Disclaimer: I don't own anything ok? K!
When Evalyn Henley grows tired of being ordered around like one of her servants, she decides she is in need of her own life, independence and adventure. And where does she go looking for it? On the open seas, of course.
AN: Dun dun dun!
Chapter 7: Tension
Evalyn looked down at the hands she was resting on. They looked like her own, even her fingernails looked the same. But, they couldn't possibly be hers. They were covered in dried blood and scraped across the knuckles. Eva blinked and rolled over, narrowing her eyes in confusion as she looked around. This was definately not her bed.
It was softer, and the sheets weren't two sizes too big for the small cot she slept on every night. Eva sat up, letting the blankets slide down the front of her body. She looked down and gasped in horror. She was naked! Hurriedly, she pulled the sheet up and wrapped it under her underarms, securing it in front of her. Her breath came quicker as she stood up, unfamiliar with this room.
She had seen it before, but couldn't put her finger on it as to where she had seen it. Taking a step back, Eva collided with a desk, managing to cause a few documents of paper to slip over the edge.
Evalyn reached down to pick them up, but they were snatched up before she could see them. Startled, Eva fell on her backside and stared wide eyed at Captain Englehorn, standing like a statue over her. "Wha-wha-what are you doing here? What am I doing here?"
"You're in my room, nitwit."
"Oh...What? Why am I in your room?" Eva crawled back against the cot and gripped the sheet against her bare chest as if he'd try to peek. Hell, he probably already has tried. "You passed out, and I let you sleep." He paused and stared down at the frightened girl, his lips trying hard not to smirk. He hadn't seen a half naked girl in a while. Well, not a modest girl like Eva.
Clearing his throat, Englehorn tossed the papers on his desk and handed the girl a garment. She looked at it with wide eyes as if it were the plague. "It's your shirt. I washed it since you got blood on it."
"You. Took. My shirt off?" Eva growled through her clenched teeth before snatching the shirt out of his hands. She jumped to her feet and pointed her finger in the captain's face. "How dare you! I never gave you permission to do that! I could have lived perfectly happy with blood on my shirt!"
Englehorn raised his eyebrow calmly and took a step back. "But, I did not want blood close to my bed."
"I have it on my hands...and you could have just moved me! Oh, dear Lord...I've been molested." Eva brought the shirt to her face and groaned into it, dropping back to sit against Englehorn's more than comfortable cot. She wasn't exactly concerned that Englehorn was standing in front of her now, staring down his tan nose with a smirk on his mouth. Eva was more troubled by the fact that he had seen her bare chest, and was scared he thought her chest was...less than average.
She looked down at the sheet around her and sighed. She looked up through her eyelashes and tried not to imagine Englehorn undressing her, although it was hard. Eva blinked and gulped back her fear as Englehorn dropped himself into the chair beside his desk. "I didn't molest you."
"You saw my...me naked."
He looked at her with an amusing glint in his eyes. "Do you honestly think you're the first naked woman I've seen?"
Eva's jaw dropped, making her clutch her sheet tighter. "Well! I never! Honestly, Mr. Englehorn, you're...you're very...deviant." She was just happy she had said something other than handsome. Englehorn smiled and crossed his arms over his chest. "How long did I sleep?" Eva asked, twisting a frayed string around her middle finger from the cloth about her body.
"Only a day." He pressed a hand to his mouth and sat up straighter, narrowing his eyes in concern. "I don't exactly know if you knew him, but the cook Morgan..."
"Oh, I know him! He's the one that was so friendly to me...Why?" Eva bit her lower lip and leaned forward, her eyebrows furrowing together.
Englehorn cleared his throat and looked down at the surface of his cluttered, messy desk. He stared at the papers, thankful Eva didn't see the message from her parents in the small symbols of Morse Code. Maps were stretched across the rich wood of his desk, but they all looked foreign now. Of course, he had had friends to die at sea, it was a common thing with such a dangerous profession...But, Morgan didn't even need to be above deck.
