Passion's Tide (33 page)
Authors: Sarah West
He hushed her and beckoned
her closer, pointing at Pax
.
“See what he’s doing there? He’s circling faster than Anton can keep up, because his bulk
slows him down. As long as Pax can stay out of reach he can tire him out and then go in for the killing strike.” As they watched, P
ax leapt into action and rushed the heavily panting giant, who didn’t have the energy to block the stinging blow across his abdomen
.
Blood began to trickle from his bare chest, and Logan called the fight and instructed Piers to bring over a chair before Anton collapsed of exhaustion. Deacon turned to Amber
.
“I hope you’ve got some energy left, because that boy is teeming with it, and you’ll need to stay one step ahead of him at all times if you want to win.”
Logan called for a break for supper
, g
iving both Amber and Pax time to relax before the final fight, and the men something to look forward to
.
Following Logan into the cabin, Amber collapsed on the bed with a groan
.
“I’m dying.”
“You aren’t.”
“I am so
.
I’m dying.”
“You’re just being melodramatic.” She rolled over and pouted
.
“If you were dying I doubt we would be wasting time having this
conversation
.
Now sit up and eat
;
you’ll need your strength and energy or Pax will run circles around you like he did Anton.”
Wi
th a reluctant sigh she pulled herself up and hobbled over to the table. “What are we having, more turtle soup?”
“Not tonight
.
This evening I have arranged especially for you a meal that will give you the stamina to get through the next few hours.” He pulled the cover off the tray and presented a plate overflowing with pastries, croissants, tarts and biscuits of every variety, many of th
em topped with mounds of jam or marmalade
.
“Be prepared though, the sugar will only work for a few hours, and when it wears off expect a sudden onset of lethargy.”
“Where did these come from?” she asked him between bites.
“Abe baked them while everyone was distracted on deck today.”
“How much time do I have until I have to be back out there?”
Logan swiveled his head to look out the window
.
“
The
sun will set in an hour, and by the time the men finish eating dinner and illuminating the deck, it will be another three quarters of an hour.” He turned around
.
“Why, did you have something you wanted to do in that time?”
“Yes,” she responded, reaching down to tug the hem of her heavy shirt up and over her head, dropping it on the floor
.
She was shimmying her pants down when she saw that Logan was doing the same thing
.
“What are you doing?”
He paused in his action of pulling off his shirt
.
“Getting ready to make love to you, of course
.
Why, what are you doing?”
She laughed
.
“I’m taking a nap!” To demonstrate her point she crawled beneath the covers and plumped a pillow.
A crease formed above his brow
.
“But you’re naked.”
“My clothes are damp with sweat and the shirt you’re forcing me to wear is absurdly warm, so of course I don’t plan on sleeping in it
.
And you’re mad if you think I’m prepared to do…that with you right now,” she said as she pulled the blankets up over her eyes. “Don’t let me oversleep, or I will be livid.”
With a smile he cleared
the empty dishes, being careful
not to rouse her
.
The room tidy, he balanced the tray on his hip and left the cabin, shutting the door behind him
.
It was dusk, and his men were finishing
their own suppers and beginning to filter back onto the deck, restless and excited about the fight, their anticipation clouding the sting of their own recent losses.
He walked among
them, checking injuries and instructing them
where to hang lanterns to provide the most light. He was looking for Anton when someone tapped him on the shoulder
.
He turned to see Pax.
“Can I have a word with you, Cap’n?”
Glancing around them to make s
ure they wouldn’t be overheard, he bobbed his head
.
“What’s on your mind?”
Rocking back and forth on his feet, the
freckled boy avoided meeting Logan’s eyes
.
“I was just wondering what you want me to do tonight.”
“What are you talking about?”
“
What I mean is, do you want me to lose?”
Logan was taken aback by his frankness, and decided to be forthright in return
.
“I assume you’re referring to my,” he searched
for the word, “attachment to Amber?”
Pax’s eyes darted upwards
.
“Yes.”
“I figured
.
As for your question, no, I do not want you to forfeit the competition by any means.” He cleared his throat
.
“Just act as you would if she were a man.”
