A Pirate's Life For Me (Mary Read X OC Fanfic)

Chapter 4

A/N So I just realized that there is no way to make a ship name for James and Jane.... ALSO I'M AN IDIOT BECAUSE I DIDN'T REALIZE HOW SIMILAR THEIR NAMES WERE IM SO SORRY. I came up with Jane because I googled "popular names in the 1700s" and out of the list I found I liked Jane the most. I have no idea how I came up with Cliffsworth. So I decided their ship name will can either be Mary/Jane which could be Mane or Jary, or it can be Kidd/Cliffsworth which could be Kiddsworth? You can choose, or you cannot give them a ship name it was just an idea XD. Happy reading! This one is a bit longer....

Mark and I finish the day making a good amount of profit. In total we sold about four swords and three pistol sets, so I can't complain.

We clean up the shop, and start making our way home. "Mark, what are you going to make for dinner?" I ask, looking over at my brother. "Well I'll have to make enough for four people, so maybe a quick stew?" Mark responds. "Four people?" I ask, then realizing who was coming for dinner and quickly added, "Never mind, I forgot. You, me, Bennet, and James." Mark nods, grinning a little, and we walk home. I decide that I'll also make a dessert for tonight, maybe a cake or something using the fresh fruit I got at the market.

We get home, and I head into my room to clean up a bit. As I'm washing my face, I hear a knock on our front door. I then hear the door open, and then Marks voice. "I have news" Mark says to who I assume is Bennet. I know that he's going to tell him about James coming for dinner and all that I said. I also know that there will be relentless teasing from the two of them. I cringe not knowing how they will find ways to embarrass me in front of James tonight.

I take extra care brushing and tying back my hair delaying the comments from my brother and Bennet as much as possible. I must have taken too long though, because before I can finish putting my necklace back on, there's another knock on the front door. I hear someone open the door, and Bennet say "Nice to meet you. I'm Bennet, I'm basically Jane's other brother. You must be James, come on in." Bennet is in no way shy, he's very personable and I hope he doesn't scare Kidd off. "Jane is in her room, I have no idea what's taking her so long. You can go on in, I'm sure she wouldn't mind, Mark and I will be in the kitchen if you need anything." Bennet says, and by the sound of his footsteps I'm pretty sure he walks to the kitchen. If James comes in I don't want to seem strange by just looking like I took so long to do my hair, so I grab one of my favorite books off of the shelf and run for my bed, sitting down with my back on the headrest.

My bedroom isn't by any means big, but it has all that I need. The floor is a simple wood, like the rest of the house, and three of the four walls are a dark blue. When you walk in, I have my bed (with its crimson bedding) in the corner with a nightstand right next to it. On the nightstand is an oil lamp, a quill, and an inkwell. On the opposite side I have my dresser, a full body mirror, and my bookshelf. My paints and brushes are on top of my dresser, and I have my violin leaning on my bookshelf. On the wall behind my bed, I have a mural that I painted of a beach. It's a bit of an abstract beach due to all the colors but it's one of my favorite paintings out of all of the ones I have done. If you can't tell, I love the arts. I play the violin, I paint, I sing, and I read. When I lived in France I also loved going to the theater to see plays. My brother doesn't understand, but the arts are a way I can express myself.