What if he could have done something to save him? He could have sent him back down, told him the deck was no place for a cook. But, he let the old man stay, and didn't even care about his life. Englehorn looked slowly to Eva, feeling his breath slow in his chest. She was staring at him intently, leaning forward with her hands on her knees.
The white sheet was wrapped around her small chest, but still exposed her shoulders, her neck, her arms. His mind was flooded with the small, pitiful kiss they had shared. Did she even remember? He shook his head and stood. "He fell overboard." He spoke harshly and didn't even glance over his shoulder. Eva gasped and brought her hand to her mouth, shivering at the thought.
Morgan had been one of the few men who had been kind to her...and now he was gone. Eva cast her watering eyes to the floor and tried not to think of it. But, questions kept plaguing her...Did Morgan have a family, children? Did they know him at all? What if he wanted to see them, never got a chance to say goodbye properly?
Eva felt her throat tighten, making the tears spill down her face. "Was...Was he your friend?" She asked shakily, drying her face with the corner of the sheet. Eva sobbed quietly, not looking to the captain above her. She feared if she did look up, and possibly saw him crying as well, she wouldn't be able to control her sadness.
Englehorn wasn't crying. He stared down at Eva and licked his lips slightly. Here she was, sobbing over a lost friend, and he couldn't take his eyes off of her tan frame. Even last night, when he eased her shirt off of her body, he had managed to do so without peeking, placing the sheet around her. But, now it was like she was glowing, like a light house. She was both a warning, and beautiful.
Englehorn snarled, thinking of his dangerous thoughts. Without warning, Eva looked up at him and sniffed. "Yes, he was." He answered, almost forgetting what she had even asked. "Get some rest."
"Oh..Shouldn't I move to my own room?" Eva bit her tongue, wishing he would allow her to spend the night with him. Her cheeks flamed at the mere thought of how indecent her thoughts were. Englehorn stopped at the doorway and blinked. "If you want."
The ship was quiet for the week. With damage done to the rudder, the S.S. Venture relied on wind and tides to move them anywhere. The most Englehorn could do was steer toward the East. The wheel was prevented from going any further west, something was blocking the rudder from turning.
He felt desperate, not sure what to do. They were blown far off course, probably only twenty degrees above the equater. Which, Englehorn feared the most. The doldrums were a terrible place. Many sailors have died, sank to the bottom of the ocean because of the inactivity in the water.
Englehorn could almost choke Evie for destroying his Morse Code machine. There was no way to communicate with anyone now. Only a passing ship could save them, and the possibilties were almost all together against their favor. The only thing Englehorn knew how to do, was steer with small speeds due East, hoping to hit a coastline very soon.
With the death of Morgan, the only cook that was worth bringing aboard, Eva tried to cheer everyone's spirits. Despite the bitter tasting meals, she talked with nearly all of the crew members, trying to boost their moxie. Almost every time, she was greeted with a sneer, snarl, growl, or shove. She gave up around the third day and locked herself in her room, pouting. All she wanted to do was try to cheer people up.
But, either they didn't care, or didn't want to be happy.
She often found herself in Englehorn's room, sitting with him while he poured over maps and used his sextant. The way Englehorn ignored her while he was figuring their lattitude, longitude, and any other point on the map, made Eva sleepy. She would curl up in his chair and watch him pencil things into the corners of papers, figuring and refiguring.
He was boring.
The electric lamp on the table flickered, as if the power in the ship had faltered for a moment, snapping Eva from her dosing sleep. She rubbed her eyes and sat up, glancing nervously at Englehorn. "Is the ship losing power?"
He didn't raise his head. "No. This damn lamp always does that." A moment of silence passed between the pair. Eva curled her legs under her again and pulled the blankets up to her chin. She leaned her head against the arm of the chair and watched the captain busy himself once more. She stared at his tan hands, the way they glided over the papers. She wanted to know exactly how he held his pens.
