Bound by Decency Read online

  “Wh-what are you doing?” India squeaked through her constricting throat.

  He halted mid-stride, his expression as puzzled as if she’d asked how many fingers a man possessed. His gaze canvassed her in one slow intense sweep. One corner of his mouth curved. “You are in my bed. Lest you intend to leave it, I intend to join you.”

  Before she could fully comprehend his meaning, he dropped his trousers. A squeak tumbled off her lips, and she clamped her eyelids shut.

  The mattress gave with his weight. Cool air touched her backside as he lifted the covers and slid beneath. He tucked a heavy arm around her waist, and the comforting scent of sage wafted to her nose.

  In that instant, India knew they’d slept this way before. Beyond the obvious closeness they shared physically, not once in all her imaginings of Teddy had her mind conjured sage. For the scent to be familiar, let alone comfortable, she hadn’t been in this bed alone, and the pleasure she recalled as Teddy’s could have only come from Cain.

  God in heaven, what had she allowed to happen?

  The unmistakable press of Cain’s arousal against her bottom hinted at truths she didn’t want to acknowledge. Embarrassment heated her cheeks.

  “Have we…” She paused at the waiver in her voice. Summoning her courage, she pulled in a deep breath to try again. This was no time to hide behind the rules of propriety. “Have we been intimate?”

  RAVES FOR BOUND BY DECENCY

  2nd Place Historical Romance

  2010 Dixie Kane Memorial Contest

  "Claire Ashgrove writes history breathlessly. Swashbuckling adventure and epic romance? Yes, please!" ~ National Bestselling Author, Kate Noble

  "Sweeping, gritty, lush and sexy as hell, BOUND BY DECENCY will not only sweep you off your feet but make you wish it was real. Absolutely fantastic!" ~ Award Winning Author, Delilah Marvelle

  "Pirate fans shouldn't miss this fine pirate romance—a fast-paced adventure coupled with steamy romance, mystery, betrayal, revenge, ship-to-ship battles, and best of all, pirates! Well-researched, with a meaty plot and plenty of action and romance, the first book in this series promises fine things to come." ~ New York Times Bestselling Author, Jennifer Ashley

  DON’T MISS THESE BOOKS BY

  CLAIRE ASHGROVE

  IMMORTAL HOPE

  2012 Readers’ Crown Award

  Best Paranormal Romance

  “4 Stars! You’ll be sucked into the novel within the first chapter.” ~ RT Book Reviews

  4 ½ Stars! TOP PICK ~ Night Owl Romance Reviews

  A BROKEN CHRISTMAS

  2012 Golden Quill Finalist, Best Short Contemporary

  2012 Readers’ Crown Nominee

  Best Contemporary Romance

  4 ½ Stars! TOP PICK ~ Night Owl Romance Reviews

  MISUNDERSTANDING MASON

  Long And Short Reviews, Best Book of 2011, Nominee

  The Romance Reviews, Best Book of 2011, Nominee

  2012 Readers’ Crown Nominee

  Best Contemporary Romance

  WAITING FOR YES

  “4 ½ Stars! Claire Ashgrove writes with passion and excellence.” ~ Siren Reviews

  SEDUCTION’S STAKES

  Long and Short Reviews, Best Book of 2009, Nominee

  STRIPPED

  (Writing as National Bestselling Author, Tori St. Claire)

  “4¾ Stars! There is an immediate feeling of "better than your everyday romance”…you know St Claire is articulate, creative, and seemingly accomplished far beyond her experience.”

  -Seductive Musings

  “4 ½ Stars! Highly addictive, Stripped is hands-down a must read for romantic suspense and erotic romance fans this year!”

  -Reading Between the Wines

  “For fans of romantic suspense, this is a must read.”

  -Happily Ever After Reviews

  “I am so happy to say that it was one of those books I just couldn't put down.”

  -Bitten by Paranormal Romance

  Bound

  By Decency

  The Flying Gang Legacy

  Book I

  Claire

  Ashgrove

  AWARD WINNING AUTHOR

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales, is entirely coincidental.

