To Sail the High Seas: Pirate England x Reader #Wattys2017

Chapter Thirty~Three

The steaming water sloshed over the edge of the copper tub as you scrubbed furiously at your already raw skin, trying to rid yourself of an intangible filth. When you'd first entered the inn, it had only taken the well-groomed innkeeper a second to whisk you up to the finest room available and call his wife, a stout but friendly woman, to run you a hot bath. Gold worked wonders in this city.
Finally giving up on ridding yourself of the feeling of having been dirtied, realizing that it would be impossible no matter how thickly you lathered the sweet-scented soap onto your body, you dropped the cloth into the water glumly. Your thoughts turned back to the recently revealed identity of your father's killer and you shuddered despite the bath water's heat. A murderous urge rose from the depths of your mind and your fingers twitched. You half wondered if this burning violence had always been a part of your nature, or if it was the growing pirate in you. At this point you doubted it really mattered who you once were or who you were becoming, because the person you were wanted revenge. What would your father have done, you questioned, had your positions been reversed and he the captive while you lay rotting at the bottom of the ocean. It was a rather ridiculous notion seeing as Arthur had no reason to free a middle-aged man from the hold, not when he had several other young women to choose from. Besides which, from what you had observed over the past few months, the Captain had never seemed particularly... that way inclined. You chuckled then, your train of thought having become so easily derailed, and by such an irrelevant topic.

Forcing your exhausted muscles to lift yourself from the water's comforting embrace you wrapped the towel, left for you by the innkeeper's wife, around yourself and entered the adjacent room which was to be your lodgings for the night. What you hadn't expected, was to find a familiar crimson coat draped over the back of a chair which had been tucked neatly into the opposite corner of the room. The polite cough from behind you caused a slow exhale of defeat before you turned to face the English Captain who leant against the wall, arms crossed. Your eyes narrowed and you clutched the towel tighter against your chest, suddenly feeling all too exposed.
"I paid them twice as much coin to ensure their silence."
"And I offered them triple for your location."
You inwardly cursed at the mercenary man for selling you out, but then again, business was business and there weren't many people who would dare to refuse Captain Kirkland of anything, regardless of the gold it put in their pockets.
"So?" you watched the pirate warily. "You're here because...?"
"Because that look in your eyes told me that you weren't planning to come back of your own accord."
"I did last time, did I not? Besides, I promised Peter-"
"You lied." His tone wasn't accusatory, nor did it hold even a trace of anger, he was just making a statement with no more judgment that one would use to comment on the weather.
"Have I really become that easy to read?"
"Not really." He smiled slightly. "Allistor didn't notice a thing, and Peter blindly trusts every word that leaves your mouth. I swear you could tell that boy the sea was dry and he'd believe you."
"Just you then?"
"Just me." You were unsure how to react to that, even your own family had struggled to tell your facts from your falsehoods and yet this man had no such issue. You almost preferred the idea of it being the rowdy Scotsman who came to bring you back by force, or even little Peter who would surely guilt you into returning with tearful pleas, but this? You didn't know if you could handle it. He had made no move to approach you, nor had he raised his voice once. This wasn't the stubborn and childish Arthur you were used to, but the calculated calm demeanor of a Pirate Captain. This was the man who people all across the seas feared, and he was not an opponent to be taken lightly.
You needed to throw him off balance. Right now, with your heart being in such an unstable state, you knew you were no match for the man who stood before you.

