Moonwitch (18 page)

Amazing, Kyle thought again, that he should want to reassure her.

He raised his head slowly, searching her face and seeing the crimson blush on her cheeks. “1 guess this means,” he said quietly, his gaze filled with a rugged tenderness, “there won’t be an annulment, after all.”

S
elena woke late the next morning to the sound of the bosun’s shrill whistle piping out orders to the schooner’s crew. The sea was now relatively calm. The violent rolling of the ship had ceased, and bright sunlight streamed in the porthole window.

Selena blinked at first to see the strange walnut-paneled cabin, then blushed hotly to remember precisely what had occurred there during the long night. But she was unable to summon an appropriate sense of shock when she realized that she was naked beneath the blankets.

Missing the warmth of Kyle’s large body, she raised herself up on one elbow—gingerly, so as not to aggravate the stiffness of her own body and the ache in her bruised ribs. She was alone in the large bunk, which surprised her. She had expected to find Kyle collapsed in exhaustion, if not because of his superhuman efforts during the storm, then because of his similar efforts during their numerous and fierce bouts of lovemaking. There wasn’t an inch of her that he hadn’t touched or tasted, it seemed. Her breasts were swollen and sensitive, while the hollow between her thighs was tender from his frequent ministrations.

Selena was further surprised when she glanced around the cabin. The wet clothing that had been strewn haphazardly over the floor and furniture now hung neatly on pegs, and her blue sprigged muslin gown had been laid over a chair before the massive desk. She had no doubt, either, that the water pitcher would be filled with fresh water for washing.

Kyle’s thoughtfulness brought a soft smile to her lips. At least she hoped it had been Kyle who had straightened the cabin. She was still too new at this business of being a wife to be comfortable with the intimacies they had shared or the thought that one of his crew would guess from the condition of the cabin what had occurred between them.

Wife.
The word had a pleasant ring to it…a wonderful ring.

A glow warmed her as she remembered his decision not to seek an annulment. It was what she had hoped for, the chance to prove to Kyle that he hadn’t made a dreadful mistake in marrying her. Perhaps their relationship would be different, now that he had accepted their marriage. Perhaps he would come to love her now, the way she loved—

Drawing a sudden breath, Selena slowly sank back onto the mattress.
She was falling in love with Kyle.
Or had fallen. That alone explained this delightful warm glow, this excited quivery feeling. Now she knew why she had been so terrified for him during the storm, why she felt such a fierce yearning to be with him now.

Somewhat shocked by the thought, she stared up at the ceiling. It didn’t seem possible. They had been married scarcely a week, and most of that time Kyle had existed in a state of smoldering anger over being forced to wed her. Yet she had been attracted to him from the first. To his strength, his lust for living, his kindness and compassion… his passion.

She was still considering this revelation and reflecting on the tenderness of Kyle’s lovemaking when she heard the bosun’s whistle again. Eager, yet shy of seeing her husband once more, Selena slid out of bed and began to dress.

Kyle wasn’t on deck, she discovered when she went above. In the aftermath of the storm, the crew was hard at work repairing the damages to the ship—mending sails, overhauling the rigging, renewing ratlines and clearing the deck of debris. But to a man, they stopped work as Selena passed, tugging caps and forelocks in deference, greeting her with welcome grins.

Their reception surprised and somewhat embarrassed her. Kyle’s crew had always been extremely polite and attentive toward her, but there was a new respect in their eyes this morning that indicated word had gotten around about her action during the storm; those who hadn’t seen had heard of her daring rescue of the
Tagus
’s first mate. Indeed, Tiny was particularly effusive. For once he had more than a few words to say—all in praise of her—as he expressed gratitude on behalf of the crew for saving Mr. Hardwick’s life.

Uncomfortable at being lauded for an action she felt that anyone under similar circumstances would have done, Selena asked where she could find the captain. As soon as Tiny informed her that Captain Ramsey was visiting the first mate, she fled below.

She had raised her hand to knock on Hardwick’s cabin door when she heard Kyle’s voice through the paneling. It sounded so close that he must have been standing directly on the other side.

