“Lady Elise Clifton?” His thick, Spanish accent rolled through her like a caress. She nodded mutely.
“No! I’m Lady Elise,” Brianna shouted then, the name seeming to spur her from her shocked stance. “Don’t touch her. She’s my companion. Pay her no mind. You can leave her be. Take me. I sacrifice myself for her welfare.”
Elise had to bite her lip to keep from laughing. This was a very tenuous situation, but Brianna’s dramatics were too much. Before she could say anything else, the man spoke. Elise noticed he didn’t take his eyes from hers.
“Paulo. You take the clothed one. I’ll follow shortly with…Lady Elise.”
When Brianna started to protest again, the man uttered one a brisk command, “Silence.”
Brianna’s mouth clamped shut.
He turned his gaze to Brianna and stepped close to her. One of his strong-looking hands stroked her cheek and even as Brianna shivered and backed away, Elise had to stifle a moan of jealousy. She wanted that tanned, large hand to stroke her.
“
Cariño
,” he said to Brianna, “you seem to be a good friend. I respect that. But the Lady’s uncle gave me a description of his niece, showed me a lovely portrait even, and I’m afraid she is not a petite, shivering, delicate, blonde flower.”
Again Elise sighed. Such beautiful words. If she were Brianna she’d throw herself into his arms right now.
“Paulo. Now.”
The words, so sharp compared to his gentle voice seconds ago, jarred Elise out of her daydreaming. She jumped and crossed her arms over her body, her nudity now coming back full force as the overly large Paulo sheathed his sword, stepped forward and grabbed Brianna’s arm. She struggled and screamed, but the man simply picked her up as if she weighed nothing and carried her out of the cabin.
“Will…will she be okay?” Elise asked, the reality that she was alone with her captor settling firmly in her skin.
“Paulo will not hurt her. Do not worry.”
He’d also watched the pair leave, but now turned back to Elise. He studied her and one brow rose. “Now, what do we have here? They call me
El Angel
, but I think it is right to give you that moniker.”
“
El Angel
? Captain of the Angel’s Light?”
He quirked a brow. “So you have heard of me,
sí
? Tell me, what do they say?”
“I don’t know much. Just that you are a pirate.” Her voice squeaked at the word pirate and Elise coughed to calm her nerves. What would he do to her?
“And…”
“And that you, um, are known for taking cargo for ransom rather than greed.”
He walked around her, his boot heels sounding hollow and strong. “But isn’t ransom a form of greed as well?” He ran his fingers down her naked back and Elise gasped. Her nerves were strung taut with both fear and excitement. She’d never been alone with a man before, much less a pirate. And never naked. Yet this was the man who would ravish her. Would he hurt her? Or would he make her feel the pleasure she gained when she touched herself in secret?
“I, ah…” What had he asked?
Chapter Two
His warm hand dipped lower and cupped her bottom. “Are you nervous?” he whispered, his calm breath hot against her ear.
“Yes.”
“
Bien
.” He stepped fully behind her and pressed the length of his body against her back, his large hands wrapping around her waist. “When your uncle gave me your description, he did not tell me of your full breasts.” He pulled her arm covering her chest down as he spoke. “He did not tell me of your hidden secrets.” He slipped her other arm away from her lower body and pulled both behind her back to capture her wrists in one of his hands. Then he splayed his free hand over her stomach. “He did not tell me how tempting a virgin you truly are.” With these words, he set his lips to her, right in the soft curve between her neck and shoulder.
Elise whimpered and her knees buckled.
El Angel
kept her body close to his. His erection pressed hard against her lower back and she lay her head against him, anxious and excited.
“What are you going to do with me?” she asked, nearly breathless.
El Angel
stroked his hand up her ribs and cupped one of her breasts. Her nipples, already tight, hardened even more. He unerringly found the point and pinched it, causing her to cry out and to thrust her breast into his hand.
“You like that,
sí
? Does my little ransomed virgin want more?”
He twisted the nipple and a shot of fire made her burn between her legs. She shifted.
“Please, yes,” she cried.
“You are a surprise,” he murmured, teasing her other nipple.