“But she’s not—”
“Yes, I’m well aware of her gender
,
Pax
.
Just know that she will not be holding anything back, and she expects the same from you
.
Don’t disappoint her
.
But do me one favor?”
“Anything, Cap’n.”
Logan sighed
.
“Do your best to keep her alive?”
“Of course
, Cap’n
.
I like Amber to much to really hurt her.” It wasn’t until Pax had ducked below deck again that Logan was able to unclench his fists.
“That was extremely difficult for you, wasn’t it?”
He jumped
.
“Damn it, Eli, why are you always sneaking up behind me?”
“For the same reason you always try to divert my attentio
n when I bring up an uncomfortable subject
.
If you won
’
t answer me, I’ll skip ahead to saying I’m proud of how you handled that conversation
.
I know you’re itching to rip his head from his shoulders before he can get near Amber.”
“That isn’t true.”
“
Your eye is twitching and your accent is back.” He dismissed Logan’s ston
y
glare
.
“Now, it’s almost time for the fight
.
You’ve done well controlling yourself thus far, so maintain your calm
façade for just a little bit longer.”
“I’ve never needed a
dvice on women from you in the past
.
W
hat makes you think I need it now?”
Unfazed, Eli withdrew his handkerchief to wipe a speck of dust from his boots
.
“Because you’ve never fought this hard to
win a lass before, and you’ve never encountered one like Amber
.
Haven’t you noticed how much happier she is without you hovering over her? You need to let her fight her own battles, literally and metaphorically of course.”
Logan growled
.
“I’m an arse f
or listening to you, Elijah
.
The only bit of relief I have is in knowing this bloody contest is almost over.”
“Watch your accent!” Eli hissed after him
.
Grinding his teeth and wishing he had never agreed
to
the competition, he entered the cabin to wake
Amber up
.
H
e found her quite naked i
n the center of the room, sword in hand, practicing her drills
.
A glance at the table confirmed that she had consumed the remainder of the pastries he had left
for her.
“I was too excited to sleep anymore,” she confessed as she rested the bl
ade on the floor and leaned on the hilt.
“Your excitement apparently also outweighed your need to get dressed,” he noted with an appreciative nod.
She shrugged and reached for her breeches
.
“Is everyone waiti
ng for me outside?”
“Not quite, but it is getting to be time
.
How are your nerves?”
“I’m not scared anymore, but I am restless and jittery.”
“I would wager a guess that’s because you just consumed half of your body weight in sugar.” He walked around the table to hand her her boots and waited fo
r her to put them on, then kissed her on the forehead
.
“You’re doing an incredible job, and I’m proud of you for pushing yourself so hard. It’s really quite remarkable how far you’ve come.”
She gave him a smile as she sheathed her sword and checked the
position of the knife in her boot
.
“Now, let’s go see if I can do this without rendering Pax unconscious for the second time.”
As he led her towards the open space in the middle of the main deck, between the mizzen and main mast, he was powerless to
co
ntrol
the emotion surging within him
.
A foreign mixture of pride and possessiveness, strange and disarming in its intensity, threatened to overtake him
.
But somehow he managed to leave her in the center with nothing b
ut her weapons and her skill, and take his place next to Eli at the edge of the circle
.
Somehow he was able to deliver a speech congratulating the two fighters on their stamina and talent, and fire his pistol into the air to signal the start of the fight
.
And, somehow, he was able to make it through the next excruciating fifteen minutes without jumping in to pull Amber away from Pax, and run his own blade through the boy’s heart.
The two began by circling each other, his steps a mirrored opposite of hers as they sized each other up,
waiting for an opportunity to strike
.
Then they both lunged forward, their blades crashing together above their heads with a deafening clang only to reverberate again as he parried her second blow
.
He recovered with a swift
counterstrike that forced her to step backwards so as not to lose the advantage of her longer blade, and lift her sword to protect her torso
.
Pax jumped forward to limit the range of her possible strikes, raising his shorter cutlass above him to deliver a
downward cut across her shoulder
.
She blocked it with the flat edge of her sword and in a single sweeping motion brought her hilt around and rammed it into his chest
.
