A hot ache flared to life deep inside her as he drew first one nipple and then the other in to be laved and licked and suckled . He tongued the pebble-hard tips without respite until she pleaded for mercy from the fiery sensations he caused.
But he was relentless. His right hand stroked her taut belly; moving slowly, slowly lower. He caressed her hips , the insides of her creamy thighs , easing his way closer to the place where the flames burned highest . Lynnette held her breath, she couldn't stand it ; She knew she would die if could not have him. Then his searching fingers invaded her damp , swollen petals, and she let out her long-held breath in a scream of ecstasy.
And woke from the dream trembling with unfulfilled passion.
Desire turned to horror as she realized what she had done. She'd dreamed of him ; touching her as no other ever had or ever would. How could she have ? it was inconceivable! for fully half an hour she kay in shock in her empty bed, unable to stop shaking with a nameless dread . That he should invade her sleep with his image , that Lynnette could envision her captive in such fashion; it was wrong incredibly wrong, not natural as it had seemed in her dream ! what was happening to her ? Never before had she felt those feelings of desire, had never wanted to, and she did now.
At last , as the dream faded a little, her fear started to seem silly. it was only a dream, a nightmare, really. it foretold nothing, and no one but she would ever have to know about it. Besides, she reasoned, it had to be merely the result of her overindulgence last night , because as everyone knew, strong spirits produced bizarre imaginings. The dream had been a fluke , and , she told herself sternly, it would not occur again. Seeing it so , Lynnette swore off drink forever, just in case . She also decided that in order to prove to herself that he didn't really affect her , she would face him.
Accordingly, on her way to breakfast, she unlocked her prisoner's door.
Still, it had taken all her will to remain impassive when Captain Bradley appeared in the doorway that morning, looking tall and handsome and altogether too masculine for her comfort. The urge to blush was enormous. She forced it down with sheer determination, and greeted him as though she had not recently been dreaming of his searing, enraptured touch.
Lynnette had a strong will, and no hint of her agitated state had reached him. Once she was sure of it, she had begun to relax and forget her restless night. Soon , it was as if it had never passed , and she began to feel more like her normal self.
She'd been right to face both him and his touch . Even so , at odd times, flashes of the dream and her fantasy lover returned to haunt her. As the afternoon wore on, her concentration frayed and she had to shake herself frequently out of daydreams when her advice was needed on repairs for the captured ship. It didn't help that Captain Bradley had wandered into the sheltered cove where the ship was anchored and was watching the proceedings with hooded eyes.
Lynnette told herself it was common courtesy that compelled her to treat their "guest" with cordiality, even when he had such a profound effect on her unconscious mind . Not that their conversation this morning had been exactly cordial. Truly , it more resembled a verbal battle for the most part . But she remembered their laughter and was no little shaken. The effects his deep chuckles had on her spine was extraordinary, she thought. A chill , not unpleasant, had coursed through her nerves at the sound. And gazing at his face during such a careless moment was dramatically disturbing to her peace of mind, She'd found . With tiny laugh crinkling the corners of those ungodly steel -coloured orbs, he had been breathtakingly handsome.
She felt his regard ; she had felt it these three hours past burning into her back like a flaming brand. It made Captain Thorne one if the most feared buccaneers ever yet to sail the crystal waters of the Caribbean distinctly uncomfortable. With a great effort , Lynnette forced her eyes to remain fixed on the men working just beneath her. But the feeling persisted. Finally, she could stand it no longer she turned.
Of course, he was watching her, just as he has been the other half-dozen times she'd swung about , feeling eyes upon her . But this time, she noticed that Captain Bradley was not alone. Harry sat with him , enjoying a respite from the sun.
It did not bode well for her, The first mate would always be foremost among the men Lynnette chose to have beside her in a fight, for despite his advancing age, he was crafty and strong , but he could be a tad loose tongued when he took a liking to a man.
Harry would never betray his captain, not for any price or any circumstance. If tortured, he'd die rather than let secret be wrested from hips lips, but he had ideas of hid own when it come to her well-being. Harry tended to be a trifle proprietary concerning Lynnette. He could almost be her father, and most certainly a better one than the man who spawned her, she thought with a surge of bitterness, but Harry believed he knew what was best for her , For his own reasons, he might tell the peacock something she did not desire him to hear . Especially as he so obviously liked the man more than Lynnette thought was warranted.
Nay, she could trust Harry , she told herself sternly, berating her suspicious nature for it's lack of trust. He would be discreet . Lynnette had known him nearly all her life , and no matter what out of character affection he felt fit her prisoner, he would not betray her confidence. Just to be sure, though , she sent him a fulminating glare , warning him to keep his trap shut.