The Sea's Rough Magic Read online

  When Dunbar stirred as if he was about to awaken, Aaron hurried back into his corner. Though the Navy man seemed nice enough for now, he’d be like all the others before it was over, Aaron was certain. The second McSwain told them what he wanted, most agreed readily enough. There had been only a few who had seriously refused. A number had offered up token protests before succumbing to the violent whims that Aaron’s beauty and Angus’s lust seemed to inspire in them.

  The smell of Angus’s pears reached him again. Probably the bottom ones were going bad. He longed to take one but the whipping he’d received after the last time he stole McSwain’s fruit kept him in check. Remembering that he’d given Dunbar one, he made his way on hands and knees to the bed and began to search for the core. He didn’t want Angus finding the evidence again. He was frantically scrabbling under the bunk when the voice, rich and aristocratic, reached him.

  “If you tell me your name, I will give you what’s left of it.”

  Aaron’s head jerked up and his eyes met the green ones. So close, they reminded him of the ocean on a perfect day. But at the thought of telling his name aloud, giving this stranger the same type of power over him that Angus had, he cringed. He shook his head and retreated, tears welling in his eyes.

  )O(

  James saw the azure eyes fill with tears and realized he’d made a tactical blunder. Attempting to trade the pear’s remnants for the man’s name had upset him terribly. He held the core out then.

  “Very well. If you don’t wish to tell me your name, then I won’t force you. Here, take it.”

  Raven had approached and was in the act of reaching for it when the door opened. Before James could close his hand on the core, he’d snatched it and was retreating into the darkened corners of the cabin. Spotting Raven trying to hide, a blond pirate seized him by the shoulder and began to drag him toward the door. Dunbar heard a whimper and was on his feet in the next instant.

  “Unhand that man now!” He ordered in his best command voice. To his surprise, it worked. The pirate released Raven and he ran back to the far corner of the room. Unfortunately, he dropped the stem and seeds at the pirate’s feet.

  “Ye jus’ can’t resist ‘em, can ye, boy? Wait till McSwain sees this. Ye thought yer back bled las’ time from the cat,” The pirate scooped up the remainder and turned just as Captain McSwain appeared in the doorway. “He’s been a bad boy, Cap’n. Dropped this on the deck when I tried t’ grab him.”

  McSwain took the stem and examined it briefly. “Get out here, ye spineless cur! Come an’ take yer med’cine.”

  When there was no movement or sound from Raven, James stepped forward, the fact that he was loose inspiring no more than a lifted eyebrow from the pirate captain. “It’s mine. I ate your precious pear. If anyone is to be punished, it should be me.”

  At the words, Captain McSwain laughed. When he finished, he regarded James with a glare. “Got balls, don’t ye? Very well. Anybody’s willin’ t’ stand up t’ me deserves a sweet now an’ again. Come along, ye flea-bitten cur, I ain’t got all day!”

  McSwain made a subtle nod with his head and the pirate who accompanied him started back into the shadows. Presently, there was the sound of a struggle then the blond pirate emerged with Raven in tow, his fingers entangled in the black hair. James tossed a glare at McSwain then intercepted the blond pirate, clamping a hand hard on the man’s wrist until he released Raven. At that, he caught Raven’s upper arm gently and drew him close.

  “Leave him be,” He rumbled and the blond pirate retreated, his eyes shocked.

  At the pirate’s reaction, James heard McSwain chuckle. “Ever consider turnin’ pirate, Lieutenant?”

  James sighed. “It is not on my agenda, Captain. Where are you taking us?”

  “Dinner,” McSwain said with a lift of his head and they stepped into the wardroom.

  A feast, fully fit for a dozen or more, was laid on the table, the enticing smells of spiced meat, fine liquor, fruit, and fresh-baked bread caused James to feel faint with hunger. He glanced down at Raven, whose arm he still supported, and saw him deliberately looking anywhere but at the table. He longed to touch that dark hair, to see what the texture was—like coarse wool or fine silk—but he knew he didn’t dare. It had been enough that he revealed his protectiveness toward the smaller man, if he revealed that he had deeper feelings toward Raven, the result would be disastrous.

