This chapter is rated M for sexual content.

Chapter 53: Guarma

Lilly felt awful. She was wet and sand was stuck all over her body and water spurted from her lungs. She opened her eyes and lifted herself to sit. She was on a beautiful shore. "Uuuugh, god dammit, Lilly...you stupid feckin' eejit!"

Lilly smacked herself in the head and slowly got up. She knew that boat looked familiar and yet she hadn't remembered from where. She scanned the area but could not find her men or her brothers. "Hello?! Anyone there?! HELLO?!"

She turned around and saw Brian not too far off on the shore. Lilly ran and staggered to him and knelt down. "Brian! Brian! WAKE UP!"

Brian's eyes opened and Lilly sighed in relief. She helped him up on his paws and Lilly scanned around again for any sign of life. She found none. Where the hell was everyone? She was exhausted and severely hydrated. That was not good for her wee bairns. Lilly felt her tummy. No movement. Was that bad? She pat her stomach. Nothing. Shit. Lilly looked into the forest and saw some men coming out with guns. Brian growled and Lilly put her hands up. "Brian, no."

Brian stopped growling but he moved to stand in front of his sister. The men approached her cautiously and one of them held out a canteen. Oh thank God. She grabbed it and drank the water heavily. When she'd had her fill, Lilly knelt down and fed the rest to Brian. It was then that Lilly was offered a sort of red fruit by a dark colored man and she took it. She bit into it. It was a little bitter but she didn't care, it was food.

"Hello," he said.

"Hello," Lilly replied. "Um, where am I?"

"You are on Guarma. My name is Hercule Fontaine. What is your name?"

Lilly brushed the sand off her blue and white vest. "Lilly Morgan. Mrs. Lilly Morgan. Say, uh, you didn't happen to see a bunch of men and another white wolf lookin' as destitute as us, did ya?"

"Yes, except the other wolf."

"Shite. How many men did you see?"

"Seven."

"Shite again, one of 'em is missin'. Well, if you could point me in their direction, I would...ooooh," Lilly bent over and pressed her palms into her knees. "As ucht Dé, I don't feel so good."

"You are dehydrated and starving. Come. We will give you food and water and we will see about getting you to these men you speak of." Hercule reached into his pouch and pulled out a chunk of meat, tossing it to Brian who ate it hungrily.

Arthur fell to his knees in the sand and groaned. He was thirsty, hungry, and hot. James was as well and he licked Arthur's face as if to coax him into walking more. He barked weakly and nudged his nose under Arthur's armpit.

"Alright, James. Hold on, just...just gimme a minute."

James whimpered and sniffed around as if looking for something. Arthur had woken up not too long ago with James and they'd been wandering along the beach looking for their posse. And where was Brian and Lilly? He was distressed mostly about his young, pregnant wife. She was tough but had she made it with the rest of the group? He remembered her getting in the boat with the rest of the men and the wolves but he distinctly remembered her and the wolves diving in after him. That silly, brave, stupid wife of his. She really was of the heroic stock. Arthur got back up after James' persistance strengthened him and they kept walking. Soon after, though, Arthur collapsed again and fell on his stomach. James whimpered and licked his face again.

He must have dozed off for a while because when he woke up, he felt even worse than before but slightly rested. James was laying next to him asleep.

"Hey buddy, c'mon," Arthur said with a wheeze. James whined and slowly got up. James looked bad. They both began their trek once more across the hot sand with the sun burning bright above them. It felt hotter than hell. Finally, Arthur saw some smoke nearby and he walked in the direction. He spotted his group and spoke. "Dut...Dutch..." he said weakly. "Dutch. Boys...Lilly..."

"You're alive," Dutch said. "Arthur! You're...you're alive!"

The men all walked to him and Sean giggled. "Would ya look at that...ha!".

"Arthur, it is a miracle," Dutch said, putting a hand on Arthur's back. "It is a god damn miracle!" Some of the men helped Arthur to their little camp site. "Here, have somethin' to drink. Have a drink. Somebody give him a god damn drink!" Dutch ordered.

"James needs water, too..." Arthur wheezed out.

"Somebody get James a drink too!" Bill handed Arthur a canteen and Hosea helped James lap up water from his canteen. "Oh son...son, take it easy. We got you," Dutch chuckled. "We got you."

"Arthur looked around. "Where's Lilly and Brian?"

