She was beautiful. There in the moonlight caught just a bit off guard, her voice dripping his name in a way he wanted her to. Say it again. And he almost told her all of that. But luckily his head took over and he smiled instead. No sense ruining everything too quickly.

What was he talking about? In a first few second he was sure he would spout out something ridiculous like he just wanted to her to stand below his riggins. He wanted to see her in the moonlight on deck. He wanted her to hold his line, or his boots, or his shirt, just anything that connected her to him. How silly. How childlike. How easy he could just say something that would mess up everything. When had Jax ever pursued a woman so? He must be cast in some sea witch spell. He should break all ties. He should learn from her guarded stand that he needed to find the same. But all he did was grin.

Finally he shook all those thoughts from his head and took a slow breath. Very quietly he leaned toward her and explained “At the helm, the Captain and I were reminiscing about the times on the rigs. Childhood memories. He,” Jax crunched his eyes thinking of the right description, “seemed to need a fun distraction. And of course I am the simpleton that craves those as well.” He looked up to the beautiful Nicki and smiled. “So I made the challenge to climb in a contest. Tonight. Soon.” He glanced to the few crew behind him noticing they pretended still not to see either of them.

“Word flew about and I was told I should have a second, someone below to hold the line taut. Or hold my boots.” He glanced down to the things in his arms. “Of course I thought of you. Poetry on the ropes, balls to make the climb, bottles to celebrate, moonlight to remember.” He paused not so sure what any of that really meant but meaning it all the same. “Besides”, he glanced back up to see her eyes or what he could in the dim light, “Other’s worry about being sided against the Captain and cannot judge his true sense of fair play. We have already played at the Captain’s table.”

Jax lost his smiling face and looked to Nicki, “Do I ask too much?” He felt the weight of the question and knew he did. He wanted more than she could give, he was sure. And maybe that was why he wanted it. If he could never obtain it then it was safer to seek. Like treasures on the bottom of a sea. It was the sailing, the tracking, the fighting that drew him more than the coins. It always had been. Yet as he stood before her wondering what she made of all of this, of him, he questioned if perhaps this was the time the real treasure was worth more than the effort.