The Nest

The morning found Jack watching the sky carefully, scrutinizing the sea even more closely than usual, and very quiet. In fact, Will commented to Elizabeth that he’d only seen Jack like this once before when they were closing in on Barbossa on the Isla de Muerta. Jack spotted Will and called him over.

Will couldn’t have been more shocked when Jack handed him his compass and gestured for him to take the wheel. “Alright, William, think you can keep her on a straight line?” Will nodded but hadn’t quite found the words to speak.

“Have at it then,” Jack commanded and walked away to the front of the ship. He smiled to himself at Will’s reaction. Well, it was a day for firsts, he thought, looking out at the horizon and breathing in as much of the salt air as he could, until his chest ached with it, then letting it and the tension in his body flow out to the deck and the sea beneath him.

At the helm, Will felt incredible, feeling the ship answer to his slightest touch, thrilling to her responsiveness. His mood and thoughts shifted a thousand times from excited to powerful to aroused to humble to thoughts of his father and how it might have been if they could have sailed together. He was prevented from slipping into maudlin by the arrival of Anna Maria, who’d been watching him with great amusement and now came over and pinched his backside hard, startling him out of his reverie.

“What the hell?” He spun, utterly disoriented.

“Watch yourself, Will. She’s an amazing lady and she might let you cop a feel, but don’t let it go your head. She’s not yours, aye?” She laughed at him, not with any malice, but in recognition of the spell she’d seen the Pearl cast so many times before.

********************

Suzanna sat on Jack’s terrace far more comfortable than usual as this time she’d thought to lug some pillows with her along with her notebooks and writing implements. This was her favorite place on the ship, with the open view before her, she thought. Although to be fair, she also loved being just at the doorway of the cabin and watching Jack when he was at the wheel. She could watch him for quite some time and then it would be just too much and she’d have to touch him somehow. And then the touching often led to someone else taking over at the helm and the two of them going back into the cabin, and she could only admit to herself that the things that happened in there had turned her life utterly upside down, and she didn’t ever want it straightened up.

In the midst of her musings, who should appear but their very subject. Jack cast his eyes about at the pillows appreciatively. “Now why didn’t I think of that?”

“I would bet that it’s because these pillows seem to pull your thoughts in other directions rather than working or sitting quietly,” she answered.

He grinned at her. “Mmmm, I do seem to have some particularly fond feelings toward that purple one...”

She tossed it at him saying, “Fine, have a seat. Note the notebooks and ink and quill that say clearly ‘Woman working. Pirates, ye be warned!’”

He caught the pillow, bowed gracefully, and sat down with his back against the wood, eyes out to sea, leaving her to her work.

Suzanna sat herself down in a similar fashion but made sure to stay about 4 feet away—just out of reach. There was far too much evidence as to what would happen if they were in touching distance, and she really did want to work.

Soon she was lost in it; her fingers flying across the page as quickly as the quill would let her.

Jack kept his eyes away from her but listened to the soft music she made beside him completely unaware—the scratching of the pen, the way her body shifted when she got excited about something, the occasional chuckle or giggle at a story remembered, the occasional sigh. One sigh had a particular ring to it, and he risked a glance to find her with the end of the quill at her mouth, eyes closed while the tip of the feather brushed back and forth across her lips. It was suddenly very hot out here in the sun as he wondered if she was remembering the night of their “the pen is mightier than the sword” argument, where they had both set about proving their case to one another. It was a highlight amongst highlights, and damn, he stilled owed her a dress from that one.

Alright, this line of thinking was not helpful if he was going to sit quietly and wait till she came to him. And about 15 minutes later she did. She stood for a moment looking at him until he reached for the pillow and opened up his legs, setting it down between them. She sat down, letting another sigh escape as he pulled her gently toward his chest. Her arms were around his thighs, hands on his knees, tracing small patterns there as he did the same on her shoulder and arm.

“It’s not going away,” she said quietly, and he turned her head toward his to kiss her as softly and with as much quiet passion as he had the very first time, stroking her face, before settling her back against him. They sat there for some time, faces in the sun, wrapped up in one another, and open to all the world.

