by Bold, Diana
“I’m not beautiful,” she whispered automatically. The rest of what he’d said made no sense. How could she be the only woman on the ship? It was impossible, scandalous. Sutcliffe would never allow such a thing.
Anger flickered across his features. “Is that all you can say? I tell you you’re in danger and you fish for compliments?” He sat back on his heels and raked his hand through his thick dark hair in a gesture of impatience.
She shook her head in quick denial. “I’m not fishing for compliments. I don’t understand. I thought this was a passenger ship.”
He looked away, a muscle twitching in his lean cheek. “I’m sorry. I tried to get him to change his mind, but he refused. He was furious when you and I were seen together in the park. This is his way of getting back at us and making sure no more gossip finds its way back to England.”
She absorbed that for a moment, shame heating her cheeks. What had she been thinking? She’d acted too impulsively that day they’d gone riding. She should have known the illusion of freedom was merely that—an illusion.
“What about Daniel? Am I being sent away by myself so he can continue to amuse himself with his… lover?” Lord, it still made her nauseous to think of what she’d seen.
He laughed, an angry, bitter sound. “Daniel is in the cabin next door. He refused to come willingly, so Sutcliffe had him drugged and carried here unconscious. This trip isn’t going to be any more pleasant for him than it is for you.”
She blinked, stunned. How could this be happening? How could her father‐in‐law have this much control over their lives? “What will happen to us?”
“Nothing,” he assured her, his voice hard‐edged. “You’ll stay in this cabin or the adjoining sitting room until we reach Carolina. I’ll make sure no one even knows you’re here.”
The cabin was small and dark, perhaps ten feet wide and not quite as deep. She couldn’t imagine being trapped here for all the long weeks their voyage would take. “I can’t leave?” The walls seemed to press in on her as soon as she said the words. “Not at all?”
“I’m sorry. I know it will be hard for you. But I can’t think of any other way you’ll be safe.” He took her hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze. “It won’t be so bad. It will be over before you know it.”
A laugh caught in her throat, threatening to choke her. His nightmare would cease once they reached America, but for her, the end of the voyage would only be the beginning of the hell Sutcliffe had sentenced her to.
* * * * *
Talon postponed his return to Kate’s cabin as long as possible. He checked on Daniel a few times, but mostly he stayed on deck, watching Percy’s crew guide The Shining Star across the Channel and out to sea.
It was frustrating to be nothing more than an observer. He was used to being in control, used to barking out orders and navigating the ships that sailed beneath him.
Even so, it was wonderful to leave land behind. Especially this land.
He didn’t plan to ever return to England. Those months he’d spent in prison had sapped more than his strength and health. They’d drained his spirit, his very soul.
He smiled at the antics of a pair of dolphins swimming and playing in front of the ship. The sea had always calmed him. The fear and hatred that had hung so heavily around his neck during the last few days dissipated as the English coast fell away.
Freedom.
He was free, and that was all that mattered. Sutcliffe was ahead in the game, but he hadn’t won, not by a long shot.
He sighed and pushed away from the rail. Daylight was slipping away and Kate was probably going mad in that tiny, dark cabin. He hated having to keep her down there. He, of all people, knew how terrible confinement could be. But at least he could make sure she was well fed, warm and comfortable, which was far more consideration than he’d been given in prison.
She would survive this. They both would. He had a feeling she’d thrive like a hothouse rose in Charleston.
Unfortunately, he wouldn’t be around to see it. Charleston had lost its appeal now that Sutcliffe had appropriated Holyoke.
If necessary, he would do what his father demanded. But he wouldn’t take the damned plantation. He wouldn’t allow himself to be bought.
Once he was reunited with his men, they’d find a new ship. He’d take to the seas once again and rebuild his fortune. Then he’d find a nice, hardy American girl and do his best to forget Kate’s beautiful green eyes and fiery spirit.
He only hoped that was possible once he’d made love to her.
