Lynna's Rogue (45 page)

             
“Avast
,
you fool!” Sean commanded angrily, having n
o desire to whip a man without just cause
. “Who do you think will be most apt to see the sun rise tomorrow morning? You, after twenty lashes from the cat-o-nine, or her after a night with me
?
Now shut your trap and return to the galley before I change my mind!”

             
With a sly grin curving his lips, Sean followed Lynna to her cabin.
He was elated, while s
he felt dead, numb all over. Could she carry th
rough with the deed she had offered
? Where was her husband?
Why didn’t he stop this insanity
? Silent tears coursed down her cheeks as she heard the door close and nervously turned to face the pirate captain
she had just sold her body to
.
But she wasn’t ready, not yet!
She had to stall him until she could devise a plan. “Tell me about your life
,
Captain Devereux. I would care to know what would make a man turn to piracy.”

             
“
I will
be happy to discuss my upbringing with you at a later d
ate. A
fter I
have mad
e love to you to my heart’s content. Rest assured, little one, your stall tactics will not work. I held up my end of the bargain, now come to me as you promised.”

             
There
would be no turning back now. His
eyes, glazed with lust, assured her of that.

             
Taking her in his arms,
Sean’s hands were surprisingly gentle as he slowly
began to unfasten her dress, stopping
often to touch, caress, and stare in amazement as her exqu
isite beauty was unveiled to
him. H
e desired this stunning lady
with an urgency he hadn’t felt in a long time and had a strong yearning to feel her soft, supple body beneath his.

             
“My husband will kill you for this,” she whispered, as he cupped a breast in each hand
and nuzzled her neck
.

             
“That is a risk
I am
willing to take, little one.” He chuckled, realizing that most
likely she was still a virgin, and h
e
would
be more than happy to
deflower her
. Easing her down on the bunk, his lips had just closed over the pale pink tip of one luscious breast when the unmistakable sound of a cannon blast striking the ship made Sean forget his purpose. Jerking his trouse
rs up, he turned to her and promised,
“I will return shortly and we
’
ll continue where we left off.”

             
Lynna had no dou
bt that he would, as he hurried
from the cabin
,
leaving the door open in his haste. Now was her chance! She clutched her dress to her bosom and was midway to the deck when Rob grabbed her arm and jerked her roughly around.

             
“
Dis
way, ma’am,” he shouted over the cries
of injured men
and noise of shots being fired. The sharp smell of gunpowder and the frightening sound of wood splintering filled the air around them. The smoke from cannons being fired choked her as she jerked her arm free and headed for the deck. “I must see who is attacking us! It could be my rescuers!”
Please
! Let it be the Windjammer.

             
“
Naw
,
Ma’am, I done
seed dem
an it
jus
’
another
pi’ate
ship. Our
onliest
chance is to jump over
de
side and
swim
fo
it!” Without giving her a chance to refuse
,
Rob lifted her easily to the rail and tossed her over the side just before another cannon blast rocked the ship.

             
The deep, murky water came rushing forcefully
to
meet her
, filling her skirts
and dragging her under. Within seconds
,
her lungs were aching
, demanding that she breathe,
and her chest was on fire. For what seemed like an eternity
,
she struggled
toward the surface
agai
nst the heavy skirts that pulled
her down, dragg
ing her under until she could fi
ght no longer. She longed for death to release her from this insufferable agony. Suddenly, Joshua’s face appeared in the black water and she swam toward him.

Chapter Twenty

             
S
hivers of stabbing pain behind her eyelids caused Lynna to open her eyes. Then she was immediately forced to lift a
trembling
hand to cover them from t
he blinding rays of the blazing
morning sun. She quickly squeezed her eyes shut and painfully rolled onto her stomach, groa
ning as she dropped her parched and
swollen face into the scorching sand. Dear God! Every muscl
e in her body screamed with agony
.

             
Where was she? How did she get here? How long had she been here? But most important
,
why
couldn’t
she remember the answers to these questions? Her mind was blank. She remembered nothing before opening her eyes to the too brilliant sun
that was now searing her skin
. The roar of crashing waves sounded extremely loud in her pounding ears and answered one of her questions. She was on a beach. With tremendous effort
,
she lifted her head.

