Love's Abyss (St. John Series) (10 page)

Chapter Twelve

Madison gazed out the large window of
The Abyss
. She watched as lightening darted across the sky, lighting up the dim room. The dark ominous clouds forming worried her. She had never been out to sea during a storm. Her worrisome thoughts were interrupted by a faint knock on the door. Samuel walked in carrying two large buckets. She watched him. He didn’t speak one word, lumbered over to the large copper tub, and poured the hot water into it.

He noticed her puzzled expression. “The Capt’n is busy up top with the upcoming storm, so I thought you might like a bath since he’ll be occupied until it passes.”

“Thank you,” Madison replied, “A bath would be lovely.”

Samuel smiled at her. He carried in several more buckets of the steamy water and poured them into the oversized tub. He pulled a small table beside it and placed several bottles on it. “A gift . . . a thank you . . . ah . . . well . . . for . . . ah . . . for the other day.”

She smiled at him sweetly. “That’s not necessary, but I greatly appreciate the thought. Thank you.” She picked one of the bottles and opened it. “Hmmm, lavender, my favorite. Where did you get these? A gift acquired for your sweetheart?” she teased.

His cheeks turned red at her teasing. His expression turned somber as he said, “No, they were my mother’s.” He had brought them aboard to remember her smell.

“Well, thank you.”

He quickly picked up the empty buckets and left.

Madison sauntered over to the tub and swirled her fingers in the warm water. It was a little hot, but would do. She picked up the bottle of lavender and added some of the amorous liquid to the water. “Should I really?” she questioned herself, pondering the propriety of taking a bath aboard a pirate ship. It would feel nice to relax in some hot water, instead of just sponging off, and if
that
Captain was going to be occupied for a little while, why not?

She quickly undressed and eased her body into the hot water allowing its warmth to envelope her body. She placed her back against the tub. The warmth of the water had heated the metal. She sighed deeply. The warm water and metal on her flesh relaxed her tense muscles. It had been a trying couple of weeks since she was taken off Andrew’s ship. A small worried frown crossed her face; she hadn’t thought about Andrew in that time. She wondered how he was faring since she last saw him.

She looked towards the small table and inspected the other bottles sitting on it. She opened one and then another, looking for the perfect scent of soap. The last bottle she opened smelled of vanilla. Perfect, she thought. She let down her long auburn hair and wet the entire length. She lathered her hair and body in the vanilla fragrance. Once she was soapy, she closed her eyes and slowly submerged her entire head in the water, rinsing the bubbles from her hair. She took her hands and placed her long auburn locks over the back of the tub.

She lay in the tub looking out at the approaching storm. The ship began to sway in the rough waters. The water in the tub rocked back and forth. The warmth of the water and the sway of the ship made her drowsy. Before long she was asleep.

She was unaware of the happenings on the deck above her.

Alex and Max looked worriedly at each other. “I’m going to go change into something better to handle this storm in,” Alex informed his quartermaster. “The traction of these boots is horrible, and this shirt fills with more wind than the sails. Keep watch, I’ll be back.”

Entering his quarters, he glanced at the loveseat where Madison normally sat. She was gone. He turned to head back out the door to look for her, but stopped suddenly. He could smell the faint aroma of lavender and vanilla. His eyes caught a glimpse of something dark hanging on the back of the large copper tub. A gentle smile formed on his lips. He walked quietly towards his bed, sat down on the edge and pulled off his boots.

He stood and ambled silently over to the tub and gazed at the figure immersed in the water. The beauty before him could have been one of the legendary exotic mermaids. Madison’s head lay back against the tub. Her eyes were closed and her long dark lashes rested gently on her high cheeks. Her full red lips were slightly parted. The waterline rested just below her neck, and her body was barely covered by the multitude of bubbles. She was stunning. He swallowed hard.

He got closer to the resting mermaid, placed his large hands on each side of the tub, his face inches from Madison’s, and in a deep seductive voice said, “Are you waiting on someone to join you?”