  “Have a seat,” McSwain indicated a chair to the right. When James began to usher Raven over to sit beside him, McSwain caught Raven’s other arm and pulled him away. “No, I don’t think ye’ll be gettin’ so familiar jus’ yet, eh? ‘Sides, molly-boy, yer dish is in the floor beside me chair, remember?”

  James glanced down where he indicated to see the leavings from a previous meal were heaped in a small porcelain bowl resting against the table leg. He could smell the stench of rotting food from where he stood and it turned his stomach. He glowered up at McSwain.

  “I wouldn’t feed that swill to a pig. I refuse to eat unless he’s allowed to sit at the table and eat what we have been served,” At worst, James recognized that he’d doomed them both to empty stomachs or a tortured death. At best, James hoped he could get Raven some benefit from such an amazing repast.

  For the second time that evening, McSwain laughed, amused, at James’ cheek. “Ye really should consider piracy, boy. Ye drive a hard bargain.”

  McSwain then shoved Raven into the chair opposite James before taking the one between them. “Dig in.”

  James reached for the food with a speed that surprised himself. He had nearly filled his plate when he looked up and saw Raven had his fists clenched, wrists crossed over his heart. He stared at the gleaming white plate before him.

  James turned to McSwain. “Tell him he can eat.”

  McSwain snorted. “I did, din’t I? Ye heard me yerself tell ye both t’ dig in.”

  “Tell him again and make him believe it,” James growled.

  Without warning, a knife appeared in McSwain’s hand and it pinned James’s hand to the table by his shirt-sleeve. At the sight of the knife, Raven whimpered and threw himself into the floor, holding his hands behind him as he dropped his face to the bowl and began to nibble delicately at the food. Horrified, James turned to McSwain.

  “My apologies. Please, Captain, don’t let him eat—that,” James swallowed hard, looking at his loaded plate with the taste of vomit at the back of his throat. “Let me make amends for my-my error.”

  McSwain laughed again and pulled the knife from the table then pressed it to James’s throat. “Oh, don’t worry ‘bout that, boy. Ye will make amends.”

  McSwain turned in his chair and shoved Raven hard with his boot, knocking him away from the stinking mess. Raven was chewing something and trying very hard to swallow it as McSwain dragged him to his feet and tossed him back in the chair. “Show some appreciation! Yer fine Navy friend here wants ye t’ eat with us, ye little savage. Dig in!”

  For a moment, Raven’s eyes raised to meet James’s and he saw fear, hate, and despair. Deeper, though, he saw recognition in Raven’s expression, recognition that James would fight for him. Then, abruptly, the blue eyes slid away and his hands, trembling, began to pull various things to him, taking a quick bite of each before dropping them on his plate. McSwain himself ate next to nothing, watching his guests consume their meal with an expression that was perilously close to lust.

  “How’s it taste?” McSwain asked after several minutes of silence.

  James glanced over at Raven, who did not look inclined to answer. “Overall, the food tastes very good, sir. Though roast suckling pig is not to my taste, there is more than enough here that is. My compliments to your chef,” James saw Raven’s eyes set on him very briefly and narrow, as if trying to determine something. “Perhaps one day I can offer you similar hospitality while you occupy the brig of a naval vessel?”

  The Captain laughed suddenly and Raven leaned away from him, obviously expecting him to behave violent
ly. Instead, McSwain spoke. “When that day comes, Lieutenant, maybe ye can make sure my little friend here visits me in my cell on a reg’lar basis, hmmm?”

  He dropped his hand on Raven’s shoulder and the smaller man began to breathe hard again. James tried to meet the man’s eyes but he refused to look up. After a moment, he spoke, his eyes still set on Raven with the hope that he would look at him. “My apologies, Captain, but if you ever enjoy the hospitality of the Royal Navy, I intend to see to it that you never see him again.”

  At those words, the smaller man finally raised his eyes to meet James’s, though not for long. The look he gave James was one of disbelief. James realized he might be giving the man false hope but he smiled weakly at him and hoped it would help. The man’s eyes grew puzzled at the expression and he lowered his gaze almost guiltily.

