Chapter 27
Twenty-Seven
DAMON
With the wind at our backs, we arrived in Tortuga well before the storm.
We weren’t the only ones who sought refuge in the taverns and brothels.
The port was busy, but we luckily found a spot on the docks to tie off for the night.
I still didn’t trust leaving the ship so far from port without more crew to watch over her.
Not after last time. No one would be stupid enough to try and steal her from the docks themselves.
A familiar face greeted me as we stepped off the docks. Lockhart lifted his chin in greeting, falling into step alongside me. His crew may have issues with me, but we’d been crewmates and friends for longer than most of them had been at sea. It was good to see him after nearly a month apart.
“How’s being captain treating you?”
He made an irritated sound, glaring ahead as we made our way to the tavern. The brothel could wait. I wasn’t feeling it at the moment.
“I thought I’d enjoy the power. But it’s more work than I expected.”
“Mm. I warned you.”
He glanced at me, raising an eyebrow. “Thought I did most of the work keeping them in line. I was wrong.”
I snorted, which was as close to a laugh as I’d gotten since everything fell apart. Ale with an old friend would set me straight again.
“By the way. I was waiting for you for a reason. I’ve heard a rumour. Something I think you should know.”
He stopped me with a hand on my elbow, letting the rest of the crew go ahead of us, most heading into the brothel. His expression was serious, and there was a tick in his jaw that said this rumour pissed him off. Which wouldn’t help my mood any.
“What is it?”
“There’s someone out there saying they’re going to steal the Devil’s Revenge.”
Over my cold dead body. A fire lit in my chest, and I felt a growl in my throat. “What do you know?”
“Not much. Young blood, ballsy. They say he outran a fleet of navy ships by taking a merchant vessel through Dead Man’s Pass. He’s gaining a hell of a reputation.”
“Why the hell does he have an eye on my ship?” I snarled. I didn’t know this man, and if they didn’t have the balls to meet me face to face, then they weren’t really a man at all. They were the words of a boy looking for trouble.
“That I don’t know. Just know it’s the Devil’s Revenge. The rumour seems to fluctuate on who he is, but the goal is always the same. Last I heard, he was staying somewhere in Tortuga.”
My hands itched to grab my cutlass. I wanted to skewer the little shit who thought he was man enough to take my ship. No one was taking my girl from me. I’d lost enough already. I’d go down with her before I handed her off.
“Where?”
Lockhart shook his head. “No idea. I’ve only been here a few hours longer than you. I figured you’d head here with the storm coming. Neither of us has enough crew to meet it head on.”
Spinning around, I went for the brothel.
If you wanted to trace a rumour, the whores were the quickest way to do it.
They heard everything in their line of work.
There was one waiting out front, her bosom shoved so far up that it nearly spilled from her dress.
She smiled at my approach, fingers drifting along her cleavage to entice me.
“Looking for company?”
“No. I’m looking for someone specific.”
Her demeanour changed, especially when I dropped a few coins in her open palm.
“Find me the little shit who’s been boasting about stealing my ship.”
It took almost no time for her to get a location on the pissant. She disappeared into the brothel, asked around, and came back with a smug grin.
“He’s at Bronze Lion, down the way. Should be there now. He’s there most nights. Look for the handsome man in all black. He’s got the voice of a siren,” she sighed dreamily. I ignored her, storming down the street.
Lockhart tossed her another coin for her trouble before following after me. There were dozens of taverns in this port. Always crowded, since this was a pirate haven. It was easy to hide in here. Little shit probably thought he’d be able to hide from me. He’d regret ever mentioning my ship.
The tavern she’d mentioned was crowded, loud laughter and merriment making it hard to hear myself think.
The man I was looking for was easy to spot.
He was at a table in the corner, his back to me, a long black coat tailored to his slim frame and a stupidly large hat on his head.
It had a feather in it, for fucks’ sake.
Just who the hell was this man who thought himself brave enough to threaten me.
I made it two paces towards him before he joined those at the table nearest to him in a sea shanty.
A painfully familiar voice lifted, soothing the aches in my chest and making my heart thunder anew for an entirely new reason.
It couldn’t be. He wouldn’t be here of all places. He was back at Port Antonio.
