Disclaimer: You know the drill…
AN: Parts of this chapter are clunky but I've given up tinkering with it.
Jack gazed down at the sleeping woman nestled in his arms. Surprisingly Valentine had not argued over his decree that she sleep in his bed or even over his refusal to allow her to don nightwear. Instead she had merely primly tucked herself under the covers and turned her back to him. But Jack was having none of that and he had pulled her into the cocoon of his embrace. He was not ready to abandon the physical connection that they had just so firmly established. At first she had remained stiff and unyielding but soon sleep had claimed her and she now lay unresisting.
The candle sputtered and sent a flare of light washing over her torso. Jack marveled at the perfection of her and how well her body fit his. Another flicker of illumination and Jack swore softly. Most intentionally he had left the love mark on her neck as a stamp of ownership but the dark smudges gracing her arms, back, and breasts had been unintentional. The result of their primitive abandoned mating. Jack could feel his member twitch and begin to grow at the memory. Never before had he been so aroused and out of control as he had been tonight. The best part was that she had matched him. Even though at first she had been unwilling, in the end Valentine had grasped and clawed for her pleasure the same as he.
Gently he brushed the hair from her face and considered the uncharted territory in which he now found himself. He recalled thinking all those years ago that one night with Valentine would not be enough and he had been correct. Twice now he'd taken her and yet the ache that she stirred him only seemed to intensify. This was a novel experience for him. In the past, once he'd had a woman boredom set in. Still more unusual was the jealousy that Valentine roused in him. If only to himself, Jack had to admit that his anger had not stemmed from the typical place which was one of extreme reluctance to surrender anything that he considered his. Rather it stemmed from an absurdly blinding panic that had assailed him when he saw her dallying with another man. Quite simply he worried that she would prefer another over him. What was it about her that so breached all of his hard won defenses? Why could she with apparent ease bring him, a man who feared nothing, to the point of paralyzing fear over the mere thought of losing her to another?
Valentine restlessly moved and Jack soothingly stroked her hair until she settled back down. Oddly enough it was the simple gesture that supplied him with the answer to his questions. He recalled seeing Norrington demonstrate a similar gesture of affection towards Katherine and it was as if a veil had suddenly been drawn from his eyes. Bugger it! Bugger it all to hell! He loved Valentine. He did not know how it had happened or when it had happened but somewhere along the line it had happened. For the past fifteen years Jack had told himself that their marriage was nothing more than unpleasant encounter that he had no wish to revisit and that he wore her scrap of lace around his wrist as a warning to never again be so foolhardy. Now he questioned his own motives; another first for Jack Sparrow. Perhaps on some level he'd loved her all along? Valentine may not be the quiet biddable wife that he had sought but she was the only wife he wanted.
On the heels of his discovery came the certain knowledge that he could not allow her to realize the power she held over him. If Valentine was aware that she held this particular weapon she would mercilessly wield it over him. No, he had to find a way to tie her to him without her ever becoming aware of how much he now needed her. The fact that she continued to wear his ring about her neck gave him hope. Also, she had gone to a lot of trouble to stop his and Millicent's wedding. Surely she must care for him at least a little? Jack smiled as the perfect solution presented itself. Valentine had proven herself to be an extremely sensual woman and Jack would use that sensuality against her. He would introduce her to all of the varied delights of the flesh and use them to bind her to him. Decision made, he quickly went to work.
Ten days later, Valentine stood at the railing staring out at the sea as the sun slowly began to rise. Breathing deeply she enjoyed the beauty of the moment and reached a complete understanding of what it was that Jack so loved about sailing.
Her thoughts drifted back to that night in Tortuga. Their first coupling had been ferocious, almost a battle. Their second coupling, when Jack had awakened her in the early hours of the morning, had been the polar opposite. Jack had been exquisitely tender and almost worshipful as he'd made love to her. Afterwards she had turned her face away from him and into the pillow to hide the tears coursing down her face rather than embarrass him with an unwanted display of feeling. Jack had immediately fallen back asleep but she had lain awake contemplating the situation that she now found herself in. Her options were limited. Either she could continue to enjoy the delights that Jack visited upon her body or she could once again try to fight his advances. The later option not only seemed doomed to failure but also felt like cutting of her nose to spite her face. It was unlikely that she would ever find another man who could so easily arouse her carnal appetites. So what if there was nothing more between them than this burning desire? Well that was not true, there was in fact quite a lot more on her side of the equation and that was what had chased away her sleep that night and continued to do so this dawn. In the end, she had decided that night to enjoy whatever pleasures were on offer and worry about the future later.