The narrow passageway that connected the handful of passenger cabins was dank and foul smelling. Talon grimaced and ducked into the cabin he shared with his brother. Daniel was still out cold, and he wondered if whomever Sutcliffe had hired to drug the poor bastard had known what he was doing.
He opened the basket full of food he’d purchased before they left port this morning. Grabbing an apple and a chunk of bread, he slipped them into his pocket. Kate was probably starving. He’d take her this light dinner and then leave her alone for the night.
His stomach turned at the thought of spending the night in here with Daniel. He’d much rather sleep up on deck with the rest of the crew. But that would raise too much suspicion. Kate’s cabin was supposed to be his, and he had to keep up the pretense.
He took a deep breath, steeling himself against the sight of Kate in those provocative pants, and opened the connecting door.
The stench of sickness overwhelmed him. For a moment, he stood motionless in the dark, listening to the painful sound of Kate’s weak retching. Then he moved toward her, striking a match and lighting the lantern on the wall. He blinked against the sudden glare. “Kate? Are you all right?”
She huddled in the corner, clutching the chamberpot. Her green eyes were glassy and unfocused, her face an unhealthy shade of gray. She moaned, and the sound tore at his heart. Poor little thing. She’d been alone and miserably sick for hours while he’d been thinking of ways to avoid her.
“Let me help you.” He sank to his knees beside her and took the chamberpot out of her hands. He set it aside, trying to control his own nausea at the smell.
“Are you just seasick, sweetheart? Or is it something else?”
Just seasick? Kathryn moaned as her stomach threatened to rebel once again. She’d never been so miserable in her life. “Will it be like this until we get to America? I don’t think I’ll survive.”
Talon put his arm around her waist and helped her over to the narrow bunk. “The Channel was choppy today. Perhaps once we hit the open sea, you’ll do better.”
“Oh God.” She groaned, curling up in a little ball on the bunk. “Doesn’t it bother you at all?”
“No.” He smiled a little and sat down on the bunk beside her, smoothing a lock of hair out of her eyes. “I’ve been at sea nearly all my life.”
He continued to stroke her forehead, and the wave of nausea subsided. She didn’t know if it was his presence that helped, or if the waters had calmed.
“Please.” She moved away from his soothing touch. He was the last person in the world she wanted to see her in such a state. “Please go. I’ll be all right.”
He frowned and reached out, pointing to the nasty streak of vomit that stained the front of her borrowed shirt. “Why don’t you take that off? I’ll carry it and the chamberpot above decks and wash them out.”
Heat rose in her already warm cheeks. “Take it off?”
He nodded, tenderness and amusement battling for precedence in his blue eyes. “I’ll turn my back. You have nothing to fear from me. I just want to help.”
Of course, he was merely trying to be helpful. She was foolish to entertain any other notion. What man in his right mind would find her attractive right now? “All right,” she whispered, wondering if this day could possibly get any worse. “Thank you.”
He smiled and then turned around. “Just crawl under the blankets when you’re done.”
She stared at his broad sho
ulders, and then her gaze dropped lower to his lean waist. Then lower still to the curve of his buttocks snugly delineated by the fabric of his tight britches. The fluttery feeling in the pit of her stomach intensified as she lifted her hands to unbutton her borrowed shirt.
Even though he couldn’t see her, it seemed terribly intimate to disrobe while he was in the room. She flung the shirt to the floor and struggled to twist her arm behind her back so she could unfasten the binding her maid had used to flatten her breasts earlier.
“Can I turn around?”
Panicked, she struggled once more to reach the end of the binding. “No. Not yet. Give me another minute.” Her breasts ached, but her attempts to remove the binding were useless. Disgusted with herself, she gave up and crawled under the covers, pulling them up to her chin. “All right. I’m ready now.”
He turned around and looked at her for a long moment. She knew he was wondering what had taken her so long, and she dropped her gaze, unable to bear his intense regard. He moved about the room for a minute, picking up after her, which only added to her mortification.
