CHAPTER 11

You rest your head back on your knees and sigh in defeat. Suddenly you hear a noise across from you. It sounds like a very soft moan, you squint your eyes trying to locate the source.

“At this moment, I’m a caged tiger luv,” you hear the distinct slur of Jack’s voice softly groaning from across the room. You jump up on your feet and lean against the bars.

“Jack?! What the hell?” you ask rather confused. You are able to pinpoint his exact location when he starts to slowly stand up. He’s in the cell across from you, and must have been stuffed in the darkest corner. ‘No wonder why I didn’t see him, I must have completely overlooked him,’ you think.

“Why all the yellin’ luv?” Jack inquires while rubbing his head and leaning against the bars in his cell much like you are. ‘I bet if we both reached out, we could touch fingers,’ you quickly ponder.

“Why all the yelling? Jack I am stuck in a cage. I don’t know where I am. I am bleeding from the head. And why the hell didn’t you say anything before? You just let me yell and sit here all alone,” you accuse while speaking slowly as if you’re speaking to a child. Somewhere in the back of your mind, the fact that Jack is still very much shirtless registers and creates a very warm feeling to spread throughout your stomach. ‘I am confined in a cage, now is not the time to think fuzzy Jack thoughts,’ you reprimand yourself.

You stare at Jack waiting for an answer and realize that he’s not looking at your face. You follow his eyes down and see that your shirt is still very much wet and is clinging to your thighs. You snap your fingers a couple of times to get his attention, “Focus Jack.”

He snaps his attention back to your face and smiles lopsidedly, “My apologies luv, jus’ admirin’ me shirt. It’s rather lovely.”

“Sure you were,” you reply.

“Anyways luv, ye woke me up with yer yellin’ and tha’s not a nice way ta wake up. I can think of much more pleasant ways. An’ I didn’ say anythin’ cause I wanted ta see how ye’d handle the situation. Also I jus’ wanted ta watch ye tear into the poor sod,” Jack explains slowly while trailing his finger up and down the bars in front of him.

Jack glances around and frowns, “This is jus’ terrible. Shotty housing.”

You’re slightly upset that Jack is joking around about this, “Jack I would appreciate it if you’re a tad serious. This isn’t exactly a good time and we have no way of getting out.”

“What are ye talkin’ about luv? O’ course we’ll get out. I know exactly where we are and I can assure ye that taking leave won’ be very challenging,” Jack tells you. “This is Captain Jack Sparrow luv,” he adds while pointing to his chest, “Don’ forget that.”

“How could I possibly? You remind everyone every twenty minutes,” you shoot back dryly while running your hand across the bars.

Jack grins back at you and says, “Well I hardly think that it’s every twenty minutes luv, ye could be stretchin it a bit.”

“Whatever Jack, it doesn’t matter. Cause we’re in cages, I’m freezing cold, and I would really like to get out. So if you could share this secret as to where we are, I would greatly appreciate it,” you say letting your anger come across in the tenseness of your voice.

Jack silently looks at you for a couple seconds and then tells you all you want to know. “We’re on Cap’in Brig’s ship, if ye can call ‘im that. Sorry excuse he is, ‘owever he’s very focused. Anyway, he’s quite the hapless one. His crew as well. It should be rather basic ta get out a here luv. Ye jus’ have ta be patient and wait for the opportune moment.”

“Okay...but why did he takes us to begin with? Did he take The Pearl too? What about your crew?” you question.

“He’s not after The Pearl. Couldn’ handle ‘er. An’ I’m not worried ‘bout me crew, they’re a tough lot. And as fer you, ye’re prolly an unexpected perk. Assumed since ye were in me bed, ye must be important ta me. Bopped us both on the head,” Jack explained as he sank down to the ground and sits cross-legged facing you.

“Why would I be special cause I was in your bed? You’re not exactly virginal Jack. It’s pretty well known that you’re not lacking in the lady department,” you point out cautiously, not really wanting to discuss his habit with the women, but too curious to pass up the question. Suddenly self-conscious about the fact that he’s sitting on the ground and whether or not he can see more of your legs, you sit down in the same way he is.

“Well me lil nyph, I don’ make a habit of bringing the lovely lasses back onto the Pearl, it’s a small guideline. Brig’s must’a figured tha’ ye’d have ta be somethin’ pretty unique ta make it back ta me bed,” Jack seriously tells you while staring intently through the bars.

You suddenly feel exposed and maybe even a little special. ‘So was I the first girl to ever sleep in his bed with him?’ you wonder. Remembering that there’s one more thing that you’re curious about, you turn your attention back to him.

“What does this guy have against you then Jack?”

Jack grins mischievously and replies with, “He may be a bit angry with yours truly, who’s ta say?”

“What did you do Jack?” you demand.

“Why does this have ta be my fault luv? Why think the worst of ol’ Jack? Is it possible that I’m jus’ a harmless victim in all this?” Jack questions, feigning hurt feelings.

Wearing a knowing smile, you reply with silence and decide just to stare at him. You raise your eyebrows and lean forward, resting your elbows on your knees and your head in your hands.

Jack shrugs his lean shoulders and quietly adds, “I may have ‘ad gained some carnal knowledge ‘bout his daughter.”

“May have?” you sigh and roll your shoulders back to stretch them.

“It’s hard ta keep em all straight luv,” Jack cheekily replies.

“How charming,” you say with sarcasm.

“It was the rum pet,” Jack insists, “Won’ happen again. I promise.”

“Somehow that just doesn’t make me feel better. I’m in here because you mount everything with a pulse,” you accuse.

You glare at Jack, angry with him for getting you in the middle of his problem. ‘Just because he can’t keep the mouse in it’s house, I’m stuck in this god damn fucking cage,’ you furiously think.

“I’ll get ye outta here luv, I give me word,” Jack quietly promises you. He lays back on the ground and folds his hands underneath his head. Something in his voice sounded a lot like remorse and you can’t help but feel that you hurt him. You frown at your actions and start feeling guilty over blaming him for this. ‘It’s really not his fault,’ you think, ‘I’m the one that convinced him to take me with him in the first place.’ Perturbed that you can’t see Jack’s face so you can try to tell what he’s thinking, you pivot slightly so you can lean your side against the bars. You keep your eyes trained on Jack’s still body and watch his chest slowly rise and fall with each breath he takes. You find it to be almost hypnotic.

You have no idea how much time has passed when you are snapped alert by the sound of boots stomping into the room. You glance at Jack and see that he remains still.

