Corsair Cove Page 11

  “Relax,” she urged. “I won’t hurt you. Now try and be still.”

  Not hurt him? He’d felt nothing but agony from the moment he’d laid eyes on her! Her hands were soft as a baby’s buttocks, leaving his skin tingling in their wake.

  Jacque closed his eyes and tried to relax as she snipped the straggly hairs down close enough to use the razor. He ground his molars, his groin stiffening when delicate hands smoothed shaving cream over his face and neck. Damn but the woman had a gentle way about her that made a man want to reciprocate the pleasurable feeling she evoked.

  When she’d finished the heady task, he took over the chore of towel-drying his clean-shaven face. Ahh, it felt good. He ran his hand over the smoothness of his cheek, along the squared line of his jaw. Had he ever had a closer shave? Not that he could recall.

  He nodded with gratitude through the mirror at his barber-ess and thought he heard a sharp gasp before she turned back to her bag and withdrew yet another stick. When she’d removed the odd packaging, she squeezed some tri-colored goop on the end of it before shoving it into his hand.

  She did the same with yet another, but kept that one for herself. “You have great teeth Jacque, you need to take proper care of them so they’ll stay that way.” She led by example on how to properly brush his teeth.

  He found the minty taste quite agreeable and used half the tube before Esa could stop him. “Once is enough, two or three times a day.”

  ~ * ~

  With his eyes closed, Esa was free to admire Jacque’s striking features while shaving him. His jaw was strong and bespoke the caged power of the man.

  She’d hoped to see a deep scar marring an otherwise perfect structure, but his bronzed complexion was flawless and matched the rest of the divine creature. His nose was the virtue of nobility. Those velvety lips were full and tempting, and promised moonlit nights of endless ecstasy. She swallowed. Perhaps this wasn’t such a good idea.

  Appraising the end result of her work, Esa knew beyond a doubt she would have been far better off leaving that exceptional splendor hidden behind the mass of rumpled hair. How long did it take for a man’s beard to grow back?

  Good God, she just couldn’t leave well enough alone, could she?

  Now she knew what an archeologist must feel after excavating an ancient relic. Knowing the rare find possessed an admirable beauty paled in comparison to seeing the polished results.

  The man was positively breathtaking and looked as if he’d just been plucked from some erotic fantasy park compiled of the most attractive Greek Gods. Talk about a total knockout! Good grief, that face, that hair, that bod! His dapper looks would undoubtedly cause a preposterous amount of traffic accidents dare she take him out in public!

  She sighed, struggling to beat down the rising lust. She hurried him from the bathroom to tidy up the mess before she lost all control and offered herself up as his personal sex slave.

  Was she crazy? Any other woman would no doubt kill to be in her shoes! Not Esa, no one-niters—or two-weekers as the case may be—for her! Best to keep her distance from this delectable ticking and utterly heart stopping time bomb.

  ~ * ~

  Mentioning food was the only way Esa was able to pry Jacque away from the television. “Typical male,” she spat with a chuckle.

  Jacque informed her that he was so hungry he didn’t even think Moe, his cook, would be able to appease his ferocious appetite.

  By noon, they’d long missed breakfast and would have to settle for something fast if they were to meet with the jeweler by one o’clock. Esa recalled seeing a Burger King on the corner just a few doors down from the hotel. “Come on Jacque, let’s see how you handle a Whopper!”

  “A whop-what?” he replied and she chuckled.

  “Ye jest with me wench—er, mademoiselle,” he amended. “You’re no longer upset about what happened with ye betrothed?” His expression was one of innocence, although looking at him it was plain to see the man was anything but. He oozed danger, in every sense of the word.

  “I didn’t say that. But I understand why you did what you did. I suppose I shouldn’t be upset with you for coming to my defense.” It was no one’s fault but her own that Sid had found Jacque in the hotel room after all. She had invited him to share her suite.

  “Aye lass, now ye are beginning to see reason,” he stated, his arrogant demeanor returning.

