by Kitty Margo
Oh, the sheer ecstasy of the hot water enveloping her weary body! It was nothing short of heaven and she released the breath she had been holding with a delightful sigh.
Her muscles relaxed as she leaned her head back on the tub rim reveling in the feel of the hot water on her filthy skin. Peeking through a slit in one eye, she watched Sean scoop all the bed linens from the bed and toss them without fanfare over the balcony and into the sea. She continued to watch as he made the bed with clean sheets and a blanket. To say the least it looked inviting.
Lynna was relaxed to the point of falling asleep in the water, when she felt Sean staring at her. Opening her eyes she watched his gaze sweep from her breasts to the conjunction of her thighs. Quickly covering these areas with her hands, both for modesty and the fact that she was ashamed of her bony, withered frame, her face blazed with humiliation. Little flesh remained on her body, only bones poking through almost transparent skin. How horrible she must look!
Realizing she couldn’t cover her entire body with two hands, she instead brought her hands to her face to shield eyes that were suddenly brimming with tears. She didn’t care to be witness to the horror reflected in his eyes as he looked upon her emaciated body. “I must look like a monster.” Although to her it would seem impossible, she had to look as bad as she felt, and that was beyond reprehensible.
Before she could say another word Sean was vigorously lathering her arms, then her legs and feet. “You look like someone who has suffered a grave illness, Lynna. Trust me when I say that few women can compete with your beauty when you are well.”
Lynna glanced down at her hipbones jutting out from the skin and the lack of muscle tone in her thighs and groaned with a misery that she felt in the core of her being. “A beautiful monster.”
He wasn’t about to let her know that he actually almost agreed with her assessment. “This is but a temporary setback, little one.” Sean laughed. “I’ve already instructed the cook to fatten you up, so allow him a few weeks to work his magic.” Sean realized that a stranger meeting her for the first time would be hard pressed to believe that Lynna had once turned the head of every man she passed with her smooth, creamy skin, breathtaking vivid blue eyes, enticing moist, pink lips, dainty upturned nose, and waist-length, feathery golden curls that hugged her enchanting curves. “Granted, it will take a few weeks for your body to heal, but by the time we reach the island you should be well on the road to a full recovery.” He was moving the washcloth toward what remained of her breasts when she lifted a hand to stop him. “I can do the rest myself.”
“If you insist, but first allow me to wash your hair.” He dropped a soft kiss on her clean lips as he vigorously rubbed the bar of soap into her hair, leaving Lynna with her mouth gaping open.
“Close your mouth before you start blowing bubbles.” He chuckled. “There was no deep, hidden meaning behind the kiss. It was a spur of the moment decision really, not planned at all. Let’s just say I’m happy that you are still alive.”
Lynna was too tired to explore his reasoning. His gentle ministrations soothed her as she relaxed even further. He thoroughly scrubbed her hair, rinsed, and then repeated the process. “Now I will go to the store room and retrieve some cleaning supplies while you finish your bath.”
“Sean,” she called, and he paused, turning in the doorway. “Thank you. I never dreamed you could be so kind.”
He winked and lowered his voice. “Let’s keep that our little secret. I have a reputation to uphold, you know.”
Lynna fell asleep with a smile hovering on her lips. When she opened them again Sean had returned with a filled to overflowing bucket sloshing hot water heavily laced with what smelled like vinegar with every step. The smell unleashed a wealth of memories from the time a few years ago when she was held captive on Sean’s ship. “Have you finished your bath? If so, you can sit on the balcony and dry your hair while I have the cabin cleaned.
“Yes, I’m finished.” Yet the mere thought of having to sit upright in a chair for any length of time sent a frisson of dread pulsing through her already weak and trembling limbs. “I’ll try, but I’m afraid I will only be able to sit for a short while.” She eyed the comfortable bed with intense longing.
“It will only be for a few minutes,” he promised after seeing where her eyes lingered. “Then I will return for you.”