“Deuce take it,” Kyle was saying, “ten months ago I thought I would live out my days at sea, free to sail wherever I pleased. Then I was saddled with a plantation I never asked for and a wife I never wanted, either.”

Selena froze, her heartbeat suddenly too rapid and loud in her ears. It wasn’t admirable, eavesdropping on anyone’s conversation, but she couldn’t force herself to move. She missed Hardwick’s reply but had no trouble hearing Kyle.

“Sure, I meant this voyage to be a final spree before I took up my new responsibilities. Last spree, hah! More like last rites. My wedding felt like a funeral, and this bucket nearly became my coffin. You know something? I
wanted
to face that storm. We could have skirted the worst of it, but instead I endangered my ship and my crew.”

Hardwick murmured something unintelligible, while Selena took a stumbling step backward, tears welling in her eyes, a tight ache in her throat. She knew Kyle hadn’t wanted her, of course, but she had hoped—with all her heart—that after last night they could start anew. It appeared, however, that the passionate night they had shared had done nothing to change their relationship. That devastating night had meant nothing to Kyle.

Her breath caught on a sob. She had been foolish to confuse physical desire with love. Just because a man made love to a woman with such fierce intensity didn’t mean his heart was engaged.

A sick yearning in her own heart, she turned away, scarcely hearing as Kyle spoke again. “It would have been entirely my fault if the
Tagus
had gone down. I could have killed us all…”

Blindly, Selena made her way up the companionway stairs, needing to get away, to be alone with her wretched thoughts. And not in Kyle’s cabin, where he had aroused her body with such skillful tenderness and broken down every barrier of her reserve, where she would be alone with him if he should find her. She couldn’t face it or him. Not until she managed to collect herself and her battered emotions. Not until she had considered what to do.

Below, in the mate’s cabin, Kyle was still speaking. “And then that delicate slip of a lady whom I hadn’t wanted to marry did something only one man in a hundred would do—risked her life for someone she hardly knew. Do you know, she made me feel
ashamed
? While I was bemoaning my fate, she was off saving the lives of my men. God, I thought my heart had failed when I saw Selena throw herself in front of that wave. If that line had broken…”

“We both would have been swept into the sea,” Hardwick finished with a grimace, “instead of being bashed by a barrel and speared in the ribs by a foremast yard. I’m supremely grateful to Mrs. Ramsey, I assure you, Captain. Where is she now? Do you suppose you could ask her to call on me, so I can properly thank her?”

“When she awakens,” Kyle answered, his tone softening unmistakably. “She was still sleeping when I left her.”

Hardwick raised an eyebrow. “I’m sorry my injury caused you such an inconvenience, sir. Maybe you want me to switch cabins with Mrs. Ramsey?”

“Stubble it, mate. You’ve overstepped the bounds. The arrangement is just fine as it is. Besides, it would cause you serious harm to be moved, no doubt.”

“No doubt,” Hardwick said with a grin, sitting up with little difficulty to show how unfounded Kyle’s theory was. “The men will be relieved. They’ve been wondering why you’ve been neglecting your beautiful wife.”

A private smile curved Kyle’s lips. “I won’t be neglecting her in future.”

“Good. Maybe you’ll quit snapping our heads off, too.”

“Have I been that bad?”

Hardwick laughed. “I’ll just say that if we hadn’t known we’d be rid of you when we reached New Orleans, you might have had a mutiny on your hands. Come to think of it,” he added when Horatio chose that moment to squawk, “that parrot’s company has been a decided improvement over yours, despite his limited vocabulary. Except for a few coarse words, all he can say is ‘Will you dance?’ and ‘Come to tea.’”

Kyle sent the parrot an amused glance, not bothering to mention how Horatio had learned his new words. “He does seem to be something of a society bird. I’ll wager he was raised in a drawing room.”

“I guess you’ll soon be getting reacquainted with drawing rooms yourself.”

“Don’t remind me,” Kyle said with a mock grimace.

“Well, I’ll do my best with the
Tagus,
sir.”

“I know. That’s why I’m leaving you in command.”

They spoke a while longer about their plans for the schooner, but not even the thought of his impending retirement from the sea could spoil Kyle’s sunny mood this morning. It was as if his foul humor of the past week had been washed away by the storm. And somehow, he found himself actually looking forward to his future for the first time since the death of his parents.

