What happens when you grow up

Chapter 3

Present day

"Look, Tigerlily! No hands!"

Tigerlily craned her neck and saw Peter circling the village court. This time, he was flying backwards and upside down—and looking far too proud of himself all the while.

Tigerlily shook her head, rolling her eyes. "Wow, Peter, that's just about as funny as the first ten times you said it."

Peter let out a laugh, the totally-free-and-joyful laugh that warmed Tigerlily's heart every time she heard it and reminded her about that there was uncorrupted goodness in the world. He spun head-over-heels in three quick summersaults and then landed right in front of her.

"And what have you been up to?" Tigerlily asked, glancing him over. As usual, he was covered in dirt, grass, twigs and dust—including fairy dust. In fact, he was fairly glowing from the stuff. "You should be getting ready for your initiation; it's only a week away."

"Aw, Tigerlily, I'm already ready," Peter replied with a careless shrug. "I was just playing with the boys over at the lagoon."

"The lagoon?" Tigerlily's brow creased in concern. "You know it's dangerous over there. There are crocodiles—"

"The mermaids always warn us if there's a croc nearby," Peter replied. Leaning closer, he confided, "I think they have a crush on me or something. Oh! I got you something!" Hurriedly, he dug into one pocket, then another, then another before finding his treasure. He pulled it out in triumph and thrust it into Tigerlily's hand: a beautiful white pearl.

"Peter! Where did you find this?" Tigerlily gasped in admiration.

"I found it on the bottom of the lagoon. Saw it shimmer and dove in to see what it was. It was in a big clam, but I snatched it out!" Peter was so proud of himself, he rose into the air with a quick twirl, crowing as he did so.

"That's enough," Tigerlily laughed, reaching out and pulling him back down to earth. "You've got to work on your humility, Peter."

"Well, it's awfully hard when I'm so perfect," Peter shot back, grinning that irresistible grin of his.

"Promise you'll try. There are a lot of people who are going to count on you someday, and they need a leader who knows how to listen, too."

"Oh, all right!" Peter agreed, quite unconvinced. He flew into the air again, flipping a cartwheel. "But I won't need to lead anybody anytime soon… I'm just a kid! That's what you and Hook are for!"

That jogged Tigerlily's memory. "Where is James? I need to talk with him."

"He's working on his ship, like he always is," Peter replied, rising higher and pointing over the treetops. "Do you want a lift?" he offered, raising his eyebrows almost flirtatiously.

Tigerlily wouldn't take him up on that. She knew how much he enjoyed scaring anyone who was dumb enough to accept a ride from him.

"No thanks," she said sweetly. "I'd rather walk."

Hook's ship wasn't even a full mile away. Well, at this point, you couldn't really call it a ship. It was almost a ship. It looked a great deal like a ship. But it wasn't a ship that would actually float if you tried to cast ashore. Hook had stolen it nearly a year ago from—(HIM)—Blackbeard, but they'd only made it out because of all the fairy dust. If it wasn't for that, they would have crashed to the bottom of the Fairy Kingdom, just like—HIM. The one who hurt her, the one who always hurt her, and even when she thought she got away he still managed to come and hurt her hurt her HURT HER—

"Stop it," she muttered. "Stop it. Stop it! STOP IT!"

She didn't realize she was shouting until she took a shaky breath.

Don't be ridiculous, she chided herself. It was just a nightmare. Don't fall to pieces over a nightmare.

Resolute, she pushed on, expertly winding through the forest underbrush. Anyone with less knowledge about Neverland's woods would have fallen through quicksand or stumbled onto poisonous bosom-lilies by now, but Tigerlily knew this forest like she was born in it. She practically was. She knew how to read the moss that crept up the sides of 300-ft pine trees and learn if it was going to rain soon. She knew what plants were good for medicine and what plants were good for killing enemies. She knew the serene silence that wafted over the land in the dim twilight between the world of day and night, and she knew the dangerous silence that froze your breath when a dangerous predator was prowling nearby.

Tigerlily, like most of her tribe, knew almost all of Neverland with the intimate knowledge of child to mother. There was Mermaid Lagoon, where her dear friend Thalassa swam in the iridescent waters by the light of the moon with her two sisters. There were the Cliffs of Mohaer, impossibly tall granite formations that were pocketed by countless passageways and secret caves. And of course there was the Fairy Kingdom, which was still being reconstructed after… after…

Don't think about it.