New sensations flooded her body, making her nerves sing and crave even more of his touch. What he was doing to her was similar to the things she’d read about in that naughty book, yet so different, and so much better than she’d ever imagined.
He kissed her neck, nipping as he went. “I bet I could lay one finger over your pussy and you’d come for me, wouldn’t you?”
Come? Oh, yes, that feel-good part. “I want to. Please.”
“How prettily you beg, but I don’t think so,
mi ángel
.” With these soft words he backed away. Elise gasped and almost fell over, but he grabbed her shoulders. “Easy,
cariño
. This is a kidnapping,
sí
? Put on your gown and let us go. Do you need assistance?”
How could he? How could he tease her body in such a way then stand back as if nothing had happened? And he was a pirate, for bloody sake. He should…
“Wait.” She spun around to him. “You are a pirate.”
“I believe that’s a given. Now get dressed.”
“But pirates are supposed to ravish women. Aren’t you going to take me? I am naked.”
He laughed, the sound rich and deep and so unexpected that her anger grew.
“A feisty, naked virgin. I have to say, this is a first for me. And yes, you are tempting, but my goal is higher, sweet one.” He stroked her cheek then, the action she’d yearned for minutes ago now made her lip curl.
“No. You have to ruin me.”
“I do?”
“Yes. I cannot leave until you make love to me.”
His chuckle grew grim and he stepped close. “Your uncle mentioned you were headstrong,
sí
? But here, I make the rules. And the rules are, one, you will get dressed or I will carry you out of here as you are. Two, I don’t make love. I
fuck
my women. And the women I fuck are just that—not little virgin girls trying to be more than they are.”
His face showed no emotion while delivering the insult. What had begun so promising was falling apart. But she had to ignore his words and remain true to her goal. She may have lost this round, but he was taking her prisoner. Her battle was not yet over.
Raphael de la Torres, commonly known as the pirate
El Angel
, stood outside Lady Elise’s door, trying his best to calm his rock-hard dick. Never had he been presented with a body as luscious as Lady Elise’s unless he’d been in a brothel—and it’d been years since he’d visited one. Even though he’d not lain with a woman in some time, it didn’t mean he’d lose control over one mere slip of a girl. He wasn’t as rash as he’d been as a young man. He was older, wiser, and willing to let that life be behind him. Soon.
For now, he was a pirate who lived for the ransoms he collected from stolen cargo. Be that drink, silks or people. The young women especially gained him a nice purse. When he’d heard that an earl’s daughter was crossing the sea, and when he’d discovered her uncle to be the governor of Carolina, he’d made plans. He had approached the uncle and tricked the man into believing he already had the girl. This deception had let him discover on which ship the girl had sailed, and which girl to take. Then it was a matter of navigating the waters to intercept the ship.
He prided himself on a ruthless reputation when it came to ransom negotiations. And when he did ransom a woman, he made sure she was very frightened of him. It kept her in her cabin and away from his men, and it kept him from the temptation to sample her and spoil the enormous rewards.
Especially as Lady Elise represented his last act of piracy. Many men he knew had already died, others disappeared, and still more were begging pardons from both sides of the sea. This ransom for Lady Elise would not only give extra lining to his pockets, but it would allow him to get close to his murdering cousin—a supposed confidant to the governor—and end his life once and for all.
A grunt followed by a curse met his ears and he forced himself not to look into the room. She was a feisty one, all right. And from what he’d seen and touched so far, she presented his biggest challenge.
When he’d pushed past Paulo to see her lush curves presented as if for his enjoyment, he’d hoped he hadn’t drooled.
All pale skin, deep curves and dark hair piled on top her head. Huge blue eyes fringed with thick lashes had stared back at him and he’d felt trapped. The instant her blonde friend had started yammering, he’d snapped into focus.
Touching and teasing Lady Elise had been a bad call, but she was a forbidden, ripe fruit his mouth watered to taste. It’d been too long since he’d enjoyed sharing the bed of a woman for anything other than slaking his own needs. He sensed Lady Elise was one he could savor, taste and truly enjoy.
