Destiny of the Heart (Viking Destiny) (25 page)

Derrick's ship sailed smoothly into the harbor, and the
men threw the anchor overboard. At the sound of the splash,
Kristen was overcome with nerves. She had met Derrick's
other three brothers, but that had been at social gatherings
before she had become involved with Derrick, and there was
positively no pressure. Now she was meeting Tristan, the
pirate, and no matter how hard she tried, that little fact would
not recede to the back of her mind.

"Are you nervous, little one?" He asked as he noticed
her trembling.
"A little." She admitted.
It was strange, but she felt as if she could be honest
with him, for the most part. They had just shared their secrets
with one another, well most of them anyway, and neither was
concerned with the other's. There was still more she had to tell
him, though. So, in that way, she was nervous. But, overall,
she felt confident that she could at least be honest with
Derrick.
"You've nothing to fear, m'dear. Tristan will love you
just as the rest of my family does."
The promise had a strange effect on Kristen. Suddenly,
she would give anything to feel his arms around her, so she
wrapped hers around his waist. Derrick smiled as he wrapped
his arms around her tightly. His little one was brazen, and she
was endearing herself to him more and more each day they
spent together. It was becoming exceedingly difficult to picture
his life without her.
They left the ship and went to shore where they were
greeted by a couple of dirty looking pirates.
"Well, I be a great son of a camel's turd, it's Derrick!"
One said with affection.
The one who had spoken was tall, broad of shoulders,
and extremely dark skinned. Kristen could well imagine he
was a fierce pirate and shivered at the cruelness she felt from
him. The shorter of the two took notice of Kristen and spoke
next, leaning in close to Kristen as he spoke.
"I say, Derrick, what's with the wench? Could we have
her then?"
Kristen grabbed the little man's ear and kicked him in
the groin. He howled in pain and doubled over while his
companion laughed so hard he snorted.
“Spirited, she is. I would enjoy breaking her in, but the
look on your face would suggest she belongs to you, Derrick.”
Kristen noted that Derrick did indeed look ready to
commit murder. But, she was furious that they were talking
about her as if she weren't even there, so she decided to
contribute to the conversation whether they liked it or not.
“I belong to no one.” She replied angrily.
“I don't believe you were spoken to, m'lady, so be good
enough to stay out of our conversation.”
“I'm sorry, were you speaking? My apologies, I don't
speak idiocy, so you'll have to repeat what you said in English
if you please.”
Derrick burst out laughing. “Ben, you have no chance of
winning with this particular lady. I would not cross her were I
you, for her bite and her bark are equally painful.”
“Wherever did you find her?” He asked, ready to slap
her for her insolent mouth.
He had, in fact, taken a step closer to her. Derrick's
laughter stopped abruptly and his amber eyes began to glow,
a warning sign the men were quite familiar with. Ben withdrew
and raised his hands in surrender.
“Apologies, Derrick. She took me by surprise, merely a
reaction.”
“See that you remember she is under my protection,
and as such, whoever lays a hand on her or even so much as
threatens her will have me to deal with. Make it known.”
He grabbed Kristen's elbow and walked around the
men. Kristen turned her head and grinned at the pirates who
were scowling at her most resentfully.
“Do not provoke him, Kristen.”
“Why not? He provoked me.”
“I can't always be with you and I wouldn't like it if
something happened to you.”
“Rubbish, I can take care of myself and well you know
it.” She said indignantly.
He smiled indulgently. “Yes, little one, but these men
are pirates and they will not fight fairly. You cannot take on an
entire crew of pirates alone.”
“Alright, alright. You've made your bloody point!” She
jerked her arm from his grasp and crossed them sullenly over
her chest.
“By the by, if you ever try to kick me where you did
Aron, I will bend you over my knee and spank you.” He said in
all seriousness.
“D'you promise?” She cooed.
Derrick laughed and shook his head. The woman was
incorrigible.
***
They reached the path that led to the house and
continued down until it stopped at the front door. Kristen was
enjoying the scenery of the island as she had never been out
of Europe before. When the house came into view, it only
added to her enjoyment. Certainly she had seen houses more
grand, but she decided it was the simplicity and elegance that
made this particular home more beautiful. The style of the
house was not one found in England, she was sure.
