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Chapter 2

Norrington watched the woman quit biting her lip and move to the inside of her cheek as she still tried to keep frustrated tears in check. He couldn't even begin to imagine how she must be feeling right now. Therefore he had no idea how to comfort her. Her sad look tore at his normally checked emotions.

"There, there Mi..." He snapped his mouth shut over the word miss and handed her a crisp white handkerchief. "It's going to be alright. We'll figure something out. Now why don't you eat something. I'm sure that will make you feel better. You must be hungry."

"Quite. Thank you sir." She said softly as she reached for a loaf of bread from the tray.

Norrington sat in his chair at the desk and watched her carefully as she ate and drank. She sat up straight, spread her napkin in her lap and was taking dainty bites even though she must be starved. Gauging from her manners he determined she must have come from a privileged upbringing and she spoke in an accent not so different than his own. Perhaps her father owned a British merchant ship.

She coughed gently as she glanced around uncomfortably, the silence pressing in on them. He surveyed her ceaselessly as she moved from the bread to the turkey to the grapes. She picked one off the stem and he watched intently as it disappear with a soft popping sound. Soon it was not even as if she were eating but rather was putting on a sensual show for him. He watched with fascination as grape after grape was eaten until she brought her napkin to her lips to dab but not before he saw her tongue snake out to lick at the corner of her mouth. He forced his attention back to his scrutiny until her voice penetrated his foggy mind.

"Do you always watch people so intently when they eat sir?" She asked as she fixed him with another gaze with those mesmerizing blue eyes.

"Sorry." He muttered as he turned in embarrassment.

"Do I offend you in some manner?"

"Not at all. I didn't mean to stare, I apologize." He said more fully as he turned back to her.

He felt his heart skip a beat as her face lit up with a teasing smile. "Well you did save my life so I guess if you must, then you must."

He stared at her a moment as he realized that when her hair dried it wasn't brown but a rich shade of auburn. With curls that made you long to sink your fingers in the thickness. It was hard to believe this beautiful woman was the same one from just an hour ago. A rosy glow was coming back to her complexion which was brightened all the more by a brilliant smile.

She began worrying her lower lip again and he watched, captivated as her teeth stroked it. He had the completely improper urge to replace her teeth with his and maybe soothe it with his tongue. Shocked at his own impropriety, he shifted again. What was happening to him?

"I didn't mean to. I apologize." He repeated in a strangled voice.

"You already said that." She teased and smiled again. "It's ok.."

"I'm sorry, what was your name again? I wasn't very coherent in your lifeboat." She said apologetically.

"James Norrington."

"Well James Norrington, thank you very much for rescuing me. I hate to imagine what would have happened if no one had noticed me out there." She said with a shudder.

Norrington hated to imagine it as well and simply nodded as an acknowledgment.

"And you said you're a...captain?" She inquired conversationally as she stretched her sore muscles.

"Commodore." He corrected.

"I beg your pardon Commodore Norrington. I didn't realize." She flustered with embarrassment at her over easy manners with a man of such importance. "I'm sure you have many better things to do than tend to me."

"I can't think of a one. You're safety and health are my priority at the moment." He said in a tone softer than necessary and met her gaze, feeling as if he were slipping away from the world.

They both started when an insistent knocking came at the door. "Come in!" He practically shouted and was relieved when Mr. Smith came through the door.

"Excuse me Commodore, might I have a word outside?" Smith asked.

Norrington excused himself and shut the door behind him, glad to be out of the intimate confines of his quarters and away from the woman who discombobulated him.

"I found a letter that she had tucked into her dress. The sea streaked most of it but you can clearly see the words 'my dear', 'attacked', 'love', and it's signed Elise Gold. I think we have to assume that's her Commodore." Smith said as he handed over the letter.

"Well I will certainly check. Thank you Smith. Oh, would you please see to it that Miss Gold gets some hot water brought to her quarters? I think she would really like a bath." Norrington asked after he had read as much as he could make out and pocketed the parchment.

"Aye Commodore." Smith replied and shuffled off into the darkness.

Norrington tried to tamp down the ridiculous stab of jealously raging through him at having to read and carry what was obviously a note to her lover. He certainly didn't care and it wasn't his business anyway but had he really expected a woman that beautiful to not be engaged?

When he entered his cabin he found her standing in the middle of the room trying to finger comb her hair. He forgot all about the jealousy at the sight of her. The night shirt, which on him hit the ankles was dragging the floor by six inches.

"Can you read and write?" He asked as he bit back a smile at the picture she made.

"Of course I can." She replied indignantly as she lowered her hands primly in front of her. Another sign of good upbringing that didn't escape his notice.

"I wonder if you would be so kind as to jot a few words down for me?" Norrington said casually.

"Now?" She asked with bewilderment as she stared longingly at the bed..

"Please?" He implored, not used to being challenged.

"Certainly Commodore." She answered, repressing a sigh as she moved to sit in the chair at the desk. She reached for the quill and parchment before turning to him, waiting for further instructions.

"Being attacked..." He began.

"We're being attacked?" She asked with panic as she left her perch on the chair and reached out to clutch his arm.

He felt the protective surge again and swallowed against it.

"It's alright, you're safe. No. We're not being attacked. This is a for instance." He said as he pushed her gently back down in the seat and handed her the quill. "Being attacked. Eliciting naval ships. Help would be loved. Gold aplenty."

She finished writing the cryptic message and handed it to him.

"Thank you." He said when there was a knock on the door. "Ah, that will be your bath water. I'll give you some privacy and return later."

"Commodore Norrington?" She asked when he reached the door. "Where will I be sleeping?"

"Take my quarters. I'll room with the men." He said.

"I couldn't. You've already done so much for me." She hesitated.