Madison’s eyes flew open and she blinked wildly. That dreadful Captain was only inches from her face. Then reality hit her. “Get out! I’m bathing!” How dare he sit there and stare at her, naked in the tub!

Alex leaned back. “Ah, yes, you are. If you don’t want company in there, I suggest you get out,” he said as he took off his shirt.

“You wouldn’t?”

“Wouldn’t I?”

Madison frantically scouted for something to cover herself up. His eyes twinkled as he held a dainty looking cloth in front of her. She quickly snatched it from his grasp. She gradually rose out of the tub, using the cloth to cover herself. As she placed one leg and then another out of the tub, Alex watched the bubbles glide down her long legs.

“Do you mind?” she seethed.

“No, I don’t mind.”

Her eyes scanned the chamber looking for something to use as a cover. She spied the clean clothes that she had placed on his bed earlier today; however, she had to edge past him to reach them. So be it.

As she trod past him, the ship rocked, tossing her in his direction. She stumbled. In an instant, Alex’s strong arms were around her, keeping her from falling. She had to place her hands on his bare chest in order to keep from tumbling. The white cloth she was holding fell to the floor. The ship swayed again, pushing her up against him. She looked up at him and was met by his return gaze.

The room lit up suddenly from a distant lightning strike. The color of her eyes radiated with the streak of electricity. It was as if he could see into her soul. The rain gently tapped on the windows and there was a soft rumble of thunder. He could feel her breasts on his chest. Before he knew what he was doing, he pressed his lips on hers in a quiet, gentle kiss.

Madison was in disbelief and her head was swimming. He had the audacity to kiss her. She told herself to pull away, to smack him, but she could feel the warmth of his lips on hers and it felt good. She found herself kissing him back, slowly, innocently. There was nothing in her that longed to push him away.  She only wanted him closer.  Her hands wrapped around his neck. She could feel his strong arms tighten around her waist. Her breasts slowly rubbed on his bare chest with each breath she took, and a strange tingling sensation emanated between her legs.

Their kisses became more passionate as their bodies danced against each other. He could feel her nipples becoming hard as they pressed against his chest.  He wanted to take them in his mouth.  The feel of their softness, her kisses on his lips, and the intoxicating aroma of the bath oils made him crave her. His breath quickened, and he could feel himself becoming aroused. The hypnotic encounter of the passionate embrace was broken by a loud crack of thunder. They snapped back to reality.

Madison pulled back from him, her lips still tingling from the pleasurable encounter. A sensual smile passed over his face. “There’s more of that to come if you want,” he teased.

He felt the sharp sting of her slap across his face. He shrugged, and a low chuckle came from deep within his chest. “No? Well, maybe next time.” He let go of her naked body and strode over to his wardrobe and rummaged through it.

Madison scanned around the room and quickly found the closest article of clothing around to put on, which just happened to be the shirt she had been heading for when the storm and the ship had conspired to throw her into his arms. She put it on hurriedly. The crisp white cotton shirt engulfed her thin body as it hung to her knees. She wrapped it tightly around her dainty figure and turned to confront the arrogant pirate.

He was sitting on the loveseat, pulling on a pair of strange looking boots, watching her. “Oooooo,” she growled at him. “Why do you have to be so irritating?!”

“What did I do?” he questioned with innocence in his voice.

“Watching me,” she informed him. “Do you think I’m going to do something exciting?”

“You already did.” He stood up and pulled on a tight, brown shirt that clung to every muscle of his body.

“Thought you were going to take a bath?” she spat at him.

“In this storm? Are you crazy? I just came to change. The sight of you in that tub was an opportunity I could not pass up,”

“Oooooo,” she rumbled again and picked up his discarded boot lying beside the bed and threw it at him.

