The Sea Maiden (21 page)

“Damn how am I going to explain this on the ship?” Then he realized it was going to be too difficult for her to climb up the side of the ship in her condition so he decided they would simply have to stay on the grass in between a tree and a bush behind the stone bench, which would shield them from view till morning. He would deal with the rest tomorrow. He was walking her toward the tree when she lurched over and emptied her stomach on his boot. “Wonderful, right on my new boot! How is it you can’t see or walk straight but you didn’t miss my boot?” Peter sighed in frustration “I’m just grateful this didn’t happen during the kiss…ewe.” The truth was Peter needed a little reality to help clear his head of her. Then he still had the man on the row boat to worry about. “Alright princess let’s go wash up.”

In the morning Karina woke up cuddled up next to Peter. They lied on the grass behind the bench, with her head on his chest. She tensed realizing they spent the night there together.  She sat up too quickly and her head throbbed making her let out a moan, his arm was wrapped around her; she raised her hand to her mouth in shock. She removed his arm.

“Peter, wake up! Wake up!” Peter squinted then stretched and rolled onto his other side, it was too bright. “I guess we didn’t make it back to the ship.” She said.

“Your guess is correct. I don’t even want to go back.” He told her.

“Why?”

“You kissed me in front of Roy, but to him you were Aaron.”

“What?”

“We have to get those ears fixed!  I said you kissed me in front of Roy! You were drunk, I was drunk, he was in the rowboat, and I hadn’t seen him, then you kissed me and I kissed you back, can’t say I didn’t like it though.” Peter smiled.

Karina shoved him. Waves of guilt started hitting her as she thought of them drinking, kissing, spending the night together on the grass, what else had she done she wondered? She closed her eyes and put her hand to her head in regret and to ease the pain. Then she grew angry. He was perverting her, by taking her to taverns and encouraging her to drink rum and spirits, was she slowly becoming a wanton woman? She already knew what they were like. From that moment she told herself she would never drink like that again.

“You’re perverting me! Oh my aching head.”

“I’m just glad it happened before you christened my boot. Trust me nothing happened after that, other than sleep.”

“Oh no, you mean I got sick?”

“Yep all over my new boot.”

“Oh God! Why did you bring me here?”

“Relax it was just a moment of drunkenness that’s all. I’m fine if you are? But please don’t tell Lynnette about this little incident or about the woman that approached me yesterday, it would only ruin your friendship anyway, agreed?”

Karina nodded her head in agreement….aside from the headache, she was feeling so ashamed. They both went back to the ship. Peter tried to avoid Roy, who had seen him kiss Karina, who he thought was Aaron. Thanks to that night, Roy always seemed to look at him strangely.  Peter, however, was grateful that Roy Skinner, the ships quartermaster, was one of the most conservative and least talkative fellows on board.

After few weeks, Peter and Karina had cleared their heads of each other and continued to work well together. One afternoon, Peter had come by the guest quarters to wait for Karina. He was leaning against the wall with one foot perched behind him when Captain Drake saw him. Having heard rumors about him and Aaron spending too much time together, he asked him what he was doing there. Peter joked and told him he was just taking a break but didn’t mention he was waiting on Aaron. Feeling scrutinized by the Captain, Peter left and decided to wait for Karina elsewhere.

When Karina came out of the guest quarters; the Captain was still standing nearby with his back to her so she quietly closed the door behind her and started walking away the other direction but the creaking of the wood on deck gave her away.

“Aaron! There you are!”

Karina bit her lower lip as she turned around.

“Yes Captain.”

“Please clean up a broken glass in my cabin, I left an empty wine glass on my desk and it must have rolled off the desk and broke.”

“Yes Captain.”

She went to get a broom and dustpan and entered the cabin, Captain Drake walked away. She cleaned up the glass and placed the broom against the wall and went to empty the dustpan outside. While she was out, the broom fell forward by the desk. She returned to collect the broom on the floor when she saw the bottle of wine the Captain had been drinking from. Curious about it, she opened it and sniffed it when Captain Drake walked in on her and she immediately replaced the cork and put it down.