“Jack,” you quietly hiss trying to wake him up. You watch as the same pirate from before walks into the room. You stifle a laugh as he stumbles and almost falls to the ground. You stand up and set an angry look on your face, ‘He can’t see me as weak.’

The dirty pirate avoids looking into your eyes and turns towards Jack’s cell with a mocking grin, “I see ye’ve found Cap’an Sparrow.” He laughs and kicks the bars the make up Jack’s cell a few times.

“Oi!” Jack startles awake and quickly sits up to glare at whoever is the cause for the noise. “Now tha’s a bit rude there mate,” he says as he slowly stands up, keeping an eye on the man. Jack adds, “If ye had some rum with ya, I wouldn’ be so quick ta judge.”

“Well look at tha’, Jack Sparrow. Caged like a’ animal,” the pirate sneers while fingering the pistol at his waist.

“Captain. Captain Jack Sparrow!” Jack frustratingly clarifies underneath his breath.

“How convenient for you, him being locked up like this,” you tell the man behind his back.

He swings around toward you and jabs his index finger in your face, “Ye shut yer gob!” You wrinkle your nose in disgust at the finger jabbed in your face. There’s dirt caked underneath his fingernails which look like they were bitten to the bone.

You glance over the man’s shoulder at Jack and almost smile at how happy he appears. His dark eyes are gleaming with pride and his arms are crossed against his chest. He grins at you and nods his head slightly.

Jack clears his throat which draws the pirate’s attention back to him and asks, “Is Brig’s gonna get down ‘ere or do I have ta shoot the messenger?”

“The Cap’an will be ‘ere ta deal wit’ ye soon enough. He’s...preoccupied. O’course, if ye’re sweet lil pigion ‘ere would like ta get it over with, I’m sure the Cap’an could deal wit her now. She looks ta be a soft one, and he always shares,” he sneers in Jack’s face. The amusement in Jack’s face vanishes and is replaced with a look of coldness.

“Ye’re gonna bleed fer that,” Jack quietly threatens. You’ve never seen him look so menacing and you get the feeling that you’re missing something. The brutal gleam in his eyes almost frightens you, and you’re not surprised when the disgusting pirate takes a step back away from Jack.

You watch Jack as a slow grin spreads across his face. He’s smiling but it doesn’t reach his eyes, and it makes you think of a serial killer.

“Now then...‘bout that rum?”

* * * * *

CHAPTER 12

“Now then...’bout that rum?”

“Ye’re not gonna get any rum,” the pirate almost cautiously tells Jack.

Jack tightly smirks and crosses his arms across his bare chest, “Tha’s alright, we won’ be in ye’re company much longer.

You glance at Jack and meet his eyes over the pirate’s shoulder, your eyebrows raise in question as to what he is talking about. Jack takes a step closer to the bars so that he is pressed flush against it, he nods in the direction of the man in front of you and says, “Do me a favor luv an’ give a lil push.”

‘What the hell does that mean?’ you wonder while slightly confused. The dirty pirate takes a step towards Jack, swings around to glare at you, and suspiciously asks, “What are ye doin’ pigeon?”

You open your mouth to speak, but before you can get a word out, Jack quickly thrusts his arms out of his cell and latches onto the pirate. Jack pulls the man close to the bars with one hand and swings his other arm around the man’s veined neck.

You watch with wide eyes as Jack pulls the man in tighter against the bars. The pirate starts struggling and gasping for breath as he feebly hits the arm wrapped around his neck. Jack reaches, with his free hand, for the pistol tucked into the sputtering pirate’s waistband.

As Jack pulls the pistol free of it’s confinement, he softly whispers words into the ear of his captive. You strain to hear what he’s saying, but you can’t hear a thing over the sounds of struggle. You feel like you should do something, but Jack seems to have it under control. The pirate is hitting Jack anywhere he can reach, but it doesn’t seem to phase Jack at all.

Jack quickly swings the firearm up and, with a dull thump, hits the man’s temple. His arm releases the man’s neck and you watch the man’s limp body fall to the floor.

Looking up at Jack, you take in his appearance. He’s breathing heavily, causing his chest to rise and fall rapidly. You look up at him and notice the sweat beading on his collarbone.

Now knowing how to react to Jack’s actions, you ask softly, “What did you say to him?”

“I always keep me promises,” Jack answers and looks down at the body. You follow Jack’s eyes down and notice the bloody gash in the fallen pirate’s temple.

“I guess you do,” you slightly smile. “Although you could have informed me ahead of time about what you were planning on doing.”

“An’ miss your confusion? Where’s the fun in tha’ luv?” Jack replies while kneeling down. Tucking the pistol in his hand into the back of his pants, he begins rifling through the unconscious man’s clothing and comes back up with a ring of keys.

You can’t help but smile at the thought of finally getting out of your cell and slightly bounce on the balls of your feet in anticipation.

Jack tries a few keys in the lock of his door and finally finds the right one, swinging his door open and stepping out. He takes in your excited state and chuckles to himself with amusement.

“Jaaaack come on,” you groan impatiently.

“Alright luv, calm down,” Jack tells you. He slowly starts trying each key, finally finding the correct one, he swings your door open.

You have no idea how, but you soon find your arms flung around Jack’s neck, hugging him tightly. Judging by the grunt that escapes from his throat, you guess that you probably surprised him. However, he quickly gets over his initial shock and wraps his arms around you while letting the ring of keys in his hand drop to the ground.

‘This feels so natural and right,’ you think to yourself while Jack’s hands are slowly rubbing up and down your back trailing your spine.

Burying his face in the nape of your neck, Jack gently says, “Told you I’d get ya out o’ here.”

You softly laugh into his shoulder, “Well we’re not completely out yet, so I’ll save the praise and worship for later.”

“Ooh...sounds promisin’ luv,” Jack laughs.

Remembering how you treated him earlier, you suddenly feel guilty at how you accused him so harshly and you pull back slightly so you can look Jack in the face. You swallow your pride and softly mutter, “About before...I’m sorry for what I said....about this all being your fault. Well...your actions are kinda at fault I guess, but I didn’t need to point it out and yell at you about it. So...I guess I’m sorry for acting like an insensitive prick.”

Jack smiles and answers, “I don’ know ‘bout prick luv, but already forgotten. Now let’s get out o’here so you can get on wit’ the worshipin’.”

Jack pulls away from your hug, but takes your hand in his and leads you toward the way out.

‘He makes it far too easy to apologize to him,’ you gratefully think to yourself. You find it a little difficult to concentrate on the escape, rather than concentrating on Jack’s hand holding yours.

