This story contains a fair amount of smut, so if that's not what you're looking for, please don't read! Thanks to my beta Michelle (Princess of the Pearl) and my husband Anthony for reading it over and always supporting me. :)

Disclaimer: All things Pirates of the Caribbean belong to Disney...I own nothing.

A/N: The first few chapters are very short, but they do get longer as the story progresses. I needed to break it up in certain spots so that each section would make sense.

Elizabeth Swann wrapped her arms around her knees, a tiny smile on her face as she beheld the illustrious Captain Jack Sparrow at the helm, a portrait of a majestic storybook hero framed against a panorama of blue sky. She tugged the brim of her hat down to shield her eyes from the worst of the sun's glare, thoroughly entranced. She enjoyed observing Jack when he was completely unaware of her scrutiny, loved the way his dark brows drew together as he consulted his compass, the manner in which his long fingers curled possessively around the spokes of the Pearl's wheel. The same strong, brown fingers that had become a permanent source of distraction for her for the past week and a half.

More and more, Elizabeth found herself envisioning what those hands could do to bring her pleasure, what they might feel like on her body in the dark confines of his cabin.

Quite simply, Elizabeth wanted Jack.

She wasn't entirely sure when the attraction she'd reluctantly acknowledged but hidden away had transformed into unequivocal infatuation, couldn't comprehend how she'd allowed her feelings to reach this infuriating peak. The moments when her desire threatened to overwhelm her, curiously enough, were moments such as this, when she could sit in some quiet corner, unnoticed, and watch Jack execute the most mundane tasks. Somehow, though, that seemed perfectly logical. It wasn't just Captain Sparrow she loved, the swaggering, overconfident pirate she'd fantasized about as a girl; it was Jack himself, the man behind all the self-assured cockiness and bravado.

Elizabeth had spurned his advances in the past, and Jack's overabundance of both male pride and ego had clearly conspired to protect him against further humiliation. Indeed, over the past few months, he seemed to have grown accustomed to the idea that they could be allies, cohorts, shipmates, but never lovers. The attraction remained, however; she could feel it in the sidelong glances he gave her, his gaze lingering a little longer than necessary. All it would take was a gentle nudge, a snippet of encouragement on her part...

But Elizabeth had learned a thing or two from Jack, lessons in pirating, as it were. Trusting him with her life was one thing, but trusting Jack and his bottomless bag of tricks with anything else was an entirely different matter. And though he'd risked his neck for her on more than one occasion, she'd also been the unwitting victim of Jack's own special brand of fourberie more times than she cared to count.

No, Elizabeth was determined to have a bit of fun with this one. It wasn't often that she had the opportunity to match wits with Jack, and this would most likely prove to be the ultimate showdown.