PluckingthePearl

by Afton Locke

  Besides that, a bit of marsh grass sped past them in the water, telling him the tide was going out and quickly. The mayor would not be pleased if his expensive boat got stranded in swamp mud at low tide, possibly ruining the motor.

  Caleb vowed to be much more careful from now on.

  * * * * *

  Wearing her best dress—the blue one she’d traveled here in—Pearl walked out of the Baptist church on Sunday with her family, using her hat to fan herself from the heat. Children laughed as they ran across the grassy area behind the church while women spread quilts on the ground and opened baskets of food.

  Being away from the oyster plant for two days felt strange. She’d spent most of yesterday helping Wilma and Sadie with chores while Leroy chopped extra wood for the upcoming winter.

  The last thing she’d expected to see was Caleb perched on a big yacht. She couldn’t hear everything the men said but she’d heard enough.

  Let’s get the hell out of here.

  Even now, Caleb’s cold words left a sour feeling in her stomach. Hadn’t Leroy warned her about getting hurt? Afterward, the Johnsons and their neighbors had chattered about the biggest boat that had ever ventured into Crab Creek. No one could figure out why the mayor had come.

  But Pearl knew. Caleb must have wanted to see where she lived. She didn’t know whether to feel flattered or angry. He had no business prying into that part of her life. When they were together, the color of their skin and the differences in their lives didn’t seem to matter. When he touched her, they were one.

  Yesterday they couldn’t have looked more different—him standing on that fancy boat like a rich king while she pinned rags to a clothesline. She hoped he’d satisfied his curiosity. He probably wanted nothing more to do with her. Never again would he make her body feel as if the earth had split in half.

  This was her life, she reminded herself as she watched Wilma and Sadie fuss over the picnic basket. It could be worse. She had family, a home and food to eat. Leroy even cared about her. True to his word, he hadn’t said anything about her secret.

  She helped the women unpack the food and sat on the edge of the faded quilt while Charlie eased himself into a chair. When she saw Jimmy head toward them, she wished she felt the same magical spark Caleb gave her instead of nothing.

  “Hello, Jimmy.” When Sadie batted her lashes at him, Wilma elbowed her.

  “There’s a spot beside Pearl,” her aunt said.

  Jimmy smiled at her after he sat down. “You look real pretty today, Pearl. Did you enjoy the service?”

  Pearl struggled to pull her thoughts away from Caleb and the yacht. The man beside her had a kind, handsome face. More importantly, he could give her a future. It was time she stopped listening to her crazy body—making obscene demands like harder and faster—and started thinking with her head.

  Jimmy asked her where she was from and she found talking about her life in Annapolis easier than the life she had now. Wilma served lemonade, cornbread, hard-boiled eggs and soft crabs. She smiled at Pearl periodically with approval while Sadie glared into the distance.

  “You must be used to the fine things in life,” he told Pearl.

  “Pardon me? Oh yes. I do miss it sometimes.”

  She chewed her food slowly, noticing the textures more than the taste. If only she could forget about Caleb she’d probably be happy at this moment. Jimmy seemed to lean closer with every word she said and barely took his kind eyes off her. She looked up to the blue sky, wondering if her mother was watching her with approval.

  When they’d finished eating, Jimmy stood and held out his hand. “Would you care to walk with me? Maybe we can catch a breeze off the water.”

  Pearl stood slowly, her heart accelerating with worry as she wondered what to expect. Sitting with family was one thing. Being alone with him was another. What if he tried to kiss her?

  Even though she’d braced herself for the rejection Caleb was sure to give her on Monday, she wasn’t ready to be close to another man so soon. In fact, she might never get over Caleb.

  The church was near the inlet of Crab Creek so there was a nice breeze. It reminded her of Caleb’s scent. The distraction made her trip over a rock sticking out of the grass. That was a mistake because it gave Jimmy an excuse to touch her. He took her arm and then held her hand. She didn’t let go, knowing it was the smart thing to do.