Remembering about a question you wanted to ask him, you softly ask, “About what you said earlier, was I really the first person to ever sleep in your bed?”

Jack stops walking and turns to face you with a small grin, “An’ how euphoric does that lil fact make ye luv?”

“Oh shut up Jack,” you playfully toss back at him. “I was just curious.”

“Sure ye were luv,” Jack taunts you while pulling you along with him towards the door. “Yes, ye were the first an’ only,” Jack adds. You can’t help but smile openly at his last uttered statement.

Once at the door, Jack slowly opens it a crack and peeks out for a second. He turns around, places his hands on your shoulders, and pushes you back a few steps.

“Luv, ye’re gonna ‘ave ta stay here and wait fer me ta come get you,” Jack leans down to look you in the eyes.

“Why can’t I go with you? I don’t want to stay in here alone Jack,” you plead with him. You’ve had enough of being in that room and really don’t want to stay another minute.

Jack sighs and pushes a strand of hair that had fallen in your face behind your ear, “Luv, I gotta make sure it’s safe fer you ta go out there. Don’ argue with me ‘bout ye bein able ta fend fer yourself. I’ll be back ta get you. Now stay.”

You frown as you watch Jack slowly open the door once again and step through, closing it softly behind him. You glance around the small dank room and notice for the first time how dark it is.

‘How long have we been in here?’ you wonder. You’re no longer sure what day it is, let alone what time it is. You walk over to the small window in the cell you were locked in and look out. You realize that any light that had come through the window and into the small room must have been from the full moon looming above the ship.

‘So is this the same night I fell asleep with Jack? Or is this the night after?’ you question while confusing yourself soundly. Squinting your eyes, you think you can see something in the far off distance. ‘Maybe it’s land, or the Pearl,’ you hopefully wonder.

Hearing the door creak open, you scramble out of the cell and hurry to the waiting pirate. The first thing you notice when you lay your eyes on Jack is a long bloody gash across the right side of his flat stomach.

“Oh my god Jack, what the hell happened?!” you demand. Reaching out to the bloody cut, you lightly graze the patch of skin underneath it, only to have your hand swatted away by Jack.

“Don’ worry bout it luv, we’ll deal with it later. Right now we gotta get outta ‘ere,” Jack tells you while grabbing the hand he just swatted and leading you out of the door. The full moon manages to light up the entire ship and you notice a man sprawled out on the ground a few feet to your left.

“Is he alive?” you question Jack.

“Fared better than me,” Jack answers sounding slightly offended that you would worry about a man who tried to gut him.

“Where’s everyone else?” you quietly ask. Looking around, you see that the ship’s deck is completely deserted except for the obvious.

“Sleepin’ luv,” Jack scoffs, “Cap’n Brigs carelessly only leaves one man ta keep watch.”

“Oh,” you mutter under your breath. You find yourself yet again being dragged along behind Jack as he leads you over to the side of the ship. There’s a small row boat hanging by ropes off the side of the ship, high above the water. You look over the side and wonder how in the world the two of you will get in and get it down. A chilly breeze slams into your side and you wrap your arms around yourself shivering. Your shirt is still wet and the cruel breeze makes it feel as if it just may be freezing to your skin.

Jack wraps his hand around your elbow and a chill goes down your spine at the contrast between the freezing air and his warm hand. “Get in luv, an’ I’ll lower ye down,” Jack tells you while directing you to the correct spot to climb in at.

“How are you going to get in?” you question.

“Climb down the rope,” he answers while helping you to step inside the small boat. It swings slightly and you have to grip onto Jack’s arm for support.

“It’s okay luv, jus’ hold on ta the sides and you’ll be fine,” Jack assures you. You slowly sit down at one end and clutch onto the sides tightly. You bite your bottom lip as Jack begins to use the ropes to lower the boat down into the water. If the boat wasn’t swaying back and forth you would be marveling at Jack’s strength. But since the boat was swinging all about, you were more interested in the not falling out issue at hand.

You’re surprised that it only takes Jack a few minutes to lower the boat into the icy water. Looking up you see Jack disappear out of your sight. ‘Where did he go?’ you wonder while getting worried that someone woke up and found him. Wrapping your arms around yourself you let a couple minutes pass by, and when you’re about to call up to him he reappears. You sigh in relief at the sight of him. You watch in amazement as Jack swings his body over the side of the ship. You notice that he has something tied around his waist that wasn’t there before. Gripping onto the rope, he climbs down swiftly and drops into the boat.

You can’t help but smile widely knowing that everything is going to be okay. You’re not worried about finding land or the Pearl, you know that it’s going to turn out just fine. ‘I wonder if Jack has this affect on everyone.’

Jack’s still standing in the spot he landed in, working on untying the material from around his waist. You furrow your eyebrows in worry when you see the bloody cut on his stomach again, ‘That needs to be cleaned.’ Looking up at Jack you take a moment to take in the sight while he’s distracted. The moon light is hitting Jack full on, causing his tan body to almost glow. Your eyes travel from his stomach up to his broad shoulders. There’s a slight sheen of sweat covering his upper body which ends up defining his muscles even further. Even with the minuscule amount of strength it takes to untie the knot in the material, you can see the muscles in his arms rippling underneath the skin. At his triumphant sound you immediately stop staring at him, not wanting to be caught. ‘Not that it really matters,’ you think, ‘he’s already caught me, what’s one more time? Besides, it’s not like he doesn’t stare.’ As Jack unwraps the material, you see that it’s a large blanket and assume that’s why he disappeared before.

“Here ye go luv,” Jack says while stepping forward to drape the blanket around your shoulders. You smile while he makes sure to tuck it around you, covering every inch. Satisfied with his work, he leans back and pulls a bottle out from the back of his pants. You burst out with laughter at the sight of the small bottle.

“Leave it to you Jack. You never cease to amaze me,” you humourously giggle.

Jack looks at you defensively while sitting down opposite from you, “What? It was an accident, happened ta be by the blanket. How could I not partake?”

Realizing that he only brought one blanket you skeptically ask, “Aren’t you going to be cold Jack?”

“Tha’s what the rum’s for luv, keep me insides warm.”

“Actually it doesn’t, it pretty much just tricks your body into believing that it does. You could get hypothermia Jack,” you matter-of-factly inform him, glad that those silly prerequisite college courses are actually turning out to be worthwhile.

Jack frowns at you, then at the bottle of rum, then back to you. “I’ll take me chances luv, but if I get cold I’ll just cuddle up to you. Then I’ll have the rum, an’ you’re body keepin’ me warm.”

