"If we were out farther, yes, but since we're approaching the islands where another ship may try to take us, then they expect me to be armed." Morgan started for the door, then turned back. "Feel free to look through my books if you like. And don't forget to lock the door." Allison nodded, and after Morgan went out the door, she closed it behind her and threw the bolt. Sighing softly she leaned against the door and wrapped her arms around herself, missing the captain already. Looking around the cabin it seemed so empty now.

Allison closed her eyes briefly, trying to shake off the frustration that had her strung taut. Pushing away from the door she decided to open the porthole windows to let some air in. As a cool refreshing breeze curled through the cabin she settled herself into the now familiar curve of the wingback and tucked her feet under her. She eyed the spines of the books lining the shelves next to her, letting her fingers caress the well-worn leather bindings. At the end of the first shelf she smiled and pulled out a collection of Shakespeare's plays. Opening the book she flipped through it until she found her favorite, "Hamlet". She settled in, hoping the play would keep her mind away from the memories of the time spent in Morgan's arms, and from worrying too much about how things were going up on the deck.

Morgan looked back at the door, pausing briefly to make sure she heard Allison lock the door. Hearing the bolt drive home, she walked down the hall and out onto the deck. As she walked across the ship towards the stern, she heard herself being hailed from the rigging and waved up at the men. She strode up the steps to the helm where Jacob stood talking to the man at the wheel. Looking up as she approached, he grinned at her.

"Mornin' Cap'n, sleep well?" he inquired, a suggestive tone to his question. The crewman at his side watched her out of the corner of his eye, trying to keep his curiosity from showing. Morgan let a sexy grin spread across her face.

"Oh, yes Jacob, quite well. Though I must say, I didn't spend much time sleeping." Jacob let out a deep laugh and clapped his captain on the back.

"Cap'n, I knew she wouldn't resist ya long! Will you be keepin' 'er with ya for a while, then?" He asked. The sailor beside him flashed a grin at Morgan and settled more comfortably behind the wheel having heard from Morgan herself the truth of the rumors spreading among the crew. Morgan leaned her hip against the railing and looked out at the waves for a while. Frowning, she looked down at the men working the deck, stowing one of the sails.

"Jacob, have the big sail furled. Looks like the tide's a little lower than it usually runs when we come through here." Jacob nodded and headed down onto the main deck, calling at the men. The crew made quick work of getting the sail down to the deck, but an errant breeze started to pull at the sail. Stepping up to the wheel, Morgan motioned the man away from it.

"Go help them get that thing under control." She ordered him, and he quickly made his way down to his struggling mates. Morgan braced herself against the pull of the ship on the wheel and carefully started to ease the ship through the narrow channel that wound it's way through the islands.

Left alone with her thoughts for a moment they drifted to the woman waiting in her cabin. Just thinking about the delicious redhead made her heartbeat pick up pace. Morgan's body pulled her thoughts towards the time spent in contact with Allison that morning, and she had to make a strong effort to stay up on the deck. She could still feel the jolt that the younger woman had sent coursing through her when she slid her leg up and pulled her down on top of her. It had taken every bit of self-control Morgan could muster to keep from kissing Allison, knowing that once she tasted those lips she would not have been able to stop. It hadn't helped that those green eyes were practically begging her for her touch, and every time she did touch her that sensual body would arch into it.

Morgan blinked hard, trying to clear her head. The men had finished stowing the sails on the deck below and returned to their previous tasks and Jacob and the helmsman were headed back to the stern. Morgan adjusted their bearing a little then turned the wheel back over to the man. Motioning Jacob to walk along with her, she headed towards the bow of the ship. Keeping her voice low she asked her first mate how things were with the crew.

"Much better, Cap'n, much better. When cook came out here talkin' about how you had that gal pinned in your bed, every one of the boys relaxed. I don't know how much of what he spun were true, but he did a damn good job of making sure they knew you were having breakfast and it weren't what he brought you." Morgan grinned and clapped Jacob on the back.

"Good to hear, Jacob, good to hear. Those bastards shut up?" Morgan asked, eyeing one of the captured sailors as they walked up the stairs to the bow.

"Aye, and right quick too. A couple of the men made it quite clear that they'd best keep quiet for the rest of the trip too, because your rules don't apply on land." Morgan laughed out loud. The two of them stopped once they reached the foredeck and stood watching the approaching islands. Most of them were uninhabited, or only sparsely so. The majority of the population lived in the two main ports deep among the smaller islands.

Morgan looked forward to reaching their destination. She and the crew had been at sea for three months, and all of them needed some time on land. Luckily the take they would get from that three months would let them stay in port for at least six months, if not a whole year, which would let her have some desperately needed work done on the ship. She should have had it put in dry dock last time they were in, but she was antsy and had them back out to sea within a couple of months. Now, the hurricane season was approaching, so taking some time off would be a good idea. Besides, she had Allison to take care of too.

Morgan made herself spend the rest of the morning up on deck, resisting the urge to go spend more time with Allison. She joked around with the crew, helped them stow ropes and one of the smaller sails, and even landed a couple of large fish for the cook to add to dinner. A couple of the men hinted at the stories they had heard about her early morning conquest and she took those opportunities to confirm them, making suggestive comments about the redhead being a wildcat in bed.

Finally the sun stood overhead, beating down on the deck, driving the sailors to find shade where they could. Morgan waved at Jacob and pointed down at the deck, then headed below to find some refuge from the sun. She picked up some bread and cheese from the galley on the way, then, with a ball of anticipation rolling in her stomach, rapped on the door to her cabin. She heard some rustling inside, then heard Allison's voice.

"Who's there?" Morgan smiled to herself.

"It's me, Allison, open the door?" The sound of the bolt sliding back echoed in the hallway, then the door opened in to admit her. Morgan stepped through the doorway and pushed the door shut behind her. Allison stood not too far away from her, and the captain found herself desperately wanting to take the younger woman in her arms. At some time during the morning she had changed out of the white shirt that Morgan had given her, replacing it with the dark blue one that she had worn the first night Allison was on the ship. The contrast between the creamy tone of Allison's skin and the dark color of the shirt was captivating, and the twinkle that Morgan caught in the redhead's eyes hinted that she knew the effect she was having. Morgan let her eyes linger on Allison's curves for a moment, just long enough to draw a blush to her cheeks. Smiling seductively at the younger woman she moved deeper into the room, setting the food she had brought down on the corner of the desk.

"So all is well, Morgan?" Allison asked. Morgan nodded, set the pistol on the desk, unbuckled her wide belt and hung it over the back of the chair.

"Oh yes, they took the cook’s story and ran with it. The troublemakers are subdued, the crew’s looking forward to reaching the islands and there’s not another ship on the horizon. I guess I’m rather lucky. It’s not often that a crew will like their captain as much as mine likes me…though it helps that we’ve been together so long and through so much." Morgan smiled down at the map spread out on the desk. The swiftness of the current was taking the ship quickly through the islands, and from what Morgan had plotted out they should reach the port at sundown. Morgan jumped as Allison suddenly walked up to her and wrapped her arms around her.