I'm baacckkk!
Sorry for the delay guys. Summer has officially kicked in and I am not stuck at my computer nearly as much as I usually am. That and I had a severe case of writer's block for this chapter. So to make up for the missed week last week this one is a tad bit longer than usual ;)
All characters belong to their respective creators, blah blah blahhssdlj.
I stood there on the gangplank not wanting to cross onto shore. We had already reached the end of my trip, and we're waiting in the docks at Montressor. In front of me waited a gilded carriage, pulled by four silver grey horses with red plumes over there head. There was an entire retinue of guards and servants, all wearing the Montressor herald on their capes. As I scanned the faces of each person, no one so much as cracked a smile. I don't want to do this. I can't do this.
I started to panic. I ran backwards on the gangplank on to the ship, my safe haven. This is where I belong, not on a throne. Next thing I knew the guards started to march single file up the gangplank towards me. I started looking for John wildly, as long as I could find him he could take me away and I'll be safe.
I finally found him at the very back of the crew that gathered to see me off. I immediately tore off after him, wrapping my arms tight around his neck when I reached him and begged him to save me. The complete opposite happened however.
John stood stiff as a board, not moving a single muscle. I pulled back to look at him and immediately my blood ran cold. The look on his face wasn't one of comfort, but one of boredom.
What?! I thought this is what you wanted!
"Oh what I'd do to be able to take you away from all of this lass, but yer not worth t'e trouble."
I placed my hands on either side of his face, hoping he would snap out of it, this wasn't like him at all. "John, don't let them take me. Please!" Next thing I knew, the guards had wrapped their arms around me and drug me back across the gangplank. I felt like a knife had gone through my heart watching John stand there and let them take me away. I fought as hard as I could, but I was no match for them as they threw me into the carriage and locked me in.
Hearing the lock fall in place I jumped up screaming. Surrounded by darkness I started to panic, but when the door to John's bedroom flew open I remembered where I was. It was all a nightmare. I couldn't hardly think straight much less calm myself down, when all of a sudden someone sat down next to me. Still in my flight mode I tried to jump up but was immediately pulled back down on the couch again.
Next thing I knew I was enveloped in warmth from someone holding me. At first I couldn't hear anything but the rushing of my pulse, but then the sound of a deep voice started to register in my ear. As more senses started to work I felt two hands rubbing up and down my back, one warm and strong, the other cold and metal. John. Relief flooded through me as I realized that he was trying to calm me down instead of pushing me away, and I immediately wrapped my arms around his neck as he pulled me in his lap.
"Shh, yer alright lass. I promise yer fine." he whispered into my hair.
As I started to calm down I pulled back to wipe the tears from my face, still too nervous to look John in the eye. Instead I focused on the muscles in his forearm, followed it up to his tricep then his shoulder. His shoulder? It was at this moment I fully realized that John was shirtless, wearing nothing but a pair of his black linen shorts. He must have been asleep.
I braved a look at his face and was surprised to see dark circles under his eyes. He gave me the tenderest of looks, his mechanical eye glowing a soft golden yellow in the dark. Leaning my forehead against his I took a deep breath, the smell of his aftershave calming me down even more. You know it's not a good idea to be doing this. Ignoring my more logical inner self, I ran my fingers through his messy auburn hair.
"You're supposed to be asleep John." I whispered.
He started rubbing my back again when he muttered, "Aye, and so are you. I was asleep 'til I heard ya havin' yer nightmare."
I apologized, unwrapped myself from his arms and crawled out of his lap. "Aw, I was just startin' to get cozy." he pouted.
I laughed, hoping he couldn't see my furious blush in the darkness of his office. "You and I know that is a bad idea." As if to mock me, he reached out and softly tucked a hair behind my ear.
"Tell me about yer dream lass." He pleaded.
I bit my lip and wondered if I should. A look of hunger crossed his face as he glanced down at my lips. "I already warned ya 'bout chewin' t'at lip lass." he whispered darkly. "Please tell me."