  Jimmy’s hand was strong and calloused from hard work but it wasn’t Caleb’s. He led her to a bench and they sat down together. If only she and Caleb could walk around in public holding hands and sitting in beautiful spots like this. It just wasn’t fair.

  She let out a sigh of frustration as she gazed out at the water, holding her hand over her eyes to shade them. Part of her looked for the yacht, wondering if Caleb was on it watching her.

  “Something wrong?” Jimmy asked.

  “No. I’m sorry. I’m just tired, I guess.”

  He squeezed her hand. “You work too hard. You need someone to give you an easier life.”

  Pearl didn’t know what to reply to that so she didn’t say anything. Thankfully, Molly Bingham came over and handed her a daisy.

  “I picked this for you,” she announced.

  “Thank you, sweetheart,” Pearl said, smiling.

  Jimmy took it and tucked it into Pearl’s hair behind her ear, reminding her of how Caleb had smoothed her hair there. Did everything on the world have to remind her of that man?

  Molly ran back to her mother, leaving them alone again.

  “She’s precious,” Jimmy said. “Do you like children? I do. I want to have lots of them.”

  Unless you get knocked up with his half-breed bastard child before you get the chance.

  Pearl looked down at her feet, recalling Leroy’s blunt words. She couldn’t have children with Caleb. Jimmy, on the other hand, could give her marriage, children and a respectable life. Still, the thought of never having Caleb’s child made her feel hollow. What use was all their passion if they couldn’t create something wonderful together?

  Jimmy bent to peer into her face. “Did I say something wrong?”

  “I love children.” She looked back at the churchyard. “We shouldn’t be gone too long. They’ll need help packing up.”

  “Pearl, I’d like to ask your aunt and uncle’s permission to come court you. Would that be all right with you?”

  “C-court me?”

  She lifted her face to the breeze, hoping it would clear the numbness. Surely she’d expected this. First came courting then came marriage. That was what she wanted, wasn’t it?

  “Yes, I suppose that would be fine,” she finally answered.

  Jimmy shifted on the bench. She could tell by the cautious expression on his face he didn’t feel very encouraged by her reaction.

  “How about Tuesday night?” he asked. “I could come over and sit with you a while.”

  Her family would be there so at least she wouldn’t have to worry about being alone with him.

  “I don’t know,” she replied. “I work during the evenings.”

  “Can’t you get that one night off?” he asked.

  “I’ll try.”

  And she would. Caleb would probably reject her and end her cleaning job anyway. She stood, facing the river breeze. After her old life had tragically ended in Annapolis, she was finally on the right track for a brand new one.

  She wasn’t about to let an arrogant white man stand in her way.

  Chapter Seven

  When Pearl came to Caleb’s office after her shift, he could tell by the stony set of her lips something was wrong. It probably had something to do with his insane yachting expedition. It had taken him hours to calm the mayor down after the trip. Luckily the captain managed to get the yacht out of Crab Creek before the tide got too low and it didn’t get damaged.

  At least some good had come of it. He’d placed an order at the Sapphire Crab early this morning for a catered lunch for his workers. They’d delivered a feast of ham, potatoes,
corn, biscuits and even some oysters to the lunchroom. His workers smiled all afternoon and productivity went up.

  “The windows in the small shucking room need cleaning,” he told Pearl. “Fill a couple of buckets with hot, soapy water. I’ll be down later.”

  She arched a brow. “Really?”

  Her voice was as cold as her expression and her hair looked as if she’d pinned it more tightly than usual. He needed to see it long and loose again.

  “Absolutely.” We haven’t been together for two days and I’m already hard.

  He smiled and cocked his head, undressing her with his eyes to give her the message but her face still looked blank. After she left, Caleb drummed his fingers on the desk. Something was very wrong and he hoped he could fix it because he planned to continue his exploration of her tempting body tonight.

