Read Online Captain's Bride by Kat Martin - Free Book Online Page B

grateful for your help, Captain. But I’m afraid
I’m going to need to ask for more. Willie won’t be safe until he
reaches the North. You could take him there aboard your ship.”
    Nicholas stiffened. “I don’t approve of the
institution of slavery, Glory. But I have friends in the South. Men
like your father. Men I admire and respect. I do business with
these men. I won’t interfere in their way of life.”
    “I appreciate your feelings, Captain. I feel much the
same way. But just this once . . . ? No one need ever know.”
    He ran a long tanned finger down the line of her
cheek. She looked so beautiful, so caring. He really had no
choice—he’d known that the moment he came upon her in the road.
“All right. Just this once. But don’t ever ask it of me again.”
    “Thank you, Captain.”
    “Back there you called me Nicholas. I liked the way
it sounded.”
    “Nicholas,” she whispered softly.
    It seemed so natural he should kiss her, so right
somehow. What harm could there be in one little kiss? He lifted her
chin and covered her soft coral lips. They felt full and warm, and
Nicholas heard himself groan. When she parted them to allow his
tongue entrance, Nicholas forgot the promises he’d made himself,
forgot all but the warmth of her breath, the sweetness of her
mouth. He deepened the kiss and felt her slender arms slip behind
his neck, her fingers glide through the strands of his curly black
hair.
    Glory felt a rush of desire so poignant it made her
dizzy. His lips were full and insistent, and a warm, pervasive glow
spread through her limbs. She felt hot and languid, tense and
shivery all at the same time. His hands cupped her face, his firm
fingers guiding her in the kiss while they gently held her captive.
Her nipples hardened against the fabric of her dress, felt heavy,
and just a little achy. His tongue searched her mouth, tasting
every comer, taking her breath away, making her head spin.
    Glory had been kissed before, dozens of times, by
countless suitors. Sweet, chaste kisses, warm on her lips. Promises
of things to come. The kiss she experienced with Nicholas Blackwell
was like no other. She wanted the kiss to go on forever, but even
that wouldn’t have been enough. When his hands moved down the
bodice of her dress to cup the weight of her bosom, when his
fingers teased the stiff peak through the soft green fabric, Glory
knew exactly what it was she wanted from Nicholas Blackwell, and
the thought cleared her mind like a dip in an icy stream.
    “Please, Captain,” she whispered, pulling away, her
voice a little shaky. “This is too . . . I mean, I didn’t intend to
. . . I mean, I don’t think we should . . .”
    “I know exactly what you mean, Miss
Summerfield.” His voice sounded husky as he twisted away from her,
trying to ease the bulge in his breeches Glory pretended not to
see. Her face flamed scarlet, and she was glad a cloud had covered
the moon.
    Nicholas glanced at the side of the road. “I didn’t
intend to, either.”
    They rode the rest of the way in silence, Glory’s
lips still tender from the blush of his kiss, her heart still
hammering uncomfortably. As she glanced at his angular profile,
watched the wind blow strands of his curly black hair and moonbeams
lighten his usually dark gray eyes, Glory began to understand why
women like Lavinia Bond would risk their honor for Nicholas
Blackwell.
    Mose stopped the carriage some distance from the main
house to let Willie out, with instructions as to which cabin
belonged to Mose. In the morning Willie could slip back into the
box for the long ride to the wharf in Charleston. From there
Captain Blackwell would see that he reached safety in the
North.
    Glory and the Captain said a detached good-night, but
Glory thought he looked at her differently somehow. She knew she
saw him in a different light. She desired Nicholas
Blackwell, desired a man for the very first time in her life, and
Glory felt both stunned and a little ashamed.