His balance faltered and she swept in with a series of cuts, but each was
deftly
blocked
.
Having regained his footing
,
Pax
increased the intensity of his attacks, his sword a blur as it swung through the air, hers always meeting his before steel could penetrate flesh
.
Their distorted shadows danced wildly in the flickering light
of a dozen lanter
ns, but Logan could hardly tear his eyes off of Amber’s dancing figure to pay heed to the whimsical trickery of candlelight
.
Another strike from Pax, but this time Amber jumped out of the line of attack and pushed his cutlass aside, openi
ng his chest up for a blow that was parried at the last second
.
Ten minutes into the fight they both retreated a few steps to catch their breath and assess the situation
.
Logan was scanning Amber for any sign of fatigue when he felt the first raindrop,
and one by one the men in the array lifted their heads to the dark clouds above them
.
Amber and Pax remained
at
a standstill, gazes locked
.
She blinked as a splash of rain landed in her eye.
Keeping Pax in her sights, she quickly glanced around
her to confirm that it really had begun raining, anticipating the added disadvantage of a slippery fighting surface
.
Her speculation
was borne out
when Pax skidded in an attempt to charge he
r
.
As always he was quick to right himself, but she saw in that split second that she must stand her ground and make him come to her, because each time he lifted his foot and planted it back down on the wet deck he risked losing his balance
.
If she
could exploit that
,
there was the slightest chance that she could win.
Planting her feet more solidly beneath her she distributed her weight so that she was less likely to topple, and beckoned Pax forward with a taunting grin
.
He pounced on her, swor
d swinging, and again they picked up an almost musical pattern of strike, counterstrike, parry, and riposte. Around and around they went, the loud calls from the spectators drowned by the cacophony of metal against metal, as
each
tried and failed to
find a weak point in the other’s defense
.
Amber could feel her exhaustion starting to weigh her down
;
her muscles were slower to respond and her reaction time was increasing
.
She knew she had to think fast, or Pax would rush in to finish her off.
The torrent of water reduced her visibility but she could see his sword arcing down towards her, drops spraying from the edge as he rotated it to break past her defense
.
She spun beneath it and put all
her remaining strength into the shoulder
she forced against his chest
.
She
knocked him backwards, his sword skittering to a stop two feet out of his reach
.
Victory imminent, Amber lunged to deliver the final blow.
Suddenly Pax swept his foot behind her knees and sent her tumbling forward o
nto him, her hands striking the deck and breaking her
grip
on her weapon
.
She swore and rolled to the side, reaching down to retrieve her dagger from her boot
.
But before she could get to it
,
his hand coiled around her wrist, so she drew back her leg and kic
ked him in the gut
. A
s he grunted and doubled over she pulled herself free
.
She began crawling towards her sword.
Pax grabbed her leg and tugged her back towards him, an easy task with the rain-slicked deck providing no traction
.
She could see the kn
ife in his hand as he positioned himself above her and in her moment of panic she smashed her head up into his nose, at the same time his blade sliced through the front of her shirt
.
They froze and a hush fell through the crowd as every set of eyes was tr
ained on them, watching, waiting to see who would bleed first
.
Finally a stream of red began to seep from the shallow wound above her breast, staining her shirt. Through the pounding rain she could hear the shouts
of
the observers, some joyous and some outraged as Pax stretched out his hand to help her to her feet
.
“Are you in pain?” he asked with a concerned glance over at Logan.
“It stings, but I don’t think it’s very deep
.
How is your nose?”
“My nose? Oh—” he touched hi
s nose and lifted his hand to see the blood coating his fingers
.
“Now that you mention it, it hurts like hell
.
I guess it’s a draw, then.”
She shook her head
.
“The rules were first blood, and you won.” She held out her hand to shake
.
“Congratulations, you deserved it.”
“You know what? I doubt I’ve worked this hard on anything before.”
“What was your motivation, the pay increase?”
He snickered
.
“If there’s one thing I’ve always hated it’s swabbing the deck and pumping the bilge
.
Getting out of it for six months is
worth any work I put into this.”
