JAMES #2
I knock a man out and quickly glance back again.
Caspian’s chest is heaving but his eyes have cleared and he comes back to reality just in time to roll to the side to avoid a sword to the ribs.
We end up back to back; the fight takes us onto the hard compact sand where the water rushes up, tugging at my legs.
I lunge and slide my blade through a man’s ribs, yanking the steel out before grabbing the next by the neck.
With a vicious twist, he drops. It’s over as quickly as it started and the remaining men flee up the shore.
“Come on.”
I grab Caspian’s arm and drag him towards the shallows. The row boat has made it to the Tempest but we’ll have to swim for it. Caspian dives into the breakers next to me and we cut through the water.
I haul myself onto the deck. “Get us underway!” I bark.
Caspian climbs over the rail seconds later. “Flynt, sweep the ship—I want to make sure none of those rats came aboard.”
I turn to Caspian. “Malik couldn’t have spread this rumor. How the hell does everyone know about the treasure?”
“Well, I may have told my original crew about it,” Caspian says.
“Fuck, the entire Adrasea will know about it now!” I stalk off towards my cabin. “I can’t believe you were so careless with this.”
“You were the one who marooned my crew on Verdun,” he says, following me.
“You’re blaming me for this?” I slam the door shut and round on him. “I didn’t know you knew anything about a treasure then!”
I drag off my soaking wet captain’s coat and hang it over a chair.
“Maybe you shouldn’t go around kidnapping people!” Caspian exclaims. He runs a hand through his dripping hair sending water droplets everywhere—including a few that slide down his neck. My attention snags on them.
“It’s not like I make it a habit,” I scoff.
“No, you just kill first—ask questions later.” He looks me up and down slowly. Despite his words, there isn’t anger in them. Caspian meets my gaze with a sly glimmer. “If you don’t normally kidnap people,” he says slowly. “That means I was special from the beginning.”
Caspian steps towards me.
“Don’t change the subject,” I growl.
My words only make the gleam in his blazing blue eyes deepen but before he can answer, the door creaks open and I see Harrison’s head pop into view. Caspian halts his advances, but doesn’t take his eyes off me.
“What?” I snap.
“It’s Lan,” Harrison says, his eyes bouncing between us. “He says he needs to talk to you.”
I give Caspian one final glare before following after Harrison. Lan looks beat to shit and I wish I could kill those men all over again. I crouch down next to his hammock. He sees me and tries to give me a smile but it’s strained.
“Captain, I heard them say they’re working with Anders,” he says immediately.
“Anders?” Van asks.
“The same one we had the pleasure of meeting earlier?” Caspian asks.
“Anders is here?” Harrison barks.
“Who is Anders?” Van asks again.
“He’s trouble is what he is,” Harrison says.
“I feel like I’m missing something,” Caspian looks back and forth between us.
Harrison ignores him and gives me a pointed look like it’s my problem.
“Drop all sail—I want this ship flying,” I order with a scowl. “And find out if I’m going to have to worry about a mutiny,” I snap over my shoulder. “Did you finish the resupply?”
I wait to see Harrison nod. Thank God for that.
I head back towards my cabin. I can feel Caspian on my heels. He waits until the door closes before he speaks.
“Okay, I thought you said Anders wasn’t going to be a problem.” He shakes his head. “And a mutiny?”
I pour some rum into a glass, throw it back and immediately pour another.
“Anders has a fleet. If he decides to wait for us outside of the Stormwrack, we could have issues,” I grimace as the rum burns going down.
“A fleet,” Caspian states.
“Aye—the coalition may not have a crown we sail under, but we certainly have politics,” I grumble. “Anders rose quickly and spent most of his time gaining control over as many ships as he could.”
Caspian sighs and pushes an empty glass towards me. “Pour me some of that.” Once he has a glass in hand, he perches on the edge of the table. “How come you don’t have a fleet?”
I scoff. “I don’t need all that drama. It’s stressful enough keeping all these fuckers happy.”
“Speaking of—why do you think there might be a mutiny?”
“There are a few men here who have sailed with Anders before,” I toss back another rum. “No telling what they’ll do once we have the gold in hand.”
Caspian rubs a hand over his face at the implication and throws back his own rum.
“Well, this should be interesting. Do you have a plan?”
I shake my head, frowning down at the drink in my hand. Caspian takes the glass from me and puts it on the table.
“In that case, I believe we were interrupted,” he says.
