Passion's Tide (23 page)

A week later she awoke early, and was dressed and ready to start the day before the men even began groaning and climbing from their hammocks
.
After a quick breakfast she met Eli on deck, as planned, to begin their lesson
.

While the sun rose steadily in the sky, she hung on Eli’s every word as he explained to her the fundamentals of sword fighting, runn
ing through the steps in her head as he stopped to give the day’s orders to the crew
.
When at last he handed her a wooden cutlass, she was practically bubbling over wit
h excitement.

They spent the better part of the morning practicing the basic skills
required to launch an offensive strike and parry incoming blows. Eli was impressed with her balance and her fast rate of improvement, and Amber was eager to learn more. After dinner that night, Logan found her on deck by herself, brows furrowed in concentration as she ran through the techniques she had learned.

“Widen your stance a little bit more, it’ll help you maintain your stability,” he offered as he walked towards her, hiding his smile when she jumped in surprise at the sound of his voice. She was quick to recover though, and went to work fixing her stance.

“Like this?” she inquired as she rocked on the balls of her feet to test her balance.

“Exactly like that. And always be aware of your environment, so that nobody can sneak up behind you,” he said with a pointed look over her right shoulder. Taking his cue, she spun around in time to block Pax’s vertical cut, step to the right and issue a downward swinging blow that made contact with his torso. “Well done,” he said as Pax fell to the ground, writhing in pretend agony. “You just felled your first pirate.” Amber
beamed
at Logan before turning to Pax, kicking aside his wooden sword, and holding the tip of her blade to his exposed throat.

“Do you surrender, you scurvy swine?” she asked as she placed her booted foot on his chest and pressed harder with her sword.

“Never!”

She shrugged. “Have it your way,” she told him as she removed the pressure of her blade and lifted her foot. Logan observed as she walked away from her wounded foe, and was amazed when she spun around and swiftly delivered a fatal blow to Pax, who had attempted to rise and reach for his sword. “Always be aware of my surroundings, right Logan?”

He laughed. “Right. Although, you should know that death rarely resembles
that
,” he said, pointing towards Pax’s theatrical display of twitching and gasping for breath. “Not only
is it
less melodramatic, but it tends to be over sooner.”

“When do I get to take on the legendary
e
l Tigre?” she inquired as she twirled the blade around in her hands, dropping it in the process.

He smiled at her. “Just keep practicing for now, and when I think you’re ready, you’d be smart to watch your back,” he told her, walking towards his cabin.

“Would it be all right if I kept practicing tonight?”

He turned. “Of course
.
J
ust ask Ben to light a few lanterns so you can see. And Amber, you don’t have to ask my permission.”

As he left her, she was again struck with a strange sense of longing. His amiable nature was starting to drive her crazy with need, and she desperately wanted him to turn around and yell at her like he used to, or pull her into his arms and kiss her…

She shook her head and lifted her sword. This was what she wanted, she reminded herself as she worked on her footwork.
Wasn’t it?
Her life was so much easier without him breathing down the back of her neck every five minutes, always checking to make sure she wasn’t hurting herself or having any fun. And yet, it wasn’t as exciting without someone to argue with.

When the lamps had burned down and her arms ached from holding up the heavy sword, she decided it was time to go to sleep. She sent a mournful look towards Logan’s cabin, where she knew he would be finishing up with his bath and preparing for bed. She glanced down at her own body, covered with a thick layer of sweat and
grime
, and ardently wished that she could relax in the warm water and wash the tension from her muscles. Instead, she hung her hammock in the corner and fell into a fitful sleep.

No lack of sleep, however, could keep her from rushing through her duties each day so that she could spend more time practicing with her sword. As the weeks progressed she saw herself improving, and was soon able to beat Henry and Johnny with ease. The other men, too, began sparring with her after dinner, finding her a worthy opponent and a fast learner. Before long even Eli had to work to keep up with her endless energy and agile footing. After a particularly tiring fight with the quartermaster, in which Amber succeeded in driving a horizontal cut into Eli’s shoulder, knocking him to the ground and delivering a killing blow before he could recover his sword, Logan stepped forward.

“Well done, Amber,” he exclaimed, proud of her perseverance. “Eli, you had a chance to end the fight five minutes ago when she came at you with the straight thrust, by spinning her blade instead of just knocking it. And Amber, when you start fighting with real swords, you’re going to want to parry with the flat because parrying with the edge is the fastest way to dull your blade.”

