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Wade placed his hand on her thigh and Julianne leaned her head down onto his shoulder. He seemed surprised, but after a moment he began to touch her hair softly.
"Oh, love," he began. "Whatever am I going to do with you?" They sat like that for a very long time before Wade lifted her mouth and kissed her softly. Julianne returned his kisses eagerly, wondering if this was the last time she would see him. She kissed him like her life depended on it, which it did. She kissed him like it was the first time and the last time and all the times in between.
Then Wade pushed her softly back onto the bed and lay down next to her, continuing to kiss her side-by-side. Their hands wandered and explored each other until she finally reached down his pants and grabbed what she wanted.
"Please," she murmured. "One more time."
**
It was all the urging Wade needed.
He didn't intend to kill Julianne and had figured out a way around it. As long as Buck backed him up, Wade knew that things would be just fine, eventually. That didn't mean he wasn't going to take advantage of this moment, though, and it certainly didn't mean he wouldn't make it pleasurable for both of them.
Wade pushed up Julianne's skirts so they were resting around her waist. She wore no undergarments, which surprised him, but he was pleased by the discovery. He placed his hand on her knee and slowly moved it upwards, enjoying the way she wiggled beneath his touch. She seemed anxious to have him again, which he loved. It had only been a few hours since they were last together, but already he found himself missing her.
When he reached the top of her thigh, he gently began to massage her. He felt Julianne's muscles tense beneath his touch, and he kissed her again, harder. He knew she was close to coming, close to being completely his. He wanted to feel her explode, wanted to feel what he had done to her body. She continued to moan and tense beneath him until she was almost ready. He chose that moment to plunge himself into her. As soon as he did, her release was unavoidable.
Wade placed his hand over her mouth as she cried out. He wanted to hear her, but didn't want to alert his men as to what was happening. They didn't need to know how he felt about this woman, not yet. He continued to thrust deeply inside of her, kissing and touching her, until he, too, joined her in climax.
When it was finished, Wade collapsed next to Julianne, breathless. Part of him couldn't believe this sweet creature had really squeezed her way into his life today. Part of him couldn't believe he was going to get to be around her. There was another part of him, a darker part, that dreaded the way he would inevitably begin to feel protective of her, the way he would guard her from harm. He already felt an obligation to care for her. Wade had been in love before. He knew what happened to men in love.
But as Julianne snuggled next to him and closed her eyes, beginning to drift off to sleep in his comfortable bed, he knew that it was already too late for him. He was going to be he
r protector, no matter what it took.
11
When the captain called his crew to the main deck the next morning, Nelson wasn't sure what to expect. He knew, from the shouting during the night, that something had been amiss, but he assumed it had been a petty argument amongst drunken sailors. The captain called the men up early, and Nelson hadn't even had time to check on Julianne, though he was sure his sister was fine. Julianne was always fine.
"Last night," Wade told his crew, walking back and forth in front of them, hands behind his back. "I was surprised to discover that my first mate had no further interest in being a member of this crew." Wade paused for a moment, meeting the eyes of each of his men before adding, "In fact, he attempted to shoot me."
A series of gasps shot out of the mouths of the sailors. Betrayed? Wade? What had happened? Though Nelson had no knowledge of Rupert's intended mutiny or who could have been involved, he suddenly wished he had checked on Julianne sooner. Was she okay? Had anything happened to her? Had Wade discovered her?
As if reading his mind, Wade met Nelson's eyes and held them for just a minute too long. Nelson had his answer. He wanted to flee, to run, to hide. He wanted to get to her. He felt his eyes grow wide as Wade stared at him, but then the captain moved on and continued speaking.
"Fortunately, I was not alone when Rupert approached me. My colleague, and the newest member of our crew, was with me." A murmur spread amongst the sailors. A colleague? Who was new? They looked at each other, mumbling and shrugging. No one knew what was going on.
"Hello, boys," Nelson heard his sister's familiar voice and his mouth dropped open when he saw her. Julianne was dressed in slops and a loose top. Her hair fell in long, loose curls over her shoulders. Her feet were bare, but so were most of the men's, so it wasn't strange. Nelson cocked his head as he looked at her, but Julianne ignored him. What the hell had happened last night?
"This is Julianne," the captain spoke again, silencing the crowd. "And she will be continuing with us on this here journey. When Rupert cornered me, I was preparing to leave a meeting with Julianne. She had just brought me new information about our search for Mad Drake's gold."
A few of the sailors nodded appreciatively, seemingly pleased with the information. Others shook their heads, obviously disgruntled with the idea of a woman on the ship. While Nelson knew that some ships managed to function well with a female on board, many pirates still hated the idea. There was a notion that women were bad luck, and that was a rumor Nelson thought would never die.
"When Rupert pulled out his pistol, I gave Julianne the signal to kill him, which she did." Nelson knew that this was not entirely true. In fact, he knew that it wasn't true at all. What Wade needed right now, though, was not the truth. What he needed was for his men to continue to fear him and find him unbeatable in battle. He needed his men to respect him. He needed to send a message that if anyone was in cahoots with Rupert, they could face the same fate.
Nelson didn’t know why the captain was sparing his sister’s life, but he knew that it was only obvious to him. He was the only one who knew about The Dark Lovely’s stowaway, after all. He was the only one who could be certain that until yesterday, no one but he knew Julianne existed on the ship.
“I will not tolerate a mutiny,” the Captain said, and all eyes were glued to him. “Any of ye start thinkin’ you’re better than what ye are, and there’ll be hell to pay and a plank to walk, and in that order.”
Captain Wade Docherty went on to explain all of the ways he would torture and kill his crew if he caught any of them in cahoots to overthrow his rule of The Dark Lovely. Nelson started to tune out the words. He’d heard them all before and at this point, he knew this was all just for show. There wasn’t going to be a mutiny, but the Saucy Devil still had to ensure no one started feeling brave in the weeks to come.
They were closer than ever to the coveted treasure, and if what Wade said about new information was true, there could be a breakthrough. They might be able to find it soon. After all of this time, Nelson knew that this was what Wade wanted more than anything else in the world. His sister’s name caught his attention and Nelson turned back to Wade.
“Miss Rye is here as my consultant. She is not to be bothered by the likes of you scallywags.”
No one spoke as the sailors continued to eye Julianne. Nelson knew that his sister was a beautiful woman, but he hated the idea that these men were looking at her in such a manner. He knew they were hoping for a quick lay after a long day at sea. He knew they were thinking of ways to seduce her. Nelson spoke up.
"Captain," he said. Wade turned to him with an expressionless face, and Nelson continued. "Do you intend for her to stay on the mess deck with us?" A few of the sailors started hooting and hollering, but one look from Wade shut them right up.
