Chapter 5
AN: What a lovely bunch of folks for reviewing, alerting, favoriting, and making my daying...Bless your beautiful hides...Poor Derek...on the show and here he has to plot...
Emily was digging through the bag she'd carried into the chess preparation tent, looking for a pair of rather medieval looking cuffs to capture Reid with. She had to fight pumping her fist in the air and shouting in triumph, because her plan was definitely working. This was turning out so well; there was no way in hell he was going to lose that match today.
"Shoot…I know they're here somewhere," she said, bent over at the waist, rummaging through to the bottom of the duffle sack she had.
She had been quite clever when she devised this plan yesterday evening. Deciding quickly to give up her Spanish princess costume she had planned to wear—she didn't want to wear a corset—she had begun searching for things for a pirate costume. Once she'd come up with this outfit, she'd started on Operation Reid.
Something about Reid touched her heart in ways she didn't know were possible. He always had, and he always would. She'd felt so terrible after talking to him on the phone, his defeated tone resonating with her long after she'd hung up the phone. With his intelligence, he should've been a shoe-in to win this tournament. She'd been in that position many times in her life...to be the best candidate for something and end up sidelined by your own nerves was a miserable situation.
She had to help him; it was imperative. Now if she could just find those…
"Aha!" she exclaimed, grabbing the leather cuffs. "Found them!" She turned quickly with a flourish, dangling them on her finger by the fashioned leather chain between them.
Reid was sitting there, looking rather pained, like something was bothering him.
Immediately, she frowned. "What's wrong with—are you sweating?"
She'd never seen Reid sweat before…but then he turned a shade of scarlet that would rival a tomato. What—
It didn't take her even a second to figure it out.
"Oh, ho, captive!" she teased, fluttering her lashes in an exaggerated manner. "Seem you were eying the booty of Salty Sally!"
The blush continued to stain his cheeks and spread all the way to his ears. "You…ah…do fill out hosen quite well."
The honest and sweet compliment pleased her more than if he'd said something more ribald. It was befitting of him not to be too coarse or vulgar. She felt warmed inside…but she knew the compliment was only part of the reason she was feeling warmth!
Like any good woman that knew her attraction, she swayed her hips seductively and trailed her dagger across his throat. "Seems to me I captured ye…and I didn't even need to use me sword…" She raised her foot and planted it on the hay bale next to him, stretching the thin material of the hosen even more over her leg.
She noticed he couldn't take his eyes off her raised leg, which was very flattering, too. "Ah…so ye are a leg man, are ye?"
"Emily," he pleaded, hoarsely but softly.
"That's Salty Sally to ye, scurrrrvy dog!" she ordered, completely lost in her persona and the thrill of being a lusty pirate wench. With even more devilish intent, she straddled his lap, holding her dagger to his throat again.
"Oh, God," Reid groaned.
"Derek!" Penelope exclaimed excitedly, launching herself into his arms and giving him a big hug. "I thought you weren't coming."
She was so pleased that he was there. She had been disappointed with Kevin, but even more disappointed that Derek hadn't wanted to come. It didn't make sense to her. No matter what they did together, they always had fun. They could grocery shop, do laundry, wait in line for tickets to a concert, and still, they'd make a party of it. The fact that he hadn't wanted to go had stung; even though it was irrational, she'd taken it as a rejection of herself.
Now that she was wrapped in his arms with the heat of his sun-warmed skin and clothes pressed against her body—that simply made everything better and mostly forgotten.
He gave her a squeeze, and then released her partially, keeping one hand on the curve of her waist. "I finished early, so I thought I'd come, and check things out."
She smiled at him. "Do you like my dress?"
Her breath caught in her throat, and she felt a blush heating her cheeks. Other men had looked at her today—one drunken shopkeeper had practically buried his face in her cleavage—but Derek did it in such a thorough fashion, she felt positively naked.
"Hell, yes," he murmured, giving her a slow smile that increased her pleasurable blush.
"Thank you."
He winked at her. "You're welcome."
It amazed Penelope how right the world felt, standing with her best friend, the warmth of the sun paling against the warmth she felt in her soul. It was like everything should be—was meant to be.
"Did you see Reid yet?" she asked with a grin, ready to explore this faire with him.
"Reid? Is he Robin Hood?" a miniscule slip of woman standing a little behind Derek asked. She put her hand on Derek's other arm.
Penelope blanched. She hadn't noticed her until she spoke, but looking at her, she could see the other woman was stunning. She had waist length, flaming red hair, like some Renaissance version of Crystal Gayle, and she was pixy tiny, but perfectly formed.
Derek took a step back to stand closer to the woman and answered, "Yeah, Reid's Robin Hood. P, this is Maid Marian. Marian, this is Penelope. We all work together."
Penelope's gut clenched. God, what had she been thinking? She'd learned years ago that Derek was only teasing; it was best that she never forget it. After all, he was there to check things out. That certainly included checking other women out.
Penelope pasted a smile on her face and looked at the young and lovely woman. "This is the Sheriff of Nottingham," she said, taking a step closer to Robert.
The woman suddenly had a frosty grin of her own. "Hello, Robert."
"Marian, my dulcet darling," the Sheriff said in greeting, before reaching for Penelope's hand and placing it on his arm protectively again. He gave an arch look at Derek, and then turned all of his focus back to the redhead. "I see you have found a ruffian to keep time with?" The way Robert had rolled the r on the word ruffian had turned the word into a grave sounding insult.
"Ruffian?" Derek asked, looking none too pleased with Robert at the moment.
Penelope thought he might sock him, which would be a terrible thing, since she had liked Robert.
However, she wasn't an idiot, either; Robert was partially taken. There was obviously something going on between Marian and Robert. The looks the two were throwing back and forth were electric and heated.
"Unlike the beautiful lady I am with, t'is obvious he is coarse and below your standards," Robert commented archly.
Penelope giggled at the affronted look on Derek's face, and he shot her a look. Good. Served him right!
"Lady?" Marian shrieked. "She's a wench!"
"Hey!" Penelope snapped, and saw Derek's answering grin that must've matched hers a moment ago…
"There is nothing coarse about him, I can assure you that!" Marian snapped. "He's been a proper gentleman."
"More's the pity. I know there's a time and place for everything..." Robert lifted Penelope's hand to his mouth, kissed it, and then winked at her.
Derek glared at Robert with such vehemence, Penelope could feel the fire behind it. "Listen, you tights wearing jackass, I—"
"And she has some prize walking with you?" Marian interrupted, glaring daggers at Robert. Her hands were on her hips, and her cheeks were as red as her hair.
"But of course I am!" Robert replied, as if the answer to that was obvious. "Whereas he..." He clucked his tongue. "Look at him. The man is filthy dirty, and his clothes aren't fashionable. He doesn't even have proper hosen!"
"That's it," Derek snarled, taking a step forward, causing Robert's eyes to widen. "You're going down."
A certain brawl was going to happen, if fate hadn't intervened…
"Flowers for miladies?" a young man asked, holding up the big basket of roses he was carrying and stepping between the two men. "Only a dollar."
"Certainly!" Robert exclaimed quickly. He reached into his pouch on his waist and retrieved a dollar, and then picked a lovely red rose, before bending at the waist and presenting it with a flourish to Penelope. "For you, my love: but a small token of my growing affection."
"Thank you," Penelope said, but she couldn't help but glance over at Derek.
Derek wasn't even looking at her. He was still glaring at Robert, and she could see him plotting his revenge. "Hey, kid," he said, handing the flower boy two dollars and picking two peach roses. "They're nowhere near as lovely as you, Marian."
Penelope felt her gut sink. This wasn't going to be good…