"We don't know. The boys and her swam after you but they never made it back. At least James made it, I'm sure Lilly and Brian did too," Lenny said.

Arthur sat down and sighed as he drank more water. "Well, shit. She better be okay. Brian better be okay too." James whined and cuddled up at Arthur's feet and he pat the wolf with a cackle. "You're alright, boy."

After resting a while, Arthur got up. "So, where in the hell are we?" he asked Dutch.

"We are on the island of Guarma. Javier asked a local. It's an...old sugar plantation island. Second island east of Cuba."

"Well, it ain't near Ireland, that's for sure," Arthur joked.

Dutch chuckled. "You would know, you've been there."

Both of them cackled. "So, what's next?"

"I don't know." James growled and Arthur heard gun clicks and looked up to see men in blue jumpers with guns aimed at them. Arthur and the rest put their hands up. "Well, next I guess we're gonna get shot."

James growled again. "James, hush now," Arthur said. "You keep doin' that, we will get shot for sure."

Lilly bit into a piece of cooked pork and drank from a canteen as Brian ate raw meat and lapped water from a bowl. Lilly had thanked Hercule profusely for the hospitality, but she found herself thanking him again. It made him laugh. "You do not have to keep thanking me, Mrs. Morgan."

"I know, but..."

Hercule held up a hand. "Listen, uh those men of yours. Are you all in some sort of trouble?"

Lilly stopped eating and eyed the man. "No. Not in Guarma, at least."

Hercule huffed out a laugh. "Troubles elsewhere are none of my business. But I must ask if the trouble followed you here."

"Not that I know of. We were on a boat and we got caught in a storm. It sank."

"Ah, I see. And that is how you all ended up here."

Lilly nodded and continued to eat. "Yes. Are they far off?"

"No. Finish and I will take you to them."

Lilly got up from the beach and thanked him again. "Come on, boy. Let's go find the others." Brian walked at Lilly's side along with Hercule and a few of his armed men. "So, do you speak Haitian by any chance?"

"Of course I do. Why?"

Lilly chuckled. "Mwen pale ayisyen, ansanm ak anpil lòt lang." [I speak Haitian, along with many other languages.]

Hercule stopped her. "What else do you speak?"

"Lots more. Started at a very early age, kept up through the years. Mwen se yon elèv kap aprann vit." [I am a fast learner.]

Hercule laughed. "Fast learner, you say. You are a surprise."

Lilly laughed loudly. "You don't know the half of it, Mr. Fontaine."

Hercule led her to a little alcove where a fire had been going. "Hmm, they are not here. I think they must have been captured by Alberto Fussar's men."

Lilly sighed and jumped down, looking at the tracks. "I take it he's the rich, bad guy on the island?"

"Yes."

Lilly sighed. "Wait." She saw wolf pawprints. "Oh good, James made it after all. I hope...hmmm...they were scufflin' about. Chained ankles, perhaps..." She couldn't count how many footprints, but the ones next to them were enough. And hoof prints. "Someone was here with a horse."

"That was probably Levi Simon."

"I see." Lilly looked up at Hercule. "Well, if it's all the same to you, I would like a gun to go rescue my family."

"They are all your family?"

"Not by blood, but we are family. Two of them are my adoptive fathers, and one of them is my husband. Hopefully."

"You are not sure he made it?"

"No. He didn't make it to the life boat with the rest of us. He jumped off the side of the ship and, well, I went in after him."

Hercule laughed. "You are a very dedicated wife, aren't you?"

"Yes."

Hercule sighed and tossed her a repeater. "Come. I will help you get them back, if you agree to do something for me."

Lilly cocked the repeater with a smile. "Name it."

"Who are these people?" Dutch asked, pointing to some locals. Him, the rest of the gang, and James were all locked up in chains.

"Who knows?" Arthur replied.

"Well they got them chained and lashed, but they don't look too dangerous. Excuse me, sir! Who are our new friends here?"

"Hahaha, criminales," one of the guards said.

"What crime did they commit?"

"Insurrección."

"Insurrection? Hehehe, that's quite a word," one of the captives said.

"Cállate, Mr. Fuentes!"

The guard then said something else Arthur couldn't catch. They went on the move again. Arthur was really worried about Lilly and Brian. He couldn't stop thinking about her and the wolf. He looked behind him at James. He pitied the wolf. He was a wild animal. Animals should never be chained up in his opinion, wild or otherwise. James perked up and gun shots were heard coming from the rain forest.