This morning however, Valentine had the sinking feeling that every time that she and Jack came together made it that much more difficult for her to walk away in the end. And walk away she must when they reached Port Royal. Not once had Jack indicted that he had any wish to stay married to her and make their marriage a real one in every sense of the word. Valentine smiled as she wryly admitted to herself that their relationship had not progressed very far from the one that had existed while they were still in their youth. They continued to almost constantly argue with the difference now being that those arguments ended with them in bed. Or on the floor. Or standing up against the wall in the passageway below deck. Or in the crow's nest. Valentine had lost count of how many times they joined together. Jack was endlessly inventive. She flushed and felt a languorous warmth steal over her as she remembered last night.
"No, don't move. Just sit tight while I undress you. I've been dreaming of this throughout dinner."
Valentine almost giggled at the absurd picture that Jack made kneeling at her feet and removing her shoes. However when he lifted her skirt and slowly began rolling down her stockings, the laughter died in her throat. Then he began to trace a line of kisses from the instep of her foot all the way up to one knee. He repeated the process on her other leg. Valentine felt her breath grow shallow and the moisture began to gather at the juncture between her thighs. Dear lord this man's touch set her ablaze. She grabbed at his shoulders in an attempt to pull him up to her for a kiss.
Annoyance tinged his voice as he ordered, "Stop that Valentine." He removed her hands and wrapped them around the back spindles of the chair. "Keep them there." Jack placed a hand on either knee and firmly tugged her legs wider apart. When Valentine instinctively fought the exposure, he warned, "I mean to have my way in this Valentine. So you'd best resign yourself to it or you'll find yourself tied to the chair."
She swallowed her caustic retort to his high handedness when she saw the look in his eyes. He was serious in his threat. His countenance once again bore that predatory look that signaled his intention to tease and torment her until she begged him to take her. Their lovemaking alternated between a certain ruthlessness on Jack's part to bring her to the point where she was desperate for him and times when Jack was as gentle and caring as any woman could wish for. Valentine could not honestly decide which she preferred for both of his methods always left her sated.
His tongue found the hollow behind her knee and began to lick. With his hands pushing up her skirt even further to clear the way, he then traced a path up her thigh and stopped just short of the curled thatch of hair. Smiling wickedly up at her he licked his lips and murmured, "Just what I wanted for dessert."
Realizing his intentions Valentine once again tried to push him away. Even though she had engaged in this with other men, this was new territory for her and Jack and somehow with him it seemed more intimate than it had with the others.
Her resistance angered Jack. She had admitted that this particular sex act was not foreign to her and yet she would deny him the same liberties that she had granted others. That bloody well was not going to be tolerated. He snatched up a discarded stocking and within seconds had her right hand and foot tied together to the rear leg of the chair. Ignoring the ineffectual blows she rained on his neck and back and her shouts of "Damn you Jack stop this!" he quickly followed suit with her left hand and foot. Sitting back on his heels and surveying his handiwork he taunted, "When are you going to learn I'm a man of me word Valentine? I tell the truth more often than not though most don't believe me."
Feeling like a turkey trussed up for Michaelmas , Valentine spit at him, "Untie me Jack. You've no right to treat me so."
Jack pretended to yawn, "I'm beginning to find that argument tedious Valentine. How many times must I demonstrate to you that I've every right to do whatever I please with your delectable body? Not only I've the right but you enjoy and even crave my touch."
Grabbing her hips he yanked her forward so that she was sitting on the edge of the chair giving him full access to his destination. Burying his head between her legs he began to lick and suckle at her core until she was whimpering for release yet she refused to yield over to him. Then he snaked his tongue inside her and began to thrust in and out of her mimicking intercourse and she could no longer remain constrained. Soon she was writhing and bucking up as far as the restraints would allow and uttering desperate pleas for fulfillment. Jack once again sought his payment. "Say it."
This time Valentine did not fight the evitable. "I'm yours Jack. I belong to you." She could not fathom why he demanded this particular brand of capitulation almost every time they made love but she had ceased her attempts to withhold the admission for he always wrung it out of her in the end. Jack rewarded her by pushing her to heights of passion that she had not reached before. When she had at last slumped back drained and exhausted, he had quickly untied her and rolled them both on to the floor whereupon he'd started all over again.
Valentine's reverie of the previous night's delights was interrupted as a strong pair of arms wrapped around her from behind and a pair of lips nuzzled at her neck. "What are you doing out here so early in the morning my love?"
Startled by the interruption and not wanting to reveal the lascivious turn that her thoughts had taken, Valentine blurted out the first thing that came to mind, "I was just enjoying the view Jack. It's so incredibly beautiful out here. How can you bear to give it all up?" Valentine could feel Jack withdraw into himself. "I'm sorry Jack. That was insensitive of me."
"Forget about it Valentine. You only spoke the truth. Soon I'll no more have the freedom of the sea and the Diamond. I'll be landlocked and chained to an estate."