“Would you like a glass Aaron?”

Facing away from him as usual she said,

“No Captain I was just curious.”

He took a glass out and poured him a glass of wine.

“Here…you do a good job around here Aaron you deserve it.” He meant to hand it to him, but tripped on the broom handle on the floor and spilled most of the red wine on the shirt and vest. Karina, who was turned away from him slightly, with her hair shielding her face, gasped and jumped back. “DAMN BROOM! My apologies Aaron I meant for you to drink it not wear it. Do you have another shirt?”

“It’s drying.”

Eric started rummaging through his things and got one of his shirts out.

“Here take that one off and wash it at once or the stain will become permanent.”

“No it’s not necessary Captain but thank you.”

“Take off the shirt Aaron stop being so damn shy, it’s not manly!” He ordered.

Karina swallowed hard and hesitantly turned her back toward him and removed the vest then the shirt. She was about to put on the clean shirt he gave her when he asked in an alarmed voice.

“AARON! WHAT HAPPENED?”

Eric assumed the white cloth wrapped around her back was some kind of bandage and spun her around, Karina let out a small gasp. Eric took a step back when he saw the obvious swell of breasts and cleavage covered under the wrap. He immediately pulled off the hat and scarf and her hair spilled around her in a tangle of blond waves. He recognized her immediately. The stained shirt and vest fell on the floor.  Karina put on the shirt he gave her and ran out the door to the guest quarters and locked herself in.  In her hurry to hide from him, Karina didn’t button the shirt when she left his cabin.

Eric stood motionless in shock to discover
 Aaron was Karina, he thought back to the hair on the rowboat, his conversation with Peter while Aaron cleaned the shelves, his privacy and trust had been broken…she used him to run away from Gunther, now he would charge him with kidnapping her, he could lose the Sea Maiden back to him. He heard a door close. He went after her. He tried to open the guest quarter’s door but she locked it.

“Open this door!” He ordered. There was no response. “Open this door or I will break it in at the count of three! One, two-”

He heard the door unlock. Eric stepped inside the small room, and closed the door; his towering form in the small space was intimidating. He was furious to know he had been tricked and possibly legally compromised in her escape and wanted an explanation but his discovery of her also stirred more primitive instincts deep inside.

“You tricked me! How long did you think you would get away with this?” He took a step closer. Karina took one back. “You stowed away on my ship and probably tangled me up with legal implication; Gunther will probably accuse me of kidnapping you. I could lose the
 Sea Maiden back to him!”

“It was not my intention to compromise you in my escape or implicate you in any legal trouble, I will pay you for my passage, nobody needs to know who I am I only need to get to New England, let me just get my purse.” Karina pleaded.

If she could show him that she could pay for her passage she thought it would ease the tension. He watched her lips move but was no longer listening. His eyes scanned the open shirt, which exposed the wrapped cloth compressing her heaving breasts, visible cleavage and a bare mid-section. Her blond hair was in wild disarray, and his anger was suddenly replaced by intense longing. His large frame blocked her way so she tried to move past him to get to her cloth purse under the bunk containing her valuables but her closeness only re-ignited the same ardent response she stirred in him the night of the engagement dinner. Instinctively his arms wrapped around her exposed waist; under the open shirt forcing her against him. His parted lips covered hers in a demanding kiss. Breathless, Karina struggled to free herself but she only fueled his desire and backed her into the wall, his hand moved toward her breast, she pushed it away and demanded,

“STOP! Stop!”

When he realized what he was doing he halted his sensual assault. He had no right to treat her that way; she was a run-away bride not a tramp.  Suddenly overcome with guilt and shame, he saw her in a different light, as a desperate young woman running from one man only to be entrapped by another, himself. Eric scolded himself for over stepping his authority with her then stepped back and took a deep breath. He needed to get away from her; he seemed to lose control when she was in his presence. Ashamed he remembered his words to Peter not to take advantage of Lynnette in the very way he was about to with Karina. Without saying a word he turned and walked away. He stepped outside the room and closed the door behind him. He cast his head down momentarily gathering his thoughts with his hands resting on his belt buckle.

