Disclaimer: Sadly, I must once again admit that I do not own PotC :(
Chapter 7- Situations and Complications
Sitting around the galley's table two weeks after The Pearl had departed from Tortuga, Paris found herself playing cards with the crew. While bottles of rum had been passed around in the early hours of the night, Pairs had declined with a meaningful glance towards Jack who grinned deviously back. "Four cows!" Gibbs called slamming down the cards on the wooden table.
Laughing at his drunken mistake, Paris corrected, "Kings, Mr Gibbs."
"Tha's wha' I said!" he claimed loudly as the crew roared with laughter.
As he collected his winnings, a couple of pirates decided to turn in for the evening, leaving empty bottles scattered over the table and on the floor. Standing up, Paris began cleaning up after them before Pierre offered to help which she gladly accepted.
Partly due to her resilience to comply with Jack's orders, as well as Pierre's ability to seemingly sweep her off her feet at times, Paris had found herself in the company of the young man often since The Pearl left Tortuga. Martinez seemed all too happy to allow her breaks to accommodate them time, while Jack, to Paris's endless amusement, chose to ignore the situation altogether.
Retreating to the backroom with empty bottles in hand, they found an empty box. A stray bit of hair hung loosely down the side of Paris' face as she bent down to drop the bottles into it. Standing back up, she noticed Pierre's blue eyes on her.
The room suddenly seemed very small as he smiled at her, reaching out to tuck the stray strand back behind her ear. His fingers lingered on Paris' now lightly tanned face, tracing an invisible line gently down her cheek. Paris felt her heart beat faster and her face become warm as Pierre leaned forward. Her eyes fluttered closed as his lips nearly touched hers.
Someone cleared their throat loudly and Paris reopened her eyes regretfully. Both Pierre and Paris turned simultaneously to where Jack was standing in the doorway, his kohl-lined eyes on Pierre. "Jack!" Paris said sharply, almost unable to contain her anger. 'He sure could pick his moments'
"Was I interruptin' somethin' then?" he asked innocently with a wild hand gesture before a sly smirk flew across his mouth and a suggestive eyebrow was raised."Then again, a lot could 'appen in a tiny backroom..."
While Paris stood reeling, her hands clenched tightly at her sides, Pierre placed a calming hand on her shoulder. His blue eyes pierced into Jack's dark ones. "Did you wan' somethin' Captain?" Pierre asked with exaggerated politeness.
"Ye too clever for ye own good, mate. That's precisely the reason I'm 'ere," Jack answered audaciously, rubbing his chin, "I've come to see if the lady is comin' to bed?"
Paris' brows furrowed. "I'm sorry," she muttered to Pierre before picking up her skirts and briskly brushing past Jack. Before leaving, Jack gave his crew mate a triumphant smirk which Pierre returned with malice, narrowing his eyes.
Inside Jack's cabin, Paris was wearing the floor boards thin as she trekked back and forth. 'How could he humiliate her like that?' The creak of the door and the jingle of beads signalled Jack's arrival. "Well I hope you're pleased with yourself," Paris snapped, her eyes alight, "What is wrong with you? Can't you let me just be happy?"
Jack sashayed closer to her, concern creasing his forehead. "Love, this is not abou' ye. This is about Pierre," he said his crew members name with contempt. "I don't trust 'im."
"That's cheap coming from you Mr Sparrow," Paris retorted crossing her arms in front of her chest, "My trust in you hasn't exactly gotten me very far. So who are you to speak of trust?"
"Paris!" Jack exclaimed looking desperate to calm her rage. "I'm takin' ye to Port Royal to clear yer name. I'm going out of me way to 'elp ye!" Putting a hand on the side of her arm, he gazed deeply into her eyes. He feared his charming ways were not going to get him very far this time.