Lilly aimed at one of the guards and shot him in the head. She saw Arthur and James at the end of the chain line and smiled. They were alive. She counted the rest of her men as the gun shots continued. They were all accounted for.

"I see your wolf made it. Is your husband among them?"

"Yes. He's the one in the white shirt at the end."

"I am happy for you."

Lilly chuckled as she saw Arthur free himself and James. "Brian! Kill!"

Brian went running down the hill and attacked one of the guards.

"For once, boys, I don't think they're shootin' at us!" Dutch yelled in a joking manner.

Lilly watched with pride as Arthur shot men down. When all the guards were dead, Lilly came running as Brian greeted his brother. "Da! Arthair! Sean! Arthur!"

The rest of the men were freeing themselves and Arthur saw Lilly.

"Oh my God! Lillian!" He ran to her and picked her up in his arms, kissing her over and over. She held him close and kissed all over his face.

"Oh Arthur, I was so fucking worried!" she said.

Arthur kissed her again. "Me too!" Arthur kept his arms around her tightly then gripped her loose locks and kissed her hard. "Oh, my, mmm, my darlin' baby girl..."

Lilly kissed him harder. "Mo grá, mo chuisle, mo, mmmmm, mo ghrá amháin, mmm mo fhear céile!" she gasped into his mouth. [My love, my pulse, my only love, my husband!]

Arthur wanted to take her right then and there when Dutch and Hosea ran to her and hugged them both. "My God, two miracles in one day," Dutch laughed.

Lilly kissed Dutch and Hosea on the cheek as she hugged them both, jumping excitedly. Suddenly she stopped. "As ucht feckin' Dé, we got company!"

"We need to get out of here!" a stranger said.

"Now we're in trouble."

"Well don't just stand there! Run!" Lilly snapped, reloading her repeater. "Now!"

"Dammit! Everyone, follow me!" a stranger in the forest yelled.

"He can be trusted, guys! Go!"

The men, the wolves, and Lilly all started running and Javier got shot in the leg. "Javier!" Dutch yelled.

"Get outta here!" Javier ordered. "Get outta here, there's a lot of 'em!"

"What do you think?"

Lilly shoved Dutch forward. "We'll find him later! COME ON!" her voice boomed.

All the men went running but Arthur stayed by Lilly's side as they went running as well. "Ha! So demandin'," he joked. "I love it!"

Lilly laughed at him. "I'll demand some things of you later once we're safe!"

"I look forward to it!"

After engaging Fussar's men in a shoot out, the gang won the battle as the rest of their enemies ran away. Lilly cocked her repeater and called the boys back. She hugged James tightly. "Oh James, you poor baby...I missed you."

James whined and licked her face. Laughter came out of Lilly's mouth as she fell on her rump and kissed his face.

"Mrs. Morgan," Hercule said to her. "We must go."

Lilly stood up and brushed herself off. "Yes, let's."

Lilly walked over to Sean and slung an arm around him as they trekked on. "Miss me, deartháir?"

Sean laughed and put his arm on her shoulders. "Of course, deirfiúr."

They both laughed as they followed the rest of the group. Hercules began to speak. "Mrs. Morgan told me her side of the story, but I would like to hear yours. What are you doing here?" he asked Dutch.

"I have no idea. Runnin' from somebody or somethin', I guess," Dutch replied.

"Aren't we all. Hercule Fontaine."

"Dutch van der Linde. These drowned rats are Micah, Bill, Sean, Hosea, Lenny, Arthur, and I see you met Lilly, of course."

"Okay. Well, Fussar will be desperate to find you. We must be very careful."

"So, who is this Fussar?"

"A tyrant, driven by nothing but power and greed," one of the captives said. "Our only purpose is to work ourselves to death to make him rich."

"Leon wants the people to stand up to Fussar but most are too afraid," Hercule explained.

"And you?" Dutch asked him.

"I am not from here. I bring things in and off the islands behind Colonel Fussar's back. Let's, uh, let's rest a moment." They ended up on a hill overlooking a large stronghold of some kind. "Down there is Aguadulces. Fussar's compound. The sugar cane these poor men kill themselves farming gets processed in that factory there."

"They're little more than slaves shipped in from other islands," explained Leon. "A group escaped yesterday into the jungle hoping to find a way back to their homes."

