A Trashy Pirate Romance: Book Two: A Trashy Pirate Romance

By Sinnamon Carnelian

Sober eyes see through the lies that drunk ears hear.

 

After her fateful fall from Gideon's ship following the Seafarer Bombings, Charlie slowly sobers up and works through her time on Finn's ship and her past. No longer able to drown her sorrows with booze and fill the hole in her chest with the love of random men from the bar, she must face the pain head on. All the while the gentleman pirate, Gideon, shows her what true love and care is as he tries to open her heart to the true colors of the man she was forced to marry.

Just when the truth begins to shine through and she starts to mourn the person she thought she loved, the bombers of Seafarer Night return. Charlie is forced to strike a deal with Gideon and give him what he wants to save her best friend, Cherry. Clear headed and determined, Charlie walks into the clutches of her pursuers, trusting Gideon to find her again while she fights tooth and nail side-by-side Cherry to escape.

 

Aunt Kathy will have to wait as the adventure continues, with Charlie and Cherry fighting alongside a new companion and friend to rid themselves of their hunters.

 

Can Charlie come to terms with the treachery all around her?

 

Are Charlie and Cherry strong enough to face those lying in wait for them?

 

Find out in book two of the Trashy Pirate Romance series.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Sinnamon Carnelian
• Release date: Mar 24, 2023
• ISBN: 9798215679524

Sinnamon Carnelian

Author of sometimes cutesy, sometimes trashy, science fiction, fantasy romance novels & novellas. Who doesn't want to read a trashy romance every now and then? This pen name began as a joke along with my first book, A Trashy Pirate Romance: Book One. It slowly gained traction and an odd following, so I've decided to keep going with it. It's more fun than it should be using this name as a shield. More trashy romance books are on the way. Thank you for reading!

Book preview

Chapter 1: Sobering Up

I spent weeks face down on that mattress in Gideon's cabin, with him tending to the stitches and bruises, along with the broken toes on both feet and probably a few cracked ribs. What an idiot I was. He immediately dove in after me like I should have guessed he would, hauling me back up to stitch me up. He should have left me down there.

Each bandage change or cool medicine doused cloth against my skin caused me to whimper and cry. It was always followed by what was supposed to be comforting shushing from him as he spoke softly, telling me everything was all right.

How could everything be all right?

In a fit of heartache and fear, I threw myself to my potential demise. That venom that coursed through my veins from the needle stick amplified the darker emotions in me. My plan was screwed up. I needed Finn and his parents with their proof of their arrangement with my aunt to take to the king. I needed Tom to help me bypass his asinine admiral father. I didn't even know if they were looking for me, let alone alive. For all I knew, they could have thought I was dead.

It was possible to still go before the king and plead my case, but he'd just send me back to my aunt, where we would play this stupid game again. I doubted Gideon would take me to Oplela if I asked, even if I asked nicely. In a way, I knew he cared about me. His touch was always gentle while he did everything he could to care for me and make me comfortable.

Lunch time, Princess. He walked through the door, waking me from a light nap. Sleep helped keep the pain at bay, brought on by the pain medication that I had refused at first.

Stop calling me that, I mumbled, grimacing as I rolled my head and pushed my face into the sheets to ignore him, as always. It's demeaning.

How's being called 'Princess' demeaning? He scoffed, turning on the lights before walking around the bed.

I don't know, it just is.

Now you're just trying to pick a fight. As always, he sat on the floor on a pillow on my side of the bed with a bowl of whatever he thought would strike my fancy. Are you really going to fight me on eating every meal?

I'm not hungry. Honestly, it wasn't a lie. The pain medication made me nauseous, and the thought of food only made it worse.

You have to eat, Charlie. I could hear him stirring the contents of the bowl around. You won't heal up if you don't.

I don't care.

Well, I do—

Bullshit. You're just out to piss off Finn and get revenge for whatever past grievance you have with him.

Doesn't mean I can't be a caring person.

Once again, bullshit. You're a pirate.

Finn's a pirate too. So, by your logic, Finn doesn't care about you.

Go to hell already. That ice pick of logic stabbed me right in my already broken heart. I wanted to cry when I hurt, but I hurt all over when I cried. Although, that nagging, biting feeling in the back of my mind about being a paycheck never fully ceased with Finn. Every time I brought it up, we fought or rolled in bed. Most of the time it was both, with nothing ever getting fixed. It was the same thing about going back to Oplela.

I'm sorry, Princess. He set the bowl on the bedside table moving to his knees, laying his head on the pillow next to mine, carefully touching my hair. The back of my head was bruised from the fall as well. That was cruel. I don't want to be cruel to you.

Th-Then you shouldn't have taken me away from him! His parents had the proof I needed, and I was married to Finn. I was supposed to be with him, wasn't I? Every time I thought of where I was supposed to be, all I saw was that look in his eye, that stern, dark look that worried me. It was possessive and not the Finn I thought I knew. It was as if for a moment his mask slipped with Gideon nearby that night.