Sean held a large sheet in front of her while she carefully stepped out of the tub and wrapped it securely around her trembling body. As she clutched the cool cotton in a vain attempt to cover her nakedness, he moved to a chest and lifted a soft white night rail.
Knowing that Lynna would come to his ship with only the clothes on her back, Sean had taken the liberty to supply her with a few necessary items. He remembered the size and shape of her figure well. It seemed to be imprinted on his mind for all time.
Gathering the folds of the night rail, he slipped the soft, clean material over Lynna’s head as she dropped the sheet and released a blissful moan. “Oh Sean, I had forgotten how wonderful it felt to be clean.”
Taking her hand he led her to a stool on the balcony, watching as the wind caught in her hair and fanned it behind her. Dark bruises lay under her eyes as she dropped her head back to feel the warmth of the sun on her face. She looked so frail, he feared he could break her fragile wrist with a flick of a finger if he were not careful. Closing his eyes, he issued a silent prayer that the worst was behind them.
Sean turned when he heard a knock on the cabin door and called for Rorie to enter. The boy peered around at the carnage in the room, then gasped and held his breath against the atrocious smell as he glared at Sean.
“Scrub every inch of this cabin leaving no surface untouched.” Sean instructed. “I want it to smell fresher than a field of daisies when you have finished.”
Rorie’s eyes blared at the monumental and probably impossible task before him “But…sir…”
“No, buts.” Sean relented, feeling sympathy for the lad and the overwhelming task before him. “Perhaps I was being a bit overzealous. Just give it your best effort and make sure all is as clean as possible. With the balcony door open hopefully the smell will dissipate, eventually.”
“Yes sir, Captain Sean,” the lad mumbled dejectedly, already sounding defeated.
“And Rorie?”
“Yes sir, Captain Sean?”
“There will be an extra weeks pay in your packet if you do an extraordinary job of cleaning this cabin.”
“Yes sir, Captain Sean!” Rorie squealed excitedly, grabbing the bucket and sponge as he set about scrubbing the walls with more enthusiasm than Sean had ever noticed from the lad.
Returning to the balcony, Sean found Lynna fast asleep with her head lying on the rail. Whatever Suzanne had done to the girl she never intended for her to survive. Scooping Lynna into his arms, he took her seat on the stool, cradling her against his broad chest. She slept like a baby with her face to the sun, hopefully to dry up the sores, as the cabin was vigorously scoured behind them.
When Rorie finally dried his hands on a rag, the room had a fresh vinegary scent to it. None of the foul odor lingered as the ocean breeze wafted through the room. Sean laid Lynna gently on the bed, pulled the covers up to her neck and tucked them under her chin. He would allow her to rest, but then he intended for her to share his evening meal and begin the long road to recovery. Closing the door behind him, he gave a satisfied nod, realizing he had already accomplished much today.
Hours later, the sun was slipping beneath the waves when Lynna crooked open bleary eyes and was completely astonished to realize that she almost felt human again. Her nightgown was crisp and clean. Her bed linens were soft and fresh. She moved her hand to her hair and felt its softness. Stretching luxuriously, she slipped back to her favorite place. Dreamland. Where Joshua was still very much alive.
When she next opened her eyes she was enveloped by the most wonderful fragrance she had smelled in ages. An orange. Inhaling the delicious citrus scent, she wond
ered where it was coming from. It would take too much energy to open her eyes to find out, but she savored the smell nonetheless.
“Open your mouth, Lynna,” Sean urged gently.
When she didn’t, he pushed the orange slice against her mouth until some of the juice dribbled between her lips. She almost jumped out of her skin when she felt Sean’s tongue on her lips, licking the escaping juice.
“Oranges are much too precious to waste.” He winked seductively when she peered at him through a crack in one eye.
The orange was the most divine taste to ever pass her lips. She opened her mouth as he pushed the slice in. At that moment, her greatest desire was just to hold the delicious orange slice in her mouth and suck on it to savor the exquisite taste on her tongue, but Sean wouldn’t allow it. “Chew it, Lynna, so I can give you another piece.”
