Chapter Eight
LOCH
A thrill rolls through me as I haul Keres to my cabin. I don’t know what she’s doing here, but I suspect she stowed away. The ultimate question is why.
I shove her onto my bed and my cock twitches. I expect her to scramble back or cry, maybe cower. Instead, she crosses her ankles and leans on her elbows. A flash of her last night, exactly like this, solidifies in my mind. She didn’t have as many clothes then, though.
“When did you stow away?” I cross my arms over my naked chest. Her gaze dips down and I grit my teeth.
“You should put more men on lookout.”
“How did you stow away?”
She rolls her eyes and pushes upright. “I didn’t stow away. You left the ladder down.”
“Except there were no ships following us.”
She purses her lips. “I don’t think you really want to know. Maybe I did stow away. Not that I knew this was your ship.”
“Is that supposed to make me feel better?”
Part of me wants to forgo all the questions and demand answers from her body instead. I step back, putting a little distance between us. It doesn’t help.
“We all have secrets, Captain. Do you really want to waste time divulging them?” She smirks as if being cute will get her out of this. Still, if I play along, she might let something slip.
I saunter closer and lean down, bracing my hands on either side of her body. “What else did you have in mind?”
She makes a sound in the back of her throat and pushes on my chest. “Not that, asshole. Your crew is planning a mutiny. They’re going to kill you and someone named Smitty. Probably dump your body into the sea and steal your ship. Thought you’d like to know.”
I straighten, all traces of desire vanishing in the wake of her words. “Who?”
She wiggles as she glances at my bed. “This is really comfortable. What’s this stuffed with?”
“Wool. Now, focus. Who’s planning it?”
“Seemed like everyone, but it was the two on the bow. Wool is never this fluffy. Did you kill a cloud and fold it between the sheets? It’s okay, you can tell me. I won’t say anything.” She blinks up at me with her ocean eyes.
I grip the back of my neck and tip my head back. If I don’t look at her, I’ll be able to deal with the potential mutiny. Unless...
“You’re not fucking with me, are you?” I track her closely, searching for the lie.
She raises a single eyebrow. That’s it. That small movement tells me more than she ever could with words.
I could tell her they won’t be able to kill me.
Revealing my curse would only lead to more questions.
She’d want to know why the gods punished me.
I haven’t spoken of it since I was put in charge of the Black Maiden.
I don’t even think I can. Even if I could, I wouldn’t divulge how to break my curse. It’s not her burden to bear.
“Careful, nymph,” I murmur as she pushes to her feet. Despite my bed and desk taking up most of the room, I could put space between us. Instead, I plant my feet and wait.
“I probably should confess I dealt with Nock. He wasn’t an asset to your crew.” For the first time since she ran into me, nervousness flares in her eyes.
“Did you kill him?”
“Yes,” she breathes.
My cock throbs as I capture her mouth with mine.
The rational part of my brain yells at me to stop.
I smother the voice with the pleasure coursing through my body.
It’s like she’s a drug—a thrill I can’t get enough of.
We shouldn’t be doing this again. One night was all this was supposed to be.
The gods did drop her on my ship, though. And I no longer defy them.
I grip the back of her thighs and haul her against me.
Her tongue sweeps along mine and I groan.
When I spin us around and slam her against the door, a fleeting thought of someone catching us flashes through my brain.
It dissolves under the weight of my desire.
She slides down the wood and wiggles back and forth.
I pull away, then smirk when her over-sized pants hit the floor.
I rip her shirt over her head as she attacks my pants.
Her legs wind around my waist when I lift her again as I consume her. She slips her hand between us and her fingers circle my shaft. Tipping my head back, I groan. Her own mingles with mine as she sinks onto my cock. A shudder rolls through me, and I dig my fingers into her hips.
“Move,” she gasps. “Please.”
“Fuck, I love it when you beg.” I grip her tighter and plunge into her hard.
She whimpers with each thrust, her head thumping against the door.
Within a minute, she’s spasming around my shaft.
She slaps her hand over her mouth, muffling the sounds of her climax.
Watching her come around my cock sends me over the edge, and I grit my teeth to keep from alerting the entire ship of my activities.
When her trembling subsides, her gaze finds mine. “So much for one night.”
I brush her hair away from her face. “Stay.”
She bites her lip, then nods. Tension I didn’t know I was holding bleeds away and I gather her in my arms. For the first time in a very long time, I wish this wouldn’t end. I wish I didn’t have to let her go.