Clearing his throat, he kissed the side of my head before standing up. I don't know if those words hurt or if I just made him mad. Gideon walked to the door, opened it, and turned off the light. His pale green eyes were always soft, never changing when they looked at me. Never filled with lust or greed like Finn's eyes were sometimes. Maybe they were one and the same.

And he shouldn't have taken Amber. But that's the life of a pirate.

I was told you went after her.

Did Drake tell you that? If you ever see Cherry again, you should ask her about her first husband. Because Drake sure as hell isn't, and if he's not careful, he won't be her last either, he said. I don't want to be cruel to you, but I'm not going to lie. It wasn't love for Finn, Princess. Not when he ran off with Amber or with you.

Like you do, I mumbled, listening to him shut the door shortly after.

AT LEAST THE BED WAS soft and didn't smell terrible as I spent my time dozing off and on. Every now and then, one of the women of the ship would come in to check on me; I had nothing against them and saw no point in being rude or hateful to them. One even slipped me slivers of chocolate here and there; no complaints about that. His crew seemed a lot more amicable than Captain Marshall's crew.

Close to dinnertime, I woke to the sounds of shouting above my head. Shouting that wasn't coming from the ship I was on. Shouting that was too familiar.

This is a respectable cargo ship, not in your jurisdiction. You have no right to perform a search. I could hear Gideon shouting. Respectable was a bit of a stretch, but I had heard that line used by Captain Marshall against random military ships. Actually, you're far from your jurisdiction. We're nowhere near Oplela.

Oh hell!

You will submit or be sunk, Admiral Randy retorted. That voice still made me feel icky all over. He must have gone looking for his son and wife, but that would mean Tom never made it home. If Tom didn't make it home, Captain Marshall couldn't give him a ride to a port, not run by pirates. Stay where you are. Don't want you hiding anything.

As you wish, Gideon hissed, trying to sound as professional as any pirate could.

I would have to eventually go head-to-head with Admiral Randy, but not battered, bruised, stitched, and broken. Plus, him bringing me home to Oplela would make him some bloody hero, and being on Gideon's ship was the slightly better option than adding an extra chip to his shoulder pads.

Gritting my teeth, I pushed myself up and over to the edge of the bed. The feeling of the stitches pulling nearly made me vomit as I tried to carefully lower myself onto the cold floor that felt somewhat nice. Heavy boots stomped above my head, making their way closer to the stairs that led to the hall lined with cabins. I pulled the blankets over, hoping the bed looked made before painfully dragging myself under it.

Doors in the hall swung open, boots paraded through them, then slammed the door shut behind them. They were slowly moving closer to the cabin I was in. I gritted my teeth harder, clenching my jaw, doing everything to not cry out after bumping my still healing toes against the bedframe. My hands clasped my mouth shut while laying as still as I could when I heard the door open. Polished black boots stormed in. They looked behind the couch, in the closet, then stopped behind the door. Eventually, they stopped at the side of the bed I had come from.

It's cold. That soldier stuck his finger in a random bowl of food on a random ship and tasted it! These were the young men who were supposed to be protecting Oplela! How can you do that with food poisoning?!

Filthy pigs. The soldier with him grumbled, walking for the door.

Filthy pigs?! They're not the ones tasting random bowls hoping it's food!

Worried they would do a similar search on their way back, maybe for more tastes, I stayed under the bed. It also hurt far too much to crawl back out. The floor was cold and a little soothing.

Their boots went up and down, side to side, through the entire ship. They were looking for Tom and his mother, probably me as well, but came up empty-handed. All but that one soldier. What a nasty thing he was. I faded in and out listening to the shouting, searching and all around annoyance that was Admiral Randy.

See? Nothing, Gideon commented, walking down the hall outside the door with Admiral Randy.

A cargo ship you are. I hated how he spoke and wanted to drown him in a gravy boat each time I heard him speak. We are also looking for three missing individuals who've been taken by pirates.

Oh? Gideon attempted to sound interested in conversing with him.

My wife Patricia was taken; my son Tom went looking for her like the good boy he is.

He went in search of dick, Randy. Sorry to break it to you. He was looking for it far more than anything else after being out of your shadow.

Who's that? Gideon asked.

He has pictures!

He has my picture!

I became worried Gideon would rat me out. I probably made him mad with my petty little insults and lines. He could also rat out Tom, and Tom didn't deserve it. He had spent his whole life hiding who he was and was finally himself out here on the ocean and in the pirate ports.

Hopefully, Tom's fiancée when we get her back, Randy answered. Don't lie, Admiral Randy, the word you were looking for was piggy bank. But you can't touch my money. Charlie Frye. She's been missing for nine months. Stolen from her bed by a band of pirates, no less. They left her poor aunt behind to worry. The slavers wouldn't want the prune, even if it