Today, I thought I’d post an excerpt from Hard to Starboard. This is one of my favourite scenes for the play between North and Thorn. Enjoy.
North’s sleep-addled mind registered the presence of at least three women in his cabin. Their furtive whispers were evidence they did not wish to be overheard, so he assumed it was the need for a desk that had brought them here, the cabin opposite being barely big enough to hold a bed. Unfortunately for them, his ears were sharp enough to hear a rope hit the deck amidst cannon fire. He held himself still long enough to satisfy his curiosity.
Swinging his legs off the edge of the bed, North sat up and met the sight of Thorn’s well-rounded backside swaying provocatively as she bent over his desk. Images of any number of pleasurable pursuits involving that particular derrière leaped to mind, causing his cock to stir hungrily. He needed to find a distraction and quick.
“Good day, ladies. May I ask what I’ve done to earn the pleasure of your presence in my humble cabin?”
Thorn scowled. “My cabin, North. I’m but allowing ya the use of it to spare the women yer disagreeable countenance.”
“Disagreeable?” North gasped. “Women love me. I rather believe it is my noble profile that attracts them. I am possessed of a perfectly formed, aristocratic nose.” He turned his head to the side so they might all appreciate the feature in question, made more intriguing for the white scar that added character to what would otherwise have been a flawless line.
“Quite nice,” came Kathy’s praise.
“A strong nose,” Adalia agreed.
“Irresistible.” Ruth managed to appear disgruntled even as her brown eyes brimmed with laughter.
Thorn snorted. “Aristocratic? If the bloody nobles are all claiming the same nose, then I’m thinking the time arrives to cease inbreeding. Are ya not proof it leads to weak-blooded imbeciles?”
North rose from the bed, shamelessly using his size to dominate the area. Kathy, Ruth, and Adalia shuffled to one side to give him more space. “You are quite fortunate I awoke in a good mood, Thorn, for I shall generously allow you the opportunity to beg my pardon.”
“I’ll be apologizing now, will I? And why would I be doing that?” Beneath her show of conceit, he could tell she was enjoying the encounter as much as he. North leaned in close so his lips brushed her ear.
“This weak-blooded imbecile knows our location.”
Three simultaneous gasps told him he’d correctly judged their trouble. The women had no bloody idea where they were! Not for the first time, North wondered how exactly they’d taken over his ship. Thorn shifted her body, leaning back to cover the navigational tools spread across the desk. “Yer knowledge matters little to me as I’m not needing the information. I know precisely where we’re finding ourselves now.”
Shrugging, North lowered himself onto the bed and faced the wall. It wouldn’t be long before Thorn was begging his aid. He commenced counting down.
Ten… nine…
“Be reasonable, Thorn, we need him,” Kathy hissed.
Eight…
“Be not a fool, Kathy. Are ya thinking he knows when we do not? The man has been asleep half the journey.”
Seven… Six…
“Ask. If he does not know our location, what have we lost?” Ruth pointed out, the voice of reason to Thorn’s stubbornness. North knew there was only one thing they’d lose by asking. Thorn’s pride. Even if he didn’t know their location, she’ll have admitted she required help.
Five…
“Are ya forgetting the man’s our enemy? He’ll not be hesitating to give us the wrong information. We’d likely find ourselves sailing straight back to Port Royal.”
Four… Three…
“If not North, how do ye suggest we determine our location?” Adalia insisted. “Have ye any idea, Cap’n?”
Two…
“Certainly. We’re finding ourselves here.” The bullheaded woman was not going to give in easily. North decided he’d have to take action if they were to ever reach their destination.
One…
Moving stealthily so as not to make a sound, North stood.
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Thorn ran through her calculations and confidently pointed to the map, reconsidered, and slid her finger marginally eastward. No. That was wrong. She moved her finger back to its original position.
A strong wall of heat pressed along her back. Thorn suppressed a ragged moan when one North’s large hands splayed itself flat against her abdomen, the other running down her extended arm to clasp her finger and place it farther away from Port Royal – and closer to their desired destination. A small, rocky island Thorn remembered well.
The information she’d managed to gather from the Lucky Leprechaun’s patrons confirmed few visited the place even now, most preferring to anchor at one of the larger islands where the going was significantly less perilous and there existed protection in numbers. For the Delia and her inexperienced, female crew, however, safety meant solitude.
“We shall be there in a few hours!” Ruth exclaimed, her unusual display of excitement a testament to the strain they’d all been under. Thorn had invited her along to this navigational meeting hoping to foster an interest in the subject, for though the woman lacked experience or a formal education of any kind, she’d proven a quick study in all their preparations. And she had never once suggested they decorate any of their tools or accessories. Thorn took comfort in a kindred spirit.
“Only if North’s correct, Ruth, which I’m doubting,” Thorn reminded them. She shook off North’s distracting presence to reposition herself between Kathy and Ruth. One side of North’s mouth tilted upward in an irritating, lopsided smile. The room’s other three occupants made no effort to hide their amusement at her evasive maneuvers.
Thorn was not fooled when Adalia swayed sideways with the ship’s movement, accidentally stepping into the now vacant area in front of North. “Where were ye saying we were?” she asked, tilting her face upward so he might see her fluttering lashes. The fool had to have realized the woman’s game, but he did not protest or give any sign he disapproved of the blatant bid for attention. In fact, he looked positively delighted, his arms obligingly encasing his new companion and his cheek brushing hers. He took his time gliding his fingers down Adalia’s arm to guide her hand over the correct spot on the map. Thorn leaned across the desk and rolled up the parchment, forcing the pair to pull back their hands or else have them wrapped within the chart’s folds.
“It matters only if the captain’s knowing the position. Should ya be caring to know, Adalia, learn to pay attention. We’ll not be wasting our time in repetition.” Thorn swept out of the cabin, slamming the door shut on the raucous laughter.