  Bound By Decency: The Flying Gang Legacy

  COPYRIGHT  2012 by Valerie M. Hatfield

  All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form whatsoever.

  Contact Information: [email protected]

  First paperback edition, August 2012

  Cover Art by Patricia Schmitt (Pickyme)

  Award Winning Author, Claire Ashgrove

  National Bestselling Author, Tori St. Claire

  www.claireashgrove.com

  www.toristclaire.com

  Publishing History

  First Edition, 2012

  Print ISBN 978-1477535820

  Published in the United States of America

  For Mary

  Thank you for always believing in me.

  Acknowledgements

  Dennis and Dyann Love Barr, you are so much more than friends, you are another family. Thank you for everything you’ve done. Without you, there would not be a Bound by Decency, or a Flying Gang Legacy.

  To my loyal readers who are embarking on this new journey with me. Your encouragement and support inspires me. Thank you.

  As always, thanks to the people who’ve stood by my side from the beginning: my family, my critique partners, my beta readers who are quick to catch my nonsense, and my RWA chaptermates in Midwest Romance Writers, Heartland Romance Authors, North Texas Romance Writers, Celtic Hearts, and Mid-America Romance Authors.

  I owe a great deal of this novel’s existence to one of my oldest friends, David Paul, who spent a summer exploring this era with me and unveiling points of history that were obscured. Thank you, so very much for putting up with me during my obsessive phase!

  And no endeavor of mine would be complete without tipping my hat to my fabulous agent, Jewelann Cone, who has never shied away from a project of mine, no matter how Aquarian it might be. Thank you for your patience and your guiding hand.

  Last but in no way least, Denise Grover Swank, thank you so much for helping me through unchartered territory. Your wisdom is invaluable, and I’m proud to know such a truly talented woman.

  Bound

  By Decency

  The Flying Gang Legacy

  With Europe in chaos over who would claim the Spanish throne, the Atlantic waters bred a most despicable lot. Privateers who pillaged and claimed, loyal to no country, more thief than noble mercenary. One man would claim Spain’s inheritance. He would pass it on. To a band of cutthroats more terrifying and deadly than the nightmares of the deep.

  As the nations settle into peace, The Flying Gang knows no boundaries. No sea is safe. No shore unchartered. Chilling Rogers raised to the sky, they reign with fear, bound only to the wind, the brotherhood, and the ships they love. One tiny jeweled box strikes a gleam in their eyes. A golden trinket four rogue Captains risk danger, capture, and even friendship to possess.

  Until love interferes with their rapscallion hearts…

  351

  Bound By Decency

  Prologue

  Charles Towne, South Carolina,

  February, 1717

  “Your pardon has been denied.”

  A stack of parchment thumped against the roughhewn tabletop. Dust wafted up to blend with the overwhelming scent of urine and mildew that coated The Battery’s stone walls. It tickled The
odore Cathain’s nose, daring him to sneeze. But sneezing would mean inhaling even more of the fetid stench that reminded him of the gutters along the streets of London. In particular, the wharfs. In another time, another place, he would have welcomed the odor.

  Today, it only served to remind him of the present hell his life had become.

  Careful to lift the chains so the heavy iron cuffs wouldn’t cut into his wrists, Teddy picked up the topmost sheet. Denied? Impossible. Two years ago, Richard had vowed if ghosts from their shared past rose to haunt them, his family would arrange a Royal Pardon. They held the connections. Knew the right families. Possessed the power that came with centuries of royal blood. What in Christ’s name had happened?

  Teddy’s eyes narrowed as he found the traitorous words confirming Lieutenant Jacobs’ claim. Fury surged through him. If ever he had wanted to slowly choke the life out of a man, the day had come. Damn Richard. Why?

  He took a deep breath, searched for control over his tongue. Choosing his words carefully, he lifted his gaze to the Lieutenant’s. “This is preposterous! The charges alone are not but a work of splendid fiction. For God’s sake, Jacobs, you’ve known me two full years.”