You inwardly groan at his sexual innuendo, but respond with, “Better than you dying on me.”

Jack takes a drink from the bottle and then sets it aside. He puts on, what you can only describe as, his ‘serious face’ and begins to row away from the large ship. You glance behind you at the ship getting farther away and take a moment to think about how easy it really was to get out of there. ‘What a pathetic pirate ship,’ you think. You doubt it would be so easy to escape from Jack’s ship.

Turning your attention back to the front, you watch Jack. You know enough to know that you can’t help him when there’s only one set of oars. You get as comfortable as you can get, already feeling so much warmer from the blanket that Jack tucked around you. You take turns between watching the water and watching Jack, more of the time is spent on watching Jack. You can’t help yourself. Any breathing female wouldn’t be able to keep her eyes off of Jack.

‘Captain Jack Sparrow is indisputable living proof that Michelangelo’s ‘David’ is definitely not the perfect male form,’ you think to yourself while watching the muscles along his shoulders and chest contract from the rowing.

* * * * *

CHAPTER 13

After around twenty minutes of silence, you decide that you just can’t take the noiseless atmosphere any longer. The only sound, other than that of the paddles hitting the water, is the sound of Jack’s labored breathing. You find that you can only take so much until your thoughts start to turn X-Rated.

“How long have you been a pirate Jack?” you question. Your voice seems to cry out through the silence and it seems unnaturally loud to your ears. Jack doesn’t seem to notice your voice any louder than usual, so you chalk it up to the fact that you’re just used to the quiet.

Jack looks up at you and asks, “Are ye meanin’ just pirate? Or are ye addin’ Cap’n to that?”

“All of it. How old were you when you decided that this life was for you?”

Jack slows down his rowing and seems to contemplate his answer for a moment. “Best way ta explain it luv, would be ta say tha’ there was never an age. This is me life, it always ‘as been an’ always will be,” Jack explains to you.

After thinking about his answer for a minute you ask, “Do you ever get the urge to just stay on land for awhile?”

“It’s a nice place ta visit luv, but I wouldn’ wanna live there,” Jack replies without thought.

“You are most confusing Jack,” you exhale. Jack’s only response is a wink and a smirk. You don’t really know what else to say so you just go back to studying your surroundings. Jack’s answers seemed to dodge around your real questions and you wonder if he meant to do that. Looking all around you, all that can be seen is an endless expanse of water. The moon light causes the water’s surface to twinkle brightly. You pull your hand out from under the blanket and bend slightly to the right, dipping your hand into the cool water. ‘Let’s hope this night doesn’t get worse and I fall in,’ you humorously think. Pulling your hand away from the water, you bring it back under the blanket and look back out into the sea. ‘Whatever I thought I saw through that window earlier is gone now,’ you think sadly to yourself. You were hoping that it was the Pearl coming to get you and Jack.

Looking back to Jack you see that he has quit rowing and is studying you rather intently. Feeling shy suddenly, you briefly look down, then bring your gaze back up to Jack’s. A small quizzical smile spreads across the pirate’s handsome face and you wonder what he could possibly be thinking. ‘I never know what he’s thinking, well unless he’s staring at my chest, stupid pirate,’ you think.

“Do me a favor luv,” Jack’s questionable accent breaks through the silence. ‘What is that accent anyway?’ you quickly wonder, ‘It’s like a non-accent. An accent that’s not.’

“What’s the favor?” you ask, immediately suspicious. Jack leans forward and rests his elbows on his knees. You notice the way his stomach ripples slightly when he leans forward, and think again about his cut needing to be cleaned.

“I want ye ta tell me what you see when ye look out there,” Jack tells you, nodding out to the gleaming sea.

You scan your surroundings and look back to Jack when he says, “Ye do tha’ a lot.”

You raise and furrow your eyebrows in confusion, “Do what? Think? Look around?”

“No, ye worry your bottom lip often,” Jack softly says.

You realize that you actually were biting at your bottom lip again, you hadn’t even realized you were doing it. “Yeah I tend to do that, I don’t even know when I am most of the time,” you tell him.

“It intrigues me,” Jack responds hoarsely.

You don’t quite know how to respond to his comments so you try to change the subject with answering his previous question. “To answer your first question, I guess I see...nothing. It’s endless...,” you tell Jack without looking at him. When he doesn’t respond to your answer, you start to think that you may have just sounded like an idiot. ‘Good thing I didn’t add that I saw beauty,’ you gratefully think.

You look up to see Jack slowly nodding his head in what seems like agreement. He glances around then makes a clicking noise with his tongue. Sighing loudly he turns his attention back to you once again.

“Soooo.....luv. It is time then fer ye ta start worshipin’ me?”

You roll your eyes and grin at him, “It’ll have to be a spur of the moment kinda worship Jack. Where would the fun be in doing it when you wanted me to do it?”

“Ye’re pickin’ up some bad habits from yer pirate man luv,” Jack cheekily responds.

“Jack are you done with the rowing? Cause I don’t think we’re getting anywhere and I really don’t think you should be in the cold like that for much longer,” you honestly tell him.

A frown slightly appears on Jack’s face while he looks behind him, but disappears as quickly as it came. “I suppose ye’re right, we can sleep til mornin.”

“Okay good,” you say making no room for arguments, “But first you’re going to let me clean the cut on your stomach.” You unwrap the blanket from around your body and ignore the frigid air hitting your newly exposed skin. Scooting forward, you carefully sit on your knees. You grab the bottle of rum at Jack’s feet only to be met by a loud protest from Jack.

“Not the rum luv!”

“I’m only going to use a little, calm down. It’s going to be okay,” you patiently tell Jack.

“No, use the salt water. Works just as well,” Jack stubbornly insists while trying to grab the bottle from your hand. You lean back and push his body back away from you, “Jack you’re going to tip the boat.”

Jack sits back with a huff while wearing a very sullen expression. You would like to be annoyed with his behavior, but you can’t seem to keep the feeling alive. ‘He’s just too damn precious,’ you think with a smile.

“Are you going to co-operate Jack?” you ask him. He looks you up and down, then the sour expression vanishes from his face only to be replaced by a rather content look. He nods his head a few times and leans back in the boat, causing his stomach to tighten and flatten. He’s practically laying down, with his arms hooked over the sides, and his legs stretched out to either side of you. You already know that this is going to be a rather interesting task.

‘Of course he has to make this difficult for me,’ you think frustratingly. Never noticing before how small this boat really is, you find that now it is hard not to notice. You try to find a position to sit in where you can easily reach the wound without having to straddle his hips. You end up sitting sideways on his left thigh, with your legs laying across his right leg. ‘Better than straddling him I guess,’ you decide while making sure that your shirt is pulled down.

