Quietly she unlatched the shutter and opened it to let the fresh night air sweep the staleness out of the cabin before unpacking the bags of supplies. The moon hung low in the sky by the time she finished and her body screamed at her in exhaustion. Sighing softly she gazed across the cabin at the bed, longing to slide under the blanket and join Allison in deep slumber, but the mere thought of being so close to the redhead sent her thoughts whirling again. Exasperated at herself she dug into the bottom of her satchel and pulled out her own journal and laid it on the table top, running her fingers across the well-worn leather bindings. Morgan stood next to the table and stared at the long neglected book, knowing if she flipped through it she’d find the last entries, where she’d painfully spent days recording everything from her father’s capture and hers to her last days as a slave…and her revenge. The last day she’d written anything in her journal had been just after her first night spent in Carolyn’s arms, a year to the day after meeting her the first time, and three months after the blonde had lost James. Morgan sat down and made her fingers flip the pages open, turning past her last entry to the next blank page. Sighing softly she sank her head onto her hand and started writing, pouring everything out that was running through her mind, hoping to find a solution somewhere at the end of it all.
Carolyn lounged on a chaise next to the fire, watching her lover pace her parlor, grumbling under his breath. She twirled the end of her hair around the tip of her finger and waited for him to cool off, sighing softly as he ranted.
"I am so sick of playing these games, Carolyn! I'm tired of acting the courteous husband to Anne, tired of watching Jack get patted on the back, tired of kissing that old man's ass! I don't know why I let you talk me into this! There's no way this will work, this ridiculous plan of yours. Soon that Captain of yours is going to spill everything and we'll be on the next ship out of here!!" Carolyn shot up, eyes flashing as she stepped into his path. Henry glared down at her as she tapped her finger against his bare chest.
"You, Henry, need to sit down and relax. We are fine! If Morgan was going to tell George about us she would have done it already, and do you really think that he wouldn't have confronted you that night if he knew?" The blonde pushed him back into a chair and perched herself in his lap, brushing his hair back soothingly. "Now, if you will just stick to what we've decided, everything will work out perfectly. George isn't going to be healthy forever, and when he steps down you know that Jack will take his place, and you'll take over as dockmaster. It's the perfect plan, darling! Just be patient." Henry's jaw clenched as Carolyn dipped her head down and teased his lips with hers.
"How can you be so damned nonchalant about this!" Henry ground out, lifting her from his lap and returning to his pacing. "We could be discovered at any moment, especially with that woman nosing around!" Carolyn shook her head and tsked at him, returning to her chaise.
"Poor, Henry, you worry too much! Morgan has left town, I made sure of that. She's so enamoured with that little tart she kidnapped she couldn't see her hand in front of her face. She won't be back here until the little wench's daddy comes to get her, and then I'm sure we can threaten her ship again to keep her distracted." Carolyn leaned back on her elbows, shooting an inviting look at Henry as she slowly untied her robe. "Now, Henry dear, why don't you let me take care of Morgan, and you take care of me." The young man shot a doubtful look at her then slowly walked over to kneel at her side, running a hand teasingly up her thigh. Carolyn reached out and twined her fingers through his hair, pulling him closer to her.
"Trust me, lover, I can handle Morgan," she said, her eyes and voice going momentarily cold. Henry returned her ruthless smile and swept her into his arms, carrying her off to the bedroom.
Sunlight streamed in through the open window, casting its warm rays across the figure collapsed on the table, a leather bound book under her head for a pillow. A few stray rays cast their golden light across the cabin to burnish the red hair spilling across the bed, warming the sleeping woman’s cheeks. Allison’s eyes twitched in her sleep and she reached her hand up to block the light, slowly blinking her eyes open. Green eyes stared in confusion at the motes of dust dancing in the sunbeams and the young woman pushed herself up onto her elbows and looked around. Glancing at the empty bed next to her Allison frowned and swung her legs over the side of the bed. Squinting against the morning sun she pushed herself to her feet and yawned, stretching muscles sore from the long ride the night before. A groggy memory of Morgan sliding her out of the saddle and into her arms was all she had of their arrival the night before, and she vaguely remembered being laid into the bed and covered up. Padding across the sun-warmed floor she slowly approached the table, sighing sadly as she saw the woman hunched over, asleep on her arms.
Morgan had turned her head away from the sun streaming in the window, the beams casting her face in shadows. Allison instinctively reached out and ran her fingers through the soft hair spilling across the captain’s shoulders, sighing sadly as the woman’s lips curved in her sleep. Leaning down she brushed a tender kiss against her temple then pulled her hand away, wrapping her arms around herself. Looking around she saw that her companion had unpacked the bags and wondered how late into the night Morgan had been awake.
Curiosity and a need to put some distance between herself and the sleeping woman else she lose control of her hands drove her towards the door and out, the door creaking slightly as she closed it behind her. As she turned to look out between the porch railings she found herself leaning against one of the posts, eyes wide in awe. A clearing spread out in front of the cabin, falling away in a slow slope to a meadow below, nothing blocking the view in any direction. The cabin was high on a hill overlooking the land as it gradually fell away to the level of the harbor. Trees hid a majority of the port town, the ocean dominated the horizon on all sides, and islands poked up through the waves, the sun gilding them with its early morning light. Morgan’s horse cropped grass in the meadow below and birds sang in the trees, making Allison smile at the peaceful scene. She sat down on the top step and leaned against the post next to her, her thoughts turning back to Morgan's revelations the evening before.
Morgan. Why is it that this woman seems to be able to send my thoughts into a tailspin so easily? I wish things were easier! If only I could just ignore all the bad stuff surrounding us. Ignore her past...my future, all of it. But I can't. We're so different. There’s no way that we could overcome all the things that set us apart, right? So why am I agonizing over this? Allison heaved a deep sigh and leaned her head against the post. Because she captivates me, fascinates me…she makes me feel alive. So now what do I do? Here I am, alone with her, with nothing to distract me away from her eyes, her smile, and everything else about her that makes me crave her touch and attention. Can I just keep some distance between us? Is that possible? I guess I'll have to find out, because I know that I shouldn't get any more involved with her than I already am. And I have to keep telling myself that, because to do otherwise is just going to make leaving all the more difficult. I just have to keep my distance....and control of my hands.
Allison heaved a deep sigh and leaned her head against the post. Pushing herself to her feet she took a deep breath and turned towards the cabin, stopping as she saw Morgan standing just inside the doorway, blue eyes showing starkly in the morning sun.
"Morning, Captain," she said quietly. Morgan cocked her head a little and bowed her head slightly at Allison, acknowledging the renewed formality between them.
"Morning, Miss Allison, sleep well?" The redhead nodded and moved through the doorway as the other woman backed up. Morgan closed the door behind her and moved deliberately away, unlatching the shutters on the other two windows in the cabin. Allison sighed softly and sat down at the table. I seem to have all the distance that I could ask for now, so why does this feel so awful?
Morgan glanced over her shoulder at the young woman sitting at her table and felt an ache start to build inside her. Clenching her jaw she tied the last shutter back and, retrieving the box of tools she kept on a shelf next to the door, headed outside.
"Mor-...Captain," Allison followed her out onto the porch, "where are you going?" Morgan turned and gazed quietly back at the redhead.
"I'm going to do some repairs on the roof. There's always some shingles that get loosened during the storms." She turned and stepped down off the porch, quickly striding around to the back of her cabin before Allison could say another word. Morgan propped her ladder up against the cabin and climbed up, determined to engross herself so deeply in her work that she wouldn't be able to think about the gorgeous redhead watching her from the clearing below.