He quickly ducked to barely miss the flying boot. “Temper, temper. If I were you, I would start putting anything that can’t be strapped down in the chest by the table, unless you don’t mind getting hit by objects. And then snuff the lanterns. Once that’s finished, find something to hold onto. It’s going to be a long night.”

He turned and headed out the door as another loud crack of thunder echoed throughout the room. One of the bottles of scents sitting by the tub slid off the table and broke as a wave hit the ship.

“He’s right,” she reluctantly admitted. She walked back to the tub and pulled the cork from the bottom to allow the water to drain out the attached pipe. She placed items in the chest and closed the doors to the bookcase. She extinguished the lanterns hanging on the wall pegs. Once all items were secured she looked around the room. The ship rocked violently.

“Now—what to do with me?” Her eyes spied the stout frame of the bed. “Oh, is that all?” she asked herself. “Is that the only thing to hold to?”

The voice in her head said yes. She hurried to the bed, walking like a drunken sailor due to the swaying of the ship. She climbed into the bed, crawled to the tall corner post at the foot, and wrapped her arms around it.

Grasping the column, her thoughts turned to the kiss. His taste, the feel of his lips, the way it made her feel. Andrew’s kisses had never made her feel like that. She tugged at one side of her lower lip with her teeth.
It was a nice kiss, and I did enjoy the way it made me feel. However
,
proper ladies do not act in such a way, especially those engaged to be wed
. The good versus bad debt battled in her head, and unfortunately to her dismay the bad won.

“Oh, it wasn’t that good of a kiss compared to Andrew’s,” she tried to convince herself, but she knew it was a lie. It was so much better.

Her preoccupied thoughts had her distracted, and her grip had loosened from the large post of the bed. The ship rolled with the waves and sent her rolling across the bed. She crawled back to the post.

“Well, I can’t keep rolling around this bed all night,” she told herself. Her eyes spied the Captain’s belt hanging from one of the bed rails. She carefully crawled over to it, all the while attempting to keep her balance. Once she had the belt in her grasp, she scurried back to the large post, wrapped the belt around it and her waist and cinched it tightly. She sent up a silent prayer that she would survive the night.

Up on deck the waves pounded Alex and his crew. The water hit the ship with such force it was nearly impossible for the crew to keep their footing. Alex wrapped a large leather strap around his waist and fastened it to the brace of the helm. He barked orders at the crew, feeling the sting of the water hitting his face. Alex scouted the area for his quartermaster. He could make out the outline of Max’s body through the flashes of lightening.

“Hold fast, men!” Alex yelled as a large wave crashed into the starboard side of the ship. It hit with such magnitude that two of the crew members were swept off the side.

“Man overboard!” another crew member yelled. Several men ran to the side, but it was too late. The men had been taken away by the sea.

“Back to your stations!” Max barked as the wind howled past them. This was one of the worst squalls they had encountered in a long time. The never-ending lightning was matched only by the relentless wind and rough seas.

There was a loud pop above Alex. He quickly ducked as part of one of the masts sailed past him. His gaze went skyward scanning the masts. Luckily it was just the top of the mizzen mast and not the main one. Glancing at the already weary crew, Alex hoped they had it in them to handle the rest of the night for he knew it was going to be a long one.

The Abyss
was tossed about the sea like a child’s bath toy. It pitched in every direction. The waves battered the sturdy wood of the vessel. Water rolled over her deck and off the sides, knocking down the crew throughout the night. The storm raged until dawn. When it broke Alex surveyed
The
Abyss
for damage. Other than the broken mast, the ship was no worse for wear.

He looked at the crew. They had lost several good men last night, but all knew the dangers and came to accept the loss of their crew members as part of life. Alex looked at Max.

“Go below and check on the others, then get some rest,” Alex told his friend. “I’ll take watch for the next few hours.”

Max wearily nodded his head. He was anxious to go check on Kris. She and Samuel had weathered the storm in the galley. His fatigued body headed towards the stairs.