Looking at Jack’s expression, you get the urge to pinch him. He’s wearing a very self-satisfied grin while looking very comfortable and falsely unaware of your struggles. You give in to your urge and pinch him on his unwounded side. He jerks in response and glares at you. In turn, you just stick your tongue out at him.

“Tha’ was uncalled for luv, ye’ll pay fer that,” Jack growls.

“You deserved it,” you inform him while grabbing the bottle of rum from where you set it down. Realizing that you’ll need something to wipe the cut with, you decide that the corner of the blanket will suffice, ‘I can deal with a little blood.’ You drag the blanket across your lap and uncork the bottle. Looking at Jack’s face, you see that he’s enjoying this a rather large amount.

You pour a little bit of the rum onto the cloth and start to softly blot at the wound. Jack softly hisses at the first contact and while feeling bad for his pain, you still can’t help thinking that he probably makes noises like that when he’s not in pain. ‘No don’t think that shit,’ you berate yourself, ‘you’re sitting on him, do not think about him feeling pleasure.’

You concentrate on cleaning his cut and pour a little bit more of the burning alcohol onto the cloth. Hearing Jack whimper quietly at the sight of his rum being used for something other than his consumption amuses you endlessly. As carefully as you can, you finally get the blood wiped off so you can see that the cut wasn’t as bad as you had originally thought.

“It bled a lot but thankfully it’s not too deep,” you happily tell Jack. Looking down on him you try your hardest not to linger too long on his bare upper body.

Jack sighs in pleasure and a small smile quirks up the right side of his mouth. He takes the bottle from your hand before you can replace the cork. Taking a couple drinks, you’re stunned when he offers you some.

“No thanks, I’m not much for alcohol. Doesn’t get along well with my liver,” you say. Jack is clearly pleased with your refusal because it means more for him. You’re touched though that he actually offered. Placing the cork in its place, Jack sets it down to his side.

You decide to slide off of Jack’s thigh and move back to your end of the boat. Taking you by surprise, Jack quickly sits up before you can move and grabs your right arm.

“Hold still luv,” Jack orders. You keep still and try to remember to breath. You’re finding it hard to remember anything while sitting in his lap pressed up against him. Jack stretches your arm out in front of him and pulls the sleeve of your shirt up past your elbow. Seeing the soaked material tied there, you realize that you had completely forgotten about it. ‘Jack didn’t,’ you think with joy.

Jack carefully unties the cloth and unwraps your elbow. Twisting your arm about and bending it every direction it could possibly bend, Jack inspects it with narrowed eyes. His expression relaxes when he’s satisfied with the examination. Your breath catches as he brings your arm up and lightly brushes his lips against your elbow. Looking at you, he grins and gives your skin one last soft kiss before setting your arm back down into your lap.

“All better,” he whispers. You’re not sure if you’re imagining it, but his voice seems to have taken on a huskiness. You can feel his fingers lightly dancing across the inside of your wrist, but you can’t seem to drag your eyes away from Jack’s.

“Thanks...I forgot about it,” you meekly utter, trying to get a hold of yourself.

Jack shifts his body to the right as far as the small boat will allow, causing your butt to slide off his thigh and onto the hard surface beneath.

‘What is he doing?’ you briefly wonder to yourself.

Jack, with his hands, directs you to turn your body so you find yourself lying on your right side next to him. You wait while he rolls the bottle of rum to the other end of the boat and drags the warm blanket up and over your bare legs. Once Jack is satisfied with making sure that you both are sufficiently covered, he lays back down next to you on his back. He stretches his left arm out and without thinking, you cuddle up to his side using his arm as a pillow. Wrapping his left arm around your shoulders, he uses his other arm to make sure that you both are covered.

Finally relaxing, Jack sighs heavily and stares up at the night sky. You move your head up to rest more fully on his shoulder and breath in deeply. ‘I could stay like this forever,’ you think.

You stare out into the night and think back on everything that has happened. You realize that you haven’t thought about your other life in quite awhile, and understand that you don’t really miss it. ‘How could I miss it? There wasn’t really anything there for me. Sure some friends, family I guess, but most of the time I was unhappy. I haven’t felt a shred of that feeling since I’ve been here, the reason being the man I’m using as a pillow,’ you speculate. You don’t know how you got where you are, but you decide that it just doesn’t matter. ‘I don’t want to go back, and maybe because of that I won’t,’ you decide.

Putting those thoughts aside, you shift your attention back to the man next to you. Jack is gazing blankly at the stars, his only movement being his hand lightly sweeping across your arm. Knowing that Jack isn’t paying any attention to you at all right now, you allow yourself to just look. With the close proximity, you can see every bit of what makes Jack so irresistible. His eyes are the deepest shade of brown you have ever seen, and they seem to get darker and lighter with his moods. The black smudged underneath just serves to draw a person in deeper. You follow his jaw line with your eyes, and love how there is a gap between the hair there. You shift your attention back to his eyes, and when seeing that he hasn’t noticed your activities, you glance down at his mouth.

Suddenly a thought strikes you as odd, ‘Why hasn’t he tried to kiss me?’ You know he must have thought about it at least once, you’re not blind to the way he looks at you at times. And you’re sure he knows that while you put on a tough front, there would be no resistance.

“So why the hell hasn’t he kissed me?”

Your eyes widen in shock the moment you realize that you just said that out loud. You keep as still as possible, keeping a small shred of hope that maybe he didn’t hear. ‘How could he have not heard? I practically yelled it,’ you think.

You hesitantly glance at Jack, and become confused at the fact that he doesn’t seem to have any reaction at all to your outburst. He’s still staring out at the sky, with the very same blank expression. You wait in silence for him to say something, or for one of his smirks to appear, but it never comes.

After a few minutes your body starts to relax again and you let out a tiny grateful sigh.

“Tear ye up inside don’ it luv? Gettin’ frustrated...impatient. Me poor lil’ nymph.”

You’re instantly angry with yourself for letting your guard down and relaxing. ‘There was no way he was going to let that go, and now there’s no point in trying to deny that I was talking about him,’ you think. You lift your head up to fix him with one of your best withering glares.

“Oh shut up Jack, it’s not like you haven’t thought about it.”

Jack continues to stare up at the sky, only now he has a large gratified smile on his face that has reached his eyes, making him seem open and playful.

His lack of response frustrates you, making you feel uncertain. “Why do you call me that?” you quickly ask.

