His to Hold (Regency Scoundrels Book 1) (14 page)

Elizabeth stumbled away from the secret doorway. Her breath was hitched in her throat, and she forgot how to breathe for a few moments. She somehow made her way to the bed.

Falling onto it, she rested her head on the pillows. She did not know why the sight of Rafe in Chastity’s arms pained her so much. She did not love him. In fact, she didn’t even care a pittance for him. He was her kidnapper. He didn’t deserve a second thought. Then why was she so damnably fixated on him? She buried her head in the pillow and let out a long and loud frustrated scream. He should not be plaguing her every thoughts. The infernal man could rot in hell, for all she cared!

A loud rapping noise sounded at the door. She gave it a glance, and decided to ignore whoever was standing outside. Instead, she stood up and raced to the secret passageway.

Her eyes searched the room, for something to use as a blockade. She ran toward her trunk filled with clothes and began grunting and groaning as she dragged it across the floor. She simply would not have him come barging into her cabin.

The loud knocking sounded at the door again, but she paid it no heed. After a good deal of effort on her part, the chest was almost in place. She straightened up, and winced at the pain exploding in her back. She was tired, she felt grubby and all she wanted to do was find a safe haven, either in England or America.

The loud rapping at the door continued, and she swiped at the sweat on her brow. Placing her hands on her hips, she raced to the door, and wrenched it open. She was completely unprepared for the sight that awaited her. She’d hoped it was Seamus.

She was about to fling an insult at the person standing in front of her, but suddenly thought better of it. Instead, she slammed the door in his face.

Whirling away from it, she began pacing about the small cabin. She wanted off this damnable ship. The frigate her father gave her was something that she had never liked, and now that it had become her prison, she liked it even less. The door burst open and Rafe bounded in.

“Remove yourself from this cabin immediately,” she ordered. Stiffening her spine, she marched toward him, and wagged her index finger at him. “I shall not have you coming into my private cabin without my permission.”

“You forget your position onboard this ship,” he pointed out, barreling toward her.

“Oh, I do not forget my place,” she spat out. She stood her ground, and refused to give in one inch. “You have put me in this place to begin with, so I shall never forget it. But no matter what…no matter what sort of untenable situation you have put me in, this ship is mine! Not yours, not my father’s…mine! Is that understood, sir?”

He regarded her silently. “I thought you thought better of me now…I thought the things that passed between us would make you think kindly of me.”

“Not bloody likely. You took me captive, and yet you treat me as if I should be kissing your feet in homage.”

“I will not do this merry dance with you.”

“If I am to be treated as if I am a welcomed guest here in my own ship, and as you say, you aim to someday wed me, then I would be obliged if you told me a little bit about yourself.”

“You know all that you need to. I am a pirate. A well-known pirate.”

“Aye, I’ve gotten all of that, you infernal man. What I’d like to know is your true background, and how you came to be in the service of the Royal Navy.”

“That, miss, is none of your concern,” he said softly.

“Oh, I beg to differ.” She wanted to shake him silly. She was tired of his games. She wanted some answers, and she wanted them now.

“I, miss, am not indebted to tell you anything about myself. You know all that you need to know.”

“You…you are...”

“A scoundrel, aye. You’ve called me that on more than one occasion, my darling.”

“And I don’t know why I love you, when you’re not bloody worth it!” Her confession, shocked her and shocked him. She clapped her hand over her mouth, out of surprise or to keep herself from saying anything else, she didn’t know.

Silence blanketed the room. Elizabeth stepped away from him, horrified by what she had just betrayed. In this battle of wills, she seemed to have just lost herself a very strategic position.

“You love me?” he asked softly, closing the distance between them.

“I don’t know why! I heard you in that room with that whore,” she said, rounding on him once more. “It hardly seems fair that you know all about me, and yet I know absolutely nothing about you. It puts us on uneven ground, and I do not like it one bit.”

“I do not know everything about you,” he said, searing her with his scorching gaze.

“Please don’t do that,” she chastised, feeling her face flush red.

“Do what? Miss, you have me at a loss.”

“Loss, my arse. You know exactly what you are doing. And you may kiss that plan of ruination goodbye. I will not be inclined to have you in my bed now that I see the sort of company you once enjoyed.”

“But you love me? Don’t you want to show me just how much? And must we continue to go on about Chastity?”

“We must!”

“She means nothing to me.” His eyes were earnest, and yet she doubted the flickering glint that had entered them briefly.

“I do not believe you. She meant enough to you, to let her say she was your wife.”

“She was never my wife. She only played at it, and I never should have allowed it.”

“Aye, perhaps not legally, but I am sure she played the part very well. I am sure she was in and out of your bed so often that she turned your world upside down. I bet she knows as many tricks in the bedroom as I do at a card table!”

“This is not the type of discussion that I would expect a polite well-bred young lady such as yourself, to take part in.”

“My father had a good deal of mistresses. I know all about the goings on between a man and woman. I do not need you to draw me a bloody picture to know what Chastity once meant to you. The woman nearly gobbles you up with her eyes. If I didn’t know better, I’d think you were a platter of meat.”

“Chastity and I share a history. Pray, let us leave it at that.”

“You shall not dissuade me with your stonewalling. I want some answers, and by God, I shall have them. You will tell me, or I shall go and ask that bloody tart of yours.”

“You will stay where you are, miss.” His tone had turned perceptively cold, and had she not known him to be such a lamb when it came to handling her, she would have feared him.

“Do you not have things in your past that you would rather leave in the past? I would like to forget what I once shared with Chastity. Why are you making me dredge up something that shall only cause us heartache for both of us?”