Hell why not. So I gave him a quick run down version of my dream, and by the time I was done he was worried all over again. "Well I can see why you'd be so upset, but you don't have a t'ing to worry about." he tucked another curl into place. "I wouldn't ever let anyone take ya against yer will, you know t'at right?"
"I know, I'm just-I don't want to think about what I am getting myself into." I confessed leaning against his shoulder. "I'm sorry I woke you up."
"Nah, yer fine." he whispered, wrapping his arms back around me and resting his chin on my head.
"No it's not fine, you need your sleep." I buried my head in his bare chest, closing my eyes and letting exhaustion take over.
He lifted my chin so he could look in my eyes, "Lass, I don't mind comin' to comfort ya whenever ya need me. I promise, it's fine."
I gazed into his face trying to find any trace of annoyance. Not being able to see any, I figured I'd at least let him go get some sleep. I started to push out of his arms, but he just pulled me right back in. Stifling a giggle, I tried to reason with him. "John, you need to go get some sleep. I'm fine now, just go get some rest before we have to get up to make breakfast."
He gave me a mischevious grin, whispered in my ear "Jimbo can take care of breakfast in the mornin'", then he jumped up off the couch. Next thing I knew I was being picked up and carried off to John's room like a china doll. Squealing with laughter, I tried to get him to set me down but of course it was no use. He tossed me on his bed, walked into his office to retrieve the blanket I was previously using and brought it back and gave it to me.
"John, what on earth do you think you're doing?" I asked, "You can't possibly sleep comfortably on the couch."
As John walked around to the other side of the bed, he leaned against one of the posts and looked down at me. "Oh, I'm not sleepin' on t'e couch lass. I'm gonna sleep right here." he motioned to the spot next to me.
Wait..What?! "John, you and I know that's another bad idea."
"Ana, you'd sleep better if you weren't alone. And you know I'm not gonna put t'e moves on ya, unless ya want me to." he winked.
"That's not fair and you know it." I whispered, my throat started to burn from the sudden urge to cry. I couldn't handle spending more time with him, falling even deeper in love with him and have to leave him. What if you didn't go through the with it? I stopped my thoughts right in their tracks, and thankfully John was able to gain my focus again.
"Look lass, I won't do anything you don't want me to. Just say t'e word and I'll stay or go, it's up to you"
Everything in my brain told me that this was just going to make it harder to say goodbye. Everything in my heart however told me that he was right, and that I wouldn't be able to get any sleep if I was left alone. For once I was tired of fighting off what I really wanted, so heart won over head this time.
"Don't go." I whispered, and that was all that he needed before he climbed under his own blanket on his side of the bed. Once he settled in, he turned to face me. We were each wrapped in our own little cocoons, but he was close enough to where I could feel his warmth through my own blanket. He lifted his mechanical arm, his gears whirring softly as he moved, and gently tickled designs down my arm. I kept fighting to keep my eyes open, to make sure that he actually went to sleep and get some damn rest, but his massage was making it near impossible.
"Go to sleep lass. I'm not goin' anywhere, I'll be right here when ya wake up." he whispered.
That was all I needed to finally close my eyes and drift off to sleep. Thankfully the nightmares didn't make another appearance and I was able to have the best night's sleep since leaving home. I was surprised to find early morning light shining in the windows when I woke up. Guess he really did tell Jim to fix breakfast this morning. I rolled over to find an empty spot where John was supposed to be. Hearing the shower running in the bathroom, I assumed that's where he ran off to.
I laid there lazily and thought back to last night's events. Throughout the night I had woken up a couple of times curled up in John's arms. We had tried to stay separated in our own blankets but somehow one of those got thrown off and we ended up sharing one. During the night being clouded by sleep it didn't bother me to be in such close proximity to John, but now that I am awake I realized just how stupid it was
Last night can not happen again. I CAN NOT let it happen again. My self loathing was interrupted when the bathroom door flew open. Out walked John in nothing but a towel that barely fit around him. Now, I'm not one to ogle, but I couldn't help my damn self. His hair was wet and wild, shining a deep chocolate auburn in the candle light. Little droplets of water rolled off his shoulders and chest, rolling down until they eventually fell to the floor leaving a little trail wherever he went. John wasn't an overly thin man but he was in shape, his muscles were the type that exuded pure strength.