She did as she was told, but the effort drained her last reserve of energy and she nodded off. Half asleep, she felt another orange slice at her lips, and another until she had eaten half the orange. “Good girl.” Satisfied, Sean left the cabin with a triumphant smile on his face.
Later, he returned with a steaming bowl of stew. The nauseating aroma filled the room, causing Lynna’s stomach to do a flip flop and her gag reflex to kick in. “I gather from the grimace on your lovely face that the stew does not smell like appetizing fare.” She heard his soft chuckle. “There are no more oranges, Lynna. Fruit doesn’t stay fresh very long at sea. Will you at least try the stew?”
Giving a barely perceptible shake of her head, she swallowed as bile rose in her throat at the prospect. “Please, Sean, I will be sick if you force me to eat. The smell alone is making me ill.”
“Lynna, you must eat if you have a desire to continue living.” She had already learned to dread that fierce look of determination in his eyes. “Now, you aren’t going to like me very much for what I am about to say, but you are going to eat every spoonful of stew in this bowl.”
Bestowing upon him a glower that would have put any other man in his place, Sean only grinned at her squinted eyes and pursed lips.
True to her word, the first bite soured on Lynna’s stomach immediately and she turned away, waiting to see if it would remain. After a few seconds it did, and she released the quivering breath she had been holding. After a few minutes Sean put another spoon to her lips and another until, true to his word, she had eaten every spoonful.
Two weeks to the day later, Lynna stood at the balcony of Sean’s cabin watching the fluorescent water rushing beneath her, the stars and half moon above reflected off the calm sea. Her energy was slowly returning under Sean’s tender care. She owed him her life. Watching a lively family of dolphins that had frolicked alongside the ship for hours and were still happily at play, she stood on tiptoe, leaning over the rail to get a better view in the darkness.
Sean’s deep voice startled her. “You aren’t contemplating jumping are you?”
“No,” her answer was an honest one. “If I was brave enough to end my own life I would have done so long ago, I assure you. I am too much of a coward.”
“Few cowards could survive what you have over the last year and live to tell about it,” he reminded her.
She turned toward him, leaning against the balcony as the wind fanned her hair behind her. Tilting her head back, she savored the feeling of the warm breeze caressing her face. Her skin had begun to heal and although Sean had slathered several applications of ointment over the scabs the remaining sores had been itching something fierce all day.
“You may be right, Sean. I hadn’t thought of that. It does seem that I’ve had a rather eventful life since leaving my home in France.” Tossing her head back, her tinkling laughter filled the night air. “I should write a book about my life. Who would believe so much could happen to one person?”
Sean stopped in his tracks, unmoving. It was the first time he had heard her laugh and it was like a tall glass of cold water to a man dying of thirst. He wanted to hear it over and over. “I look forward to hearing your life story with all the mishaps along the way.”
“That could take weeks.” She giggled.
“We have nothing but time, Lynna.” He moved to stand in front of her until his lips were mere inches from her own. “I yearn to know you much, much better, little one.”
“Sean… I… I… I… “
Sean chuckled heartily. “There is no need to stutter, love. What I meant to say is that I hope you are beginning to see that such a sinful act as taking your own life is not necessary. That every cloud does indeed have a silver lining and you have your entire life ahead of you?”
“I have yet to find the silver lining behind my clouds, if such exists. The horizon is much too dark and stormy.” The laughter immediately left her eyes. “And I doubt that I ever will. I must be content to merely exist, living day to day, until my time on this earth has passed and I can be reunited with the man I love.”
“And your son?” It wasn’t his intention to torture the poor girl. He had mentioned her son in a last ditch effort to make her see that she had a reason to go on, a reason to live. “What about Beau?”
“What about my son?” He heard the misery in her voice as she tilted her melancholy face toward him. “Rarely a second passes that I do not think of him.”
“Have you no desire to be reunited with him some day?”