"Turn around."
"Why?" His brow furrowed in confusion at your seemingly irrelevant comment.
"Why do you think?" You gestured to yourself with a sweeping motion; the towel was smaller than you would have liked, leaving ample quantities of your body on display. Green eyes looked you up and down, seemingly noticing your apparel - or lack thereof - for the first time. You observed his reaction with both amusement and embarrassment, thankful that you'd broken through his composure even if it did cost a small blow to your pride.
Arthur's eyes appreciated the way your towel covered just enough to tease without compromising your modesty, deciding he was especially fond of your flushed complexion which was likely due to the heat of the bath, though he hoped he could attribute at least some of the color in your cheeks to his own presence. Green eyes locked on to one small droplet as it rolled from a strand of your _(h/c)_ hair, slightly darkened by the moisture and plastered against your scalp, down the smooth expanse of your neck and beneath the towel to places which were forbidden from his eyes. Then his gaze found the other end of the fabric from which protruded your legs, lean and muscular from climbing the rigging as well as training with Allistor. Those legs shifted slightly, uncomfortable under his scrutiny, and Arthur had to force himself to remain focused instead of imagining how it would feel to have those shapely legs warped around his hips. He needed to convince you to come back to the ship, to come back to him.
"What kind of gentleman eyes up a woman like she's a piece of meat?"
"The kind who knows how to appreciate said woman in bed."
He met your disapproving and somewhat flustered glare with hungry eyes, but still made no move to approach, for fear of scarring you off. Offering you a flash of his teeth, the pirate turned to face the wall.
"Apologies, love. I've become so used to seeing you in men's clothing that I was beginning to forget what a lovely figure you have. I assure you that I have been thoroughly reminded."
Arthur smiled at the mumbled threats which followed this comment. Your attitude, at least, seemed relatively unaltered by your recent discovery, though he held little doubt that it was eating away at you more that you'd be likely to let him know.
"Don't you dare peek, Arthur Kirkland."
"I wouldn't dream of it, love." Though at the sound of the heavy towel dropping to the floor, it became increasingly difficult to imagine anything other than your smooth skin. Knowing you were standing only a few measly feet behind him, with nothing other than his own honor as a gentleman to obstruct the view of your naked body, was torture, and the little voice in the back of his head wasn't helping one bit as it whispered sweet temptations into his ear.

After what seemed like an eternity to Arthur, you had deemed yourself appropriately clothed and he was permitted to turn around. Disappointingly, you were now properly covered, but not in the garments he had been expecting. Your pirate-like attire had been replaced by a thin, cotton dress which was well worn but not unflattering. Arthur cocked an eyebrow in question at the unfamiliar garment.
"Apparently the couple who own this place have a daughter around my age. They offered to wash my clothes and said I could wear this for the time being."
The Englishman hummed in acceptance and then the two of you fell into an uncomfortable silence, neither sure how to best broach the imminent conversation.
"The bath's still warm." You shrugged, not quite meeting his eyes. "If you want to clean up or something."
"I didn't realize you were quite so eager to rid me of my clothes." His words caused you to blush furiously and you became immediately defensive.
"You wish. To put it bluntly Arthur, you stink. Hell, every man aboard your ship smells like the wrong end of a cart-horse, but I don't sleep with any of them."
"Ah..." Arthur nodded thoughtfully and you realized your mistake a little too late. "So it was an invitation."
"Wha- No! You know what? If you're going to be an arse about it you can go back to the ship!" When he began to snigger at your distress, your frown deepened into a scowl of utter fury.
"You're a real piece of work Kirkland, you know that?"
"So I've been told." Being unable to take the physical distance a moment longer, Arthur strode across the room and pulled you into an affectionate embrace, resting his forehead gently against yours. "If I bathe, you must swear to me that you won't disappear again."
"Fine." Your easy agreement received a pointed look, causing your shoulders to sag slightly.
"Alright, I swear it." His stare didn't waver and so you pressed a short but sweet kiss against his lips. "I promise okay? On my father's integrity I swear that I will not disappear before you've said what you need to say."
This declaration visibly relaxed the Captain, and he tucked a stray strand of wet hair behind your ear before kissing your forehead in return.
"Good."
He released you and headed for the bathroom. You felt oddly cold without his arms wrapped around your waist so tenderly.
"By the way, love." A very shirtless Captain appeared in the bathroom doorway, smirking all the while. "Know that you're free to join me if you'd like."
The wet towel was abruptly snatched from the floor and thrown into the laughing man's face.