He had a huge barrel chest, his bicep and shoulders bulged and contracted with every movement he made. His arms were nearly as big around as my damn thighs, and even though he had mechanical limbs he still moved normally, almost gracefully around the room. Before I could stare any longer I shouted his name and hid under the covers to hide my blush.
"You know you'd save me a lot of embarrassment if you could come out with your actual clothes on!" I yelled at him.
I heard him walk across the room then felt him lay down on the bed. He pulled the blanket down the slightest bit so he could take a peek at my face. Hugging the blanket tight, I tried to keep my face covered.
"Now lass if ya wanted to take a peek all you had to do was say so." he chuckled.
"I never said I wanted to-"
"Oh come on. You were starin' and you know it." I could hear the smirk in his damn voice.
"Just put some damn clothes on so I can get up already!" I yelled.
He laughed again, "Alright lass, everyt'ing's good for ya to come out of hiding now."
Cautiously I peeked a single eye from my fort. He was at the foot of the bed, shorts on and was in the process of putting his shirt over his head. I had no idea John was so..damn built. I mean from the outside you could tell that John was a big man, but until I saw what was underneath I didn't realize how strong he really was. Just as his shirt fell into place, John glanced over his shoulder and cast me a knowing grin. Now he is just playing games with me.
"Caught ya again." he smirked.
"Oh shuddup." I grumbled, swinging my legs off the bed to go take a shower of my own. You wanna play that game, let's play John Silver. The steam from the shower melted away the mushy feelings I felt from last night. As I stood there washing the suds out of my hair, every what-if situation drifted through my mind. What if I didn't go through with it? What if I did and I was miserable? What if I did and I actually was happy?
That last one was the toughest one to think about, because I knew it was never going to happen. I would be naive to think that if I married this stranger I would have a happy ever after, fall in love and live the rest of my life out. I've heard the rumors about how terrible the new family I was marrying into would be, I just hoped that the new status I was gaining would protect me from any physical harm.
Deciding that was enough self reflection for the day, I shut the shower off and started to dry off. I could hear John on the other side of the door, and my mischievous side kicked in. He knew good and well that I was going to be awake when he came out of the shower, he wanted to get a rise out of me from walking around half naked. Let's see if he likes a taste of his own medicine. I gave my hair a quick towel dry, just enough for the curls to start forming, wrapped the towel back around myself and peeked out the door.
John was sitting on the bench across the room putting his socks and boots on. He's facing straight this way. Perfect. And with that I swung the door open and swept in the room. Immediately his eyes were glued to me as I walked around pretending to look for my things. The towel I had on barely covered anything, it was entirely too short where I couldn't even think about bending over, and it didn't even wrap around me all the way. The only part that I could get to come together was what I had wrapped around my chest, the rest left a slit going up the left side showing nearly my entire hip and thigh.
I thought John was going to die. All he did was sit there still as stone, eyes wide clutching the sides of the bench and watch me walk around the room. I decided to push my luck even farther and pretend to be looking for something in a trunk that was right next to him. The closer I got, the whiter his knuckles became as they clung for dear life on that poor bench. I could've swore I heard a crack or two splinter into the wood as I brushed against his leg and started looking in the trunk.
"Whatcha doin' lass?" he ground out, jaw clenched in frustration.
Feigning innocence, I batted my eyelashes down at him. "John, what's the matter? I'm just looking for my clothes."
"Oh that's not all yer doin' and ya know it." I could tell I was pushing his limits of self control, but I was having too much fun getting my revenge to quit now. He wants to play this game in the first place, I'm gonna show him who can play it better.
I tucked my towel in place to ensure it wouldn't fall off completely, then I slung my arms around his neck and got about an inch away from his lips. "I have no idea what you're talking about John." I purred. He bit his bottom lip and growled. "Now Cap'n what is it you said about people biting their lip?" As soon as I finished that sentence he had stood up and was towering over me.