His smile gets larger and he asks, “Call ye what luv?”

“Nymph, Jack. Why do you call me a nymph? No, why do you call me your nymph?” you slowly clarify for him, becoming very interested in his answer.

His smile never faltering, Jack responds without any thought. “The Greek believe them ta reside in forests, large bodies of water. Always beautiful... goddesses. You’re me own lil’ nymph luv. It’s jus’ how I think of ye.”

“...Oh,” you murmur, ‘How am I supposed to respond to that?’ You didn’t expect his answer to be anything close to that. You once again think back to the fact that you were the first to ever sleep in his bed, and you can’t help but feel special all over again. ‘He seems to have a knack with making me feel that way,’ you say to yourself.

Jack chuckles with your murmur of a response and turns his head to look in your eyes.

“An’ for the record luv, ye’re right. It’s not like I haven’ thought ‘bout it.”

* * * * *

CHAPTER 14

“An’ for the record luv, ye’re right. It’s not like I haven’ thought ‘bout it.”

Staring back at Jack, you watch the change in his eyes. They go from the brightest brown, to the darkest shade you’ve ever seen. Not knowing what else to do, you decide to revert to playfulness. ‘It always seems to work,’ you tell yourself.

“Sooooo.... you think I’m a beautiful goddess. And you wanna kiss me,” you tease slowly with a knowing smirk planted on your face.

Jack’s smiles grows larger at your change in attitude, he uses his arm around your shoulders to pull you in closer to him. You grunt in surprise in ending up half lying across him. You’re practically lying on him completely, your left leg is thrown across his legs and you use your right elbow to sit up slightly.

“Oops, sorry luv. Accident,” Jack innocently notifies you.

Looking down on him, hair slipping from behind your ear, you lightly poke him in the chest, “Accident my ass Jack.”

Jack reaches up and tucks the hair back behind your ear, “Depends on yer definition of ‘accident’ luv.”

“Oh so it’s kinda like your definition of ‘borrow’ right? Complete opposite of the actual definition?” you ask, although it’s not really a question since you already know the answer. You unknowingly leave your hand resting on his chest where you had poked him, covering the twin bullet scars almost completely.

Jack beams up at you, “Precisely luv, I’m so glad ye understan’.”

“So why is it exactly that you’ve never tried to kiss me?” you ask Jack curiously. You know that by asking Jack that question, it was just going to end up in making matters more difficult for you. However, your curiosity was just far too strong to ignore.

Jack purses his lips in thought and then says, “A form of self-torture luv, fer us both.”

“Little full of ourselves aren’t we?” you mock.

“Only when I know I’m right, an’ I’m always right.”

You raise your eyebrows and smile in challenge, “I highly doubt that Jack.”

“Oh really? I jus’ happen ta know what ye’re thinkin’ right now luv, an’ the second ye admit it, ye’ll get it,” Jack informs you cunningly.

“I don’t want anything Jack. Well...besides the extreme urge for a real pillow...and maybe my socks,” you furrow your brow in a mockery of concentration. “Well as long as I’m listing things I want...I want my pants, my chapstick is in my pants. And I would like some pretzels, those would be nice...”

With a lazy smile, Jack cuts off your train of thought by strategically placing his index finger against your lips. You immediately stop talking, not just stop talking, but your brain seems to completely shut down. All you can think about is his finger against your lips, among a few other thoughts that spring up. ‘This would be the perfect time for him to kiss me. He really should kiss me,’ your inner monologue prattles on.

“Sshh luv...ye’re babbling. An’ not tha’ I don’ love yer random speeches, but this one is jus’ coverin’ fer what ye’re really thinkin’,” Jack softly informs you, then slides his finger off your lips.

Snapping out of your trance the second his finger leaves your lips, you make a weak attempt to convince him, “That’s all I want Jack.”

“Not jus’ what ye want, what ye desire.”

Getting annoyed with his persistence you give in, “Fine then Jack, please, do tell me what I’m thinking. What do I desire?”

Jack pulls your left hand from his chest and entwines his fingers with yours, “Ye’re thinkin’ ‘bout me kissin’ ye. Admit it luv.”

‘How the hell did he know that?’ you demand of yourself. ‘What the hell am I supposed to say? What if I agree and he has a Jack laughing moment? No he wouldn’t do that. He looks too serious for that. Maybe he just wants me to agree so he can kiss me. Why would he wait until I said it out loud? He’s Captain Jack Sparrow. He doesn’t wait for anything. Now I’m just confusing myself.’ You end up deciding on just being honest and seeing where it takes you. You can always follow up with a sarcastic remark if it doesn’t go well.

You look down at your hand entwined with his and softly concede, “Yeah I admit it.”

Without looking up, you watch as Jack releases your hand and brings his hand up to your face. Cupping your cheek in his warm palm, he lifts your head up to meet his eyes. His face looks nothing short of enraptured, which causes you to smile a bit. Unsure of his intentions, you stay silent.

He trails the tip of his thumb across your bottom lip and whispers, “Thanks luv.”

You don’t respond, you’re too busy trying to remember to breathe. Once Jack starts bringing your face closer to his, you completely forget to even remember to breathe. With the smile still in place, Jack brings your face down to his and lightly kisses your bottom lip. You can feel the coarse hair on his upper lip brush against your bare lip, which causes small tingles to spread out from beneath your skin. But the feeling of his mouth against yours causes you to feel an overwhelming dizziness. His hand moving to the back of your head, he rubs his lips against yours, coaxing a response out of you. Relaxing into his grasp, you slowly start to respond to his questioning mouth.

You practically pass out when Jack takes your bottom lip and lightly bites it. Returning the favor, you do the same to him. After you bite, you softly suck his bottom lip into your mouth. The sound of his breath hitching in his throat makes the smile on your face grow. Jack’s assault on your senses speeds up as he lifts his head to gain more control. You begin to lose tract of time, and all thoughts flee your mind. All you can see is Jack. He tastes of the sea, salty and pristine, and you can detect a slight trace of rum on his lips. You feel Jack’s tongue lightly flick at the corner of your mouth, only then to place soft kisses. He kisses along your jaw line to end with a kiss on the nape of your neck.

Resting his head back on the hard surface, Jack looks up at you and smiles. You can’t help but return his smile happily.

“Ye know luv, now that ye opened the box, ye won’t be able ta close it,” Jack triumphantly informs you.

“What exactly does that mean Jack?” you playfully ask him as you bring your hand up to lightly tug on the braids coming off his chin.