He paused at the door. “I’ll be back in just a few minutes. I have something that might make you feel better.”
She nodded, but she doubted she’d ever feel better again.
* * * * *
Daniel was awake. Talon felt it the moment he entered the cabin they shared. His brother lay on the bottom bunk, staring sightlessly at the wall.
Talon felt a small glimmer of relief upon seeing Daniel conscious. There was no love lost between the two of them, but he didn’t agree with Sutcliffe’s methods of getting Daniel out of England. In a way, Daniel was as much a victim in all this as Kate.
He put his disgusting bundle aside and strode to his trunk, digging through it for some peppermint sticks. Perhaps they would help settle Kate’s stomach.
“How long have I been unconscious?” Daniel’s voice cut through his thoughts.
He sighed, knowing there was no way to get through this journey without talking to his brother occasionally. “About thirty‐six hours. We’re already at sea.”
Daniel pierced him with a gaze. “Were you the one who had me drugged?”
“Of course not.” Talon shook his head in denial. “You were already here when Kathryn and I came on board.”
Daniel nodded toward the chamberpot. “Is she all right?”
“Seasick,” Talon muttered. “I’m hoping peppermint might help.”
Daniel closed his eyes and gave a dismissive flick of his hand. “Run along. Go play nursemaid to my wife.”
Talon glared at Daniel, debating whether to wipe that smug, effeminate look off his face. In the end, he merely picked up the chamberpot and exited the cabin, slamming the door behind him.
He’d save that battle for another day.
Chapter Ten
As soon as Talon left the room, Kate flung off the blankets and tore at her bindings. She couldn’t stand it. She had to get them off. Sweat beaded her brow, and her actions grew feverish. No matter how she contorted herself, she couldn’t untie Betsy’s knots. She was well and truly stuck in the darned thing.
The door from the sitting room opened without warning, and Talon entered the cabin, brandishing a stick of peppermint. “I’ve brought you something to settle your stomach.”
Kate froze. It was too late to do anything but try to cover herself with her arms. Heat suffused her cheeks, and she wished the floor would open up and swallow her whole.
He was halfway to her side before he noticed her state of undress.
When he did, he stopped dead in his tracks. “Bloody hell, Kate. What have you done to yourself?”
She blinked, averting her gaze, speechless with embarrassment.
Talon always seemed to find her at her worst.
He sat down beside her and his big hands went unerringly to the knot, releasing it in a matter of moments. She breathed a sigh of relief as he unwound the long strip of cloth. Thank God for the white cotton shift she wore beneath it.
“There,” he murmured. “Is that better?”
He handed her the candy, and she fumbled to unwrap it. “I couldn’t get the knot undone. The more I pulled, the tighter it got.”
Tossing the cloth aside, he pulled her back against his chest. His arm rested right beneath the swell of her breasts, and she flushed with mortification when her nipples hardened to clearly discernible points.
“It’s a crime to hide such beauty.” His breath was warm in her ear, sending a delicious shiver down her spine.
“I didn’t think anyone would believe I was a boy if I didn’t.” She put the peppermint in her mouth, hoping the sticky sweetness would get rid of the horrible taste of sickness, if nothing else.
He laughed, a low, rough sound. “You still didn’t look like a boy. If anyone had really looked at you, they would have seen through your disguise in an instant.”
She knew she should pull away. He was holding her far too intimately, and it felt too good. Instead, she threw caution to the wind and turned, pressing her face against his hard, warm chest. She inhaled, breathing in his scent, a mixture of salt, sun and man. “Wasn’t it enough for Sutcliffe to send us away? Did he have to arrange the most terrible journey imaginable as well?”
Talon ran his hand down her back and then paused, returning to the deep groove the binding had left in her skin. “Damn thing really hurt you, didn’t it?”
He massaged gently, and she couldn’t control the small moan of delight that sprang to her lips. “That feels wonderful.”
