She Shouldnt, But She Will (24 page)

She’d slept the whole afternoon away. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to sleep so long.”

Derek moved around, swishing brushes in a cleaner and making sure his paints were capped. “Don’t worry. If I hadn’t been anxious to finish this I would have stayed in bed, too. Sex uses a lot of energy, and we don’t exactly take it easy.”

She stretched, moving slowly under the sheets. Derek's eyes were riveted to her, so she kept it up longer than necessary. “We sure don’t.”

Finally she stood and walked to the easel. “You’re amazing. In the photo is a girl in funny clothes with a sexy expression. But you painted a girl who has been taken sexually and discarded like a piece of trash. It makes me want to take her home and protect her. But I also want to cry because there is nothing I can do for her. I can’t reach her through the painting.”

He studied her. “Is that why you bought the paintings at the gallery?”

She wrapped her arms around her waist. “Every time I look at them I feel as though I should do something but I can’t, and that makes me feel things I had never felt before I met you.”

“Good things?” His voice was soft in the shadowed room.

“Yes, I believe so. When I put myself in her place I know I would do the same thing she is doing.”

Tears filled her eyes. Suddenly, Derek was there, taking her in his powerful arms. “They’re only paintings.”

“I can’t help my feelings, the feelings you make me have through your work. Part of me aches when I look at your work, but I love them. Does that make me a masochist?”

“No, it makes you a sensitive person and that makes me want you. Maybe even love you.”

What?
“Love me?”

He kissed her ear. “There’s a lot you don’t know about me. If you did, I doubt you’d want to love me. So I’m happy just having you as a friend. A very good friend. A friend I want with me as much as you feel you can be.”

“I think that’s the nicest thing a man has ever said to me.” She pulled his arms around her and leaned back against his chest. His breath puffed her hair and his heart beat a steady rhythm against her ear.

Then his stomach growled against her back. “Want to go to Max’s for dinner?”

She smiled though she knew he couldn’t see. “Butterflied?”

He chuckled. “Not this time.”

“Thank heaven. I’m not sure I could last wearing it through one of Max’s huge meals. I’ll just get dressed.”

Sighing exaggeratedly he said, “If you feel you must.”

“I think it would be best.” She squeezed his hand and slipped out of his arms, feeling the chill of the room as she did.

Chapter 12

Friday afternoon had come and Derek slowly pulled his boat into the inlet. He turned and the Oglethorpe’s dock came into view. “Thia—I mean Sin—are you ready?”

“As ready as I’m going to be. Actually, I’m only a little apprehensive. I plan to have fun.”

“Good, but do stay alert, particularly if we get separated.”

“Oh, I’ll do that.”

A man dressed in a crewman’s uniform motioned to Derek, indicating the
As You Wish
should be docked behind the
Natant Revel
.

“Well I guess we are here, for better or worse. We will use two lines, front and back. If you throw him the stern lines he’ll tie them off, then throw him the bow lines.”

“Aye, aye, Capitan.”

“Don’t get smart, or I’ll make you walk the plank.” Thia just quirked her brow and went off to throw the lines to the man on the dock.

With the
As You Wish
secured, they passed their bags to the crewman. Derek hefted one of the paintings. Because of the artwork, they took the tram to the crest of the bluff. Sylvester met them at the top.

“Derek Anderson? I’m Sylvester Oglethorpe. Welcome to my home. Or should I say ‘welcome back,’ since you saw it last as a pirate, eh?” Sylvester looked at Sin. “It is Sin isn’t it?”

“Most people call me Thia but Derek prefers Sin.”

“Which do you prefer?”

She flashed Derek a smile filled with secrets and promises. “Sin does seem appropriate when I am with him.”

“Then Sin it is. Derek did you bring the paintings?”

“Yes, six of them anyway. I brought the smallest up because I think this is one your wife will particularly like. The others are packed and in the lounge near the stern. I had the frames made to your specification so I hope they are to your liking.”

“I will have them brought up and we can take a look later, but for now let’s relax with a drink out by the pool. Lilly and our assistant will join us there.”

