Chapter 8

Carolyn was asleep, comfortably curled up in her bed so when she suddenly felt a warm breeze on her skin, she was a little startled. She blearily blinked open her eyes and saw a vast open ocean before her and an old, wooden ship swaying beneath her feet.

From the comfortable silence of her bedroom, the overbearing roar of the waves and the wind were a stark contrast. The sun was high in the sky and she could feel its warmth beating down on her skin. She heard the rusting of the sails overhead on the wooden masts and the creaking of the rigging as it swung in the breeze. The rigging was far more intricate and complicated than she could have ever imagined it; there must have been miles and miles of ropes above her head.

It was only a few seconds before the swaying of the ships' deck beneath her feet almost caused her to lose her balance. She swayed uneasily for a moment before she stumbled but she could fall completely, her back collided with something warm and solid.

"Sea legs come in time, my dear, never fear," she heard the captain say.

She felt his hands on her shoulders and his solid presence behind her felt as real as the wind on her face.

"Captain?"

"Yes. Who else did you expect to see in a dreamscape?" he asked, sounding amused. "Another spirit, perhaps?"

"Of course not," she said smiling and tiling her head up a little so that she could see his face.

"I thought I might surprise you tonight," he said.

"I'm definitely surprised," Carolyn said, smiling and looking around. "And erm…shouldn't there be a crew? Can a ship run itself?"

"No. It cannot. But there is little privacy aboard a ship and that is one aspect of sea faring life I cannot find it in me to miss. This is not exactly reality so you'll find no crew here," he explained.

"So…where are we?" she asked, looking around.

"On my ship, as I remember her," he answered her. "Sailing through around the South African coast."

"I haven't been on all that many ships but this seems a bit more…choppy…than I'm used to,"she remarked.

"Perhaps. But this is infinitely more beautiful than any modern ship you will have travelled on, I'll wager," he replied.

"I'll give you that," she agreed.

The ship was indeed very beautiful. The white sails on the tall masts, billowed out in the wind above their heads. The wooden decks swayed with the ocean waves and the finely carved balustrades on each level of the ship displayed a level of craftsman ship she'd never seen before. Above her head was miles and miles of rigging and the tall, perilous looking shrouds that led aloft, high up to the sails. The ships' wheel, which she was so used to seeing outside on the balcony, was mounted into the ship and it looked perfectly identical.

"It is beautiful," Carolyn whispered, looking out at the mildly calm sea. "The ship and the sea," she added.

"Yes," he agreed. "But they are as beautiful as they are perilous and should be respected."

Carolyn turned so that she was leaning against him on her side and one of his hands slid from her shoulder to her hand where he twined his fingers with hers.

She was coming to enjoy the fact that she could touch him here and he didn't seem adverse to it either. She remembered he'd said that he couldn't possibly join her in dreams every night, it took too much power, he said, so Carolyn swore that she'd make the most of it while she could.

"Since you have written about long sea voyages and shall be writing much more of them once we begin our work, I thought you might appreciate the opportunity to experience at least a moment on board a ship as it was in my time," he explained.

He took a step towards the railings on the edge of the deck and, still holding her hand, lead her across the ship. When they reached the railings, Carolyn rested her hands on it and looked out at the ocean while the captain wound an arm around her waist. Whether it was aimed to keep her steady amidst the jostling of the ship or to keep her close, she didn't know, either way she had no intention of complaining.

"Wow," Carolyn breathed. It was the only suitable word. The sight was enough to take away her breath and her words.

The clear blue, cloudless sky and the deep blue of the water capped with white foam on the waves which seemed to dance for as far as the eye could see, was quite possibly one of the most beautiful things Carolyn had ever seen.

"It's…different out here…I mean, we can see the ocean every day from the house but this is…" she whispered.

"A view of the sea on land, however stunning, is a pale imitation to actually experiencing it for yourself," he replied and she nodded in agreement.

"You miss it, don't you?" she couldn't help but say, turning to look at him, stating a fact rather than asking.

