Havana, 1558

The air in Havana smelled of salt and sin. Captain John Roxton strode confidently through the city. He was a privateer commissioned by the queen, but if you asked his greatest enemies, they would tell you he was nothing more than a common pirate - notorious for his ruthless tactics, daring raids on Spanish galleons, and the vast wealth he accumulated from his plunder. When he entered the tavern one night, he found his crew drinking rum and beer and singing together in union:

"Now we are ready to sail for the Horn, Weigh hey, roll and go!

Our boots and our clothes, boys, are all in the pawn,

To be rollicking randy dandy-oh!

Heave a pawl, oh heave away! Weigh hey, roll and go!

The anchor's on board and the cable's all stored,

To be rollicking randy dandy-oh!"

A crew member thrust a mug of rum into his hands and invited him to sit down and celebrate. John took a seat next to his closest associate but also a rival, Joaquín Espina, a young Spaniard who had turned to piracy. Joaquín's father had been the captain of a Spanish galleon, until he was cruelly betrayed and murdered by his own vice admiral, who claimed his position and wealth. Devastated by his loss, Joaquín swore vengeance against those who had wronged his family. Another intriguing aspect of Joaquin was his appearance. He was lean and short, with a face so youthful he hadn't yet needed to shave. Even his voice was high and unbroken. To compensate for his lack of masculinity, Joaquín always had his face smeared with black soil. But don't be fooled, Joaquín was quite deadly. He was fast and agile and surprisingly skilled with his little knife. Word of Joaquín's feats quickly spread through Havana.

Captain Roxton clapped him on the shoulder. "The son of the late Captain Espina... Still a boy, but ten times the demon his father was!"

Upon hearing this, the tavern owner turned around and said, "I thought Captain Espina had a daughter."

"That was my sister, my hermana." Joaquín quickly corrected. "She is dead as well."

"A sad loss for the Espina family." John said and raised a toast to their memory.

"Fancy seeing you here, Roxton." Joaquín said. "I see you're still sleek and mean and quite popular among the ladies."

When he said this, the serving girls giggled among each other, as they always did whenever John Roxton was in the tavern.

"Well, I do have a reputation to maintain, don't I?" John asked and winked towards the ladies who giggled again and whispered something to each other.

"Ah, the great John Roxton—conquering seas, treasure, and corazones… All in a day's work." Joaquín replied, somewhat sarcastically.

"Don't be jealous, Joaquín. One day, you'll grow up and start winning women's hearts too."

"I'll leave that to you, Roxton," he muttered, taking a sip.

Not wanting to get drawn into a pointless exchange, John shifted the topic and asked, "What's this I'm hearing about raiding a plantation? You're not keeping secrets from me, are you, Joaquín?"

Joaquín took another sip of his rum. "Not very well, I see."

"Careful now. I don't take kindly to being left out of the loop." John warned.

"Relax, amigo. It's nothing you wouldn't hear soon enough."

Joaquín started to explain, but before he could get far, a plump serving girl with rosy cheeks and a daring smile, strolled over and plopped herself right onto John's lap. John wrapped an arm around her and playful squeezed her buttocks, before pulling her into a kiss. Joaquín's face darkened and without a word, he pushed back his chair and stormed out of the tavern, leaving his half-empty mug behind.

"I think young Joaquín fancies you." John said to the servant girl.

The girl laughed and replied, "My sweet naïve fool. He fancies you. If it even is a he."

Later that evening, as John prepared for bed, a firm knock echoed through the door of the little cabin he was staying in for the night.

"Who is it?" He asked carefully, going for his pistol, as he was also a wanted man.

"It's me—Joaquín."

John breathed a sigh of relief as he opened the door. "What are you doing here at this hour?"

"I didn't like how I left things at the tavern tonight. I came to apologize... And to finish telling you about the plantation."

"Ah, my dear, impulsive boy. Couldn't this have waited until morning?"

Joaquín hesitated. "Maybe... but there's something else as well. Algo más importante. Something that is more suited for night's conversation, rather than day's."

John stepped aside, letting Joaquín into the cabin. Joaquín walked past him, approaching the small table with a basin of water and began to wipe the grime off his face.

"Well, go on then," John said, leaning against the wall, arms crossed. "If this couldn't wait till morning, I assume it's urgent."

Joaquín didn't respond. Instead, he dipped the cloth into the basin once more and continued rubbing his face.

"Joaquín?" John pressed.

Joaquín turned around. He removed the bandana he wore as a headband, releasing a cascade of long, thick brown hair that tumbled down to the middle of his back. This was not the young lad standing in front of Captain John Roxton. This was, in fact, a woman—a rather beautiful one when her face was clear and her hair loose. Captain John Roxton was stunned.

"Your name is not Joaquín, is it?" John asked.

The woman shook her head and smiled mischievously. "Not most days. Joaquín was my father's name. My name is Isabella Espina."

"So, you're a woman."

"Well spotted. What gave it away?"

"How can you be a woman? You fight like a man, you drink like a man."

She stepped closer. "Does it need explaining?"

"I guess it doesn't. But why reveal this to me now?"

She took another step closer. "Because I can't stand watching you flirt and charm other women anymore. I want you for myself."

"I… I don't know what to say."

"Captain Roxton, at a loss for words? How shocking. Did my confession rattle you that much?"

"No… I'm just... confused."

Isabella smiled and cupped his face with her hands. Her sudden, fiery kiss took him off guard. "Make love to me now," she whispered after their lips parted, "You can be confused later."

The velvety warmth of her mouth, the slight salt of the sea on her lips—it all threatened to drown out the last of his doubts. Overcome by sudden passion, they seized each other with arms and lips, until they tumbled together onto the mattress. All of a sudden, John was kissing her neck and tangling his hands in her hair and letting his hands slide down to her hips. He forgot all about the recent revelation of Isabella's identity. In that moment, he felt as though he had known this woman forever: so beautiful, so passionate, so dangerous. In the sweet aftermath, as they lay intertwined, Isabella tilted her head and asked, "Still confundido?"

"Perhaps I'm confundido about most of life," John admitted, returning her grin, "but right now… not about this."

She laughed and settled her head back on his shoulder. They remained that way for a time, content in the hush that followed.

Then Isabella spoke: "My biggest dream since I was a little child was to be the woman who snuck aboard a pirate ship disguised as a man—an incredible sword fighter—and have the captain fall in love with me. Instead I ended up falling in love with him."