"You're the only woman on the ship. You're going to want your privacy. That reminds me. We'll stop at the next port and get you some clothes." He reassured her before opening the door to Smith.

"You're too kind. I appreciate it." She smiled to his back as he left.

Norrington made his way to the galley and lay the letter Smith had found next to the one she had just written and began to compare the handwriting.

Both were beautiful and flowing, the letters of the main words were almost identical. He focused on attack and found no discrepancies. He then moved to Elise and Eliciting, the first three letters were identical in each word. Love was written exactly the same way. Lastly he moved to Gold and found those were the same as well. He determined that it must be she who wrote the letter.

"Elise Gold." He whispered aloud, testing the name. "Elise." He said again, letting it roll off his tongue and decided it suited her.

He threw away her dictated note and pocketed her private letter as he decided to make a round of the ship before returning to his quarters an hour later to check on her. He knocked quietly and waited for her to answer.

"Come in." She called breathlessly.

"Hello Commodore." She said when he entered.

Norrington stopped dead in his tracks. She had found one of his uniform shirts and was wearing that instead of the night shirt. She had rolled back the sleeves and was standing in the middle of the room again, panting as she still tried to finger comb her hair, the hem of the shirt riding dangerously high on her thighs and her breasts thrusting against the fabric. He could distinctly see her puckered nipples through the white cloth in the flickering candle light and he cleared his throat against the sudden tightening in his loins.

Though she looked damned enticing he knew he would have to burn that shirt. The thought of her naked beneath it and him wearing it later was too much to bear and he had to bite back a groan.

"I hope you don't mind that I went through your drawers. I kept tripping over the night shirt and I didn't want to rip it since you were kind enough to lend it to me." She said, having no idea of the effect she was having on him. When she lowered her arms and the shirt fell to her knees he gave an audible sigh of relief. It was still not a proper length to soothe his ragged nerves but a vast improvement.

"Not at all." He replied, looking anywhere but at her.

"I'm making you uncomfortable, aren't I? I realize this isn't proper at all. I'm sorry but I couldn't find a robe and I didn't want to take one of your coats without asking." She said.

"That's fine." He practically barked and all but ran for a coat and thrust it at her. Just another item I'll have to burn later he thought as he backed away.

"Thank you." She replied as she shrugged into it and snapped it closed all the way down. "Commodore? I hate to trouble you but do you have a comb?"

"Of course." He said fetching it for her.

"One last thing. Do you think you could help me comb my hair and get the knots out? My arms are so sore I can barely lift them." She asked.

Norrington eyed her warily, torn with indecision. He wanted nothing more than to dart from the room just to break away from the spell she seemed to cast over him but it was a simple task she had asked. Simple but incredibly intimate, he found everything seemed that way in the close confines of his quarters.

"I'm sorry, I'd ask another woman but I'm the only one. I'll wait until the soreness has gone away then do it my self. It was wrong of me to ask. Forget I did." She rambled on in embarrassment at his hesitation.

"It's fine. I can do it." He said.

"Don't feel obligated. You've already been more help than I ever could have hoped for." She replied.

"I'll do it."

"Thank you."

She started for the edge of the bed but unable to stand seeing her sitting on his bed, in nothing but his shirt and coat he suddenly shouted "No!"

She looked back startled and he continued in a forced normal tone "Why don't you sit in the chair. It would be much more comfortable for you. Something to lean against." He finished lamely.

"All right. I appreciate your thoughtfulness." She answered in a puzzled tone.

"Let me know if I pull too hard." Norrington said as casually as he could.

Within two seconds he found a bump on the back of her head which probably explained the amnesia and wondered if Smith had found it.

He combed and worked at the knots as detached as he could but her smell was intoxicating him. She had cleaned her hair and the rich soap was mixing with her own heady scent creating a tantalizing temptation that was hard to ignore. And knowing that she was naked under the shirt was putting lusty images in his head that he didn't even know he was capable of.

He was so drugged with the aroma and thought of her that he didn't even realize that her hair was falling in shiny auburn waves down her back or that he was just sifting his fingers through it's silky thickness and occasionally brushing against the nape of her neck and the shell of her ear. He delighted in the soft warmth of her skin and yearned to explore more of it.

She shivered beneath his ministrations and moaned so softly it might have been inaudible had the cabin not been silent.

"Commodore?" She asked in a pleading tone. He didn't know what she was pleading for and neither did she.

"I...I" She swallowed and tried again. "I think it's combed now. Thank you."

He dropped the comb on the desk as if it had scalded him and stepped back as he cleared his throat. He shook his head to clear the cobwebs and tried to remember his purpose for coming.

"I have some good news for you." Norrington said, trying to regain a sense of normalcy and once again desperately wondering what was happening to him..

"What's that?" She replied, thankful to have something to talk about. Her skin was still burning where he had touched her.

"Does the name Elise Gold mean anything to you?" He asked as he watched her eyes carefully.

She was silent a moment as she turned the name over in her mind but he could tell the instant it clicked. Her blue eyes lit up with excitement and she clapped her hands to her chest enthusiastically.

"That's me! That's my name! My name is Elise Gold!" She said fervently.

"Yes. I'm glad you remember that now. What is the last thing you remember Miss Gold?" Norrington asked her with an encouraging smile.

Elise thought for a moment before replying "You." She blushed hotly and added "And the other man pulling me from the water."

Norrington silently clasped his hands behind his back as he moved to stare out the porthole.

"Commodore? How did you find out my name?" She asked curiously, approaching his side.

He turned to her, reached into his pocket and held out the letter. "Smith found this in your dress. Why don't you try and sleep now? We'll talk about it in the morning. Good night Miss Gold." He said before leaving her alone, staring at the mysterious letter.