Page 32 of Found at Sea
11
Fletcher
As we left Stonebridge, I stood on the main deck and watched it grow smaller as the sails carried us farther out to sea. I wouldn’t miss it or any of the people in it. Apart from the first day, I’d rarely even gone into the town.
The only place I’d miss was mine and Alek’s swimming hole—that speck of paradise.
“Just wait ‘til we travel farther south,” Alek said after we’d manned the deck for a few hours. Sweat covered his brow, and he used the back of his hand to wipe some away. “You thought the lands we’ve passed were beautiful? You haven’t seen beautiful ‘til you’ve seen the southern isles.”
I smiled and looked overboard, out into the crystal blue water. I wondered if we’d see the merman again. Probably not. But it was nice to think about. Something to look forward to.
When a man started singing, I snapped my attention to him. During my time on theCrimson Night, I’d heard the crew sing sea shanties, and I’d learned the words to most of them. However, I never sang along, always too shy to do so.
“I’ll leave my lass to go a-pirating,” Tig sang from his spot on the mast.
The men below finished the next lyric, followed by the echoing from other members of the crew. I absolutely loved it.
“Why don’t ya ever sing, Fletch?” Alek asked, resting his back on the rail and studying me. His dark hair fell across his eyes, and he flicked his head to clear his vision. He needed a trim. “You fancy songs. I’ve heard you playin’ your lute and singing when you think no one hears you.”
My face heated. “I don’t know. Just shy, I suppose. I love singing, but…” I returned my gaze to the water. “I fear that men will laugh at me.”
“Men will laugh anyway,” he said. “What matters is howyoufeel about it. Does playing the lute bring you joy?”
I nodded.
“Then no one can take that passion from you.” Alek nudged my arm with his hand. “Now cheer up, Fletch. Sing with me.”
He started singing along with the other men, and I grinned before quietly joining in with him. After a minute or so, my confidence blossomed and I sang a bit louder. Then louder, until I was at the same volume as the rest of them. It was freeing to finally be able to sing and not feel so self-conscious about it.
“You have a great voice,” Alek said after the song finished.
I felt my face heat again. “Thank you.”
“Maybe sometime you can play your lute on deck for the men,” he added before looking toward the helm. “It’d be nice to have more entertainment.”
I followed his line of sight and saw Captain Flynn at the ship’s wheel.
He wore a maroon shirt that blew open in the breeze, showing his tanned chest and some kind of tattoo over his heart. A blue sash was tied around his waist and tan pants were tucked into his black leather boots. Along with the golden hoops in his left ear, he also wore a ring on his right hand that flashed in the sun.
He was stunning, and an ache formed in my chest at the memory of being in his cabin the night before.
I’d craved him with a hunger that frightened me. I had even tried to seduce him, which was so far from the man I was. But I’d wanted his lips on mine, to finally know what it was like to be claimed in such a way.
And I wanted him to be the one to claim me.
“Alek? What’s the captain’s story?”
“What do ya mean?” he questioned, moving his blue-eyed stare back to me.
“What do you know about him? Not just the legends that I’ve heard countless times, but the real story.”
“I’m afraid no one knows the real story, Fletch,” Alek responded with a small shake of his head. “All I know is he was cast out at a young age and the former captain of this ship took him in as if he was his own son.”
“So being a pirate is all he’s ever known,” I stated, finding it sort of sad. His whole life must’ve been one hardship after another, learning to survive in a world that took without mercy. “Are his eyes really different colors because he’d cursed? Do you know how he’s cursed? The tales never give an answer of thehow, only that he is.”
Alek chuckled.
“I know,” I said, grinning at my friend. “I ask so many questions.”
