"Why didn't you say something? I didn't realize this was the place that…" A rush of warmth flooded her body and for a brief instant, she lost herself in his pale blue eyes. "What?" she asked.
"What?"
"You're laughing at me," she said, the warmth now flushing her face.
"You are a fine sailor, Merrie."
"You find that odd?"
"For a woman. I find your sailing talents quite…useful, practical."
She glanced up at him. "Thank you for the roundabout compliment, Captain Rourke. And that has been my life's goal, to prove myself useful to a man."
He groaned and shook his head. "You have misunderstood me again. I also find it admirable. You are a woman of many talents, Merrie."
She jumped to her feet and dropped a mocking curtsy, then sat down again. "Aye, Captain, that I am."
Griffin secured the tiller then took a seat across from her. His gaze drifted past her, over the water to the town. "I know Bath Town as a much rougher place," he said. "It looks almost deserted now."
"The big ships don't come in here anymore, so there isn't much commerce-just a fine collection of historic houses, a lovely old church and about two hundred people. But I think it's one of the most beautiful and serene places in North Carolina. I've come here many times while researching my-" She stopped herself, realizing she'd nearly mentioned her book on Blackbeard. "Researching," she repeating.
"Well, we might as well be about our business now before the sun goes down." Griffin reached down and tugged off his deck shoes. Then he stood up and stripped off his shirt.
His chest gleamed under the late afternoon light, rippled muscle and hard flesh. Her fingers clenched spasmodically as she remembered her exploration of his body the last time he'd come to her bed. How she had wanted to touch him, to prove to herself that he was a flesh-and-blood man, a man who would respond to her touch, and not just the fantasy hero of her dreams.
He reached for the waistband of his trousers. She gulped hard. "Wha-what are you doing?"
"I'm going to get wet, Merrie-girl, the same way I did that night. Turn your head. I would not want to offend your tender sensibilities."
He tugged the trousers down along his narrow hips and she quickly closed her eyes.
"You can't just take off all your clothes and jump in!" she cried.
"And why not? If I can wear a dress on the main street of Ocracoke Village, certainly my nakedness in the middle of Old Town Creek would not cause eyebrows to rise."
She felt the boat rock slightly and then heard a splash. Slowly, she opened her eyes and peered overboard. He broke the surface right tinder her nose, water sluicing over his shoulders. Tiny droplets clung to his dark lashes, like diamond chips, and she found herself suddenly unable to catch her breath.
"Brrr, it's cold," he growled, shaking his head and scattering the diamonds across the blue water.
Lord, he was glorious, and even more so without clothes. She cursed her cowardice. She should have looked when she'd had the chance. After all, just when was the last time she'd seen a naked man. An image came to mind and she winced. The sight of Griffin in the buff would easily supplant thatmemory.
She tried to make out the details of his body through the wavering water, but then he kicked away and swam out from the boat with strong, sure strokes, his shoulder and feet breaking the surface. For a moment, she glimpsed his bare backside and the line at his waist that marked his deeply tanned back.
He stopped swimming about twenty yards from the boat, then turned back to look at her, lazily treading water as if he hadn't exerted himself in the least. "Well?" he called.
"Well what?" she replied. Did he want her to comment on his swimming skills or was he waiting for her to swoon at the sight of his naked body?
"This is the place and the time is about right," he said. "Do you see anything?"
"Not as much as I'd like to see," she muttered softly.
"What?" he called, frowning at her.
"What am I supposed to see?" she called. "What did you see that night?"
"I don't know. I was standing at the rail of the Adventureand I thought I heard someone behind me. I horned, and the next thing I knew, I was in your house, trussed up on your sofa."
"Well, maybe you should just swim around for a while," Meredith suggested. "Slowly," she added.
He did as he was told, circling the boat in a lazy crawl, his rippled back glinting wet in the diminishing light. She watched him for a long time, soaking up the sight of his nude body as it slipped through the water. The sun dipped lower on the horizon and then, in a red blaze, set behind the remains of Thistleworth Plantation, the home of the duplicitous Eden, friend to Blackbeard.
He stopped swimming a few yards from the boat, then brushed his wet hair back from his face. "Nothing is happening," he said.
"How do you feel?" Meredith asked.
She thought she heard him curse. He looked up at her. "Cold, wet, and nothing more."
Disappointment colored his voice and frustration was evident in his eyes.
"Maybe you should come back on board."
He glanced around once more, waiting, watching, then shrugged resignedly. With a knifelike movement, he kicked his feet out and submerged.
"I'm sorry, Griffin," she murmured. "But we tried."
Meredith waited for him to surface, but after fifteen seconds, he still hadn't come up for air. Thirty seconds passed, then sixty, and still he didn't come up.
Meredith leaned over the combing and looked into the water. "Griffin?" she called. "Griffin!" The last was a desperate shout, her voice echoing across the width of the river. A clock ticked in her head, multiplying her anxiety with each second he remained underwater.
Suddenly, a pair of wet arms circled her from behind. She screamed and twisted against the embrace. Griffin's deep chuckle sounded in her ear, sending a warm shudder through her body. "So ye thought I drowned, did ye?"
"Let go of me!" Meredith protested. "You're wet! And cold!"
He pulled her against him playfully, and she felt the subtle imprint of his body along her spine and backside. She squirmed in his arms until she faced him, then looked up into his eyes. Suddenly, the teasing smile faded from his face.
He bent his head and covered her mouth with his, his kiss swift and intense, his tongue plumbing the depths of her mouth until she felt as if she might lose consciousness.
She returned his kiss in full measure, running her hands along his damp chest and twisting them around his neck. He moaned deep in his throat and drew her hard against him until she could feel his desire spring up against her belly.
He did want her! Her heart sang and her senses whirled with the realization. Whether he was ready to admit it or not, he felt the same passion for her as she did for him! And at that moment, she realized that he had been brought here for a reason-to fulfill her fantasies.
Then, just as quickly as he'd covered her mouth with his, he drew back. He closed his eyes and slowly shook his head. "Damn, Merrie, you sorely tempt me," he whispered. "You must not allow this to happen again."
"Me?" she asked, breathless. "I-I don't understand."
"Do not ask me why, for I am not sure I would be able to explain. Call it a point of honor. I know you've encountered scoundrels in your past and I will not be counted among them. Your reputation will not be sullied any further than it already has."
"Sully?" Meredith blinked hard and stared up at him, completely baffled by his words. Though she didn't know much about men, she certainly knew that sleeping together in the same bed was worth more "sully" points than a simple kiss! Sure, he wasnaked now, but his state of undress didn't even enter into the picture. If he was worried about her reputation, he should have stayed out of her bedroom, not out of her arms.