ANY DUKE IN A STORM

Guilt

A/N
Welcome to my fourth!! That's right THREE chapters posted back to back! I'll post the next chapter if I get to 120 reads on this story🩵So hopefully that happens sooner rather then later😅Disclaimer when I'm bored, I edit a lot of these chapters after postings. Like over and over again to try to perfect it. So if you reread a chapter it'll probably be differences. Long story short, consider this book to be under construction til my last chapter🫡Just small tweaks and stuff. While you read please if you see any mistakes, errors, or something confusing, let me know so I can fix it, so you can have more enjoyable reading experience! With more to come please enjoy

ELIZABETH FINISHED OFF THE MAN SHE'D BEEN FIGHTING with a solid foot to the jaw.

Her knuckles and legs ached, but in the best way. This was what she'd needed a physical outlet for all of the excess energy running through her body. Coitus was overrated. A good brawl always got her blood flowing and her heart pumping. An orgasm might do that as well...but the ones with a competent lover came with complications, more often than not.

The short hairs on her nape stood up, identifying danger in close quarters, and she barely had time to turn before heat singed her cheek and a ball of lead sped past her head, much too close for comfort. The shot had come from the brute who'd mouthed off while threatening Narina, but someone had felled him before she could duck or defend herself. Elizabeth huffed a grateful breath that her crew always had her flanks covered. Her gaze spanned the space and locked on her rescuer holding the smoking weapon. A grinning, much too smug man. Gratitude faded and fury overtook her instead. That miserable, disobedient cur! She stalked toward him.

"I told you to stay with the ship," she hissed.

"I could have you lashed for such insubordination."

The insouciant prick smiled.

"You could, but I just saved your life, so perhaps save the lashes for later. Perhaps even in the privacy of your cabin. They can go quite well after a few drams of whiskey, I've heard."

His tone was teasing. Provocative. And the idea was... intriguing.

No, no.

It was terrible, rotten, idiotic. Out of the bloody question. Any punishments on her ship for misconduct though she abhorred the brutal practice of lashings, preferring to toss culprits in the brig instead were administered by Kai or Merida. Most of the crew agreed that Merida was the harsher of the two, but the quartermaster only gave as much as she'd taken herself on far worse ships.

"I've shocked you speechless."

Laughing blue eyes caught and sparkled in the sunlight. Tipping her head back to stare up at him, she could see the bright blue ice around his pupils fringed by eyelashes so thick, it seemed as if he'd applied kohl to his lids. He'd tied his hair back into a queue with a bit of leather, though some bits escaped around his face. Her stare drifted to the spent weapon in his opposite hand a walnut carved antique revolver with gold edgings along the barrel that looked strangely familiar.

Her eyes narrowed.

"Where did you get that?"

"Your cabin."

He lifted it and pursed his lips.

"Good design. A little too much recoil, but adequate to fell a man intent on my captain's demise, I suppose. Though in close quarters, I'm much better with an épée."