********************

Jack was unusually quiet. Suzanna had the confusing impression that he was both very much with her and yet somewhere far away.

When they finally got up and left the terrace it was near noon, and Suzanna was delighted to find Will still at the helm and Elizabeth wrapped around behind him.

“There’s something about this spot. I can’t ever keep my hands off when he’s here either,” she smirked, tossing her head in Jack’s direction.

“You see that, William,” Jack bragged. “That’s why its good to be the king, eh?” But then he realized the irony of the joke, given the present company, and turned back to Suzanna, “Or perhaps even better not to be in this case.”

It was a breathtakingly beautiful day, though to be honest, one could say that about most days here, but this one seemed to be a particular jewel. They were coming up just now on one of the many spits of land one could call an island—palm trees, white sand, blue sky, blue sea. “You know, I’m having an idea. What say you to a picnic and a swim, eh?”

The idea met with great enthusiasm, and Will offered the helm back to Jack to bring the ship into the small cove. “Go on, William, I’ve taught you better than that. If you want something, take it. Do you want this or not?” Jack challenged.

He did. With a few orders issued and some careful steering, he brought the Pearl into the cove as smooth as silk. Jack’s smile was one of unmistakable pride but with a definite hint of wistfulness. “Taught the boy everything he knows, eh Elizabeth?” He winked at her. Will’s face was glowing, and Elizabeth and Suzanna couldn’t help but feel bathed in the pure unadulterated joy radiating from Will. Although it might have been otherwise, what Jack said next only bolstered it. “Now, William, you really look just like your father.”

Anna Maria took that moment to come by and offer Will a small but eloquent nod that distinctly said “not bad.” Will raised both eyebrows in a distinctly cocky manner that distinctly challenged, “is that all you have to say?” Annamaria sniffed and turned around, and acting purely on impulse, Will decided to pay her back for this morning. He snuck up behind her, smacked her across the ass, stuck his tongue out at her, then flew over the side of the boat into the water, leaving all of them quite stunned at the utterly uncharacteristic behavior.

“What’s gotten into him?” Elizabeth gasped, incredulous.

“Quite a bit of piss and vinegar, it seems,” answered Jack, “and more than a little pirate. Actually, he and I should maybe talk a bit. I’ll see you on the beach,” and with that, Jack was over the side too, and both Suzanna and Lizzy caught their breath at how beautiful he looked doing it.

“Don’t worry about us,” yelled Suzanna. “We’ll just arrange all the food and do all the work and row out there.”

“You’ll be brilliant,” Jack shouted back, as he backstroked effortlessly like some very exotic sea creature.

“It’s a good thing you’re both gorgeous,” Elizabeth screamed. The two women looked at each other and burst into laughter.

“All right,” offered Suzanna, “let’s go put this picnic together. I have it on very reliable authority that there are some very delicious things to be had in the kitchen right now.”

********************

Will was a bit surprised to see Jack had followed him, and stood wringing himself out a bit. “This is a lot more pleasant,” he told Will, “when the ship isn’t leaving without you.”

“She’s going to kill me, isn’t she?” Will grinned.

“It’s a distinct possibility, and if it were me, I’d be sleeping with one eye open for the next few days or so. What possessed you other than the obvious that you were so damn impressed with your own sweet self after pulling that off?”

Will told Jack about their exchange earlier that morning. “Did she now? Well for all my teasing boy, you know how to get into their hearts if not their knickers, eh? She’s taking quite a liking to you if she’s willing to play like that.” There was a pause. “It’s good. She’ll most likely not kill you then.”

Will felt too good to worry about anything anyway.

“You brought up my father, Jack. You don’t do that very often. Well actually, you never bring him up, and you always seem not to want to answer any questions.”

“Aye. Well the truth is, it’s difficult. But I’ve been doing a lot of thinking—it’s been a very strange few days—and I think you deserve some answers. He was my best mate on the Pearl, your dad. He tried to warn me about Barbossa, but I was so bloody cocky, I wouldn’t listen to ‘im. And the fact is, he’s dead because of it.”

“Why? Why would you say that?”