  )O(

  Chapter 7:

  After Dinner

  They returned to the cabin after James declared that he was full. The truth was that he couldn’t tolerate watching Raven being terrorized by McSwain any more. Both McSwain and James noticed Raven tucking various food items into his shirt and they glared at each other for a moment. The second they returned to the captain’s quarters, Raven disappeared into the darkness of the unlit corners, obviously to squirrel away the food that he’d stolen. James turned to McSwain, wondering why he was allowed to take such liberties.

  “Thank you,” He said softly.

  “What fer?” The pirate snapped, his eyes narrowing.

  “For letting him have that food,” James answered, searching the darkness for any sign of the smaller man. “It was good of you.”

  McSwain snorted. “Wouldn’t do me no good t’ have him if he was dead or dyin’, now, would it?”

  James nodded agreeably though he had to question what kind of care his treatment of Raven demonstrated. Without warning, McSwain charged into the darkness and drew Raven out by his wrist. The smaller man resisted but he was no match for the taller, stronger pirate. McSwain tossed him onto the bunk then turned to James.

  “Get busy. We ain’t got all night and I want t’ take him after ye’re finished, eh?”

  “What is it you wish me to do, Captain?” James asked, suspicious that he knew already what McSwain wanted but needing confirmation. He was no innocent to Greek love, having enjoyed the company of his shipmates when the need arose, but he needed time to think.

  “Have yer way with ‘im, boy. Or don’t ye find him comely?” McSwain asked, a wicked grin on his face.

  “You want me to what?” James asked, his green eyes meeting Captain McSwain’s in disbelief. It was as he feared, McSwain knew Raven was his weakness.

  “I want ye t’ take yer pleasure from him,” The pirate made a sweeping gesture toward the smaller man who sat, head down and trembling just visibly, on the bunk. “Go on, ‘tis what he’s here fer. Take ‘im an’ do it hard an’ fast, eh?”

  “I’ll do no such thing!” James raised himself to his full height and glared at the pirate captain. “Unlike pirates, an officer of the British Navy does not commit rape or sodomy. I refuse.”

  The Captain laughed, a staccato, mirthless sound that made the pirate’s captive cover his ears and pull farther away. “Now, Lieutenant, that be a bald-faced lie if ever I heard one. I know fer certain that rape an’ sodomy is on the naval agenda. In any case, if ye don’t do it, I’ll kill ‘im.”

  Captain McSwain seized the man by the collar and placed a pistol to his head. For a moment, James thought about telling him to go ahead and do so. It would eradicate Raven’s suffering, certainly, and would force McSwain’s hand but there was something about the look in those intense eyes that kept him from it. He also sensed that Raven’s survival assured his own in some fashion. He sighed in frustration. “Very well, I’ll do what you say.”

  He made no effort to move for several minutes, his heart thudding in his ears as he waited for the pirate captain to depart, then McSwain spoke, “What’s wrong? Ye’re not backin’ out, are ye?”

  James arched an eyebrow at him. “You don’t expect me to do such a thing while you’re in the room?”

  McSwain laughed again, this time the sound making Raven cringe away from him. “O’ course I do. Ain’t no other way fer me t’ watch now, is there?”

  James turned his gaze back on Raven who steadfastly refused to look at him. I will not rape him, James felt his mouth pull into a grim line. I will not cause him more pain or fear; that is unacceptable. Somewhere deeper within him, though, a voice said, I cannot hurt the one I love. James rejected the notion immediately but another look at that black hair and those frightened eyes made him reconsider. His father would have berated him as a “romantic fool” for letting his heart win out but he could not deny how he felt.

  He approached the bed carefully. It was the most awkward situation he could possibly imagine yet he couldn’t deny his own feelings in the matter. Just the idea that he would be touching Raven excited him beyond belief. He reached out and cupped Raven’s chin in his hand, tilting his face up. Raven kept his eyes closed and shivered as he awaited James’s actions. When James kissed him, his lips cool and firm compared to the hot softness of Raven’s, the startled eyes flew open and he drew back slightly to look at him.

  “Let me make this pleasant for you,” James whispered, hoping McSwain couldn’t overhear the words. “I have no desire to harm you.”

