Disclaimer: don't own anything…I WISH I owned Englehorn..Rawr.
Chapter 10:
Eva stared at the dark ceiling above her. She had been drumming her fingers over her stomach for nearly an hour, trying to figure out what exactly she was going to do with herself. Her life on the open seas had become very difficult. More difficult than she had it at home.
Now she had to decide major things for herself, not just what to wear for the day and what time would be best to go to the theatre. Life was actually hard.
She blinked a tear out of her eye and rolled over on her side. It was one thing to have a handsome man near you all day, but two, with one being very persistent and obvious? Eva found it hard to wrap her mind around how much she had changed, how much she hated who she used to be. She closed her eyes, imagining what her life would be like if she hadn't ran away.
Her arm would be around Mr. Carter's, with a trail of two children behind her. Eva sniffed and saw her mother's smiling face, her father's approval, and even Mr. Carter's grinning face. But, every time she tried to see herself, she would be sad.
Eva opened her eyes and clasped her fingers together, resting them above her belly button. Her stomach was damp from heat making her thin night shirt cling tightly to her chest. Two days had passed since she had eaten with Wesley and she hadn't seen him except in passing. Both ships were driving hard toward England, and Eva doubted she'd see Wesley again until they docked.
Which was fine by her. She needed as much time to make a decision as she could get. Sitting up, Eva ran a hand over her hair and pulled the covers off of her body. She was still sweating. "I'll take a walk..." She mumbled, slipping her feet into her pair of slippers. The hallway was almost as warm as her cabin was. Eva hurried up to the deck, sighing once the cool sea air hit her with force.
She almost shivered against it until she remembered the heat from her room. Eva strolled toward the railing and looked down at the dark water. The stars were mirrored in it. She smiled and put her chin in her hands, watching the watery stars waver and settle in the wakes of the ship. There was no moon out, making the deck very hard to maneuver across.
Numerous times, Eva tripped and stumbled. The lights in the helm had been doused, almost completely out. Eva turned her body toward it and leaned over, gazing behind the Venture toward Wesley's ship. It looked like a pirate ship, chasing them. Without realizing it, Eva's eyes had returned back to the helm, making her frown. Why was it that every time she was out here, she went straight toward Captain Englehorn.
She glanced down at her chemise and shrugged. At least she had a robe on. Eva tiptoed up the stairs, not wanting to disturb Englehorn if he was napping or something. Of course, she also didn't want to barge in there when it wasn't even Englehorn there. Quietly as she could, Eva peeked around the corner of the door. Englehorn was indeed there, bent low over a set of maps, looking to be in deep concentration.
Eva bit her lip and turned slightly, deciding to leave him to his peace. However, just as her foot dropped down onto the first step, a voice interrupted her escape. "You're not as quiet as you think you are." Englehorn said in a low voice. He turned just as Eva stepped back into the room. Despite the sweat that Eva was trying to fight off, Englehorn was having a hard time holding back a smile.
"I was just checking to see if you were awake. I guess you are.." Eva mentally kicked herself for sounding so terribly dumb. She quickly combed her hair out of her face and stepped further in. Captain Englehorn cleared his throat and stepped back to his desk, sitting down slowly. "I am the captain. It's what I do."
"You stay awake until midnight? That sounds fairly easy."
Englehorn smirked and crossed his arms over his chest. "Only to someone who sleeps until noon or later. Can't sleep?"
Eva took a seat across from him, keeping her legs together the best she could. The hem of her chemise only reached to her knees, and didn't help in hiding what was under it. She tied her robe around her waist and nodded. "How can you tell?"
"Well, generally, when someone cannot sleep, they're not asleep." She watched as the captain's lips turned up into a smile. It was strange to see him actually smiling. Eva found it quite contagious. She returned the gesture and looked out to the ocean. Almost like a tidal wave, the remembrance of that night of the hurricane came flooding back into her mind. Her cheeks flooded with embarrassment as she cast her face downward, trying to hide it.
Her head screamed at her to say something, anything, while another side of her screamed to kiss him again. Thinking quickly, Eva pointed to the wireless and smiled helplessly. "I don't think I ever apologized for ruining your wireless."
Englehorn raised and eyebrow and glanced at the machine, shrugging his shoulders. "Doesn't matter. I...also want to apologize."
Eva tilted her head to the side and slid closer to the man, confused by what he meant. He had never done anything to apologize for. "What do you mean?"
He cleared his throat and sat up. In reality, Englehorn hadn't meant to say anything. He didn't believe he had to apologize for anything, except of the immoral thoughts that quickly flashed in his mind as Eva walked in the helm. But, he didn't dare say anything of that. Thomas looked up at her and blinked, becoming aware that she was waiting. "Wesley. I'm sorry he acted so stupidly the other night."
"It's alright. I don't know why I didn't put him in his place." Eva smiled to herself, staring down at the floor. "I had a good opportunity to kick him in the shins, but I held back."
"He means well, I think."
She nodded and smiled up at Englehorn, trying hard not to concentrate on his eyes. It was the most difficult thing Eva's ever had to do. She failed and swallowed hard as her gaze locked onto his icy stare. She shivered. "I know. I'm sure he's just lonely. He travels with men throughout the year, alone when he sleeps at night. When he wakes up, he has no one to greet him. I would be lonely as well."