“If I had listened, Barbossa wouldn’t have managed what he did. Your dad wouldn’t have sent you that medallion, and they’d not have killed him because of it. If I could change anything, Will, I’d change that.”

Will had been down that road in his mind a thousand times, but there was nothing there to give him comfort. “What was he like, Jack? Why were you friends?”

“He was absolutely the funniest man I’ve ever met, for one thing. Sang songs that could make a one-eyed Tortuga whore blush—he said your mother loved those. He was absolutely mad for your mum.”

“Why did he leave then?”

“When he met your mum when he went back to England, he wrote that he’d found heaven on earth. I feel like I met her, he told me so much about her. But she had family then, sisters and her mother living near by, and she wouldn’t leave.

“He was still a pirate, and that’s how he paid for what you had, and so he came back here, but he wasn’t the same after that. It tore him up leaving you and your mum. Like his heart was always in two places. He loved the sea, but he loved the two of you as well. He thought he was doing the right thing taking care of you, but it was really never right after that.”

Now Will thought he understood why Jack was suddenly telling him all this, and honestly, it didn’t have a whole lot to do with him.

They’d both been laying on their backs not looking at each other throughout this conversation, but now Will turned to look at his friend.

“What are you going to do?” Will asked.

“Create an opportune moment, and hope I get the right answer.”

********************

The rest of the afternoon passed pleasantly enough. The water was wonderful, the sand warm, the food delicious. Jack was more than amused at the food she’d packed, and the two of them could often be heard chuckling for no apparent reason. A nap on the beach after lunch was heavenly, and Suzanna looked decidedly sunkissed by the time it was over. Much to everyone’s surprise except Jack’s, Murphy decided to have a cookout on the beach. The crew all rowed to shore laden with supplies.

“Gonna be a bit of blow, Captain,” said Gibbs, “as I’m sure you’ve noticed. She’s fine where she is, and we thought the men might benefit from a change of scenery. “

“A fine idea,” answered Jack, as if it were news to him. He went looking for Will. “I’m taking Suzanna back to the Pearl,” he explained. “I’d appreciate if you’d keep a weather eye that we don’t get company.”

********************

With the chop that the wind was kicking up now, it was not an easy trip back to the Pearl. Suzanna couldn’t help but be confused and wonder what Jack was up to, but there was something about him tonight that stilled her from asking a lot of questions.

When they got back on board, he stopped first at the cabin, and grabbed some pillows and blankets.

“Follow me.”

When Suzanna saw that Jack was headed toward the crow’s nest, she was truly puzzled, but the intensity of his expression postponed any questions again. When they arrived at the top, after what was for Suzanna a rather terrifying climb, Jack tossed the pillows on the floor and pulled her into his arms.

“I’ve been thinking about his ever since the first time I brought you up here, when we were looking for the ship and you smelled like jasmine and the wind. I’m wondering since there seems to be enough room in me to love both of you, if she couldn’t love the two of us together.”

He didn’t kiss her yet, but turned her to face the sea. For a moment Suzanna felt herself as the bowsprit, the first thing that the ocean touched as the Pearl rose and fell and made her way through the sea. The feeling deepened as Jack undid the laces on her shoulders, and her breasts fell free. She could feel the current moving over her body as his hands caressed her, and she slid into deeper water as he lifted her skirts and pulled her down on top of him.

They sat in the storm in an echo of how they had been together that morning in the sun, but Jack was deep within her now, and motion flowed from bow to stern as hips rocked starboard to port. Fingers teased the white tips of waves to climb higher while lips sought the taste of the surf and tongues lapped at the brine.

Pressing down on her hips for a moment, he did his best to still their movement and the pounding of his heart. What he had to say now was even harder than telling her that he loved her, and it took all of him to do it.

“Stay.”

The word was both promise and question, and she answered him with every bit of strength and passion she had, asking him to drink from her mouth, from her breasts, from her sex all the ecstasy and joy she’d known with him. She could be only here.

All moved at once in a perfect dance of stars and sea and moon and blood and tide. Neither could have said how long they stayed there with the ship rocking them together until the blissful collapse of the crash and the foam and the blessings of salt and water.

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Chapter Thirteen