Author's Note: This chapter contains a slightly graphic slash situation, which I am cutting the details out of to post. If you wish to see the full version, please go to the other website. Also, I made a mistake when uploading before, so chapter 17 is new.
Night fell and Jake hadn't left his room since Nicolette had been to see him. Both Jack and Loralei tried to talk to him, but he wouldn't lift his head from his pillow. He was worse off now then when he thought her dead. His soul felt empty.
It was eleven thirty when another knock graced his door. "Mum, Dad, I jus' wan' t' be alone."
"It's Noel." There was no response. "Jake, may I come in?" After waiting a minute, he opened the door. "You don't have to stay up here, you know."
"I kissed yer wife." The words were quick.
"I know." Noel's words were…casual. "Why don't you come downstairs with me and have a drink?"
For some reason, Jake sat up. He turned to look at Noel and saw no anger whatsoever. "I could use a drink," he confessed.
The men went downstairs, into what could be considered a study, and sat on two sofas, facing each other. Noel had poured rum for the both of them – there was no use for a fine wine for such an occasion. The silence was deafening…until Noel had had enough.
"She loves us both," he said strongly. "Old love and new love. It's not her fault, nor mine, nor yours. Fate decided to mix things up a bit and I am sorry that you are in the position you are in…and that Nicolette is as well."
"Well, I'm sorry to be intrudin' on yer life."
"You're not." Noel got up and sat on Jake's sofa. "She'll be crushed if you leave her again."
Jake downed the rest of his glass before answering. "An' wha' am I s'posed t' do? Yer her husband! It's yer child inside o' her!"
"Yes, I know." He looked at Jake…taking all of the pirate in. "She has impeccable taste." He smiled, leaving Jake confused and picked up the rum bottle, refilling Jake's glass. "We could…arrange something," he said, a lift in his voice.
"Wha' are ye talkin' about, Noel?" It was the first time Jake said the man's name.
"There's no need to make her choose."
"She doesn' need t' choose! She married ye! Ye win!"
"I don't think you understand what I'm suggesting, Jake. If you don't want to give her up, you don't have to. Under the circumstances, I see no foul in her having more than one lover."
Jake nearly choked. "Ye wha'?""
Noel rose from the sofa and smiled. "I'm a rather liberal man, Jake. Rather than wonder who my wife is thinking of while I'm in bed with her, or having dinner with her, why can't she just…have us both?"
"Yer bloody insane, ye know tha'?" It was obvious by his voice that Jake was feeling the effects of the rum.
"Am I? Think about it, Jake. No winners, no losers…" He once again sat down next to the young pirate and put his hand on his leg. "…and so many other possibilities." Noel found himself wanting to test some very off limit waters…well, perhaps they weren't as off limits as one would think. Noel didn't start this conversation purely of his own accord…his own wife had suggested it.
"I don'…" Noel took the glass from his hand. "I don' think I understand wha' yer gettin' at – well, I mean, I do an' I don' know why ye think I…"
"You are a very attractive young man, Jake." Noel's voice had changed into a seductive purr. His hand traveled further up Jake's leg and he felt lust shoot through his veins. It wasn't supposed to go this far. He wasn't supposed to want him so badly…yet he did. "Jake, you haven't been with anyone in over a year, have you?"
"N…no." He knew he should be pushing Noel away, but he couldn't. In fact, he couldn't look away from those soul-piercing eyes.
"You poor, poor thing." He moved his face closer to Jake's. "What's going through your mind right now?"
"Me mind's a bit foggy. Nothin' yer sayin's makin' any sense."
"I bet it is, Captain Delmone." The way the pirate's name rolled off of Noel's tongue made something stir…below his waist. Noel saw evidence of arousal and took that as his sign to continue. He placed his hand on Jake's face and softly pressed his lips to the boy's.
Jake froze. He didn't push Noel away, but he certainly didn't kiss him back…at first. It had been over a year since Nic's lips had touched his and, earlier, he had but a brief encounter with them. He wanted more – needed more – and at this point in time, his body was telling him that it didn't matter where that "more" came from.
Noel opened his eyes to find that Jake's were closed – a good sign, indeed. He let a hand travel to the pirate's back, gently rubbing, then finding its way into his hair, which was down and falling just below his shoulders. He deepened the kiss and found that Jake had parted his lips, ever so slightly.