Amber accepted the flagon of water that Pax held out to her, took a few sips and then dumped the rest of it over her head. Shaking the drops from her face, she grinned at Logan. “Think I’m ready, yet?”

“You want to spar with me? Right now?” he eyed her with suspicion. “Are you sure you wouldn’t rather wait until tomorrow, when you’ve had a chance to rest?”

“Who needs rest?” she countered. “Unless you’re too scared, in which case I would understand your hesitation…” Logan sent her a menacing look as he pulled his shirt over his head and tossed it aside, caught and spun the blade that Eli threw him, and took his stance.

“You asked for it, sweetheart.”

The last remaining pirates who had been working now abandoned their tasks and joined the crowd to watch the fight
.
Money exchanged hands as the men placed bets on who would win
,
until Eli shushed them, signaling that it was beginning
.

They started by circling each other, looking for any weaknesses in the other’s defense. Then Ambe
r lunged forward with a vertical cut, followed quickly by a downward thrust and a horizontal cut, all of which were blocked by Logan. He delivered a powerful strike towards her shoulder, but she ducked beneath his blade and raised hers to parry his vertica
l attacks, running under the last one. Logan turned to face her as she charged with a downward swinging cut, and by blocking it, sent her spinning. Taking advantage of her lost balance, he kicked the back of her knees hard enough to bring her to the deck, scrambling for her sword that was knocked from her hands upon impact.

As she reached for the blade, he kicked it aside and thrust at her outstretched arm, scratching it as she pulled it against her body and rolled over. Now on her back, she parried his blows with her foot, and managed to kick him with enough force to send him reeling. He lunged to deliver a forward thrust, but she rolled out of the way and managed to wrap her fingers around her sword, bringing it up in time to block another thrust and return with a horizontal cut. As Logan parried, she jumped to her feet and attacked with several hard blows to his shoulders and legs, all of which he managed to avoid.

Both of them were drenched in sweat at this point, panting in the warm, humid air. She flicked a strand of hair from her face and raised her sword above her head to block his vertical strike, and then brought it about to knock aside his forward thrust. Logan slid his blade along hers until the hilts were locked against each other, and using his height and weight to his advantage, he pushed her backwards until she stumbled over a pile of rope, lost her balance, and fell. As soon as she hit the deck, his blade was at her throat.

She swallowed heavily and looked up at the formidable pirate standing above her, having forgotten for a moment that the swords they used were made of wood, thankful that the only damage she would receive would be a few nasty bruises. Logan lowered his sword
,
and with a smile, helped her to her feet.

There were a few triumphant roars as men collected on their bets
,
and some good natured arguments about the fight, but Amber just stood there, staring at Logan. He reached up to brush a curl from her eyes. “Did I hurt you at all?” he asked with concern etched on his face, and she could only shake her head in response. “Are you sure? How are your knees, I didn’t knock you too hard?”

“No, I’m all right,” she managed to whisper.

“Good. Listen, I apologize for getting a bit carried away, but you fought incredibly well, especially for—”

“A woman?” she interjected, finding her voice at last.

“I was going to say for someone who hadn’t picked up a blade until three weeks ago,” he told her with a smile. “But you’re sure you aren’t hurt at all?”

She flushed. “Just my ego. I suppose it was foolish of me to challenge the great
e
l Tigre, wasn’t it?” Before he could respond and tell her how wrong she was, she had turned and disappeared below deck. He watched her go, wishing he could take her into his arms and kiss away her embarrassment, make her forget about a stupid fight.

“Well done, mate,” exclaimed Eli as he approached Logan, counting his money. “It was a hard call there for a while, but you came through in the end, just like you always…what’s the matter?”

Logan shook his head. “I’m not sure.”

It was past midnight and everyone had long since gone to bed, when Logan set down the book he had been trying to read and left his cabin
.
He crossed the empty deck and descended the stairs into the orlop, his eyes adjusting to the darkness as he searched the swinging hammocks for Amber.

He found her sound asleep by the opposite doorway, in the same spot he had hung her hammock for her the first night. Tiptoeing past his snoring crew, he reached her side. Her hair was tangled
around her face and she was sprawled out with a leg hanging over the edge, dressed in a huge shirt that he recognized as belonging to Anton. Her own clothes were draped over another rafter and upon inspection, Logan found them to be damp. Having been supplied with only one outfit, she was apparently doing everything she could to keep it clean.