My arms were still wrapped around his neck so my body was pushed up against his, but suddenly John placed his hands on my hips, picked me up and walked us backwards until I was up against the wall. He leaned on his forearms on either side of my head and had a knee in between my own essentially pinning me in place. A slow sensual grin crossed his face as he lowered his head to my neck.
His breath on my skin sent shivers down my spine, and as I visibly shuddered he chuckled darkly. He brought his mechanical hand down and started to caress my hip right under where the towel ended.
"One t'ing yer gonna learn about me is any game I play I usually win." he growled, "And also us Ursids have an awfully tough time stayin' away from what we want." He then pulled back and came inches from my own lips before he whispered, "Might wanna keep t'at in mind next time ya wanna play wit' fire." He gave me one last heated look, pushed himself off the wall and walked out of the room laughing.
As soon as the door latched shut I slumped to the floor. Well, that escalated quickly. After I calmed down I jumped off the floor to finish getting dressed. As I walked around slipping my garments on, a delicious tingly buzz enveloped my body and mind. Before I stepped out I took a single look in the mirror. The woman I saw before me was almost unrecognizable, but in a good way. Before I was a demure, proper, restrained scared little girl.
Today I saw a strong, confident, self assured woman. My hair was mostly dried, curls going wild down my back. I could've swore the red actually shined brighter than before I came on this ship, almost as if being out in space ignited a fire from within me. My blouse was white, loose and breezy, my trousers comfortable and worn in. After tucking my shirt in, I turned away from the mirror to throw on my boots and trench coat.
As I tied my laces I remembered Melody's party, and the fact that John and I were going shopping tonight. A new shot of excitement rushed through me as I went to catch up with John and start my day.
Thankfully I didn't have to run into anybody on my way down to the galley, and by the time I got down there everyone had cleared out except for John and Jim. Giving them each a quick greeting, I walked over to the stove to get me a helping of breakfast, then took my seat across from the two of them.
"So what's the game plan for tonight?" Jim asked.
"Well once we dock I'll hand our supply list to t'e harbor master to be delivered, then Ana and I have to go look for her a dress." John replied dryly, almost annoyed.
Jim coughed on a mouthful of his purp omelette. "YOU'RE goin' dress shopping Silver?" he asked trying to hide a snicker.
"Aye. Ana needs an escort doesn't she?"
"Yeah, but I didn't think-"
I interrupted the two of them, "You know it's incredibly rude to be talking right in front of someone without including them in the conversation." I looked at each of them pointedly, "If it's that much of a problem for you John I can handle shopping on my own."
"It's fine lass, just somethin' I'm not used to doin'." he muttered, sneaking in a wink when Jim wasn't looking. I guess he's faking attitude to throw Jim off now.
I zoned out for the rest of breakfast, barely listening to them go back and forth about what supplies we needed and what chores needed to be done today. We all finished quickly, cleaned up the Galley and set off to take care of business. Thankfully the tasks John gave Jim and I to do were time consuming so the day flew by. Before I knew it I was standing at the helm with John and Jim, listening to them gain permission to land and prepare for docking.
The afternoon sky gave our destination an almost ethereal glow. It wasn't a very big port, but it was definitely busy. The closer we came the more detail I could make out of the quaint little town. There were creatures from every walk of life bustling in and out of shops, bakeries and homes. Everyone seemed to be on a mission, carrying out their end of the day errands before going home to their families.
It shouldn't be too hard to find a dress here. I was still leaning up against the railing when John came up next to me. "Do ya have everyt'ing ya need? As soon as we dock we'll go." he asked.
"Let me go down and get some money, then I should be ready to go."
"Alright, let me give this list to Jimbo and we can go down together." he answered. When I opened my mouth to argue that I could go alone, John held his hand up to stop me. Bending down to my ear he whispered, "I don't want ya walkin' around on this ship alone wit' your money wit'cha."