Paris held his stare before shrugging his hand off. "Don't touch me," Paris said, her voice faultering. "You're going out of the way to help me?" she repeated sarcastically, "In case you've forgotten, it's your fault I'm in this position." Her arms fanned out in front of her indicating Jack, the room and the ship. "Pierre's been nothing but nice to me since I arrived. Why are you so threatened by him?" Paris asked in irritation, trying to avoid losing her emotions in front of Jack.
"Him? I'm the only one who does the theatenin' round 'ere, savvy?" Jack corrected, gesturing to himself. Paris put her face in her hands and groaned in annoyance. "I don' want ye hangin' 'round 'im."
"Why Jack?" she asked, dragging her hands down from her face, "Because then you can't have me?"
For a brief moment that followed that question, neither of them spoke. Her words, dripping with sarcasm, were not lost on Jack. Frustrated by her infuriating words and annoyed that they touched a truth he wanted nothing to do with, Jack chose to appear indifferent to Paris' meaning. He watched her march over to the thin sheet he had given her and the pillow she had taken from him, and pick it up
"Where do ye think yer going?" he inquired with a frown.
"Away from you Mr Sparrow," she answered, opening his cabin door and heading for the deck. When the sounds of pursuit went unheard, Paris breathed a sigh of relief knowing Jack had not followed.
The night wind breeze was cold as it brushed past her skin and played in her long hair. Curling up on the hard wood, Paris pulled the frail sheet over her in an attempt to keep warm. She couldn't stay with Jack, or the crew for that matter, and she had hoped the soft sound of the water lapping against the side of the ship would help rock her to sleep.
It seemed the harsh wind only got cooler until Paris was shivering as the hours dragged on. Clutching the top of the sheet, she pulled it tighter to her body. 'I won't let Jack win'. Then she heard it; the sound of boots on the deck and the ever so soft jingle of beads. "You don't give up do you?" Paris said without rolling over to look at him.
"Not when I'm winning darlin'," Jack's voice came back to her making her curse inwardly. Paris turned so that she was now facing the pirate Captain. Crouching down, Jack's kohl-lined eyes searched her own. "Paris," he began, stressing the 'i' vowel in her name which allowed a quick glimpse of his gold teeth. "Ye-"
Without warning, something collided with the opposite side of the ship. Everything lurched and Jack flew forward, landing sprawled on top of Paris. She looked up into Jack's worried face which was centimetres from hers. All thoughts of their argument dissolved in that instant. "What was that?" she whispered, hardly daring to ask.
"Cannon fire," he replied, pushing himself up from Paris and then helping her up too. "Call the crew if they aren't already awake, and then stay in me room. Someone's blowin' holes in me ship!"
Alarmed, Paris nodded and hurried off to do as he said.
Author's Note: A big thankyou to all those who have reviewed! I really hope you've continued to enjoy the story:)
LegolasLvr71- I'd love to know how she does it too, lol! You had me smiling all day after that :) Thanks so much for reviewing! Btw, I'm a bit of a 'LegolasLvr' myself, hehehe ;)
Whims- I have to say, I'm honoured I made your day, because you definately made mine :) I'm really glad you like it that much and I just hope I can keep you interested in the story! Thankyou so much!
Spirit of the Sky- Hehehe, so glad I've kept your interest ;) Jack sure knows how to annoy her too, hehe :) Thanks for reviewing!
Queen. Bowie. Jack. Sparrow. Lover- Thankyou so much for reviewing! Hehehe, glad you liked the romance! I'm sure there will be more to come... :)
beadedreams- I could give you a simple answer to your first question, but it's much more fun letting you think on it, hehe :) For the second part, I tried not to mention it in this chapter ;) But I don't mind if she's seen as that. And the last part; Well, it wasn't that Jack was going to shoot her in the ankle, it was more of a reminder that he was there, he had a weapon, and wasn't afraid to use it ;) Hope that explains everything and thanks for the review and your thoughts!
amanda031- Thanks for reviewing! I hope you continue enjoying the story too:)