Hang it. He’d exposed too much to this woman.
“’Tis the Ring.” She nodded toward the jewel on his finger. “It’s evil. Legend says it summons demons.”
He blew out an incredulous sigh. “If it can summon them, it can send them back to hell.”
“There’s only one power that can send demons scurrying away in fear.”
The woman herself ’twould seem. “And what power is that, for you seem in possession of it.” If he could harness it, he would have no further need of her.
“The power of God. His Holy Spirit dwells within those who confess Jesus as Lord.”
“God, bah! He has naught to do with this or with me.”
“Can you deny it?”
“I cannot deny that your goodness casts them away.” Her skin looked like shimmering silk in the lantern light. Her lips moist and full. Her sweet smell drifted around him, taunting him. Raising his hand, he ran a finger down her cheek, then pressed it on her lips.
She didn’t flinch, didn’t retreat. Instead, her eyes searched his as if seeking answers before dropping to the cross dangling about his neck. “You wear the cross of Christ. Why?”
The spell broke. Blake grabbed the small crucifix, pressing it between his fingers. “’Twas my mother’s. Like you, she believed in a benevolent God.”As did my father.
“Then you know of the love of our Savior.” She smiled. Such promise, such joy filled that smile that Blake hated to make it vanish. But vanish it must.
“The only love I learned was the kind that cast me from my home at sixteen.”
Her lips parted slightly as sorrow claimed her features. “I’m sorry, Blake.”
“She did me a favor.” He leaned back in the chair and folded his hands across his bare belly.
“What of the other emblem?” Emeline pointed to his chest, then averted her gaze as if his state of undress bothered her. Or perhaps attracted her? Nay. She was too pure for that.
He fingered the lion emblem. “As the lion is king of the beasts, so will I be king of my own kingdom. The sun speaks of the dawn of my new life.”
“And the dove?”
“Peace when I have achieved my goals.”
She seemed to ponder his explanation, then added, “And the black pearl in your ear?”
“’Twas a gift,” he mumbled. “Enough with your questions!” His outburst came out louder and more forceful than he’d wanted. But the effect was the same.
The lady shrank back, chest pumping, and eyes wide as she scrambled to her feet.
“More music,” he commanded.
“And if I don’t wish to play?” Her voice trembled.
He allowed his salacious gaze to scan her. “Then we will find something else to play.”
Chapter 19
E
meline leaned her face toward the rising sun, relishing its warm caress and praying it would wipe away the darkness and foreboding that had consumed her during the night. After the captain fell asleep, she’d carefully laid the violin down and returned to her bed. But her mind and heart found no peace. One minute she sensed a tenderness in Blake, a humility even. The next, the steel returned to his eyes. One minute he opened his heart a crack and allowed her entrance. Then the next, he slammed it shut. One minute, he caressed her cheek gently as one would a lover. The next, he threatened to ravish her. Which man lurked beneath his pirate exterior? Hero or villain? Gentleman or rogue? He was a man of mystery. A mystery she honestly had no desire to solve.
Therefore when Charlie knocked on her door in the morning and offered to give her a tour of the gardens, Emeline gladly accepted. They broke their fast with papaya and freshly brewed coffee before leaving the big house through one of the French doors in the dining room. When Emeline inquired after the captain, Charlie said he had risen early and was attending business on board theSummons.
Good. Emeline had no desire to see the man after his lewd threat. She glanced over the well-maintained gardens, filled with manicured bushes and tropical flowers in every color of the rainbow—hibiscus, jasmine, ginger lilies, and bougainvillea. Their sweet scent filled the air with God’s best perfume, and Emeline couldn’t inhale enough of the aromatic fragrance. In the middle of the garden, birds of every color imaginable fluttered about an ornate stone fountain filled with water sparkling in the sunlight.