"Now Fussar's men are out hunting them down. That old fort, Cinco Torres," Hercule pointed to an old ruin off the cape, "my men and I use that as a hideout when we are here. Come on...I know somewhere you can rest."

"Can we trust you?" Dutch asked the smuggler.

"I don't see you have any choice. I am the only one who can arrange a boat for you." Dutch glanced at Arthur with a look of respect for the smuggler named Hercule and shrugged in a subtle way, then they started walking again. "But, I need something in return. Help Leon with that group of escaped workers and then come meet me at the fort."

They went down the hill and crossed a small stream. "You help us get back our friend and get outta here, we will do everything we can," Dutch promised as he looked at Leon.

"Thank you."

"Gracias," Leon said.

"If your friend is still alive, they will have him at Fussar's compound." They walked up another hill to an old ruined building. "There is a cave hidden below the cliffs. It will lead you right there."

"Thank you," said Dutch.

"The workers are somewhere in the jungle. Hopefully we can get to them before Fussar does."

"Of course."

"Gentlemen, goodbye." Hercule and Leon left them to their own devices.

"Well, if this is a tropical paradise, so far it ain't up to much," said Micah.

Lilly snorted. "At least it's got a beach."

"I'll go scope the entrance to that cave," Dutch said.

"Oh no you won't, Dutch van der Linde!" Lilly snapped. "None of you boys are goin' anywhere until you've had some rest and some food. Especially you, Arthur, you look overcooked."

Arthur cackled as he laid down on a cot. "Not that you look any better, darlin', but okay."

"I'm Irish. We're a fair skinned folk."

Sean giggled. "That we are, deirfiúr."

Lilly shook her head and looked at Dutch. "You sit and rest. I'll go scope out the cave. I'm the only one fit to do so right now."

Dutch nodded. "Well, you're right. We need to relax." Dutch grunted as he sat down. "What a mess. I...am so sorry, boys. Lilly."

Lilly found a rifle and grabbed it, making sure it was loaded. "Don't be so hard on yourself. We all survived. Now," Lilly chuckled and kissed Arthur. "I am goin' to go huntin'. They got boars out here that are good eatin'. James, you stay here, keep an eye out. Brian, you up for huntin'?"

Brian barked happily and James laid down near Arthur. Lilly reached into her pouch and tossed meat to James. He ate like a greedy little pig which made Lilly laugh. "Yes, please bring back food, Lilly," Hosea said. We've been without our most prized hunter for days."

"Ha! Well, rest up while you can, gentlemen." Lilly clicked her tongue and walked out into the forest with Brian.

Lilly had just collected the meat from a boar she killed when she heard someone behind her. She turned around with her rifle raised. Arthur put up his hands. Lilly chuckled and lowered it. He and the woman made eye contact. Nothing needed to be said as they embraced each other and began kissing heavily. Lilly and him laid down on the forest and started unbuckling both their belts and unbuttoning their pants. Lilly slipped her pants off as she had no boots on and Arthur laid on top of her, sliding his member into her. They snogged furiously as Arthur pumped into her harshly. He scratched his nails down her leg as she lifted it to wrap around him. They moaned into each other's mouths as Arthur went harder and Lilly bucked her hips in unison with his strokes. He bit the flesh of her neck as she sucked on his earlobe.

"I missed you so much," she said. "I thought you were dead."

"Me too," he groaned, his lips vibrating against her throat. He grasped her hip and went faster. "Tá grá agam duit." [I love you.]

"Tá grá agam duit," she repeated. [I love you.]

They pressed their mouths together and Lilly's climax came, which made her almost scream. Arthur chortled. "Good girl," he said hoarsely.

Arthur soon came after and groaned out loudly. He kept himself in her as they held onto each other, kissing as they did. After a while, Lilly put her pants back on and Arthur rebuttoned and rebuckled. He helped Lilly up and kissed her again. "Oof!" she said, grabbing her belly. "There you are, ya damn chiselers."

Arthur laughed, knelt down, and pressed his ear to her stomach. "Hmm...don't hear 'em...oh, there we go. I can feel 'em." Arthur chuckled and kissed her belly. "Dia duit, na cinn bheaga," [Hello, little ones.] he whispered before getting back up. "Come on, people are hungry. You got enough for everybody?"

"Not yet. Almost. You wanna help or...?"

"No, I should go rest. I really feel like crap."

"Then why did you come out here?"

