23. Isla #2
Even though she enjoyed their closeness, Isla released Jonto’s arm before Pris and Robert recovered from their shock.
She immediately missed the feel of his firm muscles beneath his frock coat.
His solid frame provided her with a sense of security, something she’d begun to experience more and more in his presence.
When she stepped back, Isla glimpsed a disappointed look on Jonto’s face before his charming smile reappeared.
Did he miss her touch as much as she missed touching him?
That seemed highly unlikely since a man of his stature and standing in their community, not to mention his connections in various kingdoms, could have a different woman in his bed every night should he choose.
All the same, the possibility that he might be as attracted to her as she was to him, combined with the musky cologne he preferred, evoked a feeling she hadn’t previously experienced around other men.
While she’d learned to pleasure herself alone beneath her covers, in public, she’d never felt the gentle, tingling throb between her legs she’d begun to experience whenever they touched.
The times his arm fell across her shoulders or his gentle hand settled on her elbow to guide her somewhere had become pleasant and frightening.
She didn’t want to desire him, but her body had other ideas.
Hoping the others would attribute the heat rising in her cheeks directly to the sea breeze blowing over the ship’s decks, she turned back to watch the two whales playing in the green waters surrounding the island. “Will we have to wait until they leave before we can go ashore?”
“No, humpbacks are known as passive creatures, especially this one. She’s bigger than most of her kind but extremely gentle.
I wouldn’t put it past her to sidle up to our skiff asking for a gentle pat on her snout or fin.
” He called out to Nico, who was busy supervising the lowering of a skiff overboard. “Nico, how much longer?”
The look the big first mate shot his captain told Isla that Jonto knew precisely where they were in the process and could tell them, to the minute, when they’d be ready to row ashore.
Nonetheless, he answered with a genial smile.
“Give us a quarter hour, Captain. I need to finish training Jade on the proper procedures for lowering the skiff.
They all heard the pug-faced woman’s growl carried on the wind. She scowled at Nico and said something through gritted teeth that was unintelligible to those on the quarterdeck.
Nico laughed and pounded her on the back before returning to the task at hand.
Celie spoke under her breath. “Of all your people, that one sends chills down my spine. I know you said she’ll protect us alongside Ilona should anything happen, but those ruthless, predatory eyes are frightening, to say the least. They’re black, aren’t they?”
“They are. She’s from a land that borders the Red Sea, and everyone in her tribe has that distinctive coloring.
” Jonto looked from one person to another as she delivered her warning.
“Nico can tease her without having his tongue cut out because they’ve both served me for years and have fought back-to-back on many occasions.
But I don’t suggest you treat her as a friend or companion.
She doesn’t expect it and is quick to take offense. ”
Robert put his fists on his hips. “See here. You implied you had her under control and that she’d never harm one of your guests.”
With a hearty bark of laughter, Jonto amiably shook his head.
“I never said she was under anyone’s control, Robert.
I lead my people from a position of strength tempered by respect.
She knows well enough that I’ll kill her if she harms a single hair on your heads.
But given a grave enough insult, she’ll weigh her life against that insult, and God help you if she finds you wanting. ”
He glanced over his shoulder at the pirate ship.
“The same goes for Captain Dubbin. Give insult in front of witnesses, and your life will be forfeit.” He shrugged, “Of course, I’d have to fight him to the death, but that’s the way of the sea.
The ocean’s an unforgiving mistress, and the people who sail her understand the rules governing her vast kingdom. ”
Isla watched Robert to see how her proud, often haughty friend would react to Jonto’s words.
His lowered gaze and furrowed brows meant he was thinking hard about the message the captain was sending.
Eventually, his gaze fell on Jonto’s, and he nodded.
“I understand. While my…our aristocracy is honored when on board one of King Jaydan’s ships or when Pris and I travel on a yacht, those rules are tossed aside while we’re on a pirate ship. ”
With a sigh, Jonto scratched behind his ear. “It’s not so black and white. My people and Captain Dubbin’s crew will treat you with respect because I demand that of them. But I strongly suggest you put away your—” He paused, considering the best way to get his point across without giving offense.
Isla decided to help because she thought perhaps her lifelong friends would tolerate the same words from her that they might otherwise find offensive coming from Jonto.
“Putting away your haughty disdain for anyone not of your social standing. You never see anyone beneath your station when you walk into a room. They’re pieces of furniture to be used and forgotten when they no longer serve your needs.
So, when you’re with people of the lower classes who have teeth and aren’t afraid to use them to preserve their dignity, you need to become a better man because nobility isn’t really about what family you were born into.
It’s about how you treat those you consider beneath your notice and station. ”
Her words echoed into the silence that followed, so much so that Isla wondered if she’d overstepped the bounds of friendship.
But if she were being honest, she’d been disgusted with the changes she’d witnessed in her friend.
They’d come about gradually but had culminated in the boorish, heavy-handed snobbery they’d seen on board the ship.
Perhaps it had been easy for her to dismiss them when they only saw one another once or twice monthly.
But now, living within the confines of the ship and interacting with one another daily, she’d seen more of his rude, dismissive ways than she’d previously cared to admit.
Pris stepped forward and placed a supportive arm around her husband’s waist. “How dare you, Isla. Is that how you see us? We’re arrogant, pompous elitists now?
” She raised her chin and pulled herself to her full height, taking on the aristocratic hauteur of someone speaking to one beneath her station, which, unfortunately, included Isla.
Her eyes typically held the softer dove grey tones, but they’d turned to flinty steel as she pierced Isla with her glare.
“Let’s go, James. I think we’ll leave Lady Brighton to explore the island on her own.
” With a tug, she led her husband through the door into the wardroom and then, presumably, to the privacy of their cabin.