"Every day," the captain said, still staring out at the waves. "I spent the majority of my life at sea and despite its great destructive powers, yes, I miss it," he said, his arm around her waist tightening just a little. "At least I can share my love of the sea with you, even if only in a dream. I cannot take you with me and show you all the wonders that the world could offer, but I can show you the wonders that I remember and this is one of them. Fortunately, unlike much in the world that has changed, the sea is timeless."

"Thank you," Carolyn said, looking up into his eyes. "But I thought you never allowed a woman on your ship," she remarked.

"No, I did not. Not once," the captain said before looking at her. "Only you. You are the first and only woman I have ever, or will ever, bring aboard my ship," he added.

There was no space between them and they were close enough to almost be sharing breaths as they stood there, lightly swaying with the ship.

As a writer, Carolyn was finding it increasingly beautiful just how much could actually be said without words. One shared glance was enough. It wasn't something she'd ever shared with her former husband or with anyone else for that matter. She'd never had anyone look at her with such tenderness and love before and she found it impossible to look away from his handsome face.

Fortunately, though, there was no one else on the ship around them at all. That probably should be alarmed her, ships didn't run themselves after all, but it wasn't quite reality, as he'd said, so it shouldn't really matter. But at that moment, to Carolyn, it only meant that there was nothing to disrupt them when she stood on her top toes and craned her neck upwards so that her lips could reach his.

While she reached up, he leaned over to make it easier and finally, he kissed her.

Of course, he'd kissed her once before. Just once; in his Christmas dream which had ended rather quickly after they'd touched. It had been a long dream and it had taxed his powers far more than he'd ever admit, but it had been worth the effort.

As was this.

The warm touch of his lips against hers and the soft scratch of his beard felt more like a dream than the actual thought of being in the middle of an open ocean. Carolyn breathed out a hum of approval and tilted her head, moving closer.

It was only the gentlest of touches for one brief second and then she opened her eyes and let out a shaky breath.

Not wanting to waste any of the precious time where they could actually touch, he wound an arm around her back, holding her as close as possible against him, while his other hand cradled the back of her head. He soothed his fingers, gently through her soft hair and then ran it down the curve of her back.

"I never thought…we'd be able to…that I'd be able to…" Carolyn whispered splaying a hand on the lapel of his jacket. His hand rose up to cover hers and keep it close to him.

"I know it's far from an ideal situation," he said still holding her hand. "But for the present, it's all I can give you," he added.

"I know," she muttered with a rueful smile.

"Except, of course, a heartfelt request for you to call me 'Daniel'," he continued. "This is hardly a position for two polite friends…even, two very close ones," he said, his hand at the small of her back cradled her close and he squeezed his other hand that was laid atop hers. "Is it?"

"No…no, it isn't," she said, not moving her eyes away from his. "This is far more…intimate," she said.

"Precisely. I hardly think it appropriate to continue to rely on titles, don't you? That is, either mine or yours."

"I've called you 'Daniel' quite a few times," she remarked after a moment.

"Yes, once or twice you have. I was referring to a more…permanent basis, if you would like," he replied.

Carolyn smiled at him. "I would like that," she said. "Daniel," she whispered his name and he smiled.

"As would I, Carolyn," he said.

The hand he had placed over hers, now gently surrounded it and brought it to his lips so that he could drop a kiss to the back of her fingers. Then he eased her hand to his shoulder and cupped the side of her face and began to lean in closer again. She tilted her head with a smile, her eyes closed and kissed him again.

Carolyn snaked her hands around to rest on his broad back and she flexed her palms and fingers over the fabric of his jacket, feeling the muscles beneath while their lips met.

The number of times she'd thought about kissing him was far greater than she would ever admit to, especially to him. His ego didn't exactly need a boost. And he'd not exactly made it easy for her; he'd never been shy about his adventurous voyages and his numerous paramours through this lifetime. After having been married to an unfaithful husband, Carolyn had at least tried to keep her distance from Daniel. It had made it easier at first, of course, since he was a ghost. But it hadn't taken long for her to simply see him as a man, not just a ghost, and a man that she could trust, as well. Certainly a man she wanted to kiss and touch but never thought she'd be able to.