Her words were quiet, and even after they had lingered for a moment, she couldn't believe they had came out of her mouth. Her lips were numb. Eva stared hard at Englehorn, studying the way he glanced out to the view. There was almost a sadness in his eyes. She was dying to know if he was thinking of her when he looked like that. Before she could even open her mouth to speak, Captain Englehorn turned back to his maps and stared hard at them.
"Tomorrow, you can scrub the floors again. My men have complained that you don't do anything but strut about all day."
Eva's eyes widened, but she quickly bit her tongue before speaking back with harsh words. "Well, they have no room to talk. I saw quite a few laughing and playing poker in the kitchen! If they can have a moment to rest, so can I."
Englehorn turned this time and crossed his arms over his wide chest. "You have no reason to think that. They are the ones actually working. They deserve a break…However, on the other hand, you never do anything." He bit his cheek to keep the last few words in his mind. 'Besides sit and look pretty.' He didn't want to compliment her.
"If you haven't noticed, I'm not part of your crew. You had the chance to get rid of me, and you didn't. Why is that?"
"I wouldn't be able to live with myself, knowing I dumped you out in that kind of place."
"Hmm. For some reason, I just don't believe that. What exactly do you do, Captain Englehorn? Do you sell people for slavery? Is that what you plan on using me for?"
Englehorn, without turning to look at her, frowned down at his maps and wished the girl would just leave him alone. If he was lucky, another storm would pop up and blow her off the ship. But, he wasn't so fortunate. "Warum ärgern Sie mich?" Englehorn muttered.
Eva's eyes immediately fell into a glare. How dare he speak to her in a language she can't understand. She slapped her hands to her hips and raised an eyebrow at the back of the captain's head. "Excuse me?"
Englehorn slowly turned around, regretting his mumblings. He should have known better with Eva. She wouldn't let him forget it, he just knew. Closing his eyes with a sigh, Englehorn raised his chin a bit higher. "Yes?"
"What did you say to me?"
"I didn't say anything to you, if I recall." He raised an eyebrow before turning his back to her, ignoring her presence. At least, he tried to ignore her. It was hard to ignore someone who was standing at your side, tapping their foot while obviously being angry. Sighing in annoyance, Englehorn looked at her. "What now?" He said through clenched teeth.
"What did you say."
"I didn't say anything! Drop it."
"Thomas, please! If I knew a language you didn't I wouldn't keep my words a secret from you!" He blinked, surprised to hear his first name. Englehorn shook his head, more to himself than to Eva. She sighed and crossed her arms over her chest indignantly. She sat back down in the chair and frowned, wishing she had remembered what the words were. If she had, Wesley would be able to tell her. It was probably something bad. "Did you insult me?"
Captain Englehorn turned to glance over his shoulder, raising his eyebrow quizzically. "Do you honestly think I would stoop so low as to insult you in a different language?"
"Yes."
"Now, who is being cruel?" He laughed softly to himself, locking the wheel onto the invisible lane on the water. Englehorn walked over to the maps, labeling their location with the silver compass. Eva followed him to the desk, leaning over to stare at him with a glare. "You. You're always cruel."
He turned quickly and stared at her as if he had been slapped. "Do you always treat people who've been nothing but nice this way?"
"You've been everything but nice."
By now, all the humor that had started their little disagreement was lost. Englehorn couldn't believe his ears. After keeping Eva safe, saving her from storms, and even allowing her safe passage on his ship, she accuses him of being anything but nice? He crossed his arms over his chest and stood up to his full height, managing to look as intimidating as a starving lion. Eva shifted on her feet but didn't dare back down.
"How do you figure that?"
"You boss me around, make me do chores whenever you feel like it, you treat me like a child!"
"Because you are a child!" He raised his voice, making Eva step back slightly. The fact that he yelled at her was no comparison to how painful his words were. He only thought of her as child? Her heart felt like someone just squeezed the life out of it.
Eva blinked and looked down at the floor, wishing she had never even stepped foot into the room. "Good night, Captain Englehorn." She muttered, rushing from the helm as fast as she could. Eva tried not to think of the tears welling in her eyes, but she couldn't help it. He had called her a child.
Well, she knew someone who didn't think she was a child. She knew Wes would never make her do chores, or insult her in a language she didn't understand. And in the morning, Eva was going to transfer to Wes' ship.
'Eva, you're being ridiculous. Wes represents everything in a man that you ran away from.' She stopped at her door and leaned her forehead against the wood. If she did go to Wes' ship, how long would it take for Englehorn to miss her? If he would at all.
Eva stepped into her room and collapsed angrily on her small cot. What plagued her mind most, was how far she'd let Wes go to make Englehorn jealous.
AN- I try not to make Eva seem like a Mary-Sue…and I really hope I'm fixing that problem. Also, I think some people have got the impression that this story is going to end soon. No no no. I plan to make this roughly….18 chapters. Give or take. The romance IS coming, so don't worry! Expect some action in the next two chapters! Don't forget to review!