Co-Authored by Chimera46 and Etaski
Lady Tessa Du'Witt lifted the dark shred of mourner's veil which was to pass for clothing. She compared it with the matching small pants which would bunch up in the valley of her backside. A shiver touched her, though she held her voice steady and brave.
"And this shall somehow entice him beyond laying my body bare in his cabin?"
"Yes, Mistress, should it come to that." said her docile and doting servant, Lottie.
"It must come to that," Tessa insisted. "All manner of eligible ladies will be put before Lord Beauregard once he returns to claim his fortune. We were lucky to discover him first. This voyage is my family's last chance to make a proper union and save us from that matter so insidiously socially unbecoming as utter insolvency. I made a terrible mistake once, thinking I could marry for love. I shall not make it again."
Lottie kept her hands folded before her, maintaining an encouraging smile throughout. Clearly though, she was nervous on the young noble's behalf. "Indeed, indeed. Though do cover up in your aunt's old robe before going out on deck, my little duck. I shudder to imagine you accosted by any of the crew on your way to woo your unwitting groom. It would be a pity to have come all this way just to have your virtue diminished by some uncouth deckhand."
Tessa took a moment to reflect on the two swarthy, unshirted sailors who had earlier man-handled her baggage with the swift poise of well-practiced exertion. The thrill of fear pierced her heart, and her face flushed as she imagined herself tossed between them in like manner. Regaining her composure, Tessa reminded herself that she could ill-afford another base dalliance, let alone a full-on spit-roast.
"But, of course, Lottie. Fetch that robe for me as I put this on."
Outside, the sky above the sea was clear, the stars like glittering diamonds cast out by a strong arm. Tessa's soft slippers made no noise but for the creak of the shipboards as she crept through the passenger's deck with a feline grace. She could hear the off-duty deckhands below, their gruff, guttural tones giving way to the sounds of drunken singing and gambling. Her cheeks reddened as she imagined presenting herself to one such as them, for she planned to do just that.
Lord Beauregard had sailed for years under an assumed name as a Midshipman, rejecting his father's stifling regime in favour of a life at sea. Happy enough far from the trials and tribulations of lording over the most prosperous estate in the Midlands, it was only now that he stood to inherit it all that the couriers had gone out, urging him to return. And so, he was. He was aboard this very ship, on his way back home and recognised for who he was at last. This scion of the finest of the Midlands' aristocracy, no longer reduced to mopping decks and trimming sails, living and working with the lowest of the lowborn.
Abroad for so long and to pass as a crude labourer of ships, Tessa surmised that he must by now resemble a miserable lump of humanity. What crass habits had he perfected in his years at sea? How far had sailor's swill and drink added to his gut? How deeply had long days on deck dug sun-baked creases into his face? How boorish were his manners, spending time on ship with ill-bred jackanapes, and time on leave chasing bow-legged slatterns in every port?
It matters not,
Tessa thought.
All the better if he is worn, ugly and uncouth, for he may be grateful for the adoration of a graceful young beauty like me.
She deserved the match. Her house needed the coin such a union would bring, no less than she needed a suitor with a reputation as sullied as her own. Lady Tessa Du'Witt, spoiled for purity by a powerful hunger which had taken her. That hunger had claimed her fully beneath the rhythmic exertions of her first love... as well as her first love's best friend... and also several other stable hands who happened to be around at the time. In truth she couldn't recall all their names, but she had loved them all with the same fiery passion. Such words she had screamed into the night! She was ashamed to recall them.
Afterward however, the scoundrel that was her first love had the gall to court another within a fortnight of ruining her! He admonished her for all the members she had milked that evening, even though Tessa couldn't recall him complaining when his manhood was the udder. Besides, her heart was too big to share with just one, such that her unmitigated love would have smothered him. Could he not see that?
This time, I shall claim what I seek. If I cannot find comfort in true love, I shall at least find solace in material security. So long as his wealth endures, so to can my monogamous affectations.
After what seemed like an eternity, Tessa found the door to Lord Beauregard's cabin and wasted no time in setting her ear to it to listen. Despite choosing to live and work among the ruffians, he still had the good sense to acquire a modicum of privacy for his voyage home. An encouraging development, Tessa thought, as it meant she could deploy her feminine charms without an audience.
Over the creaking of wood and the dull roar of the sea, Tessa strained to make sense of the faint sounds coming through the wooden door.
Shuffling. A soft moan.
Was he sleeping? Having a nightmare? If so, he'd left his lantern on, for a bit of candlelight seeped through the crack in the door. Tessa tested the handle and found it unlocked, then thought out her next moves.
Wake him. Keep the light on. Remove the robe. And, for the love of Lyanna, don't give him a chance to think before his manhood is firmly clasped within your privy-counsel.
Her hand and lower lip quivering, she took a deep breath and pushed, letting herself into Lord Beauregard's cabin. He looked up, saw her. Her body went stiff; she backed a step and fell back against the door, closing it. Her hand hovered above her opened mouth, shaking.