On the other side of the ship, Peter, tired of waiting for Karina, began wondering what was taking her so long. He started walking over to the guest quarters, when he came upon the Captain’s cabin, the door was ajar, thinking she might be in there cleaning he pushed the door open but the cabin was empty then he stepped inside and saw Karina’s hat, scarf, red stained shirt and vest scattered on the floor. Alarmed he left the room and turned toward the guest quarters when he saw Captain Drake emerge from it with his hands on his belt buckle; enraged Peter assumed the worst and took a swing at him.

“YOU BASTARD! WHAT DID YOU DO TO HER?”

Surprised by Peter’s assault Eric took a fall against the wall; then suddenly it dawned on him, Karina was here with Peter. ‘That snake evidently Lynnette wasn’t enough for him,’ feeling the bile rising inside him he straightened up and swung back with force. Peter hit the side of the ship and the next second both were rolling on the deck.

“YOU SNAKE! SO LYNNETTE WASN’T ENOUGH FOR YOU?”

Karina came out running after hearing the yelling and thud against the wall,

“PETER STOP! CAPTAIN DRAKE PLEASE STOP!”

The next minute the whole crew gathered around them. The men were shocked to see that Aaron, was a woman and the Captain and Peter were fighting over her. Two of the crew members commented:

“Aaron’s a woman!”

“Aye mate and mighty pretty one!”

“No matter, see the trouble she’s caused…tis the reason you don’t bring a woman aboard ship, mate! Leads to trouble!”

“Tis true and with two of the best men on’e ship….tis a shame.”

The officers were called and they separated both men.

“
WHAT THE DEVIL IS GOING ON HERE?” James Caleb the second in command, demanded.

“We be havin a female stow-away pretendin to be a cabin boy sir.” One of the crew responded.

Karina put her head down when James Caleb gave her an incriminating look.

“Put him in irons he’s attacked the Captain.” Caleb ordered referring to Peter.

Peter spit blood on the deck and yelled, “YOU SCUM! TELLING ME NOT TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF LYNNETTE BUT IT’S ALRIGHT FOR THE CAPTAIN TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF HER FRIEND; MY FRIEND!  THE MINUTE YOU FIND OUT SHE’S A WOMAN ABOARD YOUR SHIP!”

“FIRST OF ALL I DIDN’T TAKE ADVANTAGE OF HER IN THE WAY YOU’RE SUGGESTING, YES I’M ATTRACTED TO HER AND I KISSED HER BUT NOTHING ELSE HAPPENED! YOU ON THE OTHER HAND, CLAIMING YOU
WERE SO IN LOVE WITH LYNNETTE, CONVENIENTLY MOVED ON TO KARINA NOW THAT YOU HAVE FULL ACCESS TO HER ABOARD MY SHIP! ” Eric accused.

“I’M HELPING HER GET AWAY FROM YOUR PERVERT BROTHER BUT APPARENTLY YOU’RE NO DIFFERENT!” Peter shouted back.

Outraged at Peter’s accusation, comparing him to Gunther, Eric tried to reach out to him again but was subdued by the officers.

“Take him away!” Caleb ordered, once again referring to Peter.

“Young lady I think you have caused enough trouble for one day it would be best that you return to the guest quarters for now until things settle and the Captain clears his head.” Caleb ordered.

Karina obeyed and went back in the guest quarters with her head in her hands. This was all her fault. Now Peter would be put in irons because of her.

Angry and conflicted Eric wanted nothing more than to burst threw that door and take his rage out on her provocative lips she was a siren or witch. His emotions were in complete turmoil. The thought of Peter being with her this whole time right under his nose sent a wave of bile through him. Then he heard one of the crew say:

“That explains the kiss I saw between Peter and Aaron back in Florida.”

Eric was newly outraged after hearing confirmation to his suspicion and had a mind to go after Peter again.