The Princess and the Pirate Chapter 6

When Anna woke the following morning, she was alone and the room had gone cold. She dressed in a green gown and pulled her hair into a bun. She came down the stairs and found it to be completely silent. She wandered through the entrance to the kitchen and then out to the garden. She stared at the fountain where just last night Jedidiah had kissed her. She wasn’t sure why he was on her mind today. She should be happy that he was nowhere to be found.

            “Are you looking for Jedidiah?” Petra asked.

            Anna swung around and found Petra walking toward her with a basket of wild flowers. She was wearing an orange gown with a black shawl around her shoulders. Her black hair was down and it came close to hips.

            “Where is he?” Anna asked.

            Petra smiled. “I’m afraid you just missed him. Hank and Jedidiah have gone again.”

            Anna frowned. “Gone? Where to?”

            “I’m not sure where they go. Hank doesn’t tell me. He only says they won’t be gone for long this time. Are you all right?”           

            Anna nodded and smiled. “Of course, I am. Can I help you with something?”

            Petra nodded. “You can help me decorate this house. It needs a touch of a woman.”

            Anna spent her afternoon making wreaths out of the wild flowers Petra had picked. The two women spent their time talking and Anna learned that Petra was expecting her first child. She was about three months along and Anna finally noticed that the waist line of Petra’s gowns had been redesigned to fit her growing body. Petra glowed when she spoke of Hank and her child. She knew that Petra was very much in love with her husband. Anna wondered if she would be as much in love with the Baron Charles as Petra was with Hank.

            “How did you meet Hank?” Anna asked.

            Petra smiled. “I like to think of it as Hank saving me.”

            “Really?”

            “I come from a very poor family, Anna. I didn’t know the rich life like you. I had to work to get food in my belly. My mother died when I was very young and my father had to raise me and my brothers by himself. No work would hire a half breed. You see, my mother was an American and everyone knew that. They all hated my mother and when she died, they were all grateful. The only place that would hire me was the local saloon where I worked as a waitress.

            “But working there as a waitress was hard enough and if you add drunken men, you’re in serious trouble. One evening, I was working late and I came out to find two men waiting for me. They tried to have their way with me, but Hank came and he saved me.”

            Anna pushed aside the wreath she had finished. “And your family?”

            “My father wasn’t very fond of Hank. He didn’t like that Hank was English and wore the Queen’s colors. When he tried to get me to reconsider, I refused and he disowned me. Hank married me and he’s been taking care of me since. I still send my father money when I can.”

            Anna smiled, touched. “It seems you’ve got yourself a good man.”

            Petra laughed. “Hank is all soft if you get to know him. He told me how he hated himself after he whipped you.”

            “But he had every right! He thought I had killed Jedidiah!”

            Laughing, she replied, “Jedidiah is smitten with you, Anna. If only you’d open your eyes and see.”

            “He’s not smitten with me. He’s told me that he has no room for love in his life. He’s keeping me here because he desires my body. That’s all; beyond that, it’s nothing.”

            Petra put aside her wreath and reached for Anna’s hand. “Listen to me, Anna. I know Jedidiah. I’ve been with him long enough to know when a woman is affecting him. Did you know you’re the first woman he’s brought here? He’s never brought a woman here before. Seeing as how you’re the first, you should be really grateful and blessed. Most women see him at night and then he’s gone before dawn breaks. If you see him lying beside you when morning comes, consider yourself lucky.”

            Anna wasn’t sure how to take in the news. As Petra continued to work on the wreaths, she pondered what Jedidiah was truly feeling toward her. She had to admit that although she hated being trapped here, she was getting accustomed to having Jedidiah beside her at night. There was something safe about having him there with her and it provided her a sense of calm and peace. Shaking her head, she smiled at Petra and continued on with the wreaths; blast Jedidiah.

 

            When evening came, Anna was surprised to hear Hank’s loud laughter in the dining room. She got up from where she was sitting before the fireplace and walked to find Hank kissing Petra. Embarrassed, she stepped away and her back hit something hard. She turned around to find Jedidiah standing behind her. Before she could utter one word, he grabbed her chin and kissed her deeply. The feeling of fire in her belly escalated and she found her fingers making their way up to hold his neck, not to push him away, but to keep him from pulling away. When the kiss ended, her lips tingled and she saw a burning passion in his eyes. He smiled and touched her cheeks.