"Because I wanted to fuck you, wasn't that obvious?"

Lilly laughed at him. "Bithiúnach."

Arthur chortled and kissed her. "Hurry back, mo stór," before leaving her.

After leaving Lilly, he had a bit of a walk back to the ruins where their camp was, but then he came across a nasty sight.

"Shit, that don't look good," Arthur said, staring up at the dead body hanging from a tree. He felt something hit his neck and grabbed at it. "Ah! What the hell was that?" He walked a bit more until he collapsed and passed out.

Arthur woke up to being slapped in the face by some guy speaking Spanish. The man kept speaking it while slapping Arthur hard in the face. The man was talking and hitting so fast Arthur didn't have time to recover or speak before getting hit in the face again and again. Arthur groaned with the bit of pain he felt in his cheeks from the hits. The man switched to English.

"Huh? Who are you, who are you?" He punched Arthur in the gut and Arthur groaned loudly as he felt all the wind get knocked out of him. "Huh? Huh? Who are you? Where you from? Where you from?" Arthur received another hit to the stomach and Arthur groaned again from the pain. "Where you from, I'm asking you! What are you doing here? Huh? Huh? Huh? What are you doing here?" Another punch to the stomach and Arthur groaned and almost heaved as he fought to breathe. "Huh? What are you doing here? What are you doing here?"

"I'm-I'm an American!" Arthur forced out, coughing and trying to take air in. "My name is Leviticus Cornwall."

The torturer stopped and directed his attention to another man tied up to a chair. It was Leon. Arthur tried to loosen his ties by struggling but couldn't. The two men started speaking Spanish and the prisoner was hit in the face. Leon whimpered and coughed as their captor walked over to a one armed man chained to a wall. The captor kicked the third prisoner in the stomach and when Arthur started rocking side to side, he heard a "shunk" and the kidnapper fell to the ground with a knife in his eye. There in the window above the third captive was his lethal, knife wielding wife in nothing but white pants and a white button down shirt, sleeves rolled up and a ponytail in her hair. She smirked at Arthur and "tsked" him.

"Bein' kidnapped is becomin' a bad habit for us, isn't it, mo fhear céile?" [my husband?]

"Sea, mo bhean chéile," [Yes, my wife.] Arthur said with a wheezing chuckle.

He coughed, trying to regain his breathing capabilities. Lilly climbed in and grabbed her knife from the body. "You fellas okay?"

"Shh. I don't know," Leon said.

As Lilly cut the stranger free, she helped him up and settled him on the ruined stairs. "Maybe there's still time to get to the other workers," he said.

"Oye. I think I hear voices coming from the other ruins down there," Leon said as she cut him loose. "Let's sneak down and take a look."

Lilly went over to Arthur and cut his ropes before kissing him. "Hmm. I don't think I like this bearded look on you."

Arthur laughed and kissed her back. "What? Is it too manly for you?"

"Shut up," she said with an eye roll. "Lilly turned to Leon. "Which way?"

"I'll show you," Leon said. "Baptiste, you don't look good. You should rest here."

"Okay," Baptiste groaned out. "You'll need this." Baptiste held out a repeater and Arthur grabbed it. "Go, go."

"You good, Arthur?" Lilly asked him.

"Yes," he replied.

"Come, follow me," Leon said. They exited the ruin. "Stay close behind me. I know a way we can sneak around."

"Okay," Arthur replied, both Lilly and Arthur crouching as they walked behind Leon.

"Keep quiet and don't kill anyone. If they catch us, they'll murder the workers for sure."

"Who was that feller?" Arthur asked Leon, referring to Baptiste.

"Shh, one of Hercule's men." They walked down the steps of some more ruins. "Quick, hide," Leon whispered.

Lilly backed up against the wall with Arthur. Two men started speaking Spanish. "What are they sayin'?" Arthur whispered.

Lilly perked her head to one side. "Grandfather used to tell one of them Guarma was the island God forgot."

"No kiddin'."

"After a month here, now he knows why."

"What else?"

Lilly sighed. "Nothin' here. Let's go back...they got three months left, then they can go home. Please."

Arthur chuckled. "Will you ever tell me how many languages you speak?" Arthur asked her.

"Okay, they've moved. Come on, keep close behind me," Leon said, and they all moved again. Leon ducked to the side as they went under an arch. "A guard, keep out of sight!"