It was a kiss far more intimate than she'd ever had, even during the brief time she'd actually loved her husband, or at least thought that she had. She wound her fingers in his hair, ran her palms over his shoulder blades and then even undid the buttons of his jacket and snakes her and Bentham it to rest at his back, just in a attempt to touch the man she never thought she'd be able to.

Their breaths merged as they kissed and she felt him smile when her hands wandered beneath his blazer.

When they finally both pulled away a little he gently rested his forehead against hers and their eyes met as they stood, swaying with the ship in each others arms.

"We can go anywhere you chose, we are on a ship, after all and we needn't necessarily stay on it. I just wanted you to see her as she was, if only once," he told her.

It was an image Daniel would never forget; the woman that he loved, standing with him on the ship that he loved and it meant the world to him. He got the feeling though, that she knew it without him having to actually say it.

"No," she shook her head, "I like the ship. Can't we stay here?"

"We can, if you wish," he said, inwardly relieved that she appreciated his ship.

She rested her cheek against his chest and looked out at the ocean across from them.

A loud splash caught her attention and Carolyn turned her head a little to see a gigantic whale leaping out of the water.

"Look…a whale," she smiled.

Carolyn pointed out at the sea across from them and watched as a stunningly beautiful whale leapt up out of the waves and crashed back down again. Then another whale jumped up, followed by another and the noise of the crashing waves was overwhelming. They leapt elegantly from the waves, then dove back down and jumped high above the sea once more.

"Stunning creatures, are they not?" the captain said and he felt Carolyn let out a quiet hum of awe against him. "I was ordered to Captain a whaling expedition once, did I tell you?"

"Hmmm," she shook her head.

"I declined. I had no wish to harm such majestic animals. It did not make me very popular with the Reykjavík Whaling Company in Iceland, of course…well, actually they forced me out of the dock that very day and made me swear to never return, now that I remember it," he frowned and she scoffed. "But I always preferred a warmer climate anyway, so I didn't pay it much heed," he said.

"Seems a bit harsh…forcing you to leave and never return…just because you refused a job offer," Carolyn mused, still nestled closely to him.

"Well, I was rather vocal in my refusal," Daniel remarked and she snorted inelegantly.

"I'll bet."

"Despite their uses, I never could sanction the murder of such stunning creatures. Several months after my refusal, I had a rather unfortunate encounter with a partially large whale near NewFoundLand, the brute tried to sink my ship. I was forced to defend against it. Perhaps he'd been attacked one too many times by whalers and sought to retaliate but that was the only time I raised my hand against them. We managed to escape its clutches without killing the beast, so at least I've not carried that on my conscience."

"That's definitely going in the book," Carolyn said.

"Why? Should we list every port I was bared from? It's quite an extensive list," he pondered. "The Barbary coast springs to mind…"

"No," she laughed. "I only meant because that's not a very nineteenth century attitude. It's a very modern view," she explained.

Of course, it shouldn't have come as a surprise. The wonderfully eloquent speech he'd given in court to defend the old mansion house that had once stood in Gull Cottage's place against being torn down to construct a new harbour, had been given in defence of natural beauty and the environment.

"There's really no need to insult me…'modern'…" he grimaced with a shudder and she chuckled. "I am a man of the nineteenth century, my dear, that is 'modern' enough for me," he said with mocking seriousness. "Besides, my version of events from port to port, would be much more entertaining," he added.

"Maybe," Carolyn said, sounding unconvinced.

He gave an exasperated sigh. "Very well, have it your way," he said. "You may have you way on this, but the title shall be mine."

"We're changing the title," she said.

"We are not changing it," he insisted.

"We can't call it 'Blood and Swash," she rolled her eyes.

"Why not? It's both accurate and perfectly entertaining."

"It's...no...we're changing it."

"We are not."

We'll see," Carolyn grinned.

"Oh, lord save me from the stubborn females of the world," he lamented.

"And save me from the stubborn men of the world," she retorted and he gave a put upon sigh.

They stayed on the ship, lightly swaying in each others arms until she woke the next morning.