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“Good evening.”
She didn’t drop the mop she was holding but gripped it and pointed as she spun. Isaiah eyed her in amusement, then stood waiting until she registered what he said.
“It’s dawn.”
“That it is.”
“How did you sneak up on me like that?”
His brows rose. “I’m a pirate. I have skills.”
“Yes, well, I’m a va—” Her mouth snapped shut when she heard footsteps, this one distinct. At the same time, Isaiah drew closer, shaking his head in warning before bellowing out a greeting.
“Hey, Chuck. Any troubles tonight?”
The pirate on watch duty approached them. “No troubles. Seas are calm, but we spotted circular waves to our right a few hours ago.”
Isaiah’s pleasant expression closed off and his mouth thinned. “Make sure to tell Marko that.”
“I already did. He’s avoiding it.”
“Good. Keep observing it.”
Another set of questions wanted to burst from her lips, but no one belonging to Jasper’s crew wouldn’t know what waves like those meant.
“You smell.”
It took her a second to register that Chuck was speaking to her.
“So do you,” she shot back, waiting for him to glare. Instead, the man eyed the floors in fascination and gave her an approving look.
“That’s why Wheeler never smells.”
“Why?”
“He sucks at cleaning tasks. You are doing good, kid. Goodnight, captain.”
Chuck wandered off and she stared at his back.
“Chuck never compliments lightly.”
Nicola glanced back at Isaiah, who was still standing close to her.
“You don’t need to check up on me.”
“I wasn’t. I was checking up on the seas. Goodnight,Nic.Get a shower. And do avoid getting into whatever trouble brought on that terrible smell.”
The pirate captain walked away, too, but she tried not to stare at him, the vivid image of his butt still embedded in her brain. Out of defiance, she lingered to clean for a few more hours before she realized the sun was on the horizon and ran quickly toward her cabin.
A tray of food was left on her bed, along with a few packets of blood and a nice-smelling bath soap.
“It’s a bribe to let your guard down,” she muttered. “Don’t fall for it.”
But she enjoyed the blood in peace and took the bath soap to the shower, all too eager to get rid of the scent lingering on her.
Someone had messed up the deck she had so dutifully cleaned last night, leaving behind mud marks and even more manure—and there was only one person to blame.
“You!”