  The floor men took forever to leave. At last, the plant grew quiet. His cock was so brick hard he could hardly walk down the stairs. When he went inside their special room with his basket of food and locked the door, she was finishing up the window cleaning. Despite their interruption the other night, he still preferred this room. They had made it theirs.

  He pointed to the buckets of water on the floor. “I figured we should have some cleaning supplies around to prove that’s what you’re really doing. You know, in case we get interrupted again.”

  She wiped her hands on a rag. “If the windows meet with your approval, Mr. Rockfield, I’ll be going.”

  Like hell she would. Maybe she was having her monthly courses and was too embarrassed to tell him. The thought of not being able to explore her body tonight deflated his cock but he still wanted to spend time with her.

  He jerked the window shades down. “Let’s have some oysters.”

  “No, thank you,” she replied. “I’m not hungry.”

  He took one of the rectangular wooden stalls the shuckers stood in and turned it sideways on the floor. Then he sat at one end, stretching his legs out before him.

  “Sit with me and tell me what’s wrong,” he said gently.

  She sat on the other end of it and folded her arms. “Stop pretending you want to be with me tonight. This job is over, isn’t it?”

  He rested one hand on the bench and the other on his thigh. “Not by a long shot. Whatever gave you that idea?”

  “Why, Caleb? Why did you have to come see where I live?”

  He’d never heard so much emotion in her voice. The anger and sadness in it wrapped around his chest, squeezing it.

  He shrugged. “I was curious and I couldn’t go two whole days without catching a glimpse of you.”

  “Well, now you’ve seen it,” she replied, flinging out her hand. “You couldn’t wait to get the hell out of there either, could you? You sounded so disgusted.”

  So she’d heard him. He took her cold hand and rubbed it to warm it up. “Oh, Pearl. Why do you always assume the worst? What you heard was disgust at myself, not you. I took a huge risk bringing the mayor’s yacht in such low water.”

  She looked away. “How could you not feel disgusted standing up there on that fancy yacht?”

  He closed his eyes against the regret welling up from his chest. He’d been so focused on how adorable she’d looked standing at the clothesline he hadn’t given any thought to how he must have looked to her—white, imperious and condescending.

  “All right, maybe I did feel disgusted. Because it broke my heart, honey, to think of you freezing in that shack this winter.” He found himself almost yelling and lowered his voice. “You deserve so much better.”

  Pearl was a proud woman and too proud, he knew, to accept the building supplies he wanted to give her family. He’d have to do it anonymously.

  “I realized all my employees deserve better. If it hadn’t been for you, I never would have bothered to see everyone’s living conditions. I don’t feel very good about that.”

  “It seems to me you do the best you can,” she said quietly. “Everyone appreciated the lunch today.”

  But when he planted a sensuous kiss on the palm of her hand, she pulled it away.

  “You shouldn’t have come to Crab Creek.” Her bottom lip trembled as she spoke. “How can you possibly still want me after seeing me there?”

  The wooden stall creaked as he grabbed her and pulled her against him. Then he anchored both hands on the sides of her face and looked into her stormy eyes.

  “Let me make something very clear, Pearl Wilson. I will never stop wanting you.”

  “Caleb…”

  The breathy surrender in her voice pressed the accelerator in his heart. Enough of this damn talking. Still gripping her face, he claimed her mouth, proving how much he wanted her with the pressure of his lips and every sweep of his tongue. Each time he let up, they both gasped for air before returning to the frantic union of their mouths.

  When they stopped, he put his arm around her.

  “What was it like being on that yacht?” she asked.

  “Boring,” he replied. “I only go because the mayor expects it of me. Most of the time, I imagined us alone on that boat.”

  Her stormy eyes warmed with a flicker of desire. “You did?”

  He swayed from side to side on his seat, mimicking the rocking of a boat. Her supple torso moved with his.

  “I pictured you naked and spread open for me on that boat,” he told her. “I imagined my tongue inside you while the waves rock us back and forth like this. Each one would drive me a little deeper.”

  Her breasts rose with a sudden intake of breath. “Good heavens, Caleb.”