There were large white pillars that stood in the front
with a gold brocade design wrapped around them. Directly
connected to them was a simple wooden porch that sported
an assortment of chairs and tables assembled to sit and enjoy
the evening. One piece in particular caught her fancy and her
eyes lit up when she saw it. The swinging bench was hanging
from the overhead patio, and like the columns, it had that gold
brocade design on it, with a soft, dark blue cushion covering it.
Kristen could well imagine herself in a house like this one,
swinging idly with Derrick by her side, enjoying the breezy
afternoon or the tempting evenings. She shook the thought
from her head, though. It was still far too dangerous to her
peace of mind.
Derrick noticed her look of happiness and wanted to
make her feel that way all the time. He had asked her to marry
him, not because he had taken her virtue, though that had
been his excuse at the time, at least to himself. But, upon
closer examination, he realized that he enjoyed Kristen's
company and had no desire to leave her side. He wanted to
make her smile, make her cry out in pleasure, but mostly he
wanted her to want him. She seemed willing to do so thus far,
except she still refused to marry him. He didn't understand it.
His thoughts already in disarray, he again noticed her smiling
at the house. For some reason, Derrick became angry. Ever
since he had met Kristen, he had feelings that were totally
irrational and he couldn't explain, at least not logically anyway.
His only outlet had been to take them out on Kristen, which he
did now.
“Don't go falling in love with my brother, d'you hear?”
We won't be staying long and he wouldn't want you anyway,
soiled dove that you are.” He said harshly.
Kristen gasped, taken aback. She hadn't done anything
to provoke him and only this morning they had been sharing
secrets with one another. Where the devil had that come from,
and who did he think he was, speaking to her like that, she
thought angrily. She could feel the heat rising to her cheeks as
it often did when her temper was flaring.
“Well, if he's anything like you, you arrogant ass, then I
don't foresee that being a problem.” She replied tartly and
brushed passed him to the door.
Derrick was contrite. He hadn't meant to be so harsh
with her, and it certainly wasn't her fault that he was having a
hard time controlling his anger. He smiled at her words,
though. She had no idea how close to the mark she was on
Tristan and himself being alike. He'd not told her, but there
was no hope of telling her now either, for the front door
opened abruptly and they were facing a tall, slender maid.
Kristen thought her exotic looking with her almond shaped,
black eyes and glossy black hair swaying gently in the wind.
The woman briefly glanced at Kristen, but when her eyes
rested on Derrick, she immediately smiled and her entire face
lit up.
“Derrick.” She cooed. “It's been much too long. Tristan
has been anxious to see you.” She hugged him, causing
Kristen to stiffen considerably next to him.
“I won't be staying long. I've just dropped by to discuss
some business with Tristan. He is home, isn't he?”
“Yes, his ship suffered some damage and he is home
making the necessary repairs.”
Derrick nodded and grabbed Kristen's elbow to lead her
inside the house. Once they had stopped in the foyer, Kristen
yanked her elbow from his grasp and crossed them
defensively over her chest. He gave her a questioning look,
but she was still angry with his harsh words and then his
deliberate flirtation with the maid, who had at least
disappeared for the time being, so she turned her back on
him. She pretended to show interest in the items around her,
but if she were being honest with herself, she was really just a
little jealous. She almost snorted over the irony of the situation
she had created for herself.
She had wanted a marriage with no strings attached,
and no emotion to enter into the business of it, though she
hoped that perhaps one day she might feel something for her
husband. But, the 'no strings attached' part she certainly had
with Derrick. She could even enjoy Derrick's lovemaking, a
circumstance that would make having children much easier.
And, therein lied the problem. She enjoyed Derrick too much,
and it hurt that he didn't return her affections. She wanted
more than he could give her, and that would just make her
miserable. Then, there was also the fact that she couldn't want
him because it would be putting his life in danger. The
constant pull on her emotions was taking its toll and she felt
acutely irritable indeed.
“Well, well if it isn't my long lost brother. How the hell
have you been? It's been too long, and I have much to tell
you!” A thickset man said as he grabbed Derrick in an
embrace.
Derrick was so broad himself that Kristen couldn't see
his brother, though she was certainly trying. She was
particularly interested in seeing if this particular brother was as
handsome as the rest she had already met.
