Free A Pirate's Bounty by Eliza Knight Page A

many of the women he’d delivered to Orelia had been just like Faryn? And hadn’t he himself bargained for her—yet again taking control from her?
    Disgust roiled in his belly.
    “Had you no chaperone?” he asked absentmindedly, not sure why he’d even asked in the first place.
    “My father chose the groom as my escort when I rode, as my maid was quite old. Francis had ample opportunity to woo me and he took advantage of that… Although I suppose I am to blame for most of it.”
    “No, never, Faryn. Your father should have had more control over his men, and Francis should never have used you in such a way. Was he punished?”
    Faryn shook her head, her eyes downcast. “No, he disappeared the next morning. We were found nude in my bed by my maid and she screamed, calling for my father and the guards. Francis fought his way out and I never saw him again.”
    Wraith nodded. He thought of Menteur, wondered if the man had actually been behind Faryn’s fall from grace. He could have planned the whole thing—paid the man to seduce her. It could have all been a ruse to gain her father’s money. Then it hit him. Wraith knew instantly why the man had seemed familiar to him. He’d seen him before. Dealt with him before. The eve of his family’s murder. Menteur had come to their chateau, but he’d been dressed as a beggar. He’d begged food and shelter and they’d let him sleep in the stables. Must have been how the murderers had gained access—he’d opened the gates. But he wasn’t the mastermind. No, he wasn’t that smart—and he still had all of his fingers.
    “Come, I have to show you something.”
    Wraith took an iron key from behind a plank of wood that had blended seamlessly with the wall of his cabin. He was still shirtless and Faryn found herself breathing hard, her heart erratic at not just his near nakedness, but at what she’d revealed, how he’d reacted.
    She’d seen the anger simmering inside him. And she was both intrigued and excited that he would be angry on her behalf.
    He took the key to a chest beside his desk and unlocked the padlock, an audible click echoing in the silence. With steady hands, he lifted the lid, which made a loud creaking noise, as if rarely used. She half expected to see a skeleton or even the heart of Davy Jones pop out from the depths but instead he lifted a large package wrapped in dark green velvet.
    He took it to the table where they’d eaten only that morning and set it down.
    “This is proof.” A light came into his eyes.
    She furrowed her brow. “Proof?”
    “Faryn, chérie , I have not been altogether honest with you. My name is…”
    She held up her hand, not sure if she wanted to hear what he had to say. “Wait! Don’t!”
    His face fell. “Why?” His voice sounded far-off, choked.
    She came forward and took his hand in hers. “Wraith, I’ve come to know you over the last week and I know you to be a good man. A pirate you may be, but this is where you keep your treasure.” She tapped his chest. “You have a heart of gold. I can see in your eyes the depths of your soul and I’ve grown…fond of it. Don’t take that away.”
    A smile curved his lips and he bent to kiss her knuckles.
    “I too have grown to care for you, chérie . Let me show you who I really am. Let me tell you why I’ve taken you, so you don’t think I want you only for a lover’s tryst. You mean so much more to me than that.”
    His words meant more to her than she could have ever realized. They meant the odd relationship they’d forged was not one-sided. Not something she’d made up in her mind. He cared for her! Perhaps a future was possible… “If you promise it will not ruin what we have, then go on.”
    “I promise.” He pulled her against him, kissed her softly on the lips, the heat of his body sinking into her. Warming her fear, making her feel safe and…at home. Something she hadn’t felt for a long time.
    When he finally pulled away she was only half interested