Authors: Kitty Margo
“T
han watch you sleep
?” Joshua shook his head
,
having found it impossible to stay away. “Since I was denied the pleasure for so long
,
I
cannot
imagine a more agreeable past time. I find watching you in the flesh far greater than imagining you in my dreams.”
Why did she have such a strong desire, an almost overwhelming desire
,
to slide over and hold back the covers for him to join her? Her blushing cheeks betrayed her and Joshua needed no more encouragement.
He moved toward her slowly. Their eyes locked, so close they could almost touch. When she felt his warm breath near her lips
,
she panicked. “I
cannot allow this to happen and
betray my husband’s memory. Even though I have no memory of him
,
there must have been love between us or
I
would not
have married him.” It was entirely possible he had survived the shipwreck unharmed
,
just as Rob and she had. She put her hands out to stop Joshua’s progress,
which he easily brushed
away with a steely glint in his emerald eyes.
“
Do not
fight me, Lynna. My patience has worn thin and
I will
have for myself, even i
f
taken by force, what you so eagerly give to
your
Rob. I
cannot
bear this torture another day.” The past few days had been especially difficult for Joshua and
he had
found sleep impossible. He had
n’t
meant to mention the other man, yet he
could not
rid his mind of him. The thought of them together
,
making love
, burned his mind like a branding iron
and he was immediately possessed by a blinding rage. With a rending tear
,
he ripped the sarong from her shoulders
,
drawing in a ragged breath at the sight of her naked loveliness. He had to have her. He prayed she would come to him willingly, without a fight.
But she
did not.
I
nstead
,
she clawed at his neck
,
leaving four bloody trails. Taking her hands in one of his
,
he held them above her head as the blood from the wounds she had inflicted dripped down onto her neck and chest
,
smearing over her skin as his lips left their path. Lynna fought the passion rising in her. With all her strength she fought it. She would never succumb to his lust. She remembered the spear hidden under her bed, but it was impossible to reach with his heavy weight atop her. With no other weapon available
,
she sank her teeth deep into his shoulder
,
causing him to pull away so fast he almost took her teeth with him.
“Does Rob have to fight you every time he takes you? Is that how you like it? Or do you go willingly to his bed?” He hated her for the pain she was causing him. No, he knew that was a lie
meant to justify his depraved
actions. He could never hate her. Glancing down into her tear
-
stained visage
,
Joshua’s heart melted and he realized that if the only way he could have her was by force, he
didn’t
want her. Overwhelmed with tenderness for her
,
his lips descended and he drank of her sweet mouth one last time before he made to leave her.
He was abou
t to pull away when
her body began responding to his and she pressed seductively up against him. He released her hands and moved his own behind her to cup her buttocks and pull her against him as he entered her. They
had
been too long without each other and were near starved. Joshua buried deep inside her and after mere seconds
,
their insides exploded with an ecstasy that left them breathless. He
heaved a deep sigh,
a
nd left the cave without
a word.
Turning her face to the wall
,
Lynna was in the midst of a good cry when Rob entered the cave. “
Buttercup
,
who is all
dem
men
s
out
yonder
?”
At the sound of hi
s voice, Lynna wrapped the spread
around her and flew into his welcoming arms. She heard his sharp intake of breath and then felt his huge body tremble with unsuppressed rage as he glared at the blood smeared across her neck and chest. “Who done
dis
to you?”
She was afraid to tell him, having no desire to see Joshua suffer. “As you can see
,
I am
unharmed, Rob.” She tried to sound brave. “This is his blood
,
not mine. He faired much worse than I did.”
“Buttercup
,
you done give
yoself
to save me from
bein
’
flogged, and long as I live, ain’t no man
gwine
hurt you and live to brag
bout
it.”
Leaving her helplessly clutching the canvas spread
,
he strode de
terminedly toward the beach
. Rob had hoped and prayed to never see or deal with another white man as long as he lived, but he had a wrong to make right and he would see it done. Lynna quickly donned her good sarong and followed him.
Joshua and Rob were face to face when she reached the beach. Rob’s huge form towered over Joshua’s as he stood at the water
’
s edge
,
washing smears of blood from his arms and chest. “Is you
da
one
whut
done rape Buttercup?” Rob demanded with his fists clenched tightly by his sides and ready to take on the entire crew if they dared interfere.
“Did she tell you I raped her?” Joshua asked casually, not realizing who Rob was nor the depth of his anger.
“She ain’t
gots
to tell me, I done
seed
the blood on her. You
gwine
answer me?”
It was slowly dawning on Joshua just how angry this giant black m
an was. “No, I certainly would not describe our encounter
as rape.”
“Well, whatever you
calls
it I
aims
to kill you
fo
it!” Rob warned as his meaty fist connected with Joshua’s jaw
,
sending him sprawling backward into the sand. Joshua tried to stand, but Rob kicked him viciously under the chin
,
snapping his head back with enough force to break his neck. Rob lunged again, but Joshua grabbed his legs
,
toppli
ng him and bringing the huge man
down. They exchanged blow for blow rolling in the sand until Rob won the advantage when he landed on top of Joshua with his hands going around his neck to squeeze. Joshua clawed at the massive hands to no avail as blackness rapidly closed around him
and his life flashed before his eyes
.