  “Maybe I should borrow the mayor’s yacht so we can really do it,” he said. “It would be dangerous as hell but I could probably just about pull it off.”

  When she leaned her head on his shoulder and giggled, he held her closer. “Well, at least I finally got you to laugh.”

  “So I still have this job?” she asked.

  He frowned and turned her chin up with his thumb so he could see her face. “Of course you do. You’re not going to quit on me, are you?”

  She pulled her face away and shifted on her seat but this time she looked more uncomfortable than guilty. What now? His heart raced so much around her he was sure it would wear itself out.

  “I almost hoped you’d fire me to make my life simpler. Caleb, can I have tomorrow night off?” she asked.

  “Sure, but may I ask why? I thought you enjoyed our time together.”

  “I do.” She sighed and studied her hands. “I saw Jimmy at church Sunday.”

  Jimmy. His competition. “And?”

  “I agreed to let him court me. He’s coming over Tuesday evening. My family will be there, of course.”

  The news nearly knocked him off the bench. “Damn,” he said softly.

  She rubbed the hairs on his arm, sending threads of heat through his groin. “Caleb, we talked about this. Jimmy can give me the life I need.”

  And he couldn’t. “I know. I just hoped we had more time.”

  Her fingers trembled as they touched his face. “We do have time. It’s not as if I’m getting married tomorrow.”

  But the time they did have left was even more precious now.

  “Let’s not waste another moment talking,” he said.

  He’d planned to seduce her slowly tonight but that was before he’d found out another man would court her, kiss her, touch her…

  Her yellow cotton dress buttoned from collar to hem. He tugged at the top buttons, so impatient he almost pulled them off. She stopped him and unbuttoned them herself. When the top of her dress was open, he guided her arms out of the short sleeves. Next, he unfastened her bra and tossed it on the floor.

  With his mouth, he claimed every bit of her exposed, coffee-smooth skin—her silky cheekbones, her tender neck and the warm hollow between her breasts where her earthy-sweet scent was strongest. He sucked her nipples into his mouth, one at a time, wishing he had the time and patience to be gentler but he didn’t. He felt like a starving man at a so
up kitchen.

  It was as if at any moment the door would burst open and someone would steal Pearl away from him forever.

  Mine! Mine! he wanted to shout with each kiss. Jimmy would never know she’d belonged to another man first but he wanted to make sure she knew it tonight.

  “Take off your shoes and stockings and unbutton the rest of your dress,” he ordered. “I need to see all of you.”

  She did as he asked, leaving her naked except for the dress attached by the belt at her waist. Although she kept her legs clasped together, he eyed the triangle of black hair, damp from her excitement. The scent of her cream made the blood sing in his ears.

  “Thank you for not wearing panties again,” he said.

  He groaned when her hand clasped the hard ridge of his trousers. Inside, his organ strained against the fabric and ached for release.

  “I need to see you too,” she said.

  “Pearl,” he warned.

  “I bet you have a naughty word for it too. Tell me.”

  “It’s called a cock,” he replied.

  Before he could stop her, she’d unfastened the buttons of his trousers and undershorts and reached for his naked shaft. The sight of her dark, delicate fingers around his hot, pink flesh sent a ball of heat to his head, making it feel as if it might explode.

  A shudder went through him when she rubbed a finger through the milky cream oozing from his tip.

  “Honey,” he said, gasping, “if you keep doing that, I don’t think I can keep myself from fucking you.”

  She ignored him, dragging her finger down the length of him. His balls clenched with the need for release.

  “I mean it, Pearl.” His throat rumbled with a growl of warning. “If you want to stay a virgin, get your hand off my cock. Now!”

  To prove it, he pulled a condom out of his pocket. He carried it around now, just in case.

  “What’s that?” She frowned as she took it from him and studied it.

  “This is a condom. It fits over the penis during intercourse and prevents children.” He hoped the dry, scientific explanation would ease the pressure in his balls but it didn’t. “If you ever decide to—”