  Esa winced and would have berated him for such a condescending statement if she hadn’t lost his attention to the charbroiled incense of the restaurant as they neared the crowded eatery.

  Jacque closed his eyes and inhaled, a delightful look lit his face. A low moan escaped him. “What is that delectable smell?”

  “Come on LaFleur, I’ll introduce you to America’s king.” She laughed and opened the glass doors before waving him inside.

  He was intrigued.

  “Why is the food wrapped in paper?”

  “This is what is known as a fast food restaurant. The food is packaged for sanitary reasons, for the most part. They cook it quickly, via an assembly line of sorts, that way they can mass produce and get the food out quicker.” Taking his hulking mass into consideration, she ordered two double Whoppers with cheese, two super-sized fries and a large chocolate shake just for him, and hoped it would be enough.

  His first bite into the world famous burger exhumed an array of satisfied moans.

  Esa beamed in triumph. “Like it?”

  Jacque muttered dreamily, the food garbling his speech, “Mmmm, ‘tis a piece of heaven, to be sure.” He accentuated his approval by pinching his fingertips together, kissing them and then throwing them open to the air. Not another sound was made until he tasted the milkshake, which brought forth a slew of gratified grunts.

  “Slow down, you’ll give yourself a brain freeze,” she warned seeing that he sucked on the straw as though his life depended on it.

  Jacque had made them the center of attention, as she’d known he would. Not because of his pirate attire, many were still parading about in much the same fashion due to the festival. And not because of his primitive eating habits, well, not entirely. Jacque was the tallest, sexiest man in the eatery. His colossal size and appearance would make him hard to hide, should the need arise. But why should it?

  Wanton women gazed hungrily at him, as though they’d like to see him on the menu. Her heart choked with possessive jealousy and she berated herself, resented having such feelings toward a cold-blooded killer, no matter how beautiful.

  Why wasn’t she afraid? Strange how every sensible emotion seemed to abandon her in his presence. But she couldn’t allow herself to fall for him. Everything about the man’s existence was uncertain and surreal.

  Why was he here? Was his theory correct? Once he retrieved his treasure would he vanish into thin air and leave her behind to pick up the pieces of her broken heart?

  She stiffened at the thought. She hated to admit it, but she was falling for him. Hard. What woman in her right mind wouldn’t? Damn it. She couldn’t allow it. She’d just have to be strong and avoid physical contact with the time-vaulter while speedily helping him find his way back to Oz. Whatever the cost, she must keep her heart intact. They shared no past; they could have no future. Not together.

  He was so sure he would find his hidden treasure, one buried over two hundred years ago. Surely someone would have discovered it by now?

  After Jacque devoured all of his food, as well as the remainder of hers, they made their way through the curious crowd and sought out the jeweler a few streets over.

  “Let me do the talking,” Esa cautioned before entering the small shop.

  The inquisitive gentleman was extremely interested in how they acquired such an extraordinary piece. “A family heirloom,” she lied. The graying man hurriedly snatched up his pen and checkbook as though he was afraid the budding pair would change their mind. “Just a minute,” she hesitated, resting a hand atop his and stopping him in the midst of his endorsement.

  Th
e jeweler gasped, a deep line creasing the bridge of his nose. “What? It’s not enough? You won’t find a higher—”

  “It’s not that. I just need a minute to talk to my, er boyfriend.” She smiled and pulled Jacque off to the side.

  “Boyfriend?” Jacque lifted a playful brow.

  “Oh, never mind that. I don’t suppose you have an account?” Even though she knew his answer, she had to ask.

  “Account? Account of what?” he replied, clueless, his eyes darting in all directions in order to take in the dazzling displays of fine jewels.

  “I’ll have him make the check out to me.”

  “Check?”