The pool where the sexy contests took place or where the auction was held, near the hot tub? Thia hoped it was not the cascading pools where she’d be reminded of her interlude with Lei.

* * * *

Dinner was over when Sylvester invited Derek for a game of billiards, leaving the three ladies to their own devices.

The game room had two regulation-sized billiard tables, an arcade game and various game tables that could be used for board games or cards. The style was masculine and dark. The lights over the table provided plenty of illumination for playing, but allowed Sylvester to stand back in the shadows when he wanted. He’d offered Derek a drink when they first entered. Wary, Derek still nursed it an hour later as they played billiards.

“Derek, how long have you known Sin?”

“Just a few weeks. Not long before the masquerade, in fact.”

“She seems delightful.” Sylvester missed his shot, an easy one to Derek’s eye. He wondered if Sylvester missed on purpose in order to observe, while Derek was forced to play the table.

“She is. We have a lot of fun, but I don’t think she’s lived large. She’s delightfully naïve, though not quite as much now that we’ve been dating.” The two men shared a knowing smile.

“How lucky for you to find her when she was ready to explore.”

“I thought so, too. So far we’re extremely compatible sexually. Even better than I’d ever imagined.”

“How is that?”

Derek aimed down the length of his stick and smacked the ball into a grouping of three, sinking two. He chalked his cue and moved to the side to line up his next shot. “To date, she has done everything I’ve asked. Decorum dictates I don’t go into specifics.” He took the shot. Another ball sunk.

“Of course. Many of the people who attend our masquerades do so to let loose and live their fantasies. Sometimes we invite special friends for a day or two to do the same.”

“You fulfill fantasies?” Derek purposely missed the next shot, wanting Sylvester to concentrate on the game rather than studying him.

Sylvester shrugged modestly as he set down his drink and stepped to the table. “I like to think we provide a setting. It’s really quite private here. People often take advantage by performing activities in the open they wouldn’t anywhere else. It might be the freedom to skinny dip in the hot tub or having multiple partners in the garden. Lilly and I are quite liberally-minded.” He made his shot and positioned himself for the next one.

“I haven’t noticed the girls that were here the night of the masquerade. Do they entertain guests? Or does Lei?”

“Lei? Good Lord, no. She’s like a part of our family and rarely mixes with the guests. The other girls are living elsewhere now.” He aimed for a ball at the opposite end of the table. It bounced off the side but missed the pocket. “Your table. I think I might just have lost this game.”

Derek smiled. “I think you’re playing by some old fashioned rule that lets guests win.” He easily sunk the ball Sylvester missed, and the last two.

“Perhaps, but it was still a good game.” Sylvester put up the cues and Derek sipped his Scotch.

“There was plenty of alcohol at the masquerade. I wondered if you’d added anything to make people—” he raised a brow “—you know, a little more wild.”

Sylvester turned quickly and stared at Derek. “No, we served plain, old booze. I’ve found with most people it’s enough to forget archaic ideas of sexual restraint.”

Derek watched the liquid swirl in his glass. “I didn’t see anyone dealing anywhere, either.”

Sylvester straightened. “And you won’t. Not in this house. If I found any of my people using drugs, or providing them to anyone else, they’d be fired. Are
you
someone who uses, or is Sin? Because if so—”

“No. But I’m an artist, and not from a poor family. The parties I’m used to attending usually have something going on the side. Just to loosen people up. I was surprised I didn’t see any here, that’s all.”

“I hate drugs.” Sylvester jammed his hands in his pockets and peered into the shadows, distress etched on his face.

“Is there something I can do to help?” Derek lowered his voice. The fervor of Sylvester’s statement supported Derek’s hunch the man was not responsible for the smuggling. If Derek was right, that left his crew and Lilly—someone who had intimate knowledge of the
Natant Revel
.

Sylvester came back to himself. “No. Thank you. I must handle things on my own.” He slugged back the remainder of his whiskey. “Shall we join the ladies?”

Derek set his glass down. “That sounds good.” He followed Sylvester out of the room. “Who was the crewman who met us at the dock today?”

“Sergei? He’s a good man. Why do you ask?”