“We should come up with a plan.”
Caspian yanks the bottom of my damp shirt out of my pants. “I have a plan.” When I raise my eyebrows in question he smirks at me, unbuttoning the first few buttons of my shirt. “It involves you naked though.”
“What about Anders?”
He makes a face. “I’d really prefer not to see him naked.”
Caspian yanks the shirt off me, tossing the wet article carelessly across the room. He runs his hands over my chest, his eyes—filled with raw need—trace their path across my skin. My mind blanks at the feel of his touch skimming down my abs.
“You know what I mean,” I grumble.
Caspian leans in, purposefully dragging his lips along my jaw while his hands tug at my belt.
“Unless you’re giving me an order, Captain, I suggest you stop talking.”
He plants a kiss under my ear and his tongue follows, trailing along my neck. He finishes untying my pants and shoves his hand down to palm my cock. My inhale is choppy—and when he discovers how I’m already half hard, he chuckles breathlessly against my collarbone.
“Did our argument turn you on, James?” I can hear the smile in his words. “Or are you always this ready for me?”
My hand whips up and curls around his neck, shoving him just far enough away for me to meet his eyes.
“Get on the fucking bed,” I say roughly.
“Aye, aye, Captain,” he whispers, those dimples teasing me as his smirk threatens to expand into a full blown smile.
I let him step backwards out of my grasp.
His fingers deftly work the buttons of his own shirt, shrugging it off it lands with a wet plop on the floor.
Without breaking eye contact, he works the laces of his pants next, shoving them down in the same motion he kicks off his boots.
Despite his teasing words towards me, his own cock is already hard and he gives himself a rough, deliberate stroke. I sit down in a chair and undo the laces of my boots.
“Sit back and play with yourself,” I order.
Caspian’s lip curls into a wicked smirk.
He lounges back against the pillows, one knee pulled up as he runs his hand up and down his cock.
I yank off a boot and move to the laces of the second without tearing my attention away from Caspian.
He catches his lip between his teeth and his hand slides down to cup his balls.
The lantern light flickers across the hard planes of his body, outlining every muscle and raised scar.
He’s a masterpiece—sculpted to perfection, or at least in my eyes he is.
Caspian spreads his legs wider, giving me a view of what’s mine and I tear off the rest of my clothes with a growl of need. Stalking over, I crawl up the bed and kneel between his legs.
“Get that pussy nice and wet for me.”
Caspian sticks two of his fingers into his mouth and slowly pushes them inside his ass.
His hole grips his fingers tightly—anticipation rushes through me at how he’ll feel wrapped around my cock like that.
He moves them in and out and I look up at his face, seeing the pleasure bleed into his eyes, heavy lidded and black as he watches me.
His other hand moves towards his dick, thick and leaking on his stomach, but I grab his wrist to stop him.
“I’ll tell you when you can touch what’s mine,” I growl.
I direct his hand to my cock and he wraps his hand tightly around my shaft.
He strokes me in time with his fingers as he fucks himself until his chest rises and falls roughly.
I can see the frustration lining his face at his fingers inability to touch exactly where he wants.
I like watching him on the edge, knowing I’m going to be the one to push him over.
“Fuck,” he rasps. “James—”
I lean down and swirl my tongue over his head. He tastes like salt and my undoing. I suck on him, just enough to add to the already teasing edge he’s walking. He groans and his hips jerk upwards, seeking more. I grow ever harder in his hand, spurred forward by his increasingly desperate moans.
When I can’t take it any longer, I let his dick fall from my mouth and grab his wrist to stop his fingers in his ass.
“Lube—” My voice is barely more than a breath.
Caspian reaches over and grabs the bottle. He pours a generous amount over my cock, his breathless pants of anticipation brushing my face as I lean into him.
“Tell me how much you want this,” I growl.
“I want you—I want to feel you inside me,” he pleads in a whisper.
I press my dick against his ass, my jaw tightening as I work my way past the resistance. I grab his jaw, breathing in his words and gasps while he works to adjust to me.
“So fucking tight—” I murmur against his lips.
I slide in deeper, shoving my hips forward ruthlessly another few inches because I can’t fucking help myself.
He moans, his eyes flutter as he moves under me, pulling me closer.
I push into him in one final thrust—we’re chest to chest, breathing in each other’s ragged breaths.
The intensity of our connection is searing as we stare at each other.
We both move at the same time—our lips meet with a fervor as I pull out and slam back in.