The Sailor's Inheritance

Wine and Truths

"Cat?" William asked softly while they sat next to each other on the rowboat.

Catherine had thrown aside all manners at this point for fear of the boat toppling over. she was all but crushing the captains hand and clinging for dear life to it and the side of the small boat.

"Cat are you hungry?" william asked her and for the first time since awakening she realized she was indeed starving. She was very week and being here at Port Royal only meant that the last time she had eaten must've been at least a week ago. it was amazing she could even function how she had.

John huffed "Well I am just absolutely ready to sink my teeth into some good meat! Yes I am thank you for your concern." and kept rowing.

Catherine remained silent but looked up to william who had been staring at her. Once again she blushed and quickly looked away from those storming eyes.

"The Johnny Lovers than?" William asked. whether it was too Catherine or John she couldn't decide.

"Aye!" John shouted and chuckled. "tis a great spot to break the poor lady into Port Royal!"

John went on to sing about a sailor who broke the heart of a young merchants daughter and he truly had a wonderful singing voice.

By the time the long song had come to an end the boat had reached the shallows. William literally picked Catherine out of the boat in his arms and set out on the beach while John secured the boat.

"Perhaps" William said to Catherine who was curled up against his chest as he walked. "we should get you a dress first. I must say you're very exposed among all these men."

Catherine could hear peoples voices getting louder and when William finally set her down she saw a large vendor filled alley way with bright colors as far as the eye could see. Unlike the town she had lived in this one was bustling with trade and beautiful objects from all around. Places she not even pronounce. She was so enthralled she walked right up to what must've been a*****e that had beautiful cloth and linen. The woman that began talking to her had an accent from the islands but Catherine couldn't understand it. She caught words like "pretty" and "woman" intermittently but was caught off guard by the blue flowing cotton dress the lady had produced from a cart by her stand. The woman held it up to Catherine and just kept saying "you like yes."

Catherine indeed loved the gown but it was very revealing for a Lady. There were sleeves but the shoulders would be bare and the bust would be incredibly visible. the corset was also strange for instead of going all the way up it stopped just under the bust.

Catherine felt the dress being pulled away from her hand and watched as william winked at her and handed the lady some coins.

Her face went flush again for a moment and the island lady laughed and said something covering her heart then disappeared to talk to another passerby.

John and William stood at either side of Catherine as they entered the Tavern known as 'Johnny's Lovers.' They sat a table waiting for food and wine while women who Catherine could only imagine were what they called prostitutes were throwing themselves at every man and woman in the place. A larger woman with barely any skin not visible went right up to William and started whispering in his ear. He gave the woman a deadly glare and sent her away.

Catherine didn't understand why but she was relieved that he had. Meanwhile John at the table was talking to himself about which one he would pick.

the food finally arrived and after eating as properly as she could while eating as much as she could Catherine finally started to feel a little calm.

"Cat." William pointedly said. "we seem to have the same problem of me not knowing why you were on my ship. would you mind explaining to me now?"

Catherine looked into his eyes and was yet again stuck. She didn't want to lie to him and he had purchased her food and clothing by now sure she owed some level of trust to this man.

"Ahhm" she cleared her throat and took another sip of her wine. "I don't know why I was aboard your ship. I remember the last thing I had been told was that my father had passed on. I was instructed to return to my chamber until the sun had risen and when I got to my room I woke up in your cabin."

John and William exchanged puzzled glances with each other and then turned back to her in astonishment.

"Thats all?" John said.

"Yes unfortunately I have no recollection of why I would have ever boarded your ship." Catherine was starting to feel the wine more than she had expected.

"You didn't board my ship." William held her gaze once again."you were found inside a barrel we were told contained gun powder."

"A BARREL!" Catherine shouted. She had never shouted in her life and knew it must be the wine she had been drinking for a lady never behaved as such.

"shhh keep your voice down!" John exclaimed.

"Cat we can't have everybody here finding out until we learn more about why you were put in that barrel to begin with." William almost sounded like he was pleading with her.

"well excuse me captain but I am at least a week from home having just eaten my first meal from awakening to strangers and no clothing. in fact I'm still not in appropriate wears at all and for all I know you could be attempting to ransom me but I hate to tell you my father is dead." she began crying as she uttered the last few words.

"William i think its time you found her a bed." John stated pointing at Catherine's empty mug.

"She can stay at my place until we get things sorted. Enjoy your night John I'll find you in the morning."