“Beau is better off where he is. I’ve been too sick to care for him. No one expected me to live anyway.” Her eyes filled with scalding tears as she thought back to the sight of her father’s heartbroken face when the doctor had issued his grim prognosis. “They thought I was asleep late one night, but I heard the doctor tell my father that the chances of my survival were slim. He warned both him and Aunt Judith to say their final goodbyes before it was too late. Hopefully they had already accepted that I wouldn’t be with them much longer and have not grieved overmuch.”
“But you did survive and you are getting stronger each day,” Sean insisted. He was determined to open her eyes to the fact that there were other options in her life. “Have you even given consideration to loving another, Lynna? Namely one devilishly handsome ex pirate,” he teased with a flirtatious wink.
“I’m afraid that is not possible.” Although she had to smile at his lecherous grin, she turned pleading eyes toward him. “Therefore I beseech you, Sean. Do not waste your time trying to woo me. It is but a wasted effort I assure you, and will only result in misery for us both.”
Completely ignoring her words Sean lowered his head to place a soft kiss on her lips, leaving Lynna puzzled once again. “But will you agree that it is my effort to waste as I see fit?”
“Yes, I will grant you that.” Her words were light but her heart was heavy. She had no desire to see him hurt or give him false hope.
“Good, now will you join me in the evening meal?” His eyes never left her luscious lips and his finger moved to trace the curve of them.
Taking his hand she pressed her lips to his knuckles hoping to accurately convey how very grateful she was for the round the clock care she had received. “I will never be able to thank you enough for all you have done for me.”
“I beg to differ.” His eyes shone with the lust that until now he had been able to hide. She remembered the look well from when she had been a prisoner on his ship last year. “Rest assured that at some point in the near future we will come up with an… agreeable method should you insist on rewarding me for my good deed. But for now let us partake of this fine meal spread before us.”
Sean lifted the lid off one of the bowls, savoring the aroma of crispy fried chicken while Lynna’s mouth watered at the sight of creamed potatoes and gravy. Taking her hand he helped her to the table where he added a biscuit to her overflowing plate and placed it before her. She picked up her fork praying that she could keep the food down. But as she expected, after taking a bite of the buttery potatoes they slid down her throat and landed like a rock. A queasy feeling settled in her stomach. Putting her hand on he
r stomach, she fought to swallow the nausea.
Sean must have noticed she was turning slightly green around the gills for he tried to encourage her. “Eat slowly and take small bites, Lynna. Allow your stomach to adjust to solid food.” Reaching across the table with his fork, he speared a tender green bean and held it to her mouth. “Try this.”
She did, chewing slowly and expecting the queasiness to return when she swallowed. Much to her surprise it didn’t. Forking another green bean into her mouth, she suddenly realized she was ravenous. Taking a bite of crispy fried chicken, she almost drooled it was so delicious. In mere seconds her plate was clean and she was sopping up left over gravy with the remaining scrap of biscuit to pop into her mouth.
“Well, well, well.” Sean smiled lazily, showing perfect white teeth. “It would seem you have found your appetite again.” He sat back with a satisfied grin. “If you continue eating like that you should be back to your old self in no time.”
“I will never be back to my old self. Everything has changed.” She pushed her plate across the table, leaning back in her chair as weariness once again settled over her. “Nothing will ever be as it was before, but thank you, Sean, for caring.”
“I do care, Lynna. At least give yourself the chance to be happy again someday. Don’t fight whatever your future holds. What is meant to be will be and there is nothing either of us can do to stop it.”
Chapter 14
The first day Joshua was able to go outside and sit on a stump by the door he watched, angry with himself and feeling completely useless, as Clara split wood. How was the child able to fell a tree and cut the wood into pieces small enough to carry home? She easily did the work of a grown man and she had the muscled arms to prove it. His mother once told him that God gave a person the strength to do what needed to be done. In Clara’s case that was evidently true.
Out of breath, Clara laid down the axe and stretched to get the kinks out of her back. Sitting beside him she watched while he whittled on a piece of wood he had been carving for the better part of the morning. Satisfied with the smooth cylindrical object, he picked up a piece of string and tied it to the center leaving about a three foot length of string attached. That done, he tied a loop knot in one end of the string and attached the loop over his middle finger.