Jack holds your wrist in his hand but makes no move to stop you from pulling at his braids. “Meanin’ that ye’ll have no choice in when I kiss ye. I’m no longer gonna suppress the urge.”

“How nice of you to warn me. Now I’ll know to watch out so I’ll know when to duck,” you laugh.

“Very funny luv,” Jack tells you as he brings your hand to his mouth and gently kisses each fingertip.

“Well I guess the same would go for you. I’m thinking that you don’t have a problem with that at all,” you say with sarcasm.

“It jus’ so ‘appens that I don’,” Jack answers against your fingers. He plants a kiss in the palm of your hand, then pulls you down to lay on his chest. He tucks your head underneath his and softly kisses your hair. Sighing you pull the rumpled blanket back up around you both then drape your left arm across his chest. You absentmindedly trace the twin scars with your index finger, and then recall how you did the same exact same thing the night before. ‘It’s completely different this time, I feel so at ease and comfortable,’ you think. ‘I can’t believe that in one day so much has happened.’

“I love it when ye do tha’,” Jack gruffly breathes into your hair. He uses his right hand to trace little patterns on the back of your occupied hand.

“Yeah I know,” you arrogantly reply.

Jack laughs and hugs you tight to his body while staring up at the dark sky.

“So...how long do you think we’re gonna be floating around?” you ask. You briefly wonder about what you saw on the ship earlier and wonder if maybe you’re now floating away from it.

“The Pearl is out looking for us luv, an’ if they don’ find us, we’ll find land. No worries,” Jack assures you while letting his eyes drift shut.

“I think I may have seen something. Earlier on Brig’s ship. I was pretty sure that I either saw land or a ship.”

“Don’ worry luv, ye’ll be fine,” Jack again assures you.

“I’m not worried, just curious,” you say simply. You cuddle up closer to Jack, feeling warm despite the cool breeze. The blanket helps a bit, but the vast majority is from the warmth emanating from Jack’s body. Your eyes drift shut in contentment and you feel as if you’re going to fall asleep.

‘I hope I wake up just like this,’ you think. Your eyes then spring open at the thought.

“Jack, promise that I’m going to wake up just like this. That you’ll still be here,” you hurriedly request. ‘The last time I fell asleep I woke up in a cellar,’ you think, ‘I don’t want to wake up by being thrown in the water or something.’

Jack slightly sighs and brings his left hand up to rest in your hair. “I promise ye luv, ye won’ wake up anywhere but with me. I won’ let anythin’ else happen,” he softly declares while kissing your hair once more. You lightly kiss his chest a few times and then rest back into his embrace. Despite his promise, you’re still slightly worried that this will be taken away somehow.

“Thanks Jack,” you whisper against his smooth chest.

“Fer what luv?”

“For everything.”

* * * * *

CHAPTER 15

You're slowly rocked out of your deep slumber by the waves gently splashing against the side of the small boat. You slowly open your eyes, fully expecting the bright morning sunshine to blind you. Instead, you find yourself staring up at the same night sky you fell alseep to.

"Huh, that's odd," you softly murmur to yourself, having expected to sleep through the entire night.

You roll over onto your right side but instead of coming into contact with the warm body you assumed to be there, you just roll into the other side of the boat. Jerking up into a sitting position, you quickly look down at the vacated area Jack was once lying in and your eyes widen in surprised confusion. Swinging your head left from right, you scan the ocean's surface, looking for any sign of life. Gripping the side of the boat, you peer down into the black water, not even knowing what you are hoping to see. Nothing, not even the slightest ripple. The dark sea is eerily calm and all to be seen in black in every direction. The fact that the sea is so still and the water so black never even registers as out of the ordinary. Nor does the extreme silence that is hanging above you like a cloud, blocking out the stars that must still be up there even though there seems to be no trace of the bright lights. Starting to panic, you scream Jack's name a few times only to be met with your voice echoing back at you.

You start searching the bottom of the boat for any sign of where he may have disappeared to. Not noticing anything different, until you suddenly realized that there is one thing missing besides Jack.

"The rum's gone! Why is the rum gone?!" you shout, "He made sure to take his god damn rum with him, but he left me? Bastard!"

'Maybe he didn't leave me. Maybe Brigs found us and pirate-napped him,' you think. Frowning, you babble to yourself, "If someone had taken him against his will, he would have made a fuss about it. I wouldn't have been able to stay sleeping. And why would they take him and not me? The only way I wouldn't wake up is if he didn't want me to wake up, meaning he left me of his own free will."

Coming to that conclusion brings tears to your eyes, while feelings of abandonment race through your mind. The feeling begins to seep into your bare flesh and you suddenly feel very cold. Curling up into a small ball, you huddle underneath the blanket you had just previously shared with Jack. Inhaling deeply, you can't catch even the slightest trace of his scent. The thought of not knowing how to get home never crosses your mind, all you can think about is Jack. Moments in time flash through your mind like a slideshow. The second you lifted your head to lock eyes with him for the first time, all the way to falling asleep comfortable in his arms right after finding out exactly what it was like to be kissed by him.

You can't stop the tears from spilling down your cheeks and you don't even make an attempt to wipe them away. You start slowly rocking your body back and forth while making no effort to halt the sobs from wracking your body. Muttering "he promised" under your breath like a mantra, you slowly find yourself drifting into a troubled sleep.

You are brought awake a second time by the feeling of warmth seeping through your cool skin and the feeling of your body being gently rocked awake. Not wanting to open your eyes, you clench them tightly shut and ignore the rocking.

"Wake up luv. Ye were wrigglin' in yer sleep, an' not that I didn' enjoy yer wrigglin' form but ye started cryin' an' that kinda ruined it fer me. Ye okay luv?"

Your eyes snap wide open at the familiar voice and you try to adjust to the bright sun as quickly as possible. Your mind is fuzzy with sleep but you do determine that Jack was the cause of the rocking, using the arm that he has firmly wrapped around your shoulders. Once your eyes have adjusted enough where you don't need to squint, you quickly sit up and turn your body around to face Jack.

He looks like he never moved from his spot. He's splayed out with his right leg hooked over the side of the boat. With the blanket having been tossed to the other end of the boat and his pants slung low on his hips, his bare upper body is completely open to your gaze. His hair is sticking out all over the place with a ruffled bed-head look. You noticed the concern marring his face and you're flooded with anger.

All you can think about it how he left you all alone, 'And now he dares to look worried about me?' Without thinking, you strike out with your fist and catch him square in his side. Ignoring his grunt of pain you start spouting off any and all obscenities you have acquired through the years. Anger and hurt are the only two feelings that seem to be able to get through your hazy mind.