It might, Kyle reflected as he made his way back to his own cabin, have something to do with the slender, pale-haired beauty in his bed. Selena had bewitched him with her startling metamorphosis from well-bred gentlewoman to passionate lover. Their lovemaking had been unique in his experience, satisfying him totally yet leaving him longing for more.

He was disappointed not to find Selena where he had left her, for he had entertained some vividly erotic thoughts of joining her in the bunk and arousing her warm, sleepy body from slumber. But since the clothes he had fetched her were missing, Kyle concluded she had gone up on deck.

She wasn’t at her usual place under the awning, however, and he had to search the length of the ship till he finally found her at the stern, watching the blue waves of the gulf. She looked so fresh and lovely, it almost took his breath away—the sprigged muslin molding her body in the breeze, the morning sunlight shining in her hair. Kyle purposely had neglected to provide her a bonnet, preferring to see her corn-silk tresses loose or at most, tied with a ribbon. But while her head was bare, she must have found the pins he had tossed haphazardly across the cabin the previous evening, for her hair was bound in a demure knot at her nape.

That tender spot at the curve of her neck looked so appealing that when he came up behind her, Kyle gave in to the urge to taste it. Lightly grasping Selena’s arms, he planted a swift butterfly kiss on her silken skin.

When she gave a start and whirled to face him, he grinned with quick, boyish warmth. “So here’s where you’ve been hiding yourself. I didn’t expect to find you up this early, after the night you had.”

He thought she had simply been startled by his intimate gesture, but Selena visibly stiffened at his words. She didn’t seem at all pleased to see him. In fact, she almost looked as if she had been crying, since her eyes were faintly rimmed with red. Yet that could have been caused by the wind. When she quickly averted her gaze, though, his grin faded.

Selena had indeed been startled by his brief caress. Lost in thought, she hadn’t heard his approach. She cast a nervous glance around her to be sure no one else had seen his kiss, then turned away from Kyle, biting her lip to keep it from trembling.

The words she had so unfortunately overheard were still spinning in her mind. Kyle didn’t want a partner and helpmate. He wanted only what any women could give him—the means to slake his physical lust. And he had done just that the previous night. Her mind burned with the memory of the wild abandon with which she had given herself to him. She wouldn’t humiliate herself further by letting him know how much she craved his kisses, his touch.

“I was not
hiding,”
Selena replied stiffly, forcing the words past the tightness in her throat. “I believe I’ve mentioned before that I prefer being on deck to being confined below.”

Her tone, her very posture, was cool and aloof. Kyle peered down at her, trying to read her expression. He wasn’t sure what he had expected. An acknowledgment of what had passed between them, he supposed.

“You’ve mentioned it,” Kyle responded wryly. “And Hardwick for one is grateful for your preferences. He asked that you call on him, incidentally. He wants to thank you for saving his life.”

Selena caught the wry note in his voice and couldn’t help comparing it to the tender way Kyle had spoken about her bravery the night before. Had that been a mere pretense? It wasn’t that she required him to sing her praises, but she had developed a longing for his good opinion. It hurt dreadfully to think she hadn’t truly won it.

Forcibly, she swallowed the lump in her throat. “Mr. Hardwick didn’t seem to be seriously injured.”

“No, he’ll be good as new in a few weeks.”

“Then I trust he won’t object if I trade cabins with him again.”

“Trade cabins?” Sounding mildly startled, Kyle turned her to face him, his brows furrowing as he scrutinized her. “Selena…are you all right? You didn’t suffer any injuries other than the bruises I saw, did you?”

She flushed at the reminder that he had seen her entirely naked and at the memory of how he had gently kissed the discolored flesh covering her ribs. At the time, he had seemed to worship her bruises with his lips, as if they were symbols of her victory over the sea. Obviously she had been mistaken.

“I’m fine. I simply think it best if I return to my cabin. I… Horatio will be growing lonesome for my company.”

“Horatio…?” he began, but she had already turned and was quickly walking away.

Kyle watched her, his mouth half-open, until she had disappeared through the main hatch. Then he glanced up at the sky. The sun was still shining brightly, he noted with surprise.