            “Did you miss me, little dove?” he asked.

            She wasn’t about to give him the benefit of the doubt. “Of course not, Jedidiah; I was merely entertaining you.”

            He threw back his head and laughed. “My, but you are a good liar.”

            He slammed his lips against hers again and this time she pushed away. When she looked into his eyes, she saw herself and she was beautiful. She had never known that he saw her that way. She stood there, captivated and breathless as his hands made their way up to her bun and destroyed it. When her hair fell down, he grabbed a handful of it and brought it to his nose.

            “I’ve missed you so much, little dove. I ached for you all day long and just knowing that you would be here when I returned, gave me the strength to come home,” he whispered.

            She shuddered as he leaned down and kissed her neck. “Jedidiah, please…not here.”

            He pulled her closer to him until their bodies melted into one another. “Why not here? I can hardly contain myself. I’m dying for you.”

            “Contain yourself, my friend! You’ll burn the house down!” Hank yelled.

            Laughter filled the room as Hank and Petra walked toward them. Jedidiah groaned and pulled away, giving his friend a deathly glare. Hank, pretending to not see the look, slapped Jedidiah on the back.

            “My lady, I hope you give this boy a bone to chew on because all the way home, all he belly ached about was you,” Hank said with a smile.

            Anna blushed and lowered her head.

            “Oh, you big goat! Let’s leave them alone,” Petra said.

            Hank laughed as Petra led him away from them. Once they were out of sight, Anna pulled herself away from his hold and walked a few feet away from her. When she turned around to look at him, he had shed off his thick coat. He stood there wearing a white shirt thin enough to see through and she inhaled a quick breath.

            “Milady, tell me what lingers on your mind,” Jedidiah said closing the distance between them.

            She lifted her tear glimmering eyes to him. “I was just wondering if I would ever see home again.”

            “But this is home to you.”

            “Is it? You’ve yet to tell me how you feel about me. Though you do tell me there’s no room in your life for love. Last night when I said I would get comfortable, you didn’t even answer me. Should I start by telling you how I feel for you? Would that give you a shove toward admitting your feelings for me?” she asked.

            He crossed his arms. “Milady, I’ve told you that I desire you.”

            “Desiring me and loving me are two different things. If you love me, then make me an honorable woman by offering me your last name. If you’ve no intention of doing so, then let me go so I may go face the wrath of my betrothed.”

            “Wrath?” he asked.

            “Yes, wrath; the Baron Charles will not want a tainted woman, I guarantee you that.”

            He let his hands fall to his sides and walked toward her. “Anna, you are anything, but a tainted woman.”

            “I will be if you continue to hold me like this! You can’t hold me like I’m some prisoner and expect me to be well with the situation. Either you tell me the truth or you send me back. I will not be fooled any longer.”

            She stood there and watched as he fought with his feelings. When he didn’t answer her, she knew the truth. She straightened herself and wiped the tears from her eyes. Clearing her throat loudly, she walked to him.

            “I demand you send me back tomorrow or I shall be forced to ask Hank. Don’t doubt that he will not do as I ask,” she whispered.

            He looked at her with a dark glare. “Fine, milady. I’ll do as you so finely ask of me. I shall return you to your Baron Charles.”

 

            “Are you done brooding, you big fool?” Hank asked as he entered Jedidiah’s chamber.

            It had been two days since Anna had departed and Jedidiah had remained in his chamber since then. He’d not eaten and he’d not made any appearance. Hank sighed and slammed the door loud enough to shatter a few candles. But Jedidiah remained as if he was deaf.

            “My friend, if you’re going to brood as much as you do now, why did you let her leave?” he asked.

            Jedidiah stared at his boot and remained silent.

            “She’s not at the bottom of your boot, Jedidiah. You put her on a ship two days ago. She’s probably already in the arms of her beloved Baron Charles. They’re probably already wedded and he’s probably already bedded what you first broke. Do you think he’ll find her likable? Anna, with her soft skin, her dark hair, her full, firm-“

            Jedidiah stood up. “Are you trying to give me a heart attack?!”