"You fucking bastard!" you yell angrily. "How dare you fucking ask me if I'm okay? You fucking left me all alone you stupid wanker! You better have a good explanation? Do you only ever think about yourself? Oh and of course your rum! Have to have the god damn rum! Daft fucking cunt, bastardized asshole! You promised me Jack. You fucking told me that you were gonna be here! You god damn lying bloody pirate! I trusted you!" You slowly taper off once you realize that your insults aren't making a whole lot of sense any longer.

Through your entire tirade Jack never uttered a sound after his initial grunt of pain when you punched him. Jack stares up at you with his eyebrows scrunched up. After a few seconds of only your labored breathing to be heard, he pulls himself up into a sitting position mirroring yours so you are facing him directly.

Jack heaves an exasperated sigh and mutters to himself under his breath. You strain to catch what he says and you're pretty certain that he said, "Damn you woman."

Still very angry and hurt, you demand an explanation in a tone that leaves no room for argument, "Well?"

"Never 'appened luv. I never left ye. It was just a bad dream. I woke ye up cause ye were crying," he quietly informs you.

Staring blankly at him, you try to sort through your foggy mind. You make no move to push his hand away when he reaches up with a steady arm to slide the pad of his thumb across your cheek, effectively wiping away the last trace of tears.

"But...I remember everything. I woke up and you were gone..." you trail off.

"Never happened nymph. Does it look like I went fer a lil swim? I could never hope ta bring meself to leave this boat without ye," Jack assures you, a small smile tugging up the corner of his mouth.

Your mind starts to clear out all of the foggy sleep and you begin remembering all of the things that didn't make sense. The stars, the water, the echo, how Jack could get away without waking you and you start separating what you dreamed from reality. You realize how nothing made sense and it never occurred to you that something was a little off. As your mind clears completely from the haze of sleep, you start beginning to feel overwhelmingly foolish for the way you acted. Next the embarrassment comes in full force.

Seeing the change in your demeanor, Jack's smile grows larger and he pulls you in for a tight hug. You relax into his embrace, thankful for his affection. With all the emotions you just endured, you really needed the hug.

"Don' worry 'bout it luv. It's nice ta know that you'd be so terribly upset if your good ol' Jack were ta leave ya. Fills me lyin' pirate heart with pride," he jokingly tells you using your rant as material.

"Shut up Jack," you try to laugh but it comes out sounding like a pathetic attempt. Everything you yelled at him that he didn't deserve hits you hard and you start feeling terribly ashamed of your hasty actions. Remembering that you had actually punched him and how he had grunted in pain, you push back away from his chest and look down at his bare torso. You immediately see that you had punched on his side where he had gotten cut.

"Oh my god, I punched your side!" you shout. "I'm sooo sorry. Are you okay? Does it hurt?" you fire off questions as you gently prod the surrounding area of his previous injury, looking for any tender areas that weren't there before.

"It's fine pet," his voice is gruff but gentle at the same time and you pause to wonder how he manages to pull both sounds off at once. Fixing a smug smirk on his perfect lips and twirling his right hand in the air as if to music only he can hear, he adds, "It was well worth it ta find out how ye love me so. Now ye can be me nurse again if ye so wish."

"Leave it to you to make the fact that I viciously punched your open wound a laughing matter," you mutter under your breath. Although you're relieved that he did. 'The day that he stops turning everything into a joke is when I should get worried,' you think to yourself.

You pull your hand away from his stomach, suddenly realizing that you had stopped poking at him and had just left your hand there. You use your arms to slide your butt to the opposite end of the boat and sit with your legs crossed, making sure that you are sufficiently covered by dragging the end of the blanket up and over your lap.

You watch as Jack leans against the side of the boat and stretches out as much as he can in the small area he has to work with. With his arms hanging off the sides and his right leg hooked over one side, he makes a rather perfect picture.

"Comfortable?" you sarcastically ask.

"Quite. 'owever, I can think of some things that would increase me comfort level," he suggestively replies.

"You have a dirty...," before you can finish your sentence, Jack quickly brings his right hand out of the water, effectively splashing you with water.

"Aye, that raised it a rather considerable amount," he snickers, rather pleased with his actions.

With the salty water dripping off your face, you scowl at him and then a smile quickly replaces it. Dipping both hands into the water at either side of you, you quickly bring them back up splashing a rather good sized amount in Jack's direction.

"Oi!"

You start laughing hysterically and even the sight of Jack preparing to repay you doesn't stop the laughter. The next few minutes are spent splashing water on each other with loud laughter and shrieks.

Seeing his bottle of rum, you grab it from your feet and hold it out above the water. Jack eyes you sharply waiting for your next move.

"I won't drop this if you promise that there will be no more splashing," you say.

Jack's eyes narrow and too quickly for you to retaliate, he lunges towards you. With one hand he grabs the bottle from your hand and tosses it behind him. Giggling, you start to struggle and pretend to make a move for the rum once again. 'God I love this,' you think as you try to crawl underneath his arm. He uses his body to stop your attempt and presses you up against the side of the boat behind you. With one of your arms trapped between the two of you and the other rendered helpless in his grasp, you stop struggling accepting the fact that he has bested you.

"Okay okay you win," you give in. You try to pull free of his hold only to realize that he apparently has no plans on letting you escape.

Jack laughs at your attempts and lowers his head down to your right shoulder breathing deeply. He turns his face towards your neck and nuzzles against the soft skin. Any struggle that may have been left in you quickly vanishes as you move your head to the left to give him more access.

Jack murmurs something against your neck that you aren't sure were full words. Placing soft kisses down the nape, he plants a few more kisses along the skin exposed on your shoulder.

As much as you love the feeling of his mouth on your exposed flesh, the arm trapped between you two is starting to hurt.

"Jack," you softly say, "As much as I love this, my arm is slowly losing circulation and it may be in danger of falling off completely. I like having two arms."

You can feel Jack laugh softly against your shoulder before he pulls away from you a few feet. You sigh in pleasure when you begin to regain the feeling back in your arm and bend it at the elbow a few times to help speed the process. Jack takes your arm and runs his hand up and down the length, massaging along the muscles.

"Aye, it's gonna 'ave ta come off luv," Jack matter-of-factly informs you. You giggle in response, stick your tongue out at him, and playfully push at his chest.

Jack lowers his head and eyes your hand set upon his chest, his hair falling down around his lowered head. Lifting his head just enough to look you in the eyes, Jack warns you gruffly, "Ye're playin' with fire luv."

CHAPTER 16-20

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