Thankfully, her chain of thought was broken when she emerged from the trees and saw the H.M.S. Vengeance, listing somewhat mournfully to the right. Hanging over the side rather precariously, hammer in one hand and nails in the other, was James. Tigerlily took a long moment to admire him. He had taken his shirt off because of the heat, giving her a wonderful view of his powerful shoulders and chiseled body, while his worn workpants were stretched tight across his rear. This was her Other Heart, the Sharer of her Soul—her husband, lover, best friend and life mate.

"James!" she finally called. "Permission to come aboard?"

James glanced up from his work, broke into a grin, waved excitedly, nearly fell from his perch, and then hurried to the (rather haphazard) ramp he had constructed to give access to the ship. "Permission granted!" he hollered.

Laughing happily, Tigerlily climbed up the steep ramp.

"Now this is a pleasant surprise," James grinned, wrapping his arms around her and lifting her up for a kiss.

Tigerlily breathed in his leathery, woodsy scent with delight. He was dirty and sweaty and his stubble scratched her cheek, but she didn't care.

"It looks like you've made some real progress," she noted, scanning the deck approvingly.

"Let me show you!" James insisted, taking her hand and practically dragging her across the deck. She enjoyed seeing him so excited; sometimes, he fell into such deep depressions that she worried about him. But he really came alive around his ship.

He showed her the forecastle and the quarter deck first, proudly pointing out any improvements he'd made, then led her below decks to the upper gun deck, the middle deck, even the hold. It took the better part of two hours to explore the entire craft. Tigerlily didn't know much about ships, but she could tell it was a lot better than when they'd last sailed. There were places where she knew they'd taken cannonball fire, and now there wasn't even a trace of damage.

"I should be finished in a week," James told her as they climbed back into the open air. "So what do you think?"

Tigerlily leaned against the rail, drinking everything in. "It's magnificent." She noticed a canvass sheet spread out next to his tools, with pails of red paint resting next to it. "What's the paint for?"

"I was thinking of painting over the name," James explained. "You have no idea how long it took to collect enough berries to make that much dye."

Tigerlily grinned. "What are you going to name it?"

"Her," James corrected. "She's a she." He ran a hand through his hair, while his other hand found hers and started absent-mindedly stroking it. "And I was thinking a ship as beautiful as this needs a really beautiful name, you know?"

"Of course," Tigerlily agreed.

James chuckled, looking for all the world as though he was embarrassed. "I think," he said, pressing a kiss into her palm, "that I'm going to name it the Tigerlily. I can't think of a more beautiful thing in the all the world."

Tigerlily sucked in her breath, feeling tears well up in her eyes. "That's the loveliest thing anyone's ever done for me," she whispered.

"Oh, I'm just getting started," James replied, tipping her chin to kiss her. With one smooth movement, he gathered her up in his arms and carried her to the sheet, lowering her with the utmost gentleness. "I'm going to blow your mind with romantic chivalry you could never imagine."

Tigerlily laughed, reaching out for him. Catching his shoulders, she pulled him down close enough for a kiss. "Now you're just setting my expectations unrealistically high."

"Let me prove it," James growled, voice deepening with desire.

He kissed her again, harder this time, and she drank in his salty, sandy taste. His fingers slid up her legs, igniting a pleasant ball of fire in her core, as he began kissing his way down her neck. He kissed her breast through the thin material of her shirt, and she moaned, partly from pleasure and partly from frustration, since the feathery touch was far less than she yearned for. James chuckled, continuing down her body, as he pushed her skirt up past her knees. Tenderly, he kissed one knee while sliding his fingers up the opposite leg, up her calf, up her thigh… Tigerlily's breath hitched in anticipation as waves of hot desire washed over her.

But his fingers stopped before he reached her core. "Not yet," he said, eyes flashing mischievously.

"Don't stop!" Tigerlily gasped, clutching the canvass with both fists.

"I'll get there," he promised, stroking her where her leg met her body. Tigerlily arched restlessly, biting her lip to keep from moaning again. She wrapped her fingers through James' unruly hair as he dropped his head lower and continued his trail of kisses up her leg. The higher he went, the more her desire grew, hotter and hotter, stronger and stronger, until she couldn't talk, couldn't think, could only explode into ecstasy as he finally claimed her.

All tension left her body as she melted back onto the ground. Pleasure hummed through every limb, but it was more than just the physical. She was content, deep within her soul. As long as James was with her, she had all she'd ever need.