Page 3 of Hired by Pirates

Giving my head a much needed shake, I was determined to focus on the job at hand. A patient needed me.

“I’m Captain Nicolas Evans, and this is my brother Simon. You’re the doctor, Astor. Please fix him up.”

I’d heard that frantic tone of voice before, but usually it was with a mother and her child. This man was desperate for his brother to survive. Even though he was clearly a brute, likely a full-fledged pirate, I liked him immediately. Partly for his dedication to family, but also because he accepted me as a doctor on sight.

Somehow, that made my heart race in a completely different way.

~ Chapter 2 ~ The Captain ~

* The Beautiful Doctor *

My mind had been spinning ever since Simon had sliced his arm this morning. Not that there was ever a good time for a sailor to have an injury at sea, but this was the worst possible time ever. An extremely important job was happening in a week’s time, and we needed Simon to be at full strength.

Not to mention, he was my only family, and as much as his brash ways annoyed me greatly most days, I had to love him.

Love was also the first word that came to mind as I gazed at the little angel standing before us. Her light brown hair shone with threads of copper, bringing out the crystal blue of her eyes.

She was a slight little thing. It wouldn’t hurt to have a few more big dinners pass those luscious pink lips. Her delicate figure aroused me more than any woman I’d ever seen, but I had to worry how she’d fare in the winter. Did she not have a man to make sure that she was well fed?

Her eyes were magical as she stared up at me, and I noticed a tiny freckle against her pale skin, near the corner of her top lip. It brought my attention to how deeply I needed to kiss her.

Everything about her was captivating. Even her sweet, clear voice as she said that she was the only doctor available today.

I immediately trusted her.

“My brother sliced his arm open. Will you fix it?”

Those beautiful eyes flew wide, then she nodded. I admired how quickly she snapped to attention, getting straight to business.

“Get him up on the gurney.” She pointed to a slim table on wheels covered in a white sheet. “Take his shirt off. Peel the fabric away carefully, and make sure no fibers get stuck in the wound.”

I did as she asked, slicing his shirt with the dagger on my belt so that Simon’s arm was bare from the elbow down. Even though the blood was unpleasant, I took care that no bits of material remained embedded.

He managed to keep quiet, even though he must have been in terrible pain. My brother was usually a man of few words, and often a bit stoic. But internally, he was likely cussin’ a blue streak.

The wound was so horrible I’d rather not look directly at it, even though I usually had an iron stomach.

“I assume you’re from the big ship I saw in the harbor this morning?” she called from the next room. I could hear water being poured as I helped Simon lie down.

“Yes, we are.”

“Travelers, then.” She wheeled in a small table of supplies, and I caught her eyes as they sparkled. Of course she wouldn’t dare speak the word she was thinking. No polite lady would.

“Aye. Travelers,” I agreed genially. “Traders, mostly.”

Astor scrubbed her hands in hot water, then brought a bowl and cloths over to her wheeled table. She looked down, frowning as she made a “tsk tsk” noise.

“He needs a

bloodletting, to be sure,” Jocko said, staring in from the doorway.

“Should we go fetch some leeches?” Jake asked.

They were the youngest members of our crew, always so eager to prove themselves and be helpful. It was part of their job to hang around and be useful, but it often meant they were underfoot.

“He’s lost quite enough blood already,” Astor said curtly. “If you two could please wait outside.”

Normally they would have looked to me for a nod to confirm the order, but her crisp tone sent them scurrying out the door in a blink. Somehow, that made her even more precious.

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