Scarlet Butterfly Read Free Page A

only called her something reasonable—“not,” he whispered, “the
Scarlet Butterfly
.”
    The
Scarlet Butterfly
. Carolina smiled in her sleep. She was dreaming about the fierce-looking man who’d brought her there and put her to bed. She’dknown even as he growled at her that he was concealing his kindness with his curses.
    Now, without opening her eyes, she knew that he was back. She had to thank him, apologize for fainting in his arms. With great determination she forced open her eyes and smiled.
    “Thank you, Captain. Even if you are a dream, you’re just what I expected you to be.”
    “Well, I didn’t expect you.” Sean’s voice thundered across the small confines of the cabin. “Who are you, and what the hell are you doing here?”
    “I’m Carolina,” she whispered softly, “I was looking for the
Butterfly
, and you brought me here.”
    Her eyelids fluttered closed, and he could tell from the sound of her breathing that she was sleeping again. He’d brought her? The woman was some kind of nut. A regular fruitcake. Then he remembered his brother’s words.
    A woman who claimed that one of her ancestors had disappeared on the
Scarlet Butterfly
.
    Well, he’d just take care of that, and quickly. No woman was going to intrude on his life, not when he already had the courts and the historians to fend off. He’d just take her back to town and—
    How? He’d had to leave his truck a good mile back. He’d have to carry her. To make matters worse, a predicted advancing storm now seemed to manifest its presence with a rumble of thunder in the distance. As if on cue, the wind picked up and the ship began to dip and sway as the air currents announced the impending storm.
    Perspiration began to roll down Sean’s face as the humidity grew more intense. He’d turned the ship’s forecastle into his living quarters, complete with awindow fan that wasn’t operating and would only have circulated hot air if it were on. At least a good rain shower would cool the air. He glanced over at his unwelcome guest again and felt his pulse quicken. The storm might help bring down the temperature, but something about this woman was raising his.
    She wasn’t the kind of statuesque beauty he was normally attracted to. Yet even as he warred with himself over what to do, a flicker of heat blazed to life somewhere above his knees and spread upward, forcing his attention to a part of his body that welcomed the visitor in spite of his strong misgivings.
    Physical manifestations were new to Sean. Always before, when frustrating moods of despair swept over him, he’d wrestle the demons of discord by pacing the deck. He’d think of Beth, his beautiful sister who’d died because he’d been too busy to see what was happening. He’d focused his anger on the family, most directly on his brother Ryan, who’d been closest to Beth and should have known. But those kinds of bad moments had occurred less and less often in the last year.
    Until now.
    The girl in his cabin wasn’t Beth, though she was small like his sister had been. And this night the air smelled of flowers. There was no hint of the tobacco scent that periodically permeated the air around the ship. He’d decided that long ago the
Butterfly
must have carried tobacco in its hull and that its fragrance had permeated the timbers. There was no other logical explanation, except for intruders.
    Sean turned and climbed the companionway steps to the deck, just as the clouds opened and the rainbegan to fall. It was a cooling rain, but a brisk wind slapped the drops against his bare chest like stinging sand. Sean peeled off his trousers and underwear and stood completely nude, his head thrown back, letting the water wash over him until he was calm again.
    All right. So there was a woman in his bed. She wasn’t after him or his body, or she wouldn’t have gone back to sleep. Because she was thin and pale, he wondered if she’d been ill or in prison. Perhaps she was still sick.