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She didn’t have much time to think about that, though. She was too busy vomiting.
**
Wade stood on the deck and shouted orders to his men. He had done this so many times that he could do it in his sleep. Directing his men was not his problem. Doing it while searching for Mad Drake’s ship? That was his problem. If Old Lester’s map was correct, they were on course to find the area the ship went missing in just a few weeks’ time. That didn’t bother him. What did bother him was trying to find the treasure when they kept hitting storms. It wasn’t storm season and he didn’t like the way the sky had been looking lately.
Wade might do a lot of crazy things, but leading his men into disaster wasn’t one of them. He struggled openly with the decision to keep going, to push through the storm. He had been a captain for a long time and a pirate even longer, so he knew the calms and storms of the sea. He knew when it was time to seek shelter. He knew when it was time to push through.
Today, he urged his men forward, through the rain, through the torrents. They would pass several islands that they could land at if they needed to. There were options. What he didn’t want was to stop before they had a chance, to lose their place on the great sea. He didn’t want the ship to crash, to wreck before they had a chance to complete their mission.
His mission.
His dream.
He shouted to Buck to hurry up to deck and help as the rest of the men scurried about. He was soaked to the bone and his men were, too. Casting a weary glance up at the sky, Wade continued yelling to his boys.
He knew they would never let him down.
He just hoped he could do the same for them.
**
When Wade returned to Julianne, she had finally calmed down enough to fall asleep. Like the day before, she slept on her stomach. He smiled a little, knowing her ass was still tender from his touch. Though Wade was not sadistic, by any means, he loved walking the line between pain and pleasure when it came to lovemaking.
And he knew from experience that sometimes, a firm hand could add an entire new level of pleasure.
He stripped out of his wet clothes and hung them over the back of his chair. They would drip on the floor, but he didn’t much care. The only thing he wanted was to wrap his arms around Julianne, to smell her hair, and to relax beside her as he fell asleep.
It had been a long time since Wade found solace in the arms of a woman. It had been a long time since he felt safe enough beside a girl to actually sleep. Since his wife died, he had been with many women and many whores, but he had never felt safe with one. He had never felt complete. He had never been able to relax.
It wasn’t like that with Julianne.
Wade marveled that anyone could try to force her into a marriage with someone who would be cruel to her. Julianne was much too kind for that. He had seen the way she managed to make her way around the ship, the way she had been able to keep the boys in line. He saw how she was always willing to offer a hand to Buck when he needed help in the kitchen. Wade even loved how Julianne was always curling up in his cabin with a book.
She was precious.
Yet somehow, this Vince fellow was going to hurt her. Anger bellowed deep inside Wade when he thought about the man who had almost stolen Julianne away. Though Wade hadn’t even known her during her engagement, he felt protective of her. He felt in charge of her. He didn’t like the idea of some other man touching his woman.
His woman.
Wade thought about that for a momen
t as he draped one arm over Julianne. She purred softly in her sleep the way a little kitten would, and then snuggled back against him. She didn’t wake up as Wade closed his eyes, she just let out a soft sound of contentment, and soon Wade was fast asleep.
17
The next morning, Wade stood with Julianne on the deck. The sun was rising and most of the men were still asleep. He didn’t worry about it. They had worked hard to keep The Dark Lovely afloat during the storm. They could have a day to relax if they needed to. Hell, for all he cared, they could have a week if it meant he’d get to watch the sun rise every day.
Though Wade knew Julianne was only with him so that she wasn’t forced to return to Gunthry, he was beginning to enjoy having her around. Part of him thought that maybe, just maybe, she wouldn’t want to disappear after they found the treasure. Maybe she’d want to stay with him for awhile.
“I love this,” she whispered, looking out over the water.
“Me, too,” he murmured, looking at her.
Julianne smiled.
“Do you ever get tired of this? Watching the sun rise over the ocean? Feeling the wind in your face?” She asked.
“Never,” he answered easily. Though he tired of many aspects of piracy, the sea herself was not one of them.