He made a mental note as he slid one arm beneath her back, and the other beneath her knees. Then he scooped her up, careful not to jostle her awake or make any noise, and headed towards the stairs. Once on deck, a cool breeze swept by them and Amber whimpered in his arms, before snuggling closer to the warmth of his chest. Logan was bewitched by the innocence of the sleeping girl in his arms, but made it back to his cabin without waking her, and with care, tucked her into his bed. At once, she curled up and her breathing evened out, calmed by the comfort of the large bed and the soft pillows.

He watched her sleep for a few minutes and then settled down on the floor with a blanket. Even on the hard wood, he slept more soundly than he had in the past three weeks, just
from
having her close to him again.

It took Amber a few moments to recognize where she was upon waking, the wide expanse of the bed beneath her a far cry from the hammock she had grown used to. Blinking sleep from her eyes, she caught Logan’s gaze as he sat at the table, reading.

“Good morning. How are you feeling?”

She attempted to pull herself into a seated position, an action that made her entire body seize with pain. She moaned. “I don’t think I’ve ever been so sore in my life.”

“Well, I can have breakfast brought up, or, if you’d prefer, you can go see what’s behind the screen over there.” Following the direction of his finger, Amber noticed the newest addition to the corner of the room: a large, gilded oriental folding screen. With a curious glance at Logan, she stood and walked towards it.

“Oh, it’s wonderful,” she cried as she took in the si
ght
of the bathtub, filled with steaming water.

“Do you like it?”

“I’ve been dreaming about a bath for weeks! But how did you know?”

He laughed. “It’s not a secret that you are in desperate need of a bath, Amber. Any
one
would after three weeks of doing what you’ve been doing.” He listened to the splash as she settled into the tub. “I’ve also located a new set of clothes for you, since I’ve noticed your one pair is already growing quite ragged. They should be on the stool, next to the bar of soap. Take what you want, I can put the rest back down below or you can keep them for later.”

“You seem to be on your best behavior today,” she remarked from behind the screen. “Does it have anything to do with abducting me in the middle of the night?”

“It might,” he replied with a smile. “I figured any woman that can beat me in a swordfight deserves a nice bed to sleep in.”

“But I didn’t beat you.”

“Ah, but you’ve only been practicing for a few weeks. I’ve
seen
lot of men
, including me,
struggle
,
to pick up techniques that come easily to you. Another month or two of working at it and I have no doubt that you could…” he trailed off as his gaze settled on the mirror across the room, and he forgot everything but the image reflected in it.

He had thought that the privacy screen would be seen as a gesture of respect and trust, but he hadn’t anticipated that the mirror above the dresser would be positioned at just the right angle to reflect behind it
.
The bathtub was
i
n full view, and this included the very wet, and very naked girl curr
ently using it.

His mouth went dry as he watched her lift the sponge, heavy with water, and wring it over her head. Dirt and sweat ran in rivulets down her glistening skin as she scrubbed herself clean. So mesmerized was he by the taunting display that he failed to notice she was speaking. He cleared his husky throat.

“I’m sorry, what did you say?”

“I asked you to finish your sentence,” she said with a shake of her head, unaware that every movement was on display for Logan’s pleasure. He struggled to formulate a reply.

“Oh, I uh, simply was saying that…” he forced himself to drop his eyes from the mirror. “Ah yes, I was saying that with a little more practice, you’d be able to beat me with ease.”

“You really think so?” she said, a smile spreading across her face.

He found himself staring again. “I do.”

“Good, because I plan to win someday,
e
l Tigre, so you better watch out or you’ll find yourself looking down the length of my blade!” She lifted her arm from the water as if she were holding a sword and cut the air with a swift movement, one that caused her dripping breasts to bounce. Logan started coughing. “Are you all right? Logan, do you need help?” Without waiting for an answer, she began to stand.

The last thing he needed was to see her standing in front of him, close enough to touch. “I’m fine, I’m fine. I just need some air.” He stood and all but ran from the room, slamming the door behind him with a bang that made Eli turn around.

“What’s wrong now, she didn’t like the tub?”

“The problem isn’t that she didn’t like it,” he replied with a scowl. “It’s that I like it too much.” He stormed off, leaving his friend standing alone and very confused.