Nodding my response, I waited as he gave last minute orders to Jim, and once he was finished off we went to his state room. By the time I was able to get my money together and back on deck we were already docked. Immediately John grabbed my hand and made his way to the gangplank, almost as if he was trying to escape his own ship.
"John, don't we need to tell Jim that were leaving?" I asked.
He drug me along and didn't answer until we were off the gangplank onto the dock. "He already knows. I don't want it to be known by t'e crew that we left together." Still holding my hand, he made his way as far from the ship as he possibly could before I finally made him stop.
"You're passing all the dress shops you know." I muttered. He was starting to wear on my patience. As if reading my mind, he immediately softened and looked down at me.
"I'm sorry lass, I was just tryin' to get us away from t'e crew." and with a sweep of his hand he said "Lead t'e way mi'lady."
Rolling my eyes playfully, I made my way in the direction to a shop that had caught my eye when we were pulling into the port. When I walked in I was welcomed by a friendly feline creature with shocking green eyes. As soon as she caught sight of John however her attitude immediately ran cold, and she glared daggers at him as he stood behind me.
"Ahem, excuse me miss? We were wondering if you had any ball gowns for sale?" I asked as politely as I could. I almost thought she didn't hear me, all she did was sit there and glare at John. When I moved into her field of vision she snapped out of it and came back to reality.
"Ah! I'm sorry. Y-yes, we do. They are towards the back of the store, feel free to try on whatever you like."
"Thank you so much." I answered, looked back at John to make sure he was following, and made my way towards the back. We made it all of five steps before the shopkeeper immediately stopped us. "I'm sorry miss, but your 'friend' here isn't allowed another step into this store."
I narrowed my eyes at her, "Excuse me? Surely he hasn't done anything to offend you bad enough to warrant not being allowed in."
Now she turned her sour attitude towards me. "His kind isn't welcome here. You don't look like you could afford anything in this shop anyway."
"Hey, who t'e hell do-" John started to argue, but I just put my hand on his chest and he stopped in his tracks.
I walked over to the counter and hoisted my coin purse in front of the shop owner, making a satisfying clunk as I gave her an ugly look on my own. "Let me get something straight with you, I am Princess Anastasia of Atlantica, granddaughter of King Triton. The dress I am shopping for is for my cousin's Princess Melody of Denmark's birthday ball. I can assure you money is no problem, but seeing as how you're not willing to allow my security escort in your store, I guess I'll go somewhere else."
She immediately started to stammer an apology, when I put my hand up and cut her off. "No need for an explanation, we will be on our way now. Good day." and at that, I grabbed John's hand and headed out the door.
Once we were outside he stopped me, "Lass, you didn't have to do t'at."
"Do what?" I asked confused.
"Stick up for me like t'at. I could'a just sat outside and waited for you."
"Nonsense!" I reassured him. "You would've done the same for me. Besides I need you to help me pick one out, I do want to match what you're going to wear."
He mumbled something about having no fashion sense under his breath and off we went to the next store. We had walked about a block before I realized we were still holding hands. Immediately I started getting nervous as tingly sparks worked their way up my arm. Feeling these sparks everytime I touch John can't be normal. Maybe I've developed a neurological condition? John squeezed my hand slightly pulling me out of my thoughts and gaining my attention.
"T'eres another shop there lass, let's go see what they have."
As soon as we walked in the door it was apparent that we would be getting the same treatment as we did in the first shop. It took us going to eight different dress shops, each one giving us the boot, before eventually I was starting to panic. At this point we were pretty far inland and the shops were starting to become more sparse. John pointed at a run down building at the very end of the street we were on, and started to head that way.
"John are you sure they even sell dresses? They don't have any signs or anything." I asked skeptically.
"Just trust me lass. Didn't yer parents ever teach ya not to judge a book by its cover?"
"No, they didn't" I deadpanned. Still holding hands he pulled me along until we were standing in front of the shop door. I stood there, still weary if this was a good idea. The shop definitely looked worse for wear compared to the others, did John realize that this was also a political event on top of a birthday party?