“I have numerous things that I would rather leave in the past. But as it is, I cannot. I live with them on a daily basis. And not only are there things that I’d rather forget, but there are also events that I yearn to recall.”

He stopped short at that and glanced at her in a most funny way. “What sort of events?” his voice had dropped and it warmed considerably.

“The sort of events that are none of your bloody business. Besides, I am under no duress to tell you anything. Do not think that I will fall under your spell. You shall not tell me anything so I shall reciprocate in kind.” His snub still stung her deeply, and though she didn’t want to admit it, she desperately wanted to know who he was.

Was his true name even Rafe? He knew her Christian name, and yet she suspected that he knew much more than that. Seeking to impress upon him further, she stepped back toward him, and stared him straight in the eyes.

“You shall not kiss me, and yet you willingly let that thing to plaster her lips all over yours.”

“Jealousy becomes you, my dear. It gives you quite a healthy glow.”

“Jealousy, be damned! That isn’t what I feel toward the relationship that you have with Chastity. Let us get a few things straight here, sir.”

“Only a few?” he asked, stepping toward her, and causing her to back up in defense. His breath caressed her face, and she felt a thrilling tingle strum through her.

“You are trying to waylay me again, sir.”

“I do no such thing,” he said innocently. He blinked his magnificent blue eyes, and God help her, she went along with each and every one of the damnable twinkles. His eyes sparkled, and in turn, they caused her eyes to fill with stars. She hated the influence that he could command over her. It was not to be tolerated. He was only a lowly sea thief.

She was one of the most respected and sought-after women in all of Britain. She should have married Raleigh. He was a bit predictable, but safe. But no one, no one stirred her passions the way that Rafe stirred them. She could have lived a boring life with Raleigh…she would have made her aunt happy, and yet…she would have always wondered what she was missing out on.

“Come a little closer to me,” he invited. His voice lulled her along. But she would not be persuaded.

“You, sir, may discard your bloody theatrics. I can see past your intentions. You’re a bloody scoundrel. You are back at it again. You hope to dupe me into that bed.” She gesticulated toward the bed, and a smirk played at the corner of his mouth, as he widened his eyes in ignorance.

“I would think of doing no such thing.”

“Fustian nonsense!” she cried out, slamming her balled up fist against his chest. He caught her fist before she could pull it away, and held it up close to her heart. Disturbed, she tried to wrench it away from him, but yet again, she was reminded of his superior strength. He nearly undid her, when he grazed her knuckles with his lips. Hot fire coursed through her. She was becoming weak-kneed, and if she didn’t take care she would collapse into a wet puddle.

“Rafe, you must cease this at once!”

“I do not follow you, my dear. You asked me to kiss you, and so I am only following your instructions. I am being a most obliging fellow.”

“This was not what I meant.”

“Aye, I know. But you wanted me to kiss you on the lips, and at this point, I’d rather not. I believe that a kiss should only be shared between lovers, and you have already stated that we are no such thing.”

“First, you say only a husband and wife should kiss, and now only lovers? You only seek to say whatever you have to, in order to lure me into that bed.”

“I’ve never been inclined, nor desperate enough, to lure a woman into my bed. In fact, they are normally more than willing to launch themselves into it, and be damned with the consequences.”

“You are actually proud of your reputation as a rakehell, are you not?”

“It does, as they say, precede me.” He gave her a wide grin, and her heart flip-flopped at the dazzling brilliance of it.

She couldn’t help herself. She began laughing, and lost all of her fight when he pulled her to him. It would be folly to try and escape him now. Instead, she would let him come into her little web. He would find soon enough that she was a master weaver.

He leaned down toward her and caught her around her waist. She let out a squeal as he whisked her off her feet and pulled her up to kiss her cheek. Then he nibbled at her ear, and moved down to rain delicious kisses upon the side of her neck. She could not explain the emotions that were rioting through her. She was quite literally lost on a wave of emotion.

The ship rocked beneath them, and tilted to one side. Since she was in Rafe’s arms, she didn’t have to worry about losing her balance, and falling on her backside. Rafe possessed the best of sea legs, and he used them quite well to carry her over to the bed.

“Kiss me,” she murmured. He met her lusty gaze, and she could feel the stirring that worked inside of him. He wanted to kiss her, and claim her lips with his. But there was wariness in his eyes, almost as if he feared contracting the plague from her. But if he thought that she was about to throw caution to the wind, without at least having her way, then he was sadly mistaken. “My world for a kiss,” she murmured.

He continued to kiss everywhere but her mouth, earning frustrated groans from her.

The ships bell tolled anxiously, and Rafe’s eyes slipped away from hers.

“Damn,” he muttered, staring anxiously around the cabin. The moment had been broken, and he was already straightening and tugging his shirt back into place.

“What is it?” she asked. She suddenly realized that she still wore her nightgown. She needed to change into something more sensible, if she were on the brink of another adventure.

“That is a warning signal,” he muttered. “Listen!”

“I don’t hear anything,” she said, shaking her head. She was concerned about him. He seemed to be quite uneasy.

“Exactly!” He moved toward the chest, and began pushing it aside.

“Rafe, I do not understand. What are you about?”

“Ethan and I have a signal system rigged. I don’t have time to explain, but we need to get off of this ship straightaway.”

“I beg your pardon?”

“I should have known. I should have spotted it sooner. What was I thinking! Ethan will have a good time with this one. Why, he’ll never let me live it down,” he muttered. “Why didn’t I see that it was a ruse? Bloody fire ships! I’ve experienced that particular trick before, and nonetheless, I fell for it again. I am a right and proper fool. You are quite right, Elizabeth…I am a scoundrel…and a fool.”