            Hank laughed. “Boy, if I didn’t know you better, I’d say you were in love.”

            Jedidiah sat down again and let out a long slow breath. “Help me, my friend. What do I do?”

            “Do what you should have done in the first place; fall to the ground and confess your love.”

            Jedidiah stared at the unmade bed and inside his heart hurt. It had been a long three days without her and at night when he ached for her, he had nothing to hold, but his foolishness. He had been a fool to let her go. He was ready to go and claim her back. This time, he wouldn’t let her go again. He had been a fool to let her go the first time. He knew now that what he felt for her wasn’t just desire, it was love. He stood up, grabbed his bag, and walked down the stairs. Hank was waiting for him at the entrance with a smile on his face. He turned to find Petra approaching him.

            “Bring her home, Jedidiah,” she said.

            “I will.”

 

            Anna dumped the flowers on the table and began to sort them. She wanted to make wreaths like those she had made with Petra to decorate the house. She wasn’t sure if she was doing it out of boredom or because she missed Jedidiah. She was clinging onto every single memory of them together and day by day, those memories were beginning to fade. The day he put her on the boat was the day her heart broke. She felt as if the world had turned its back on her and left her dangling with all the blood rushing to her head. She loved him, she knew it then and she knew it even more now. But when he failed to answer her about his feelings, she knew he would never love her. So she returned to find the Baron Charles already married to a young woman of his choice. With nowhere to go, she returned back home where her parents met her with rage, anger, and shame. But after many heated discussions, they turned their hate and anger to love and took her back.

            It was good that the Baron had married someone else because if he had waited for her and wedded her, he would be disappointed. For within her body, a child was growing…a child of Jedidiah’s. Two months after her return to her parents’, she found out she was carrying his child when her flow failed to return. Her mother had noticed her morning sickness and her fatigue, and had guessed eventually. She didn’t hold Anna against it, but her father pushed for her to reveal who the father was. What could Anna say? The father didn’t want her and would he want her if her slim body was to take form to hold the child?

            Tears filling her eyes, she broke the flower heads off and started to pin them on the wreath when she felt heavy footsteps behind her. She assumed they were of Maddy’s, who had returned with her, and didn’t bother to look. But when the hands came to rest upon her shoulders, she turned around and stared into the eyes of a stranger. The flower heads dropped from her hands as he walked around to face her. He was tall and dark skinned with black hair and brown eyes. He wore a green cloak on top of black clothes; a sword hung by his side.

            “You are Lady Anna?” he asked in a thick Spanish accent.

            “Who are you?”

            He laughed and placed his hands on the table. “I am Pedro Van Jurez and I’m going to be your new husband.”

            She shot to her feet with a gasp on her lips. “What on earth are you talking about? Do my parents know you are here?”

            “It is your father who has given you to me. He owes me a lot of money and he can’t pay. Unless you would like me to break your father bones one by one, you will go quietly.”

            She felt tears in her eyes brewing. She had just been released from one man’s prisoner, only to be tossed into one’s hold. She shook her head fiercely and stood her ground.

            “I will not go with you, my lord Jurez. I am expecting another man’s child. I cannot be your woman.”

            He frowned and then stared at her midsection. “But your body is not showing.”

            “I’m not far along yet, but soon I will be showing.”

            “Well, your beauty will take that part away from you. You will go with me and I will claim the bastard as my own.”

            “No!”

            He started toward her. “Do you refuse me? Do you know what happens to women who refuse me?”

            “They meet the end of your blade violently,” Jedidiah said.

            Both Anna and Van Jurez turned to find Jedidiah standing behind her. Anna couldn’t believe her eyes and she blinked a few times to make sure her vision wasn’t playing tricks on her. But there he stood, tall and handsome as ever he was. He held his sword in front of him and gestured for her to come to him. She did so and when she reached him, he grabbed her hand and pulled her behind him, out of harm’s way.

            Van Jurez frowned and stared at him. “Do I know you?”
            “You should. You were the one who took my parents away from me.”

            He laughed. “I’ve taken a lot of lives. Perhaps it would be better if you had a name?”