  Jacobs set manicured hands on the table, braced his weight, and leaned in close enough that Teddy caught a whiff of the fine powder used to whiten his wig. Dark eyes glinted with hard light. “And for two years, each time you drop anchor in this port, another vessel arrives on your wake missing well over half its cargo.”

  “Don’t be ludicrous. The entire coast swells with pirates!” Teddy checked his temper, trained his tongue once more. To slip into the habits of a lifetime on the sea would only condemn him further. “Look out your window. Rovers line the streets. Whores bare their breasts and spread their knees for them from open doorways. Your citizens rush to see the wares the rovers bring. And you accuse me, a man who has done nothing but bring you exceptional goods from around the coasts, of laying siege to another merchant ship?”

  One corner of Jacobs’ mouth twisted into a smirk. “It is an odd coincidence, don’t you think, that what lay in your hold was a perfect match to the Virginia Maiden’s stolen cargo?”

  Teddy sank his head into his hands and gritted his teeth against a groan. He curled his fingers into his scalp, massaged his temples with the base of his palms. With the patience he would give a petulant child, he answered, “The Virginia Maiden is owned by William Prescott. It’s well known he sails the same route. It’s no small stretch to assume her cargo would match mine.”

  “Your flag was seen. Ironic isn’t it how two years have passed since it last appeared on the sea. Two skulls facing one another upon a field of black—does it ring a bell, Cain?”

  With one heavy beat, Teddy’s heart stopped. Where fury had turned his blood hot, his veins ran with ice. Three days ago, his arrest had been little more than speculation. The charges of piracy a stretch of infinite proportions. But when Jacobs’ slapped the iron cuffs on Teddy’s wrists, he had still addressed him by his given name. Not the name Teddy had assumed the day he took to sea under Henry Jennings.

  Someone had told Jacobs. Teddy didn’t have to guess who. Only one man would have dared. One man who had stood at his side and reveled in the riches they acquired. Richard Grey. His former First Mate. His best friend. His business partner.

  The why hit Teddy like lightning. Richard had done all he could to convince Teddy they should take on slaving routes. He’d even gone so far as to commandeer Prescott’s minor fleet, North Atlantic Freight, run a slaving route, and use the profits as persuasion. While their earnings would have tripled, Teddy couldn’t stomach the thought. He’d had the displeasure of sailing aboard a slaver’s ship and wouldn’t subject the Grey and Cathain fleet to such disgrace. Moreover, Richard’s recent engagement to Prescott’s daughter would expedite the proposed merger of two influential shipping companies in Britain. Combine the two, remove Teddy, and Richard Grey would become sole heir to a company of equal influence as the East India.

  Another surge of anger threatened to send Teddy bounding to his feet. He pulled in a deep breath. Held it. Dragged his hands down his face. Slowly, he raised his head. “I daresay, I didn’t hear you correctly.”

  “I believe you did.” Satisfaction radiated behind Jacobs’ dark eyes. “Cain, the scourge of the sea, brought to his knees at last.” He gestured at the stack of parchment. “Within, I believe you’ll find several charges of murder, along with all the usual things—fraud, treason, evading the Royal Navy. Of course, it contains the general charge of piracy which covers all the rest.”

  Jacobs moved around the table with the measured gait of one who had laid a careful trap and intended to snap the snares. He bent near Teddy’s ear. “Tell me, how does it feel to have your life removed so fast? Does it come with the same glory of running a woman through?”

  Beneath the taunt, Teddy’s anger ignited. He shot to his feet, rattling the chains that bound his wrists to his ankles. All pretense of composure that he’d so carefully constructed to obscure his baseborn birth shattered as he loosed his tongue. “Bloody hell, you are an accursed prick! I never killed a single woman!”

  A short bark of laughter rang through the enclosed chamber. Jacobs turned his back on Teddy and moved to the thick wooden door. “You have nine days to beg forgiveness for your soul.” His thin mouth curled into a sneer. “On the morning of the tenth, you will hang.”