“Sin noticed him.”

Sylvester snorted. “All the women do. Lilly, thinks he’s the resident hunk on the
Natant Revel
.” Sylvester turned and gave Derek a look of curiosity. It changed into one of certainty. “I’m sure Sergei would love to answer any questions Sin might have.” His brows rose into his forehead. “Or are you the one who would like to question him?”

“He might be interested either way?”

They entered the living room but the women weren’t there. However, voices floated in with the breeze from the patio. “He’s a very adventurous young man. And, due to his looks, he’s often welcomed into the many guest bedrooms in the house. Shall I ask him to attend you tonight?”

“If he’s adventurous, I’d like his help in surprising Sin.”

“A fantasy of your own?” Sylvester asked the question with a smile.

“More, one of Sin’s that she doesn’t know enough to ask for.”

“How delightful. I’ll call Sergei now and you can talk to him.”

* * * *

Thia knew nothing of what was in store for her when Sylvester and Derek joined her and Lilly. The four of them chatted for an hour or more, mostly about the renovation job and the paintings of Derek’s they’d seen earlier.

Lilly told her how much she liked the paintings Derek had brought. Undercover or not, Derek would be receiving a good commission. No wonder he looked pleased.

Derek glanced Thia’s way and smiled. “Are you ready to go to our room? These people might want to get some sleep tonight.” He took her hand and pulled her to her feet.

Thia looked at Lilly. “I don’t think this has anything to do with sleep. I think he has something else on his mind.”

“If you’re lucky he does.”

“Can you blame me? Besides, I have a surprise for you.”

They said their goodnights and went inside.

“What is it?” she asked in a low voice.

“You’ll see. I’m sure you can’t guess what it is.”

“Will I like it?”

“I don’t know. I hope so.”

“Are you going to tie me up?”

“Hadn’t plan on it but I can if you like. I’m sure Sylvester has some rope around somewhere.”

“No, I’m just guessing.”

He laughed. “Well, you’re giving me ideas.” Derek opened their room door. “After you, my dear.”

Said the spider to the fly
, she thought. She paused. “You look too pleased with yourself. Just what do you have planned?”

“You have to go in to find out.”

With a feeling of excitement mixed with trepidation, she walked into the room.

Derek closed the door behind them. “Take a quick shower but don’t get your hair wet. I want to brush it when you come out.”

She tossed him a nervous smile and went into the bathroom.

When Derek heard the water running he picked up the phone and called the crew’s quarters. “Sergei, give me half an hour. And bring about ten feet of light rope with you.”

He examined the room. Neither feminine nor masculine, the décor used heavy fabrics mixed with light, deep, rich colors combined with muted hues of the same color family. There were few pieces of furniture, a king sized bed with a simple oak headboard and footboard, an armoire with carved oak doors, a small vanity of cherry with curved legs and a tri-fold mirror. The mirror would be useful for reflecting various angles of the bed.

The window coverings consisted of a lightweight material serving only as a sunlight filter, and heavier draperies of dark green damask. The green on green pattern was hard to discern, but after examination Derek discovered the material covered with depictions of couples in different sexual positions.

The ivory satin and russet velvet bed covering held another secret. The stitching and pattern design held an optical illusion. Looked at one way, a bird pulled a worm from the ground, and tree branches turned and twisted to end at leaves. Looked at another way, a woman’s mouth sought a phallus, and cocks turned and twisted around feminine legs to end at vaginas. The work was skillfully done.

Derek was still smiling at the bed covering’s hidden picture when Sin emerged from the bathroom wrapped in a towel.

“Sit at the vanity.”

She did and Derek began to gently brush her hair. Her hair sifted through his fingers like black silk. Each stroke of the brush sent shivers rippling across her shoulders, and after a few minutes she sighed in contentment.

When a knock sounded at the door she started.

“Who is that, I wonder.”

Derek set the brush on the vanity. He pulled her hair back and brushed his lips on her neck. “Do you remember the man that tied off the lines when we docked? You know, the one you couldn’t keep your eyes off?” He took her earlobe between his teeth and bit lightly.