"aye-aye captain" John chuckled and began chugging his ale down.

William started to stand and collected Catherine in his arms again. They walked a short way til he had somehow put her on top of a horse with him and she felt the wind against her face. She loved riding and it was not something she had done often. Her body under the influence of the wine had fooled her into thinking she was flying. a soft tingling sensation started ringing against her skin and she realized it had started to rain. She reached her hands out wide and leaned her head back into. Her head landed on Williams chest and she felt his chest vibrate with the chuckle he had let out. when she opened her eyes she could see he was smiling as he tightened his grip on her waist. She had slouched into him and felt him urge the horse faster. His body brushed against hers with every stride and she knew it was indecent that she be like this with him but the way she was feeling was incredible.

The rain was coming down harder now and she watched it drip down his rugged face. She stared at every inch of him she could see in the dark lighting the moon through the clouds provided. she felt the horse slow and when she looked back in front of her she saw a small little home. it wasn't very large only the one floor but it looked cozy with its small porch.

She felt Williams hands pick her up off the mount and set her gently in front of him. He held her there between the stallion and his chest for a moment looking at each other in the rain. she couldn't help the smile that spread across her face as much as she wanted too come back to her senses. He was just so perfectly handsome she had never seen a man such as he.

He picked her up once again and carried her like a child into the home. He must've known his way around because he never took his fierce eyes away from hers. She caught herself feeling flush and a heat had started to grow between her legs.

He took her into a small bedroom and laid her gently on the bed. She knew it wasn't appropriate but then again none of this was. She wrapped her arms around his neck and he once again chuckled.

"why do you laugh?" she asked giggling herself.

"You seem to not be able to hold your drinks." he gently laughed again their faces being so close she could feel his breath on her.

She didn't know what possessed her to do so but she pulled on his neck to bring him closer. She had never been kissed by a suitor and she found herself curious of this feeling that was drowning her senses.

"Cat" William whispered quietly as he moved a strand of wet hair off her nose. he traced her cheek with his thumb and cupped her face in his hand.

The explosion of tingling across her face made her breath catch and she became incredibly light headed.

"you're an interesting Lady Cat" he said while she held her breath. "Whats your name?" he asked her as he brushed his nose against hers making all the oxygen she held in her lungs escape in a quiet gasp.

"Catherine" she whispered with his lips dangerously close to hers. She couldn't hear anything anymore besides the pounding of her heart in her chest.

"Catherine" he hummed her name as if it was delicious to taste and she wanted to know how he did. She raised her chin to him slightly and for a moment thought she whined.

"You need to rest Catherine." he coaxed in her ear.

"will you stay with me?" she couldn't understand what she was doing but her body knew what she wanted even if the emotion was foggy in her mind. she moved her hands from around his neck to his head like he held hers.

"I'll be close by. You've had much to drink." he started to pull away from her and it started to give a pain in her heart.

"Please william" she whispered trying to close the distance he had created.

William grabbed her hands and held them above her head causing the heat she had felt to intensify. He lowered his chest onto hers as he did and pressed her into the bed. She couldn't control her breathing anymore and the laughter that started to come from him made her heart skip beats. surely one could die from this condition she thought.

His body pressed against her with her arms above made her feel vulnerable and exposed but it sent a thrill through her body and she didn't want it to stop.

he held both her hands with one arm and brought his other hand back to caressing her face.

"Catherine are you a lady?" he brushed his lips against hers just enough that her own lips started to burn with a need to taste them. her brain couldn't form the word yes so all she could do was nod her head slightly.

She felt an immense rush and his lips crushed against hers. her mind was gone and her body went into a fit. she tried desperately to remove his grip from her arms so she could wrap them around him. the heat of her body felt like she was drowning and his lips were the only thing saving her. She didnt know how to kiss but if this was what it felt like she never wanted to stop. she felt his tongue lick at her lips and she let out a moan. His tongue swept inside and deepened the kiss. Catherine had a shiver run down her spine when she felt William moan into her. his hot breath and her gasping sent her senses away. she couldn't carry anymore thoughts and didn't want too.

William pulled away from her and as she laid there trying to catch her breath he never looked away from her eyes.

"you're going to be dangerous Cat." he sighed and it almost sounded defeated. "I'll see you in the morning" he pressed his forehead against hers groaned and then left her there on the bed.

She laid there for a few moments trying to collect any thoughts she could and trying to hold on to how her body was feeling in this moment. She started to drift off to sleep and prayed she could have dreams of William.