“Rob, stop!” The scream was torn from Lynna’s throat as she raced toward them. “Stop! You’ll kill him.”
“He need to die
fo
whut
he done to you!”
She made to throw herself on Rob’s back at the same time as Rob drew back his fist to pummel Joshua. Rob’s fist
caught Lynna below her left eye, knocking
her out cold.
Joshua’s men, hearing Lynna’s scream
,
came running
,
and it took four of the stoutest to subdue Rob
and tie him to a coconut tree. T
wo of those men would be incapacitated for days. “You need me to get the
cat-o-nine-tails
, Captain?”
“Yes, get it.” Joshua hoped
to intimidat
e the goliath who’d almost sent him to
an early grave
and keep him still long enough to find out who he was
.
Seconds later, Lynna opened her eyes to see Joshua kneeling over her. “L
ynna, are you unharmed, my love
?”
“
I’
s
sorry, Buttercup.
I
sho
nuff
is sorry
,” Rob was struggling ferociously against the ropes that bound him.
“Nonsense
,
Rob, it was an accident
,
” she replied, still dazed. “I should have made my presence known. I know you
would
never intentionally harm me or anyone else.”
“Here’s that whip, Captain,” the eager crewman grinned.
Whip? At that moment
,
the fact that Rob was tied to a tree with his back exposed sank into Lynna’s spinning head. She leapt to her feet
,
forcefully shoving Joshua aside and rushed to Rob
’s side
. “Untie him this second! Bring me your knife
,
Joshua! If you inflict one lash on this man
, I swear I will
murder you all while you sleep!”
Moving to take the distraught girl in his arms, Joshua held her against his chest until she stilled.
“Calm yourself, Lynn
a,” he
said as gently as possible. “
I will
untie him if he gives his word not to try to kill me again.” He
had
never seen her so angry or upset before. Her slight figure trembled with rage. Joshua turned to Sam and ordered him to gather six of his most able-bodied seaman close before he saw the behemoth untied.
That voice!
Lynna knew that voice
! Words and voices and faces seemed to scramble around i
n
her head before it finally cleared. It was J
oshua! Dear God!
With a cry of delight she raced to an astonished Joshua and leapt into his arms
,
finding his lips for a long, heartfelt kiss that
did not
end until Sam began coughing to gain their attention. “Oh, my darling
,
Joshua,” she whispered, lowering her lips to his again. “It really is you! I remember now. I remember everything.”
“It’s about damn time!” Joshua grinned
, twirling her in his arms. “I feared I would be forced to resort to kidnapping you off this island.” Then he nu
dged his head toward Rob. “Who’s the goliath
?”
“This is Rob,
of course.
” She grinned at his shocked expression. “I
would not
be alive now if he had
no
t taken
such good
care of me. I owe him my life, Joshua.”
“Then I am f
orever in your debt, sir.”
Joshua looked at Rob and his mouth gaped open, marveling at his own stupidity. “Rob?” He
had
been a fool to jump to such hair-brained conclusions without first finding out the details. Would she ever forgive him?
Rob
’
s serious tone brought him back to the present. “I knows no black man ain’t
‘
pose
to threat no white man. But out
heah
on
dis
island,
dey
ain’t no law to speak of and Buttercup
done said we was equals
,
so
I’s tellin’
you now.
Ifn
you or any other man touch her
agin
,
an
she ain’t want you to,
I
rip you apart
wit
’
my bare hands.”
No man there doubted the sincerity in his words as he disappeared into the forest.
Lynna and Joshua were eating breakfast after a night of breathtaking passion that had left both of them trembling and gasping for air, when Rob entered the cave two days later.
Standing to shake his hand, Joshua said,
“My ship is ready to sail with the mornin
g tide, Rob.
Are you sure we
cannot
persuade you to join us?”
“
Naw
sir,
I’s stayin’ heah
.
Dey’s huntin’ fo
me back
i
n Jawga
.
Heah
I ain’t got no boss and nobody
standin
’
over
me
wit
’
a whip.”
“Nobody would stand over you with a whip at Sea Grove. You would have my word on that. You would have your own cabin and live life as leisurely as you pleased.”
“Please, Rob. Come home with us,” Lynna pleaded.
“
I’s
happy
heah
.”
“I understand Rob,” Lynna replied softly, moving toward the big man and hugging him in a warm embrace. Then she turned to Joshua. “Could we come back to the island next year for a visit?
Perhaps by then he will have changed his mind and be willing to return home with us.
”
“Of course we can. We
will
return periodically and bring you supplies, Rob.” Joshua extended his hand to the huge man. “I owe you a debt of gratitude
,
my friend. One that
I will
never be able to repay. If you had
n’t
thrown Lynna over the side of that pirate ship
,
odds are great that both of you would have perished along with the others. And if you hadn’t been with her here on the island…
thank you again.” Then he turned to Lynna with a beaming countenance. “We set sail for Jamaica to bring Crystal onboard, and then to Magnolia House for Judith
,
so you can
instruct her to begin designing her most magnificent wedding gown to date
,
and then to Sea Grove,
your new home.” Joshua
held out his hand to her. “The
Windjammer
awaits, my love.”