I open the book, Hamlet, and start reading. I barely get through the first line when I hear a knock on my bedroom door. "Come in." I say, loud enough for who assume is James to hear me. He peeks his head in, and I look up from the book that I was pretending to read. "Oh! I'm sorry, I didn't realize you were here yet." I say, faking surprise and standing up. "No problem lass. What ya reading?" James says in that beautiful accent of his. "Hamlet." I reply, setting my book on my nightstand. "It's one of my favorites, I'm reading it again for what seems like the millionth time." I say, sitting on the side of my bed. James comes to sit next to me, and says "I love Hamlet! I didn't know you were a Shakespeare fan." I laugh, and reply. "I love almost all literature. If you couldn't tell" Laughing a little, I gesture to my bookshelf. James looks at the many books in awe, and then his gaze shifts down a little to my violin. "You play?" he asks me. "Yes, I do, I also sing a little. Though I'm no good." I tell him, looking down. I don't let most people know that I love music and art. It's very personal and the only two people I talk to very regularly is Mark and Bennet. "I'm sure yer singing is beautiful lass, ye'll have to show me one day." James says with a smirk on his face, "First ye can paint wonders, now ye play the bloody violin and read Shakespeare. Ye surprise me every time we meet." James says, shaking his head in awe. I look up at him and we make eye contact. I then feel myself get lost in his beautiful eyes. They're so round, and almost feminine. The color is so deep, I didn't know that brown could have so many layers. I feel James staring back into my eyes, and I wonder what he's thinking. I don't know how much time has passed or what's happening around me, but next thing I know I'm centimeters from James' face. His eyes flicker to my lips and back up to my eyes, and he starts to lean in. I close my eyes, and then- *knock knock* "Hey Jane, James is in here, right?" I hear Marks voice and James and I leap apart.

Mark opens the door, looks at us, and says "Jane, weren't you planning on making dessert? If you were you might want to start it soon so it can cook while we're eating, because the stew will be done soon." He then looks between James and I and looks as if he's trying not to smile, and walks out of the room. James looks red and I'm sure I do too, and when we make eye contact all we do is laugh. He gets up and holds out his hand. I grab it and pull myself up, and we make our way to the kitchen.

When we walk into the kitchen, I smell the stew and my mouth starts to water. Mark is such an amazing cook and I know that dinner will be amazing, especially since we have a guest. I think I'm going to make some cookies that mom taught me how to make. I get out all the ingredients out and mix them in a bowl, put them on a pan, and then put them in the oven. The whole time I can feel James' eyes follow me around.

By the time I have the cookies in the oven, the stew is done. I get out the bowls and spoons and quickly set the table. The dining room consists of a small table and four chairs. There's a vase of wild flowers in the center of the table, and a tapestry from our old dining room in France on the wall that mother insisted we took when we left. The dining room is directly connected to the kitchen by a door, and James holds that door open for me while I'm carrying the dining where.

Mark comes through the door carrying the pot of stew and a ladle, with Bennet just strides behind him. I shift the flowers over a little so we can set the pot down and Mark starts to dish out servings. He starts with James, who's sitting next to me, and goes around the table. After everyone has their food, we eat.

"So James, you're a pirate aye?" Bennet say, looking at James. "Yeah, I am. But I don't like the term 'pirate' ye see, 'cause it implies I have no higher commitment than rum and plunder." James says, pulling that devilish smirk of his and chuckling a bit. The rest of us laugh a bit, and I speak up "So how long are you going to be in Nassau?" I ask James. He of course sails most of the time and usually doesn't stay in one place for long, even if he does consider that place home. "Probably for a while, me ship has to be fixed and I have some business here in Nassau that may take a little while." James replies. When he says this I feel a rush of happiness run through me. I'll have time to get to know James. Jane stop being stupid. He probably doesn't want to get to know you. You're just being- "That means I'll be here long enough to woo ye" James says, winking at me. I feel myself go red and I laugh trying to cover up my embarrassment. Mark and Bennet burst out laughing and I swear they're loud enough to wake the dead. By the time they stop laughing they have tears in their eyes and I'm ready to punch them both square in the face. "Idiots" I murmur, and then James starts to laugh. Next thing I know I'm laughing too and I'm sure if someone were to come in right now they would think we were all crazy.

This is how the rest of dinner goes, Mark or Bennet saying something to embarrass me and James saying something that just adds fuel to the fire. After a little while, I get up to check on the cookies. They're done so I grab some plates and some rum. I walk back into the dining room and I smile at the sight I see. James and Bennet are having an arm wrestling match, and Mark is switching between cheering for both of them. It's like James is a part of our strange little family alrea- Jane no that's stupid. They're just having fun, but I have to say it makes me happy to see that Mark and Bennet like James.