“I've much to discuss with you, as well. In fact, you
must meet Kristen.”
“Kristen?” The man asked confused. “Since when do
you bring women with you to my island?” Kristen thought he
sounded almost affronted.
Derrick chuckled. “Kristen, meet Tristan.” He stepped
aside so that Kristen could get a good look at him.
Kristen was smiling, an effort on her part so that she
could make a good impression. As she looked at Tristan,
though, her smile faded and rather quickly. It was replaced
with a frown, then a scowl at Derrick. They were bloody twins.
Identical twins, though Kristen noted that Tristan's eyes didn't
seem to light up the way Derrick's did.
“I'm sure you're bloody well pleased with yourself,
considering the conversation we had on the way in.” She
grouched at Derrick.
“Well, seems that you've nothing to worry about since
we're so much alike.” He replied dryly.
“On the contrary, I believe I like the look of him much
better.” She purred, leaning into Tristan and smiling the smile
that had men swooning at her feet.
“It's very nice to meet you, Tristan. I've heard so much
about you, other than how devilishly handsome you are, of
course. That little tidbit was kept from me.” She ran a finger
over his chest and batted her lashes at him.
“The pleasure is all mine, I do assure you. However, if
the look on my brother's face is any indication, I'd say you
were most definitely spoken for, more's the pity.”
Kristen smiled. This truly was too easy, goading
Derrick. She wanted to show him what it was like to see her
fawn over another man in front of him. Served him right. She
just hoped his ego wouldn't be too bruised.
“Posh! That brother of yours has assured me that he
has no time for women, and he certainly wouldn't know what
to do with one when he had her.” She had struck below the
belt and knew it, but he had done much the same. Turn about
was fair play. It wasn't her fault if he could hand it out, but not
take it in turn.
Both Derrick and Tristan looked at her as if she had
sprouted another head. It wasn't ladylike to say such things,
but even more so, to insult a man in front of his family was just
downright rude. Perhaps this was how Kristen could rid herself
of Derrick completely. But, the thought made her want to cry,
so she set that to the side for the time being. Tristan
recovered first and threw back his head in raucous laughter.
Derrick scowled at them both, not the least bit amused. She
grinned evilly at Derrick as he started for her.
“Hold your ground, sir. I'm quite sure your brother likes
his belongings where they are.” She added with enough force
to cause them both to stare at her in surprise again.
“I say, Derrick. The little one has teeth.” Tristan
laughed.
“Nice of you to notice. Now, be a good chap and grab
her for me.” Derrick said irritably.
Tristan moved to do just that, but received a blow to the
face for his effort. He was quite surprised that she had enough
strength to manage a move like that and so he didn't see her
move again until it was too late and he was already on his
back. At the look on Tristan's face, Derrick's anger drained
away and he started laughing so hard he could barely breathe.
“Really, Derrick, it wasn't that funny. Do help me up.”
Tristan winced as Derrick pulled him up from the floor.
Kristen took no chances, and moved a safe distance
away, placing a good bit of furniture between them and her.
Tristan laughed and shook his head.
“Did you teach her that? Afraid it would be just like old
times?” Tristan teased.
“You'll bloody well stay away from her.” Derrick
threatened.
Tristan lifted a brow and turned to look at Kristen.
“Seems I'm not to be near you, m'dear. But, since we're on the
subject, I must know where you learned such moves. They
were indeed effective.”
“My apologies, but I didn't want you to grab me.
However, my training is of no import.” Kristen added.
“I see. Well, I can assure you that such knowledge is
unnecessary in my presence.” He bowed politely.
Kristen inclined her head but kept her wary gaze steady
between them. Tristan couldn't help himself. She was truly
something. “Afraid of Derrick, little one? Surely you can handle
him.”
“Aye, but he wouldn't fight fair and we all know it. I'd
just as soon he keep his distance.”
Derrick scowled and crossed his arms. When he got his
hands on her, he would wring her bloody neck.
“What, precisely, is it you think he would do?” Tristan
asked, amused.
“No doubt he would lock me in a room.”
Tristan laughed again. “It sounds like my brother has
indeed lost his finesse with women.”
“Don't encourage her, Tristan.”
“I am merely being polite, Derrick.”
“A bloody pirate is not polite.”