"Go ahead lass, trust me." John whispered behind me, urging me to open the door. Turning the handle, I was completely blown away at the sight that met me. A warm glow from inside spilled out and immediately we were welcomed into the store by a human woman. I prepared myself to get kicked out once she saw John with me, but fortunately the complete opposite happened.
"JOHN!" she screamed, dropping whatever she was carrying and rushing over to literally jump on him. For the first time since stepping off the ship he had to let go of my hand to catch her, and I tried to keep the fierce burn of jealousy from flowing through me.
"It's nice to see ya too Steph," John chuckled. They both seemed to forget I was even there until John cleared his throat. "Uh, I hate t'at this isn't a casual visit. We are actually lookin' for a gown for my friend here." By the look on her face you would've thought I just appeared out of thin air. Giving me a look over, she immediately hugged John's arm possessively and asked, "What on earth would you need a gown for? This may not look like it but these dresses are on the more expensive end, much more than what you can probably afford sweetheart."
Maybe my time on the ship made me look rougher than I thought, but regardless it wasn't any of her damn business what I needed the gown for. My temper flared, and as I prepared a retort John pried himself away from her and came to stand by me. He protectively wrapped his arm around my shoulder and gave this 'Steph' a cold glare of his own.
"Now Steph, t'is is a special friend of mine. We've already been to a dozen other shops lookin' for her a gown, now can you hook her up or not."
She crossed her arms over her chest and started to pout, but seeing that John wouldn't budge she reverted back to her original bubbly self. "Of course!" she clapped her hands, "Please come this way!" and off we went towards the back of the store where the longer, fuller dresses hung.
"What colors were you looking for?" she asked as she started thumb through her stock looking for some options to pull. I looked over my shoulder and shot John a questioning look. Since he knew what his formal wear looked like he would know what would match best.
"Anyt'ing gold, emerald or cream." he answered absentmindedly. He still had his arm draped over my shoulder as he was looking all around at the different gowns. Steph stared at his arm across my shoulders, then went to work pulling from every other rack.
Before I knew it she had her arms full of different outfits and I was being ushered towards the fitting rooms. Standing in that room surrounded by all these full and gorgeous gowns I was starting to get overwhelmed. Okay, just try one on at a time.
I could tell just by looking at a few of them that I wasn't going to like the style or they weren't even going to fit. She only blindly picked whatever was in front of her to try and keep me busy. Hell, half of these dresses weren't even in the color scheme that John had asked for.
Narrowing down the mountain to 3 choices, I stepped out in the first number. It was a gold mermaid style dress covered in green lace. I knew once I looked in the mirror I didn't like it, but I figured I would still show John and get his opinion.
As soon as he saw me his face twisted in disgust. I busted out laughing and he immediately straightened his features but continued to eye the dress warily. "What do ya t'ink lass?" he asked cautiously.
Before I could even speak, Steph had cut in. "Oh it looks beautiful on you! Now would you like this wrapped or boxed?"
"Actually neither," I huffed. "I don't like it. I think it clashes with my hair." Looking in the mirror I self consciously started to pull my hair to the side. I look like a damn mustard packet in this thing.
"I agree." John said decidedly. "Next."
The second option wasn't as bad, but definitely inappropriate for a royal function. This dress was a strapless deep emerald green with black beading throughout. It fit like a glove hugging my curves, one leg exposed nearly to my hip by a slit in the front and a long train flowed from the back. I checked myself in the mirror before stepping out, trying to arrange my curls into a neat fashion to one side. Walking back to where John and Steph were I caught the tail end of a conversation.
"Oh come on John, ditch the princess and we can go have fun like we used to." Steph whispered.
"I already done told ya I'm not interested. I am in charge of Ana's safety, I'm not going to ship her off just because you want someone to play with." John growled.
"Well bring her with you! Jim can keep her company and we can play like old times."