The three people hid again and there were more people speaking Spanish. "Now what?" Arthur asked her.

"I wish Angel would hurry up, Angel...never was a man less...appropriately named. Devil would have been better. Or "Shit For Brains"." Lilly giggled quietly as they walked along once more. "Yeah, that man sure didn't seem angelic to me."

"Who?"

"The guy beatin' the shit outta yas. Hmm, he's sick, probably enjoyin' torturin' those poor bastards. It..." Lilly bit her lip and shut her eyes tight. "It gets his little wiener hard."

Arthur supressed a giggle. "Jesus..."

"Two more ahead, take cover on the other side of this door," Leon demanded quietly.

"He was raised by rats. Rats? He was raised by the Devil," Lilly repeated in English. "Damn, good thing I came and saved your asses. That man does not sound nice."

"He wasn't. Thank you for killing him," Leon said. "He was a scourge on this island. Almost as much as Fussar."

"You're welcome."

The guards left and Arthur, Leon and Lilly made their way through a curved hallway. More men were speaking Spanish. "Now what?" Arthur asked.

"As ucht Dé, Arthur!" Lilly hissed. "Are ya gonna...oh, somethin' about watchin' a socialist swing, hanging is a tedious business, takes too long...shite, they must be talkin' about the workers."

Leon nodded. "They are."

"Oh...time to see prisoners, see if the..." Lilly snorted silently. "See if the American has squealed yet."

"But I didn't say nothin'," Arthur whispered. "Nothin' true, anyway."

Lilly snorted again. "Of course he's squealed. They always squeal." Lilly kissed Arthur's cheek. "But not you, my love." They stopped at the end of the hallway then moved further into the ruins. Arthur saw the men hanging and he shot the hangman in the head, then he shot all three ropes, saving the men from certain death. "Nice shootin', Arthur!"

A horn went off. "Damn. They're coming from behind us," Leon said. Lilly and Arthur got into cover and checked their guns. The shooting started from the guards and the married couple returned fire. They made short work with multiple headshots and soon it was over. "That should be the last of them.

Leon started speaking to the prisoners in Spanish as the three freed them. "I'm not American, I'm Irish," Lilly corrected.

"My apologies."

Baptise came up to them. "Thank you, my friends. I'm Baptiste. I work with Hercule. We owe you our lives."

"Yes, thank you."

"Our pleasure," Arthur said. Arthur knocked over a chair. "This place! Makes me miss home."

"Take care, my friends," Leon said to the couple.

"Hercule is getting a boat lined up to get you and your men out of here. Just meet him at Cinco Torres," Baptiste explained.

"Well be there," said Arthur.

"Good, good. Here, this is for you." Baptiste handed Arthur some cash.

"Thank you."

"It's not much, but it's the least we can do. Good luck getting home."

Arthur made a lazy salute as Baptiste made a motion with his hand to his chest. Lilly nudged him. "What?"

"I'm surprised you uh, didn't twist his arm over the money." Lilly made an evil grin.

Arthur guffawed at her. "Well, he's only got the one." Lilly snorted and Arthur cackled at her. "You ready to head back?"

"Yes." Arthur walked ahead of her but noticed she wasn't following. "What's wrong?"

Lilly fiddled with her fingers. "Twenty-seven."

"What?"

"I speak twenty-seven languages."

Arthur blinked a few times. "Twenty-seven?! How?!"

Lilly lowered her head. "I kept up with my lessons over the years."

Arthur cocked his head to one side and looked at her in disbelief. "Seriously?"

"Yes. You never wondered why I read so much?"

"How did you manage to hide that from all of us?"

17-year-old Lilly, with a ponytail, in a black button down shirt and dark red shorts, was laying on a cot in her tent, reading a book in Hungarian when Arthur announced himself at her tent entrance. Lilly quickly grabbed another book and placed it behind the one she was actually reading. "Come in!"

Arthur, in a dark blue button shirt, black boots, and black pants walked in and smiled at her. "Reading again?"

Lilly nodded. "Yup."

Arthur approached her and read the title out loud. "The Philosophy of Socrates. Hoof! That's a bit much for your age, ain't it?"

"Nope." Lilly hung a leg over her bent knee as she continued reading. "Somethin' on your mind, Arthur?"

"Yes. I uh...ahem, was wondering about somethin'."

Lilly closed the books and tucked them under her pillow, then raised up and put her weight on her elbows. "Yes?"