Before Noel could let his tongue probe Jake's mouth, he pulled back, very slightly. Noel didn't want Jake to think that anything was happening by force; that would throw a wrench into anything else happening on this evening. "Do you want me to stop?" he whispered.
Jake was silent, and his eyes remained closed. Noel's voice was so soft, that it was feminine, perhaps that was why he didn't run off…perhaps. "N…no?" It was a question, both to himself and to Noel.
"Good." Noel smiled before once again claiming the younger man's lips, this time with more force. He heard Jake groan and took the opportunity to slip his tongue into his mouth. Much to Noel's surprise, and far more to his desire, Jake reciprocated, his tongue searching out all it could. Jake pulled Noel close to him, his hands pawing, his mind either not caring whether or not it was "right."
Noel had managed to move Jake's body so that he was lying flat on the couch. Moving like a cat, Noel moved on top of the young and eager (against its will?) body. His kisses were heated and the lust in his veins was growing. It had been so long since Noel had been this way with a man and the more he pressed on, the more he wanted.
"Jacob…" The name slid from Noel's lips in a way that made Jake's hips buck forward. "Mm…that's right." Noel's mouth moved to the pirate's jaw, then his throat. A silent deal had been made then – Jake wanted this situation, wanted this man. Noel pushed the fabric of Jake's v-cut shirt as wide open as he could, letting his tongue trail along the tanned flesh there. Jake felt his breathing change and his heart began to pound. Sweat formed at his temples and his groin was positively aching. "Do you want more, darling?"
There was no pause of hesitation, no thought given. "Yes."
"Thank God," Noel smiled.
………………………a short while later………………….
"Jesus bloody Christ!"
The eyes of one, Jake Sparrow shot open; Noel nearly choked. Jack Sparrow could not have picked a worse time to open a particular door in Noel's castle. His son was on the sofa, legs open and pants halfway down his hips – a man perched in between his legs, telltale evidence of what had happened.
"What the hell are ye doin' t' me son, ye bastard?" Jack saw the open, and nearly empty bottle of rum and immediately thought of Noel as being a pervert that took advantage of the situation. He grabbed Noel by the collar and pulled him onto his feet. "Jesus, ye…" He looked at Jake. "Jake, did 'e force ye? Are ye all righ'?"
Jake dressed himself. "Dad, no, I…"
"Go an' get cleaned up. I need t' be alone with this…Christ, what are you?"
"But, Dad, I…"
Jack's voice was coated in violence. "Out, Jake!" His son left without another glance. He took a step toward Noel and the man flinched. "Yer a married man. Yer a married man with a child on the way and you had to orally rape me son?"
Noel stood and did his best to cover his shaky voice. "I can assure you that no force was used."
"Ye liquored him up! There's no way 'e was thinkin' clearly!" Jack wanted to strangle the man before him, but before his fingers could wrap around his throat, Noel spoke.
"He knew exactly what he wanted from me."
"The only thing 'e wants from ye is yer wife!"
Noel raised an eyebrow. "Aside from seeing it with your own eyes, why does this bother you so much, Jack?"
"Ye 'ave a family! Do they mean nothin' t' ye?"
Noel couldn't tell Jack that this had been partly Nic's idea to begin with; she hardly needed the reaming he was getting. "The world," he said, steadily. "But the love of my life wishes to love your son as well as me – I thought that if I…"
"Yer sick!" Jack yelled. He wanted to say more, but couldn't.
"I'm no sicker than you, Jack." Noel spoke as if he knew very valuable information.
Jack narrowed his eyes. "Wha' are ye implyin'?"
"You haven't always sailed with your wife, Jack. You haven't always had a woman's company. And, well…people talk, stories are told."
"Stop…"
"In fact, I'm willing to bet that if you didn't have the wife you do, and I didn't have mine, I would be able to seduce you in mere moments."
"Ye know nothin' about me." Jack's voice was deep, threatening.
"You've been with men, Jack, what pirate hasn't?"
"One man!" Jack screamed. "An' ye know nothin' of it! An' I won' let me son…"
Noel took a step towards Jack. "You would do anything in your power to keep Loralei happy, wouldn't you?" Jack's silence was taken as "yes." "Well, I would, and will, do the same for Nicolette." Noel turned and left the room.