Shoving away the kindling of hope, I ate up the distance between us, grabbed a fistful of the man’s jacket, and spun him around, shoving him up against the wall. A flash of ferocity crossed his face before he looked up in surprise. I froze, my breath stuck in my throat.
Will.
Never in my life had I ever been rendered speechless. But seeing him here, well and whole again, made my mind go blank. The raucousness of the room faded away until it was only the sound of my racing heart in my ears.
Slowly, a grin overtook his face. He had a grip on the wrist that held him against the wall, but he didn’t fight me. Instead, he lifted his chin, smirking at me.
“Hello, Captain.”
“What are you doing here?” I gritted out. I couldn’t wrap my head around it. He said he didn’t want to come back.
He chuckled, waving his free hand carelessly. “Haven’t you heard?”
My mind came back to me in a flash, and I sucked in a sharp breath, glaring at him. “You mean the one where you were threatening to steal my ship?”
He bit his lip, his eyes dancing. Little shit. He’d made that threat before. He never meant it. And from the look on his face, he didn’t mean it now.
“I had to get your attention somehow. I’ve been waiting here for a week now.”
And he knew I’d come to handle it myself if someone was spreading rumours about screwing with my ship.
“You’re a fuckin’ brat.” A smirk pulled at my lips, and I shook my head.
Will barked out a laugh. My gaze dropped to his mouth.
I wanted to taste his laugh. I wanted to taste all of him.
I needed my hands everywhere on him. But not here.
Will was my weakness. Once I started, I wouldn’t be able to stop.
I didn’t need every pirate on the damn port to know how important he was to me.
“You want to steal my ship from me, boy, you better be willing to fight me like a man.”
Will hummed out a low sound that was too damn interested. If he kept going, I’d be dragging him back to the ship with an erection, which wouldn’t help.
“Name a time and place, Captain. I’ll give you the fight of your life.”
Cocky little shit. I liked the look of it on him.
“My ship. Now.”
Grabbing his wrist, I twisted it behind his back, frog marching him out of the tavern without a backward glance.
I didn’t know who was watching, nor did I care.
I wasn’t stopping until I had Will back on my ship and where he belonged.
Naked in my bed. He didn’t fight me on it, a cocky grin on his face the entire damn way.
It heated my blood, and my palm itched to put him in his place.
Darrow was on the docks, watching over the ship. With the way Will was dressed and the dark clouds blocking out any moonlight, he didn’t recognize him. He sat up when I passed, frowning at me. “Captain?”
I ignored him, shoving Will up the gangplank and toward my quarters. When I kicked the door shut behind us, he finally spoke, his voice practically a purr. “Are we having a repeat of the first time, Captain? I can struggle if that’s what you want.”
It appealed to me, but after weeks without him, I wanted more than a quick and dirty fuck.
I released his wrist and grabbed the back of his jacket instead, yanking him back so that he fell against the door.
Knocking that stupid hat off his head, I fisted his hair, pulling hard enough to make his neck arch.
He hissed from the pain, but the smile was unwavering.
At least until I slammed my lips against his.
It took him by surprise, me kissing him.
Hell, it took me by surprise, too. I didn’t do kissing.
I didn’t see the point. If I had someone in my bed, I wanted them naked and my cock inside them.
I wasn’t wasting time with kissing. But Will wasn’t a quick fuck.
He was mine, and I wasn’t denying myself any part of him.
His surprise melted into a groan as our tongues tangled.
It wasn’t something we’d done before. I fucked him plenty during his time on my ship, but I didn’t kiss him.
He was as greedy for it as he was for my cock in his ass whenever I ordered him into my bed.
One hand fisted my tunic, keeping me close.
The other wrapped around my back, his fingers digging in, like he was as reluctant for this to end as I was.
My hands left his hair, hauling him closer to me, until we were pressed together, chest to chest and hip to hip.
His erection was already at full mast, rubbing eagerly against my own.
Little groans were muffled against my mouth, the scrape of stubble, like he didn’t bother with shaving in the week since he’d been here burning against my mouth.
It only made me want more. I wanted damn near everything.
And I wasn’t letting Will out of my bed until I got it.