The fact that she seemed to want him alternately surprised and worried him. She was supposed to fear him, fear what he could do to her. Instead, she’d stood up to him and demanded he make love to her. He coughed out a laugh. Make love. Like that was even a reality. What he did to women, the releases he gave them and himself, were raw and involved very little emotion. He didn’t do cuddling or mushy phrases. He fucked his women. Hard and fast.
“And why am I even thinking this?” he muttered. “It’s not like
la chica
even warrants my attention. I don’t take virgins and I don’t ruin my ransoms. Especially this one.”
His pep talk served to remind him, in no uncertain terms, that this particular ransom would be the hardest one yet to attain.
Luck was not on Elise’s side. Being stuck inside a cabin with orders to ‘stay put or else’, from one of the pirate crew only made her more irritable.
When
El Angel
had stepped from her room on the other ship, she’d put back on the red dress and plumped her breasts so that her nipples fairly popped out. He’d thought her a mere girl, had he? She’d show him.
But the lout had not paid one bit of attention to her. She’d stepped out with her bag in hand, and he’d tossed her over his shoulder and carried her up the stairs. Truly! She’d been passed over to someone else who brought her to the Angel’s Light, where she’d finally been able to stand on her own two feet.
She’d not had one chance to ask
El Angel
anything because she’d not seen him once he’d passed her off. The crew member who’d set her down had smirked at her, revealing plenty of missing teeth, then he’d grabbed her arm and pushed her into a cabin.
Elise now glanced around the room into which she’d been interred. It was larger than the cabin on the other ship. The bed was not much bigger, but it looked softer, if that were even possible. There were drawers underneath the bed and a small table and chair to the left. There was even a chest to the side on which sat her bag.
One thing was sure, this dress was damned uncomfortable. She scratched at the seams along her ribs. No wonder courtesans didn’t wear these dresses for too long. She itched to take it off. Of course, it wouldn’t itch if her chemise would have fit underneath, but that was neither here nor there, was it?
Hmm…should she keep it on and wait for the captain to show up? This didn’t seem like his room, but surely he would check on her? The thought flitted across her mind to strip, but her nakedness hadn’t tempted him overmuch. Besides, she didn’t want to be nude and have some other pirate come in.
Wait, she stopped her thoughts. She was looking to be ruined, right? Any man could do the deed. Only…
She shook her head. That may have been true a couple of hours ago, but now that she’d seen
El Angel
, felt his touch, she couldn’t imagine being with anyone else. Her mind played over the scenes she’d read about in the naughty book and she inserted
El Angel
into those roles. How delicious!
Immediately her nipples tightened and her pussy grew wet. Her nerves were already sensitive from the way the pirate captain had touched her, had spoken to her. It wouldn’t take much for her to go over. Between remembering his touch and putting him in her daydreams, she’d find relief in no time.
She checked the door and found no bolt on the inside, yet when she tried to open it, it wouldn’t budge. She rapped her palm on the door, afraid it was stuck. She heard the slide of a key before the door swung open so fast it almost hit her head.
“You be needin’ something, milady?” the man asked. He was dressed like the other crew member she’d seen—dark, tight breeches, long boots and a loose-fitting shirt. He wasn’t as handsome as the captain, but he wasn’t as homely as the one who’d led her here, either.
“It seems my door is stuck.”
“No, miss. The captain’s orders are for you to be locked in your cabin.”
“For how long?”
“Until we dock. Within a week at least.”
“You cannot mean to keep me here that long.”
“The captain may come to let you out for dinner and to take a walk about the deck if you’d like, but I’ve rarely seen a lady want to leave the cabin. Oh, you’re to know that there’s a bar for you to close the door from the inside if you want. No one will bother you here, and the captain wants to make sure you know that.”
She stared at him, speechless. He must have taken her silence as agreement because he nodded his head, then shut and locked the door once more. Now Elise could see the little bar. Above the handle was a small rectangular piece of wood nailed into the wall. She tested it, and although tight, it slid over to rest on a small peg sticking out of the door. A tiny barrier. She rolled her eyes. With the lock outside, if a man wanted to get in here, this little bar wouldn’t hold anyone from getting in.