Page 22 of The Black Lion
For her part, Arabella was absolutely horrified. She felt as if she had been walking about blind all this time, and Drew had snatched a veil from over her eyes to expose the truth. All her life, she’d thought the three of them so close—two brothers with a tight bond, and her a friend to one and a lover to the other. She had truly been ignorant of Will’s feelings for her, as well as his jealousy.
Arabella felt like such a fool for believing in the absolute goodness of the people around her. Her father and Will had both destroyed her trust in one fell swoop, and robbed her of so much. As Drew paced to the other side of the cabin and she caught sight of the horrid scars on his back, she knew that even more had been taken from him.
“I want you to know that I will take great pleasure in repaying you in kind for what you did to me,” Drew said, turning back to them as he pulled a fresh shirt on over his head. “I am certain you thought yourself beyond my reach.”
“You weren’t supposed to come back,” Will bellowed, spittle flying from his mouth and blood drying on the collar of his filthy shirt. “You were supposed to have died on that ship!”
“How unfortunate for you that I didn’t,” Drew intoned, his voice as flat and emotionless as a flat, glassy lake. “And I thank you for the first bit of honesty I’ve heard from your lips in years. I spent a long time wondering why you would betray me, why you hated me so much. I thought it was only Bella, but it would seem you are the one who could never be content. Poor little Will, born with all the money and privilege in the world, jealous of his bastard brother for earning the respect of the man who made sport of his enslaved mother. You would have inherited everything he gave a damn about, when all I ever received was the seed that gave me life, his blood in my veins, and a pittance of a settlement to live on and make my way in the world. As to your opinions regarding what I do or do not deserve … they are irrelevant. You see, thanks to you I’m the most feared pirate in the Caribbean Sea, and one of the wealthiest besides. And now, Bella is mine again, as she was always meant to be. You have quite lost our little game, which I find highly amusing considering that for years I didn’t even know we were playing one.”
Will seethed as Drew shoved the gag back between his lips. Then, he tore open the cabin door and called for a few of his crew. Booted footsteps preceded four men, all of whom gave her no more than a cursory glance before following Drew’s orders.
“Take him back to the bilge. I’ll deal with him at my own convenience.”
Will lunged once free of the chair, as if to fight the pirates, but with a few kicks and a set of irons they had him subdued. They dragged him, bellowing curses and writhing, from the cabin, slamming the door behind them.
Arabella paced toward the mullioned windows, arms held tight around her waist as the last sliver of sun disappeared at the line where sky met sea. She trembled as if a mighty gale whipped through her, and her throat convulsed around sobs she fought to contain.
“Bella.”
Drew’s hand landed on her shoulder, heavy and hot, setting off a violent reaction within her. She whirled to face him slapping his hand away with a savage growl.
“Don’t touch me!”
He reared back, an expression like dismay furrowing his brow. “Don’t tell me you shed tears forhim. He is responsible for all of this!”
Swiping at her wet face, she let out a sarcastic snort. “Was he responsible for the spectacle you pulled with the bedsheets? Or your complete disregard for my feelings in the revelations you made? But, of course my feelings don’t matter. I am simply yourprize, am I not? The spoils you are entitled to after all you have endured!”
She finished off her diatribe by pounding her fist against his chest and pushing him aside to storm for the door. Anger made her feel hot and itchy all over, and if she had to occupy this cabin with him a moment longer, she might do him serious bodily harm.
Drew caught her up, one arm looping around her waist and jerking her back against his chest before she could get her hand on the doorknob. Her feet left the floor, and she kicked and flailed as he carried her back across the room. Her bottom made contact with a cushion, and Arabella found herself seated on a bench that was pushed up against the alcove of windows.
“You are not to leave this cabin so scandalously dressed, unless you want me to pluck out the eyes of every man on this ship who lays eyes on you.”
Drew’s gaze traveled down her body, making her aware of her state of undress. When he looked into her eyes again, she noticed the turbulence in the depths of his irises, storm clouds gathering in muted brown over the gold-green tones. His face was drawn tight, lips thinned as he backed away from her, swiping up his gunbelt as he went.
“If you want to be away from me so badly, I’ll leave,” he declared while buckling the brace of flintlocks and cutlass around his hips. A scarlet frock coat with gold buttons followed, then his tricorne.
Arabella pulled her knees up to her chest and watched his retreat, flinching when the door crashed forcefully into the frame. With another sob, she let her head fall against the window and closed her eyes, her face awash in another flood of tears.
Chapter Seven
When Arabella opened her eyes again, the dark blanket of night lay beyond the window, with the moon and a smattering of stars slashing through it in pinpoints of silver. Prying her cheek away from the warm glass, she blinked and groaned, her entire body protesting her position. She’d cried herself to sleep against the window, curled up on the cushioned bench. Despite her rest, she still felt heavy and wrung dry, her head pounding and her mouth dry.
The sound of trickling water caught her attention, and she turned her head to find she was no longer alone in the room. Drew stood behind his desk, bent at the waist over what looked like a map. Four heavy, golden weights held it down at each corner. He had removed his tricorne but still wore the red coat. Candlelight illuminated his face, casting it in haggard and tense lines.
In the center of the room stood a copper tub draped with white muslin. Jack the cabin boy stood filling it with a steaming bucket of water—what appeared to be one of many. The tub was already nearly full. She sighed at the sight of the steam rising from the water, which brought Drew’s gaze to on her. She paused, having just placed her feet on the floor, caught up in the intensity of his stare. Her earlier anger with him had settled into a pile of glowing embers, the roaring flames doused by her exhaustion and uncertainty. What did he want with her now that the truth had been revealed? He claimed to ‘own’ her, but what did that mean to a pirate who was apparently wealthy enough to have whatever and whoever he wanted?
“You’ve awakened just in time,” he said, straightening and folding his hands behind his back. “Your bath is ready. Thank you, Little Jack. You can go now.”
The cabin boy had just finished pouring the last of the water, and nodded to Drew before taking up two buckets and leaving the room. Arabella came to her feet, noticing that the tub was large enough for her to immerse herself and had to have required quite a bit of fresh water to fill—a precious commodity on a ship.
As if he had read her mind, Drew approached, pausing to test the heat of the water with his fingers. “I don’t fill this tub often, but we replenished our water stores inOcho Rios, and will have the chance to do so again. There is no comfort I would deny you, Bella. If you require anything during your time aboardThe Black Lion, you need only ask.”
She could only stand and stare at him, lips parted as he came to stand before her, one hand coming up to caress her cheek. It was the tenderest contact Arabella had experienced since he had come to Falmouth to take her. She couldn’t help leaning into it, feeling in that touch the young man who had stolen her heart so long ago.
“Come, before the water grows cold.”
She stiffened when his fingers plucked at the buttons holding the shirt closed over her breasts. His eyes melted into golden, liquid pools as the garment fell off one shoulder, then lower, baring her breast. Arabella heard the hitch in his breath, her own exhales coming sharp and uneven as he stroked a fingertip along her collarbone, then lower, lightly skimming his fingernail over the tightening tip of her nipple.
