“We had a bargain,” he said, his smile still indifferent.
“You broke the bargain, not I.”
Lucian stared at her strangely. “You really would have married me?”
She tossed her chin up. “To save my father I would have married the devil himself.”
Lucian laughed deeply and glared at her with eyes as hard as stone. “And it’s the devil you would have taken your vows with.”
Slowly her skin crawled as the truth of his statement settled in. His years of forced labor and subjugation had worn on his body, mind, and soul. He needed to heal, to forgive himself
before he could find it in his heart to forgive others.
Catherine felt a sudden need to comfort him and strangely enough she gave no thought to her actions. She did as she felt she must.
She moved over beside him, leaned down across his chest, kissed him gently on the lips and said, “You are no devil, Lucian.” Then she cuddled against his naked chest, yawned, and went directly to sleep.
Lucian sat there stunned by her actions. He glanced down at the top of her head and her arm draped across his waist. What in the hell was he to do with her? She confused him. Just when he thought he understood her, she stepped out of character.
She stirred as though troubled by a bad dream. His hands instinctively sought to comfort her, wrapping around her and soothingly rubbing her back.
She responded, settling in an instant.
He sighed and shut his eyes. Damn, but she could play with his emotions. He admired her fortitude and her strong belief in those she loved. He wished someone had loved him with such intensity, perhaps then he would not have found himself on that merchant ship, sold into service.
His heart ached with memories of his mother. He had thought that she of all people would have fought endlessly for his release. He couldn’t remember a day that had gone by that she hadn’t reminded him of how much she cared for him and always would. He had been devastated when he heard nothing from her and then he heard of her death. He had never felt so alone in his life, so abandoned.
He stared down at Catherine protectively wrapped in his arms. With every word she spoke, she had defended her father. She believed in his innocence, never once doubting it, fiercely defending his honor.
Never in his life had he experienced a love that strong. He envied and hated Abelard and was more determined than ever to seek his revenge through Catherine somehow.
Chapter Twelve
Catherine stood on the deck of the ship full of anticipation and excitement. She wished the crew would hurry and drop anchor. She couldn’t wait another minute to touch solid land and an island at that. And not just any island, the island of Tortuga.
She had read stories of Tortuga and its lawlessness. One story had called it the “the pirates’ spawning ground,” another had labeled it “worse than Hades,” yet another referred to its location as “the end of the earth.” All Catherine cared about at the moment was that she had the opportunity to see it with her own eyes and not through stories and books.
Lucian had only this morning informed her that they would be dropping anchor there shortly and staying for a day or two. He had tossed her a bundle of clothes and told her if she wished to join him on the island that she must dress in the clothes he provided and she must keep herself by his side and obey his every word.
She hastily agreed. She now waited impatiently for them to disembark. She had followed Lucian’s instructions, changing into the bright blue skirt and white linen blouse and leather sandals. She had braided her hair and fastened the sides back with ivory combs so no strands would fall free.
She turned her attention away from the island in the near distance and searched the ship for Lucian. The sight of him standing on the fo’c’sle deck startled her. He fit a romanticized image of a pirate perfectly. Large and strong and breathtakingly handsome, he stood arms akimbo, feet braced apart, dressed in tight black breeches and high black polished boots. His white shirt billowed in the breeze and hung open almost clear to his waist, showing off his sizable muscular chest.
And his long dark red hair? Catherine shook her head. Lord, but he had gorgeous hair for a man. Long, shiny and . . .
She smiled noticing the braid he had fashioned on one side behind his ear running down over his shoulder. It labeled him dangerous. Dangerously alluring.
She easily understood why women would be attracted to him. He had an air of mystery and risk about him. A woman took a chance when she became involved with him. A chance with her heart and soul.
Catherine shivered, thinking of the captain’s soul. She sensed a dark side, full of hate and contempt. And buried, locked deep away, a part existed that needed not only to be loved, but to give love as well. Lucian was a complex man; Catherine was only beginning to understand.