This was the first time since starting the journey that they had discussed the future. Valentine felt a surge of jealousy as she pictured Jack playing happy families with Millicent. Forcing the emotion away lest she reveal too much to him and thanking her lucky stars that her back was to him so that he could not read her face, Valentine observed, "You know Jack it is possible to keep your shipping business and continue to sail on a regular basis. A competent estate manager could oversee things while you were away and your wife could either travel with you or spend the time in London enjoying the season." Valentine almost snorted with derision at the thought of spoiled Millicent enjoying time aboard the Diamond but she had no doubt that the young woman would be more than happy to spend her days in London shopping and frittering away Jack's money. What on earth did he see in Millicent and did he now regret his impetuous decision to halt their wedding?
Jack stilled. They had not talked of their marriage but Valentine's words seemed to indicate that she was not averse to a continuation of the current circumstances. Guardedly he inquired, "And would you mind Valentine? Would you mind if a husband left you several months a year to sail the seas?"
Spontaneously she truthfully replied, "Oh but I'd go with him. Believe me London ballrooms don't begin to compare with the beauty and serenity found here."
Jack could not prevent his audible hiss of relief. Not only did she view them together in the future but she had also hit upon and endorsed a solution to his problem of permanently giving up the sea.
Instantly she regretted her admission and the interpretation that he would put on it. Backpedaling she assured him, "Of course my preferences are irrelevant. It's your wife's desires that will matter."
"But you are my wife."
Valentine decided that while his not being able to see her face was a blessing the reverse was a curse. Jack's tone was neutral and gave nothing away. Was he hinting that he wanted to continue on in their marriage or was he once again just being difficult? Cautiously she threw out a line to see if he would take the bait and reveal his thoughts, "Yes, I know that Jack but it will be easy enough to obtain an annulment once we reach Port Royal. If both parties agree and sign the papers it almost always is granted."
Jack's joy in the morning fled. He had awakened to find her gone from his bed and had sought her out knowing that they needed to settle things between them. Tomorrow they would reach Port Royal and it was important that Valentine be aware that he intended to keep her as a wife. Seeing her leaning against the railing with her face to the wind and lost in the moment had caused his heart to swell with pride and love. Yet he was loathe to make a formal declaration wanting her to be the one to say the words. So he had taken the smaller risk of calling her his love and she had repaid the risk by talking of dissolving their marriage and his wedding another with nonchalance that stunned him. He sarcastically observed, "An annulment Valentine? I'd say we'd long since passed the point where that is a possibility. Of course there may be one or two intimacies in which you retain your virginal state with me but I've found that the law does not appreciate such fine distinctions, luv."
Tormented by the thought of him marrying another Valentine snapped, "Fine then. A divorce. It will take a little more effort and money but I daresay we'll muddle thorough and then you can wed your dreadful little Millicent." She clapped a hand to her mouth as realized what he could read from her shrewish statement.
Relief swept through him at her words and what they unintentionally revealed. She did care for him and did not like the idea of him with another woman. Now she only required a few more pushes in the right direction until she accepted her fate. His playful and amorous spirit returned. "Jealous, Valentine? You've no need to be for you still have me all to your onesies for today and tonight. What's say we let tomorrow sort itself out?" Jack was through with talking and began nibbling at her neck. Noticing that the lovebite had nearly faded away he set about remedying that situation. He was determined that she bear a visible mark of his possession when they reached land; with her mulishness she was unlikely to voluntarily place his ring back on her finger so this would have to serve.
Valentine wanted to hold onto her anger but it soon receded under Jack's caresses. No matter how many times he touched her she continued to turn to putty in his hands. It was annoying. It was humiliating. It was exhilarating. When his fingers found their way under her skirts she protested, "Jack, you can't. Not here where anyone can see us."
Jack responded by tracing the shell of her ear with the tip of his tongue and whispering, "Not if you don't move or cry out. The men won't suspect anything unless you give the game away and the thought of being caught is exciting isn't it?" Without waiting for her reply his fingers delved into the folds between her legs. The wetness he found there supplied its own answer. His fingers began to play her swollen nub with the expertise of a maestro violinist playing his instrument.
Valentine's hands so tightly gripped the railing that her knuckles grew white with the effort. She sent a prayer heavenward that Jack's body blocked their activities from the men who were going about their work behind them. The ribald commentary and knowing smirks that would follow if they were discovered were in Valentine's mind best avoided. Soon she walking a tightrope of sexual tension and she had to bite her lip to keep from crying out.
Jack could feel that she was close to the threshold and he egged her on, "Come on Valentine. Spend for me. Show me that you're mine. Climax for me out here in the open. "
His murmured words tipped the balance and Valentine felt her release rip though her body. The necessity of remaining quiet and unmoving added another level of intensity to the explosion that gripped her. Finally her involuntary contractions stopped. Jack withdrew his fingers and smoothed down her skirt before turning her around. Deliberately he raised his hand and slowly licked clean each of his fingers before saying, "I believe this leaves only one act left in which we haven't engaged." With these words he turned around and swaggered away leaving Valentine weakly clutching to the railing for support hoping that her knees would not give way.
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