Arthur stared at her for a moment before speaking. "About yesterday, at the lake..."

Lilly sat up. She didn't like the sound of this. Was he going to back out on her hunting game? "Yes?"

Arthur sat on the cot, removed his hat, and scooted closer to her. "Was all of that true? About waitin' for me to become your...your prey?"

Lilly smiled. "Yes."

Arthur stared down at her body then back into her eyes. "Lilly, I need to, uh..." he bowed his head.

Lilly neared him and lifted his chin, gazing at him with concern. "Arthur...what is it?" Lilly watched and heard him gulp. She looked down at his lips and bit her own, then looked back at his light blue eyes. "Arthur?"

Arthur nuzzled his nose to hers. "Why me?"

Lilly felt her breath hitch at the closeness of her quarry. "I feel different about you. It's like I...I don't know how else to describe it except you're different than all the rest."

Arthur wrapped an arm around her. "Oh, that I can understand. You're certainly different than other girls."

"Is that bad?"

"No."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes," Arthur chuckled.

Lilly smirked evily. "Are you sure I'm not a bad, bad girl?"

"Jesus Christ, Lillian..." Arthur pinned her down on the cot and hovered over her. "You are such a bad, bad girl." Arthur leaned down and blew hot breath on her neck. "And your my bad, bad girl."

"Am I now, Mr. Morgan?" Lilly said breathlessly.

"Uh huh. You ain't gonna flirt with any of the guys anymore, are you?"

"Oh, I will keep flirtin' because I still want practice."

Arthur glared down at her. "What?"

Lilly giggled. "What? I still want my play things."

"You're bein' too greedy!" he snapped.

"And you're bein' too sensitive! Don't take it so seriously!"

Arthur blinked at her a few times. "So, this means nothin' to you? What we're doin'?"

Lilly huffed up at him. "Of course it does, Arthur, but it's not like you and I are, you know...exclusive."

Arthur plopped down on her and she groaned. He hissed into her ear. "You are not flirtin' with any other men, not if you want to keep flirtin' with me."

Lilly licked his ear lobe and he shuddered. "Well, if that's how you feel, Mr. Morgan, then so be it."

Arthur bit her neck and she moaned. "Then I guess this is over and done with."

Lilly pushed him off her and scowled at Arthur. "Fine then!"

Arthur stormed out of the tent. "God damn you, Lilly O'Callaghan!"

"God damn ya, Arthur Morgan!" Lilly huffed and went back to reading her book. "God damn ya..."

The two didn't speak until a week later. Lilly was picking herbs when she felt someone grab her from behind and push her into a tree. "Ouch! Arthur! What is the matter with ya?"

Arthur pushed his body into hers and held her face. "I can't do it."

"Do what?!" Lilly snapped.

"I can't stand seein' you flirt with the other men."

"Oh, Arthur! Stop bein' so jealous! Yer the one who wanted tah-"

Arthur put a hand on her mouth. "Yes, I am jealous. You said they was only practice, to bide your time until you could hunt me. Why do you still want them now that you have me?"

Lilly's eyes went wide and she grasped his hand, pulling it down and holding it. "I have you?"

"Yes, you have me, you stupid girl!"

"I'm not stupid! And yer makin' me think this was all just a huge mistake with how jealous yer bein'!"

Arthur pinned her arms up and breathed into her neck. "It's not a mistake. Why do you still want to flirt with the others?"

"I...I still need to perfect me flirtin'. I feel like I need to be...better."

"Better?"

"Yes, because if I was better, ya never would'a walked outta me tent! If I was better, ya would'a already tried tah...tah..."

Arthur looked at her face. "Tried to what?"

Lilly was breathing hard. "Ya would'a...ya want me, I get that, but I want, no, I need ya tah want me so god damn bad, ya canna think straight! I don't want them! I want you, and only you, but I want-"

Arthur put a finger to her lips. "Say it again."

"Say what again?"

"You want me, and only me. Say it again, Lillian."

Lilly felt her heart racing as they neared their lips. That was as far as it would go, but she had an ache that needed...something, although she wasn't sure why. "I want you, and only you," Lilly said softly.

Arthur smiled and kissed her cheek. "As long as you promise to feel that way with me, and only me, then you can do whatever you want."

"I promise. You will always be my favorite, Arthur, I promise."

They hugged each other and Lilly breathed in his scent of pine trees.