Page 6 of The Pirate's Daughter

“An accord?” His tone put a hole, broadside, in her relief. And his look felt like he was about to add anchors to her sinking ship. “What should you like us to be in agreementabout?”

“The quarters, CaptainWinthrop.”

She watched his brows draw down as he lifted his head and surveyed the space. His brows shot upward and his eyes went wide before his features became clam as a tide pool. “This will do for now, Mia,” he said, the smallest glint of a smile on the right corner of hislips.

“Then we’ve an accord, there’ll be no baring of my person to be bentover?”

“For this matter, no,” Devin said, leaning in to reach around and set his hand at the small of her back. “But don’t think I’ll hesitate to deal with other such mutiny on your part the same way.” He stepped aside and with pressure on her back urged her forward towards thetable.

“It sounds wholly unpleasant what you proposed. I should prefer you withhold a new dress or if you must be cruel, my allowance,” Mia told him with a frown, remembering how Papa once not only withheld her allowance but took back what remained from the month before. All because she’d bought passage to the Italian coast for a week when she was supposed to be attending school inParis.

“Is that what the commodore did when you were naughty?” he asked stopping them at the table then leaving her side to exit the cabin momentarily. He returned carrying twostools.

“I’m never naughty, Captain,” Mia said with as much indignity as she could manage. “Only uneducated children are naughty. I’m well-schooled and am a fair bit past the age of sixteen.” She watched him stop abruptly, holding a stool in either hand as he took time to appraiser her,critically. With a shake of his head he took the last two steps needed to set one stool on the floor on her side of the table before rounding to the other side, setting the second stool down and taking aseat.

“Someone lied to you, Mia,” he said whipping the cover from the tray. “Sit down and eat.” He motioned to the bowl of porridge with the knife he was using to cut the peel from hisorange.

“No one lied to me,” Mia snapped. How dare he say such a thing. Or maybe he said it because he knew something. Something about why she was here and not home. “Lied to me about what?” she asked reaching for thebowl.

He laughed, setting the knife aside and pulling apart the orange. “I think a great many things. Most importantly, though, about how naughty, spoiled brats get to choose their own punishments.” He leveled a look at her that made a chill run down her spine at the same time it made her sex clench. “They donot. Now sit down andeat.”

“I’mnotspoiled and I’ve never chosen. Papa taking my allowance was his idea. It was unkind and I told him so. The other girls were able to shop. I couldn’t afford carriage fare. It was cruel,” Mia said punctuating her seriousness with a stomp of her foot. “And I’m not naughty, or a, abrat.”

“Don’t stomp your foot at me Mrs. Winthrop, or I’ll show you cruel. Now sit down and eat.” He gave her another cutting look. This one chilled, but that wasall.

Using a single finger Mia pulled the bowl closer, porridge wasn’t a particular favorite and the lack of apology for calling her names as well as the threat soured her stomach for themeal.

“Sit down, Mia.” The warning in his tone made her eyes fill with tears. Why didn’t Papa fight more to keep her away from this man? “Sitdown.”

“I can’t,” she yelled, meeting his eyes as the tears spilled over.She wasn’t spoiled.“I can’t. You hurt me and it hurts tosit.”

He was behind her with his hand pushing down between her shoulder blades before Mia could think to move. When he had her sufficiently bent he picked up the tails of the shirt and lifted. The only sound she heard was the rushing of her blood as she waited for him to again prove he was as dangerous asScyllaand like all ships who came to close, she’d not escapeunscathed.

Then he was gone from behind her, over to the head of the bunk. He lifted one pillow, hesitated, then lifted a second, before turning and coming back to her. He dropped both pillows on the seat and forced her down. It wasn’t completely uncomfortable but she did need to concentrate to keep her balance. She saw him go around and retake his seat, set his elbows on the table, fold his fingers together, and leanforward.

“Spankings are meant to hurt Mia, and the hurt is meant to last. Sitting on the hurt is a way to remember not to earn another spanking,” he said, nothing cold or unfriendly in his voice. “I hope this show of mercy on my part doesn’t encourage more misbehavior on yours. Because next time it won’t be necessary for you to sit to feel it.” He sat back and picked up the halves of the orange holding some out in offering. “Noweat.”

Mia hesitated, but taking the orange, she pulled apart the wedges and slipped one in her mouth. “Thank you,Captain.”

He made a grunting sound, leaned back further and said, “Now, why don’t you tell me aboutyourself.”

Chapter 5

Devin watchedas Mia put her hands up to cover her ears. Mr. Hong reached up pulled down one hand and continued to berate her as he’d done since Devin brought her topside. At least he assumed the man was scolding. He couldn’t understand a word said, and hadn’t thought Mia could until she answered back in the fast, choppylanguage.

Devin hadn’t really believed her when she said she could speak twelve languages and knew eight dialects over three continents. Now though, it was becoming harder to deny she might well be as educated as she’d toldhim.

Her father, according to her, provided private tutors starting at age three and at age twelve placed her in several good schools including Bradford Academy in the colonies, or ratherAmerica. She’d just finished attending one of the finest schools for young ladies in all of France, if he was to believe her. It was there she found herself suffering her father’s wrath for taking an unauthorized trip to Italy to explore the arts that aboundedthere.

Devin gave his head a shake. A bit more than a month’s loss of allowance was the worst discipline she’d ever endured. It was hardly a wonder she’d reacted so badly to being paddled. Although the large mark on the underside of her right cheek did attest to the delicate nature of her skin. She’d bruised too, where he’d held her arm while he spanked her and where she’d bumped her leg sometime while she was cleaning the cabin. He’d no intention of trying to punish her the way her father did. Clearly that did nothing to curb her. He would, though, be more aware of her delicate construction. Leather over wood might be moreappropriate.

He watched as Mr. Hong pulled her hands from her ears again, and spoke frantically. She answered back, her body language saying she wasn’t giving anything he said consideration. And like a fool, the man went silent with Mia’s final words and a stomp of her foot. Devin was without a doubt a man with a brat of the first rate as wife. And he wouldn’t ignore her less than desirablebehaviors.

But there was more to her. It wasn’t that shecouldbe well educated. That wouldn’t account for the honesty in the manners she’d shown once they sat down for breakfast. Nor could her graceful comportment be so well taught. Those things were more natural. Natural enough they overtook the more belligerent aspects she’d likely learned from the company she kept in the pirate circles of her father’s men. When her guard was down she was every bit a lady. He felt his lips quirk up and a moment later his cock started tostiffen.

Well noteverybit a lady. She was so hot and wet when he touched her, had she not confused him with her call for an accord, or rather had he not been suspicious about her wanting to use sex to control him, he’d already know what it felt like to be insideher.

Walking in and finding her in nothing more than his shirt, well, she couldn’t have looked more a siren than any of the courtesans he’d encountered wearing lace and silks. He’d not intended to bed her when he’d walked in the room, but her dress and her sweet response to his touch, practiced as it may be, made his blood churn harder than an ocean full of frenzied sharks. If only he’d thought first of her as a woman and not the daughter of a pirate. Devin shook his head again. It wasn’t like he’d not get anotherchance.

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