  Raven’s eyes slid from James to McSwain subtly then back, a wicked light coming to his eyes. When he spoke, he winked at James. “Please don’t hurt me. I’ll do anythin’ ye want, jus’ don’t--.”

  “Quiet, you,” James growled then lowered his head to brush his lips across Raven’s throat.

  Under his touch, he felt Raven shiver uncontrollably. With a movement that looked brutal but was just quick, he ripped the shirt off Raven. He bent his head, intending to press his lips to that succulent neck again when he spotted the fingerprints bruised into the upper arms, the barely scabbed-over bite marks on collarbone and shoulder. At the sight, he hesitated. Raven’s eyes met his, fear in them and something more, a request. Raven’s left hand, hidden from McSwain’s view, curled into a fist in the fabric of his shirt, pulling him closer as he mouthed, “Please?”

  With a growl, James let himself respond. He tried to ignore the pirate captain sitting nearby watching their every move but it was difficult. He rose up after a moment and told Raven, “Undo my clothes.”

  When he saw Raven’s hands shaking, he reached out to steady his wrist with one hand. The contact, firm but soothing, allowed Raven to undo the buttons more efficiently. When he had the shirt open, James spoke again. “Don’t forget the breeches.”

  The eyes met his again, suspicion in them but also a tentative trust. As he undid the buttons on James’s breeches, James shrugged out of his own shirt. James kicked out of his breeches and dropped his own hand to the closure of Raven’s breeches. Raven stiffened, shivering, and looked into James’s eyes. The expression was so full of fear and entreaty that James nearly stopped. Instead, he smiled gently at Raven and caught his mouth in a kiss again as he unlaced the breeches. He began to draw the breeches off, his hand sliding in to touch Raven’s cock when he heard the other man speak.

  “No, don’t!” He looked into Raven’s eyes and realized that, despite his entreaty of mere moments before, this was frightening Raven .

  He drew his hand away subtly, trying to make McSwain think he was still molesting Raven. “And what gives you the right to tell me what to do? Your master wants me to do this. Do not argue with me.”

  At the words “your master,” Raven’s eyes flashed fire. “He ain’t my master. He’s naught but a common thief!”

  Looking at Raven, James had to smile slightly. So this was what he was like before this horror. The outrage he’d sparked in those eyes made Raven even more beautiful but, more importantly, it drove out the fear. But not for long. McSwain overheard the exchange and began to laugh. The sound seemed to drain Raven of all emotion
except the fear.

  “I lo- I’ll protect you,” James whispered suddenly, his search for something to ease Raven’s fear leading him to almost declare the thing he longed to say most.

  Dunbar lowered his head and began to press his lips gently against the captive’s. At the same moment, he slid his hand back into the breeches. He cupped the penis in his palm before allowing his fingers to alternate between pulling and stroking the hot flesh. Raven’s breathing quickened as he began to respond to the stimulation.

  “Touch me,” James said with the slightest hint of command. Raven’s eyes met his and he nodded briefly.

  The hot, callused hand pressed against his lower belly then slid downward, the fingers encircling his shaft before beginning to massage up and down its length. James caught his breath and bit his lip, fighting the climax back. He didn’t know if the Captain would allow him to finish pleasuring Raven if he climaxed before the prisoner did. He kissed Raven again, this time allowing his tongue to invade the other man’s mouth. He heard a sound, like a moan of fear but not quite, and moved his hand down to shift the hostage’s scrotum gently back and forth.

  “Don’t move,” He ordered and began to kiss his way down the thin body. He closed his eyes against the sight of multiple bruises smeared across the flesh. He kissed the nipples on the chest tenderly but refused to look at them to see the purple marks where cruel digits had twisted the flesh.

  He lowered his mouth further, licking and sucking lightly at the prominent rib-bones. Raven’s hands trembled as they touched his shoulders then slid up to the back of his neck, stroking the loose brown curls there. He felt Raven breathe harder when he ran his tongue around the rim of his navel. He let his lips travel farther down and halted when he felt the fingers tighten on his hair. He raised his head.

  “Careful, man,” He growled though he let his eyes show his sympathy. “What?”

  Raven drew a deep breath, his eyes wide with fear. “Don’t.”