  Good lord. “A note, to be exchanged for money-cash-coin, what have you,” she paused when his eyes narrowed in suspicion. “Look, I’m not the crook here. If you’d rather have it in your name, that’s fine with me. But just so you know, without a bank account or a social security card with which to open one with, that check will be as useless to you as the napkin you wiped your face on a few minutes ago. It’s your call.”

  His head cocked to one side as he studied her, as if he were trying to absorb her words. She could see from the corner of her eye that the eager jeweler was teetering nervously from one foot to the other behind the glass counter. “Well?” she urged, a little embarrassed and a great deal perturbed that he was taking so long in his decision.

  “All right lass. We’ll do it your way.” He took a step closer and dropped his head close to hers and whispered, “I don’t suppose I need to warn ye of what will happen should you think to betray me?”

  The lethal threat in his tone sent a wave of fear trickling down her spine. She swallowed and hoped her chin didn’t betray her by quivering beneath his haughty stare. How many times had that venomous purr, that deadly gleam in his eyes sent woeful sea dogs scurrying off with their tails between their legs?

  Her fear evolved into outrage. How could he think ill of her when she was trying to help him? The 18th Century bastard! She deliberately lowered her tone as a couple approached to admire some bracelets behind them. “Don’t worry Jacque, I don’t want your damn money. I only want to return you to whatever godforsaken planet you fell from. As far as I’m concerned, the sooner you’re out of my life, the better.” Arrogant pigheaded SOB! She didn’t care how good he looked on the outside; he was a perverted, ill-mannered jerk on the inside.

  She whisked past him and returned to the counter. “Better make that out to me,” she squeezed through a clenched jaw, not daring a glance at the skeptical boar. With a super sized smile the jeweler handed her a check for a staggering amount and she and the arrogant swashbuckler were off to the bank.

  “We’ll cash this and keep out enough to get you some decent clothing and the rest of the provisions we’ll need for the trip. But, I would highly advise you not to carry the entire wad on your person.”

  “Wad?” Jacque inquired, his expression puzzled.

  As upset as she was at his cynicism, Esa laughed in spite of herself. “All of your money. It would be wise to deposit most of it in the bank, for safekeeping. You don’t want to lose it, or have someone steal it from you.” She snickered and Jacque caught the pun as well and chuckled along with her.

  God have mercy on the unfortunate soul bold enough to aspire to steal anything from a six and a half foot slab of pirate! Jacque insisted she leave the better part of his fortune in her personal account. And although part of her was a bit uncomfortable with that, it made her feel better to know he trusted her. Should he find himself trapped in her time, she’d help him get straightened around and procure an I.D. before they parted ways.

  Why did the thought of never seeing him again seem to irritate her grievous list of things lost and leave her with a hollow feeling in the pit of her stomach?

  ~ * ~

  Jacque weighed heavily as to whether or not he should trust the comely wench with his money. The sensible side of him felt he should keep it with him despite her concerns. But she’d helped him up to this point, even persuaded the constabulary to entrust him to her care. And she obviously trusted him, believed him enough to want to help.

  Perhaps she was right and it would be safer locked away until he returned, if he returned. She would be with him throughout the entire trip, so it wasn’t as if she could steal away with it. Surely she weren’t foolish enough to try and deceive him? He’d not hesitate to snap her pretty little neck should it come to that.

  Still, she was a woman. And Jacque knew full well that no matter how attractive the packaging, no woman was worthy of a man’s trust.

  ~ * ~

  At Seaside Outfitters, a men’s clothing store inside what she called a mini-mall, Esa aided Jacque in finding something a bit more modern to traipse about in. She thrust an array of garments in his arms before ushering him toward what looked like a row of saloon doors, but in truth, were mere closets missing both top and bottom sections of the doors.

  Reluctantly, Jacque entered the cramped space possessing an exquisite floor-length looking glass. He’d never seen a clearer image of himself! He could even see the black dot encircled in the dark brown of his eyes. The stray hairs that shot from his brow. Amazingly clear. After a few minutes of marveling over his reflection, Esa called to him from the other side, “Everything all right in there?”