             
Ahead of her was the vast ocean
,
and on both sides
,
nothing but sand as far as the eye could see. Wet sand clung to her face, stinging her eyes, and she could feel it gritting against her teeth. She brushed at the sand, but her gentle touch brought fiery pain to her sunburned skin and scalding tears to her red rimmed, bloodshot eyes. Her hands
reflexively
went to her hair to smooth the
knotty
mass of tangles there, but with the combination of salt, seaweed and God only knows what else, she found it to be an impossi
ble task. R
oll
ing back over, she
buried her face in the sand, heedless of the pain, as heartfelt sobs
shook her body
.

             
Feeling somewhat better after a good cry
,
she took a deep breath and pulled herself up. Her arms jerked vi
olently as she rose on quivering hands and knees and s
he cried out at the pain that small effort caused her, especially her upp
er arms and shoulders. After several attempts, she stood slowly, wondering
if her knees would buckle
,
as they threatened at any moment to do. As she turned from the beach
,
she saw the cool shade of the forest beckoning her. If she could only dig deep into her soul and find the strength to make it there, she would never ask for anything else as long as she lived. “Please, God,” she prayed, “just let me make it to the shade.”

             
Each step she was sure would be her last, but after what seemed like hours of lifting the dead weight of her legs and dropping her feet into the hot sand, she finally reached the edge of the forest and sank
down into its shady haven. Closing
her b
urning eyelids,
exhaustion overwhelmed her and she welcomed the cool, soothing darkness that once again enveloped her.

             
“Wake up! Is you alive? Wake up!” The voice seemed to come from far, far away
,
pulling her back from the welcomed darkness. “
Dis
heah’
s
Rob. Can you
heah
me?”

             
Lynna opened her eyes slowly
,
terrified of the enormous black giant of a man kneeling before her
,
who seemed determined to shake her bones loose. The whites of his eyes were angry red and bloodshot
,
causing her to back against the trunk of a coconut tree in fear for her life, with a look of stark terror marring her features.

             
“
Why
is you
actin’
like you
is
sceared
of me?” Rob asked, puzzled by her reaction and reaching out to gently brush the sand from her face. “I ain’t
gwine
hurt you.”

             
She saw the look of genuine hurt in his eyes and for reasons unknown to her, her fear for the bear of a man gradually began to dissolve. From somewhere deep within her soul she knew this man would cause her no harm.

             
“You knows I ain’t
gwine
hurt you after
whut
you done
fo
me.” He hung his head in shame
,
recalling how she had bravely given herself to the pirate captain to save him from the lash.

             
“What I done for you? I
don’t
even know who you are.” Her words came out as a scratchy croak. “Where am I?”

             
“I
cain
answer
dat,
ma’am
.
” He shook his head sorrowfully. “I come to down on
de
beach
dis
mawning’
. I figured I was
de onliest
one
whut
made it to
sh
o
alive. So, I struck out through
dem
trees looking
fo
food and water.” He pointed to the thriving jungle behind them.

             
“Water!” she croaked, nodding her head rapidly. Tenderly touching her dry, swollen lips she whispered, “Did you find water?”

             
“I
sho nuff
did.” His huge calloused hands pulled her gently to her feet. “Can you walk?” he questioned worriedly. “Cause
ifn
you
cain
, I
kin
carry you.”

             
“Thank you…yes
…
” She looked at him oddly. “Who..
.who are you?”

             
“Rob, ma’am. My name is Rob.” For the first time he noticed the distant look in he
r
eyes. “You
‘
members
me, from
de
ship, don’t you?”

“What ship?” Lynna scarcely got the words out, but Rob
did not
mistake the sincerity in her tone. It was then he realized that she had not survived the
ordeal unscathed,
as he had first hoped. He tried to make light of the situation and conceal his concern for her. “We’ll talk bout
dat
later.
Fo’
now
les git
you some water.”

             
With
his strong arms helping to support her,
he led her through the jungle to a small clearing and a sparkling blue pond. Rob heard her soft gasp and then she was gone, plunging headfirst into the cool water
. She drank deeply
and
when she had her fill,
began rubbing the thick layer of salt, sand, and grime from her hair and skin. Her eyes closed blissfully as the water seemed
to drain away some of her pain.

             
Rob watched silently from the bank
,
thanking God for sparing her life also. He had searched for her under the black, murky water until his lungs threatened to burst. Exhausted
,
he had surfaced
,
calling her over and over until he finally gave up hope, realizing that no one could stay under water that long and survive. Rob knew that only God’s hand had brought her safely to land.

             
“You
stays
rite
her
til I
gits
back, ma’am.
I’se
gwine
find you
sumphin
’
to eat.”