two of them walked. It was baffling to her that an elderly woman from a different country and class could suddenly feel like her closest friend, but as they entered the dining room, Domenica felt as though she’d known Lady Patterson her whole life.

  Which was why it was comforting to have the woman by her side when they stepped into the chaos of the dining room. Only a dozen passengers were there, glancing in confusion between the scattering of empty tables. It was the ship’s crew that seemed to be beside themselves. The long tables that had been laden with breakfast food the morning before were empty and devoid of even tablecloths. A small cluster of white-uniformed wait staff whispered to each other in a group beside the table. Several others dashed in and out of the swinging door that led to the kitchen, looking either upset or baffled.

  “What seems to be the problem?” Domenica asked, leaving Lady Patterson’s side to approach the men in uniform.

  They glanced up from their conversation to look at her with wary eyes. Before they could answer, their gaze slipped past Domenica to the dining room door.

  “What’s going on here?” Albert asked, striding into the room with all the power that a ship’s captain should have.

  The moment Albert spotted Domenica standing near his crewmen, he
nearly missed a step. She was as beautiful in the morning light as she had been naked and splayed under him the night before. His body heated with the memory of how she’d felt wrapped around him, how it had felt to give himself to a woman who had so obviously wanted him. Instinct begged him to sweep her into his arms then and there, and to kiss her until they were both enflamed. Fortunately for all, his sense of duty took the upper hand.

  “What is this all about?” he asked, approaching the anxious cluster of his crew. If felt only right when Domenica fell into step at his side, standing with him.

  “It’s, uh, it’s Mr. Sands, captain,” Justice, the head of the dining room wait staff told him.

  “What about him?” Albert asked.

  The other crewmen glanced to Justice, who shrugged and shook his head. “He’s gone, captain.”

  Albert frowned. “Gone? Impossible.” Less than twelve hours ago, Lewis Sands had been sitting across the card table from him, playing with the Devil’s own luck.

  “He didn’t report for duty this morning,” Justice went on.

  “What time was he supposed to report?” Domenica asked.

  “Four in the morning, miss,” Justice answered.

  “We saw him just before midnight,” Domenica said with a frown.

  It seemed like too obvious a question, but Albert asked, “Did you check his cabin?”

  “Aye-aye, captain.” Justice nodded, then glanced to one of the other men, Bourne.

  “Didn’t look like his bed had been slept in, sir,” Bourne reported.

  A deep sense of foreboding filled Albert’s chest. He glanced to Domenica, as if she might somehow have the answer. Lewis had been fine when they’d left the card game. How could a man disappear on a ship in a matter of hours?

  The passengers who had been in the dining room when he’d arrived continued to mill about aimlessly. Several inched closer to their conversation, probably hoping to have a front seat for the drama.