I decided to cut their conversation off at this point by walking around the corner into their full view. What I saw before me nearly sent me into a rage. John was still sitting in the chair but this time Steph had made herself at home in his lap. As his eyes fell on me and what I was wearing he immediately jumped up, nearly dropping Steph on the ground in the process. As he made his way to me his eyes burned with the same hunger as from this morning. I looked away, not able to handle the intensity of his gaze anymore.
"You look like a-" he whispered.
"A streetwalker." Steph finished for him. Her voice made me look her way and she did not seem happy in the least. "That dress makes you look like a straight prostitute."
John whipped around on her, "What t'e hell Steph, what did I tell ya 'bout yer attitude?!"
I grabbed John's hand pulling his attention back to me, satisfaction filling my chest at the daggers Steph threw my way in the process. "It's okay." I reassured, "She's right. This is way too revealing for the event we're going to. I have one more to try on and then we can go."
"Alright," he whispered, pointedly looking at a very angry Steph "Take yer time."
Warm sparks covered me at the tone of his voice as I walked back to change. The last dress was by far my favorite. It was a true ball gown that had a sweetheart neckline, corset bodice, and drop sleeves. It was made of a duotone emerald taffeta with delicate golden filigree designs embroidered on the bodice and throughout the skirt. On the sleeves there were golden drop beads giving the illusion that gold was dripping off the fabric. My hair seemed to come alive when I cinched up the back, the red curls contrasting perfectly against the emerald hue.
Walking out I was barely able to fit through the fitting room door since the dress is so wide. It took some work getting back to where John and Steph wore, it's been awhile since I've worn a dress of this weight and being able to do so takes a lot of practice. As I rounded the corner, I was met with a speechless John and Steph, both of them stared in amazement as I did a little twirl in the middle of the room.
"Well?" I asked expectantly.
John just nodded his head, looking for the right words to say. Steph had her hands clasped together smugly, a sick grin on her face. "It looks like it was made for you."
"I think so too." I agreed turning back to the mirror in front of me. Doing one last spin I relished in the luxury of the fabric. Don't get me wrong I hate wearing these things, but that doesn't mean I don't appreciate a piece of art when I see it. "Let's go ahead and box this up. We have to head back to the ship soon for dinner."
"Actually lass, Jimbo is on his way here." John scratched his neck nervously. "We're all goin' to a little pub that Steph knows to get a bite to eat. We need a break from t'at sailor food anyway."
Immediately my body went cold. Stop it. If he wants to go have fun with other women he's allowed to do that. Pulling my calm mask back into place, I told him how that was a great idea. He started to make his way towards me, but before he could I excused myself to go change and pack up the gown.
As I changed I tried to keep the hurt from my heart and the tears from my eyes. By the time I had changed out of the gown and hauled it to the front, John and Steph were engrossed in a hushed conversation, Steph giggling and blushing at something John had said.
Throwing the dress and my coins on the counter in between them, I tried my best to keep my anger in check. "If you could please wrap this in tissue and box it up I'd appreciate it." I smiled sweetly. John tried to reach for me again but I ignored him and went to explore some racks that were by the door.
Thankfully Jim walked in and he was able to keep me company while Steph packed up my dress. The plan was we were going to the pub about 3 blocks away, we would leave the dress here and then pick it up on the way back to the ship. As I was browsing towards the front I found a white lace dress that was more on the shorter side.
I held it up and looked at the size on the tag, perfect fit. You know, I wouldn't mind wearing something a little nicer than these dirty pants to dinner. I took the white lace dress to the front, dropped the coins absently in front of the two lovers and muttered, "Add this to my order."
As I headed back to the fitting room, John called after me "Where are ya goin lass?"
"I'm going to change!" I snapped, "I don't want to wear these dirty rags to dinner."
As I emerged John looked me up and down again, and I had to fight the urge to scream at him to leave me alone. I couldn't hardly stand seeing him and Steph act like they couldn't keep their eyes or hands off each other and then him turn around and look at me the same way.
The dress was a fit and flare that fell about mid thigh, my hair fell loose down my back and my knee high leather boots fell right above the knee. John tried to talk to me again but I ignored him, went straight to Jim and asked "Ready to go have some fun?"