  “You are welcome to come to me aide mademoiselle, though I must warn ye the quarters are quite cramped. Although you won’t hear me complain if our bodies were to be pressed together for a spell.”

  “Never mind Jacque. Let me know when you’ve tried something on, ok?”

  “Blimey!” He unleashed a few spirited adjectives and heard giggles outside the door.

  “What’s wrong, Jacque?”

  “What the devil is this constricting scrap of white cloth? A man could be gelded from such an intrusion!” He scowled at her apparent amusement. The ill-tempered wench was laughing at him.

  A minute later, what looked like a pair of extremely short blue britches were handed down from over top of the door. Land sakes! There wasn’t much more to this than the one he’d just tried.

  “Try these; they don’t fit quite as snugly.” More giggles. With a groan, Jacque followed her advice and found her words to be true. The blue one was indeed far less binding.

  The sound of Esa’s laughter made him pause as he realized how much he enjoyed her company. Her smile carried with it the sun’s warmth and threatened to melt the remaining ice from his frigid heart. He had a tickling urge to see her smile more, for she frowned far too often.

  Bloody hell! What was he thinking? How many times would it take before he learned his lesson? Esa Keats was a woman of the most dangerous kind. Never had he felt more attracted, nor desired a lass more.

  That alone labeled her as toxic.

  He’d sooner face a fleet of English naval ships than lose his heart to the radiant vixen. And he was certain he’d fair far better odds.

  ~ * ~

  Oh.

  My.

  God.

  Esa’s heart skipped a beat before it fell into her stomach; her tongue nearly hit the floor when Jacque finally emerged from the fitting room. His mouth-watering appearance suddenly became a magnet to every red-blooded female within his path.

  He held his hands in the air and spun around, dark brows raised as though awaiting her approval. As if her panting and the women gaping at him like the cartoon wolf wasn’t enough.

  He looked nothing less than sinful. Utterly delicious. The stone washed jeans hugged his rounded posterior and accentuated beefy thighs. The black T-shirt stretched across his Herculean chest, accentuating a washboard tummy and could hardly contain those bulging, sun-kissed biceps. A glorious mane the color of coal and the texture of fine silk fell just past his shoulders. Black leather boots completed his ruggedly sensual appearance.

  Good God Almighty, he looked like he’d stepped right off the cover of a red hot XXX-rated romance novel! The man dripped raw sex from every pore of his desirable fles
h.

  Esa’s hand flew out to grasp the clothing rack so as steady herself for her knees buckled and she would have surely fell on her face when Jacque gifted her with that sexy rebel grin of his.

  Could he see the flickering flame of the inferno mounting inside her? The way smoldering eyes looked at her as though begging to extinguish her uncontrollable fire was all the answer she needed.

  Lust hovered like static electricity between them.

  “Will these do, mademoiselle?” he asked in that rich, dreamy voice that was felt as much as heard. Every damn woman within a five mile radius must have swooned.

  She swallowed the lusty lump that had lodged in her throat, hoping she hadn’t drooled all over herself in the process. Will these do? That all depended on what the prince of ecstasy planned on do-ing! They would do quite nicely if he wanted to drag her back to the hotel and spend the rest of the day dancing beneath the sheets.

  Um, er, yeah.” She nodded and cleared her throat. “You, ah, you look great, Jacque.” She coughed, forcing a cool smile and feeling as though her flesh would melt away from the bone as a result of the heat sweltering within her.

  She gasped when he became lost in a flock of horny women. They circled him like vultures zooming in for the kill. She wanted to scream. Did they think he was some kind of celebrity? Good grief, with those looks, did it really matter?

  She pushed her way through the swarm of honey seeking bees and weaved her arm through his, casting a glare at the hungry mob and letting them know that this brawny pirate was already spoken for.

  It was Jacque’s turn to laugh. “Well then, as the majority rules, I’ll take more of the same.” He winked and kindly asked the women to step aside while they made their way to the register.