He was left handed, and wrote in sharp shaped letters, where as Eva was taught to have eloquent penmanship. She herself was righthanded. As time ticked by, Eva found herself staring at Englehorn's face. His eyes made her smile, and afraid at the same time. She never wanted him to look at her as harshly as he did Willem that night.
He looked as though he was able and ready to kill him. Englehorn's pen froze on the paper as a shiver passed over him, making the hairs on the back of his neck stand up on their ends. He looked up and glanced at Eva, catching her studying his face. "What are you staring at?"
"Nothing. What's your name?" She asked, not moving from her curled, fetal position. Her green eyes sparkled in the glow of the lamp, making Englehorn straighten his shoulders. He sat back in his chair and narrowed his eyes. "Does it matter?"
"To me, yes. You know my name, although you don't call me by it much. The least you can do is tell me yours." Eva smiled and raised her head, propping her chin up with her hands.
Englehorn nodded. "True. My name is Thomas."
"Thomas Englehorn...German captain extraordinaire." He laughed slightly, shocking Eva. She had never heard him laugh like that. It sounded genuine, raspy, and warm. He stopped suddenly, as if realizing what he was doing. Blinking, the captain turned back to the desk and tried to make himself look busy.
Eva noticed this and was momentarily confused. Either Englehorn was awfully shy, or ashamed he let himself be exposed like that. His tough exterior was obviously a mask he wore to hide his true feelings, emotions. It was easier not having any.
Eva found it funny how alike they truly were. If only Englehorn could know who she was, and vice versa. They could possibly be friends. Sitting up, Eva crossed her arms over her chest and narrowed her eyes. "Would you rather me call you Captain Englehorn, or Thomas?"
He didn't answer. She continued, feeling a bit daring due to her blood heating in her body. Eva wet her lips and pulled her dark hair over one of her shoulders. "Or, can I only call you Thomas in private?"
The captain looked at her finally, not exactly sure of how to respond. He took a deep breath and turned back to the map, feeling his hard shell cover himself once more. "I would prefer it that way, yes."
Eva stood and quietly tip toes to the bed beside the desk. She slipped her feet under the covers, ignoring Englehorn's state of momentary confusion. He had never gave her permission to sleep in his bed. And she hadn't beside that night she was unconcious. But, he never told her she couldn't. Eva pulled the cover up around her waist and stared at Englehorn.
"Well, Thomas, I hope we can have more private meetings."
"What are you doing?"
Eva rolled over, turning her back to the captain. He dropped his ink pen and stood up. One side wanted to throw her out of his bed, the other wanted to keep her there and sleep against her. He quickly shook all thoughts of wanting to be next to Eva out of his mind.
"I'm sleeping."
"You have your own room."
"Goodnight, Thomas."
Exasperatedly, Englehorn threw his hands in the air and collapsed in his plush chair, staring at the form on the bed. He would be damned before he allowed himself to sleep next to her. He didn't know what she was trying to pull, but she had something up her sleeve. And he was not going to fall for it. No matter how badly his body wanted him to.
Englehorn turned the lamp off and sat in the darkness, staring at the floor. His eyes drooped and soon, he was falling asleep. And though he didn't want to admit it, and never would to himself, Thomas' dreams were filled with Evalyn.
AN- Uh oh...Eva's getting a bit too comfy with our favorite little captain...wink wink! Have you all seen the previews for King Kong, that tiny, .23 seconds of Englehorn when he yells 'RUN'? Yeah, I see it all the time and it's great. Anyway, this story is coming along quite nicely...I've already written to chapter 9...and I still can't see all the way to the end. I reckon this will be almost 16 chapters, give or take. Thanks for ALL the reviews! You guys rock hard! Harder than hard rockers who's job it is to rock hard...I'm giving everyone free chocolate chip cookies!