            “Sure, you bastard, I’ll give you a name. How about Richard Whittaker? Or better yet, how about Rosa Lee Whittaker?”

            Anna watched as the man’s eyes widened and then he withdrew his sword suddenly. She gasped and Jedidiah pushed her away from him, toward the house. She watched as Jedidiah stepped forward.

            “You killed my father because he had what you couldn’t have, my mother. And then when my mother wouldn’t accept you, you killed her too.”

            Anna felt tears in her eyes when she heard this.

            “Your mother was much too beautiful to be with your father. Just like you; you’re not good enough for Anna. Is it your child she carries?”

            Anna watched as Jedidiah swung his head around to face her. The sting of the truth was in his eyes as he lowered his eyes to her midsection. She placed her hands there and gave him a slight nod.

            Laughing, Van Jurez said, “Fool! You didn’t even know, did you?”

            Jedidiah turned his attention back to him. “I know this, you’re not going anywhere near her or my child.”

            “That’s too bad because her father just sold her to me to clear his debts. She’s mine.”

            “Not if I’m still standing.”

            “Well, that’s something we shall have to remedy then.”

            Anna watched in horror as the two men charged toward each other. Van Jurez was strong, but even then, he was no match for Jedidiah. The first swung of sword belonged to Jedidiah and it connected with Van Jurez’s flesh, drawing blood. It sent Van Jurez to his knees as he stared up at Jedidiah with hatred. But the man would not relent and he was back on his feet again. The two battled long and hard, swinging their swords and punches when necessary until Van Jurez fell to his feet and his sword out of his reach. Jedidiah stood above him with his sword at his neck.

            “I’ve dreamed of killing you a thousand times. Now my dream is here and yet all I can do is pity you,” Jedidiah said.

            He laughed. “You’re a coward just like your father! You don’t have it in you!”

            “Don’t tempt me.”

            “I’ll take Anna and I’ll destroy her for you to see. I’ll raise that bastard of yours to hate you! Even if you do kill me, there will be my men who will take down her father for his debt. You lose either way.”

            Jedidiah screamed and pushed his sword down into his throat. Van Jurez gurgled a few bloody coughs and then his eyes rolled in the back of his head. Anna covered her face with her hands and started crying. When she felt his hands on her, she removed her hands and stared up at his face. He had tears in his eyes and then he lowered himself to his knees. She watched him struggle with his words and when he found no words, he simply laid his head on her belly and held her. She brought her hands to rest on his head and they stayed like that for a long time. When he spoke next, it was filled with emotion.

            “I have searched all of my life for that man. It was why I couldn’t open my heart to anyone. I wasn’t free. I had nowhere in my heart for love because it was filled with hate and revenge.”

            He looked up at her and she saw tears streaming down his face. He stood up and took her hands in his.

            “But when I met you, you stirred something inside of me that had been locked away. I told myself it was nothing, but I couldn’t ignore it. I was a fool that night when you asked me to tell you my feelings; I should have told you the truth. But I was scared and I was afraid of what might come between us if I didn’t come to terms with my anger.”

            Anna felt tears roll down her cheeks as she stared at him. Here, was a man who was coming clean with his emotions. She lifted a hand and wiped his tears away.

            “And what do you feel?” she asked softly.   

            He took her hands and brought them to his lips. “I feel as if the world has been reborn with a gif that is all mine. I can look at the world without hate and I can understand the meaning of the word, forgive. I feel as if I’m one fire when I’m near you and when I’m not, I feel as if I’ve no meaning in my life. You’re my everything; the air, the beat of my heart, my soul. You are the reason why I am here and for all that I am.”

            Anna gulped down her tears as he pulled her closer to him.

            “When you left that day, I died. I should have stopped you and I should have taken you in my arms and never let you go. But you going made me realize I was in love with you and every part of me ached for you. I know now that without you, I’d be nothing but a worthless being, little dove. You are the destiny I’ve been searching for with all of my journeys at sea.”

            “Jedidiah,” she whispered.

            He placed his hand on her belly. “And this is proof that I love you. I never leave something of mine behind if I don’t intend to be there forever.”

            “I love you.”

            “Can I count on that forever?”

            She laughed. “Of course!”