“Was it worth the broken nose?” Logan asked as clapped him on the back.
Pax shrugged
.
“Considering the last time I fought her I got knocked unconscious, I was expecting to get my head chopped off this time
.
So in compar
ison, a broken nose isn’t so bad.”
“You might think differently after Piers sets it for you. Go get fixed up and get some sleep
.
W
e’ll talk more in the morning
.
Congratulations.” Logan gave Pax a look that expressed his thanks, and sent him to the wait
ing doctor
.
In two giant strides Logan reached the spot where
Amber’s
sword had fallen and retrieved i
t.
T
hen he all but dragged
her
into the cabin, kicking the door shut behind them. Tossing her blade onto the table he raised his hands to the neckline of her shirt and with a hard tug, ripped it down the middle.
She gasped and stepped backwards, covering her nakedness with her arms
.
“I told you earlier I’m not in any…what are you doing?”
He pushed her arms aside and stared at the trickle of
blood coming from her fresh wound
.
She glanced down.
As
she had thought, it was a shallow cut, and luckily a clean one
.
Satisfied that she was in no immediate danger he pulled her close and sealed
her lips with his own, his hands roaming upwards to tug the silk scarf from her head and tousle her hair free from her braid
.
She tugged herself away.
“You really should let me bathe before you do—” He silenced her with another kiss, and this time she
let herself surrender to the moment
.
Her fingers exp
lored the hard planes of his chest, and, growing impatient, she pulled her knife from her boot and sliced through the front of his shirt
.
He broke the kiss to stare down at his ruined piece of clothing.
“I suppose I deserved that,” he remarked before pulling her back against him
.
She could feel his erection pressing against her thigh and she began inching them towards the bed, tugging him by the front of his torn shirt
.
As they tumbled backwards he reached down to fumble with the opening of his breeches,
when a knock stilled his hand. He stood with a growl and tossed a blanket over Amber to cover her up.
“What the hell do you want?” he snarled, flinging open the door
.
Standing on the other side of it was a very surprised Anton, carrying two buckets fill
ed with water with several more lined up behind him.
“I’m sorry Cap’n, but you said you wanted a bath for miss Amber
.
Want me to leave these here?”
Logan sighed and ran a hand through his hair
.
“No, go ahead and bring them in.” He leaned against the doo
rframe and closed his eyes to calm himself.
“Nice shirt,” snickered Eli as he walked past
.
Logan clenched his jaw tight to keep from firing back a response
.
Luckily Anton sensed his foul mood and rushed through the process of filling the tub, and on
ce he was gone Logan made sure to lock the door behind him.
“What are we doing now?” Amber asked as he stripped them both of their remaining clothes and carried her over to the tub.
“I’ve given you plenty of space in the past couple weeks, but now I’m going to take care of you and there isn’t anything you can do about it, so don’t even think of arguing.”
“I wasn’t going to,” she murmured happily as he slid into the tub behind her
.
“Are we going to make love in here again?”
He chuckled as he reached for the soap
.
“After what you’ve been through I doubt your body could handle another minute of physical exertion.” He lifted her arm and let go, laughing as it dropped limply back down
.
“See?”
“I don’t mind,” she said, her head resting on his shoulder, her eyes fluttering closed
.
She yawned
.
“We’ll have plenty of time for that in the future.” Seconds later, her breathing deepened and she drifted into sleep.
Logan continued to
bathe her, and when she was scrubbed
free
of the sweat and grime he cleaned and dressed her cut, all without waking her
.
Then he settled her into the bed and curled up next to her, an arm wrapped protectively around her body
.
He had trouble falling asleep, however
.
She said that they had time in the future, but Logan had his doubt
s
.
Soon they would be in Spain, and once that mission was over there would be nothing preventing their return to England
.
Delivering Amber to her relatives would mean she no longer needed him, and his purpose
would
have been served
.
She would go ba
ck to her charmed life with England’s elite, and he would be tossed on his ear like a stray
who had
overstayed his welcome
.
He pulled his arm away and flipped onto his other side, his back to her now
.
He would just have to deal with it when the time
came.