  351

  Bound By Decency

  1

  Off The Coast of Brighthelmstone, Britain

  May, 1717

  The dinghy approached, a dark shroud against an even darker sky. Shadowy oars broke through the surface in unison, then dipped beneath to propel precious cargo forward. Over the hushed lap of high tide against The Kraken’s bow, a coarse masculine, “’Eeave!” marked time with the steady rise and fall.

  One bare foot propped on a wooden crate, Cain squinted over the rail. His gaze fastened on the figure huddled in the dinghy’s rear. In the mark of ten more strong pulls, she would stand before him, and the blanket that cloaked her head from the light pelt of rain would fall away. All the beauty in the world couldn’t stop the roil of his stomach or the bile that rose in his throat. Princess or hag, she meant one thing and one thing alone. Retribution.

  “The men, they’d trade their casks for a taste of that fair piece, Cain, be she fair or not.”

  Cain slid his scowl to his quartermaster. “There’ll be none of that.” If there was, it would be his for the taking. She was, after all, his prize. Still, though he intended to ruin her, he did not mean in the physical sense. Nor would he subject a lady, no matter who she allied herself with, to the sexual appetites of a hold’s worth of men.

  Humor danced in Drake’s dark eyes and lifted one corner of his mouth. He quickly covered his smirk with the back of his hand and looked to the approaching boat. His mouth twitched yet again as he gave Cain a sideways glance. “You bear the stain of decency. Gone soft, I say. As do your shabby mates. What with bringin’ a woman aboard, an’ the like. She should be enjoyed as she was designed to be.”

  “Clamp your tongue behind your teeth, Drake, else I’ll fill your backside with lead.”

  Cain groaned inwardly. Of all the fates—why must Drake be the one to have discovered his confinement in The Battery? Idiocy had persuaded him to accept Drake as quartermaster. That was all it could be. Surely, sheer desperation couldn’t have driven him to such. He couldn’t have been so grateful that he’d asked this scoundrel to sign aboard The Kraken.

  Nine days he’d spent in The Battery. He had accepted death. Come to terms with his maker. If it hadn’t been for Drake’s orchestrated escape, nor his skill with word and sword that freed The Kraken, Cain wouldn’t have to put up with the rogue’s infernal presence. Yet Drake had, and though he had always stirred Cain’s ire, Drake was one of few seamen who would accept a woman on board. He, and the majority of men he had just insulted—a wily crew, more loyal to Drake than any group of mates
Cain had sailed with in sixteen years at sea. It was only through allegiance to the intolerable rascal that they agreed to sail under Cain.

  Drake’s low laughter rumbled beside Cain. “I should like to see you try. You best keep the woman close, lest she knows how to swing a sword.”

  Cain dug his hands into the rail. While Drake’s commandeered crew had more than passing experience with a woman on the decks, the woman’s safety was a very real concern. He wouldn’t abide by bodily abuse. He gave Drake a hard look. “I might have led a decent life these last two years, but I haven’t forgotten the ways of the fellowship. Tell your crew they will have their riches. Remind them they sail for Cain.”

  He looked back to the dinghy, counting the strokes that would bring her to the ladder on the larboard side. Not so very long ago, his name would have struck fear in the hearts of the strongest men. With the exception of Drake, and a few others Cain loosely considered friends, no one had been safe from his guns or exempt from his will. He wore so much blood on his hands he couldn’t begin to wash the stain away. Oh, how he’d loved the freedom of the sea.

  Yet he had surrendered the rum, the gold, the women, and the thrill of running from the Royal Navy for a chance at legitimate wealth and decency. For a while, he found it as Teddy. No more sleeping with a pistol, no more wondering whether morning would be his last. But all that changed with Richard’s betrayal. He was Cain once more. Bound to the sea. Forever chained to her whimsical will. And while he knew he would die in her watery arms, he wouldn’t run from what he was—a ruthless man who took what he wanted and spared no innocent foolish enough to cross his path.