She snorted.

"Who taught you the use of a pistol?" he queried as he warmed the liquor over a candle.

"The foreman on my father's plantation."

When he turned to face her, he found his gun resting on the desk and Olivia staring pensively out the window. "Your father approved?"

"My father doesn't know. I wanted to learn. There was no cause to distress him."

Withholding a smile, Sebastian moved toward her, admiring her elegant profile, with its pert nose and obstinate chin. Her bottom lip was caught between her teeth, and the thought of claiming that lush mouth with various parts of his body nearly made him hard. He set her brandy atop his nautical charts and propped his hip against the desk.

"What are you thinking, love?" he prodded gently.

She reached for the snifter without looking, and he pushed it into her hand. "That you should put on a shirt."

"I'm quite comfortable, but I'm touched by your wifely concern."

In the midst of a large swallow, Olivia choked. He thumped her back until she waved him off. "I'm fine!" she gasped. Wiping the tears from her lashes, she glared at him. "What are your intentions, Phoenix?"

Sebastian reached over slowly, giving her time to draw away. She didn't. The pulse at the base of her throat fluttered wildly as he rubbed the cuff of his shirt, brushing the edge of his finger deliberately along her bared wrist. He felt her shiver and hid his satisfaction. The attraction, it appeared, was mutual.

"The men have begun the necessary repairs to your ship. It should be seaworthy again within a sennight, at which time we'll head to the nearest port. I will leave my ship and travel with you to England. We shall arrive on British soil, seek out our parents, and unravel this debacle. Then we can obtain an annulment and part ways."

"Oh… I see." Olivia looked out the window again.

Sebastian sat tensely at her silence.

"What if I don't wish to have the marriage annulled?" she queried finally.