“Does it?” His lips brushed her temple. “I love touching you, Kate.” She shuddered. “You shouldn’t say such things.”
“Why?” He cupped her chin and tilted her face so she was forced to look into his earnest blue eyes. “Why shouldn’t I say it? It’s true.”
He was so beautiful. Her heart ached with longing. She would give anything for the right to find comfort in his arms. “Because I’m married to Daniel,” she whispered in despair. “And he’s right next door.”
His face darkened. “He doesn’t deserve you. What’s more, he doesn’t care. You could take a dozen lovers and he wouldn’t blink an eye. So why should it matter if I hold you and kiss you? Don’t you want me to?”
Despite her best intentions, her gaze strayed to his sensuous mouth. Her protests scattered as she remembered the way his beautifully drawn lips had felt against her own. “Please.”
“Please what?” He gazed at her breasts through a veil of inky black lashes. “Please touch you, or please let you go?”
“I don’t know.” She couldn’t catch her breath, and her nipples seemed to swell even more under his regard.
“Your breasts ache from being bound for so long, don’t they?” As he spoke, he turned her in his arms so her back was once again pressed against his chest. “I’m going to touch you now. Tell me if you want me to stop.”
His hands skimmed her collarbone, meeting at her throat and then drifting lower. His palms brushed her nipples, and she gasped at the exquisite sensation. He repeated the process, his touch infinitely gentle.
Every nerve in her body tingled in response.
The third time, he caught each sensitive tip between his thumbs and forefingers, pressing his lips against her neck. “Do you want me to stop?”
She shook her head, no longer caring that this was wrong. Nothing in her entire life had ever felt so right.
He made a soft, rough sound and cupped her breasts in his palms. “Perfect,” he whispered, his breath hot and moist in her ear. “You fit my hands perfectly.”
She let her head fall back against his shoulder and closed her eyes, sighing as he leisurely fondled her chest. Some dim part of her brain was stunned by her actions, horrified by her behavior, but she ignored the pangs of her conscience. They were meaningless in the wake of Talon’s burning touch.
When she didn’t think she could stand the pleasure any longer, he turned her in his arms and lowered his head, featherin
g his lips against hers. “I can’t stay away from you,” he breathed and kissed her again.
This time his mouth moved hungrily, demanding entrance. Her lips parted, and then his tongue touched hers, coaxing her into a sweet, wild dance. His gentle fingertips plucked her breasts in the same mind‐ numbing rhythm.
She twined her fingers in his soft, black hair and pulled him closer, needing to touch him, too. He moaned and bore her down to the mattress, insinuating his lower body between her thighs. Something hard and foreign pressed against her. He thrust his hips against hers, the action so primitive and searing it took her breath away.
Startled, she shied back.
She knew of the differences between men and women from illicit reading and Betsy’s giggling descriptions, but she’d never expected such heat and steely strength. She was suddenly frightened, both of him and the way he made her feel.
He rolled away, his chiseled features drawn with passion. “You’re driving me crazy, Kate. I’ve never wanted a woman the way I want you.”
She stared at him, her heart still thundering in her chest. Her gaze dropped again to his lap, to the massive ridge of flesh that strained against the front of his breeches. It was a shocking sight, but once her fear ebbed, it pleased her immensely. For too long, she’d thought herself incapable of inspiring desire in any man.
“You’re not ready for this.” He cursed and rolled off the bed. “I should leave.”
She wanted to tell him to stay, but her emotions were so frayed, so brittle with exhaustion and despair, she didn’t trust herself. “Yes,” she whispered, her voice trembling. “That’s probably for the best.”
He nodded once abruptly and left her alone in the prison her cabin had become.
* * * * *
Talon shut Kate’s door with exaggerated care then leaned against it, his pulse roaring in his ears. God, what the hell was wrong with him?
He’d had her in the palm of his hand. Literally. She’d been ripe for his seduction. There might never be a better time, and yet some maverick streak of honor kept popping up, preventing him from doing what he must.