Chapter 24

CHAPTER 24

SEPTEMBER 9TH, 1666

R owan spent the morning finalizing supplies for the Siren 's imminent departure. A storm threatened to roll in from the east, sending cooling breezes to sway the island trees. The knee length hem of his black Kefryean skirt fluttered as he made his way back to the house. Gray clouds scuttled through the overcast late afternoon sky. Rowan was looking forward to having dinner with Yves. The other man had been gone from their bed that morning, no doubt still sulking.

The last few days they'd been arguing about Rowan's departure. And now that Rowan was ready to leave, he wanted to cheer Yves up, to give him a little going away present.

There was a spring in his step as he entered the front door of the big house. John was on his way out, looking grim.

"Is everything alright?" Rowan asked.

"Huh? Oh, yes, fine." The first mate looked distracted, barely glancing at Rowan as he passed.

Rowan hurried up the stairs, stopping briefly in the bedroom before continuing on to find Yves. He didn't bother knocking as he entered the office. Yves didn't look up from the papers on his desk, so Rowan paused for a moment to take in the sight of him.

Yves looked dashing as always. Day after day, Rowan was astounded by the other man's beauty. The overcast light slanted through the window to bathe his tan skin in a milky glow. A lock of his raven hair fell across his forehead, and his tongue pushed at the inside of his cheek as he scanned through his ledgers.

"What is it?" Yves's smooth voice brought Rowan out of his reverie.

"Is that any way to speak to your lover?" Rowan answered coyly. They'd never labeled their relationship that way before, and Yves looked up at him, startled. Yves's dark eyes traveled down the length of Rowan's body, catching immediately on Rowan's unusual attire. A small smile tugged at the edge of his lips.

"Have you been wearing that all day?"

Rowan didn't miss the huskiness in the other man's voice. He stepped closer to the desk, letting the skirt sway with his movement.

"Of course. Why? Is there something wrong with it?" he answered in mock concern. He stopped beside the desk, and Yves turned his chair to observe him. Rowan lifted the hem of the skirt slightly, revealing a small sliver of creamy thigh. "It's quite comfortable," he continued. He looked up through his lashes, seeing Yves's gaze sharpen. Rowan held back a smirk. "Don't you think it's pretty?"

"It is," Yves agreed. His tongue ran along the crease of his lips. "Come here."

Rowan took half a step closer, teasing. But it seemed that Yves was in no mood for games. His long, ring-laden fingers hooked into the waist of Rowan's skirt and reeled him in till the shorter man stood between his splayed legs. The hungry look in Yves's eyes had Rowan's cock already twitching. He'd known this outfit would drive the other man crazy, but he hadn't expected such an immediate response. It pleased him.

Rowan held his breath as Yves's hands slipped beneath the skirt, caressing his thighs and traveling up his legs, sending tingles racing over his skin. He saw the moment Yves realized he wasn't wearing anything beneath. His long-lashed eyes widening ever so slightly. It was difficult to surprise the Demon, and Rowan was proud of himself.

He didn't have long to bask in that feeling, however. Yves yanked him forward so that Rowan was straddling his lap.

"What an alluring little thing you are," Yves purred. He cupped Rowan's bare ass in his elegant hands, his rings cold against Rowan's skin.

Rowan braced his hands on Yves's shoulders and leaned down to kiss him, earrings clinking together. Yves's mouth was plush and pliant, his long tongue slipping into Rowan's mouth as soon as their lips connected.

Rowan's cock hardened further as he imagined those lips around it. That deft tongue flicking over the sensitive underside. He could feel the hardening bulge in Yves's pants and rocked forward slightly, creating friction between their bodies.

Yves hummed against his lips. His fingers massaged Rowan's upper thighs. Rowan rocked his hips again.

"So eager," Yves murmured. One of his hands moved to wrap around Rowan's cock, thumbing the precum beading at the tip. A soft moan escaped Rowan's lips. He reached down to undo the fastenings of Yves's pants.

Yves's cock sprung free. Gods, it was huge. Its size somehow always surprised him. The thought of its throbbing length buried deep inside him made his whole body shiver with anticipation. But underneath it all, he knew this would be one of the last times they slept together. He was leaving soon, and they might never see each other again.

Rowan pushed those thoughts away, determined to make the most of the situation and the unbelievably sexy man currently under him.

Yves stroked Rowan's cock slowly, his other hand moving between Rowan's ass cheeks to finger his rim. He found it already wet and primed. A slow grin spread across his face as he dipped his middle finger into Rowan's already loosened hole, one of his rings pressing against the rim.

"This was your plan all along, wasn't it, you devious minx?" Yves cooed. "You couldn't wait to have my cock inside you."

"So then what are you waiting for?"

Yves's fingertips pressed Rowan's prostate, causing his muscles to clench. He swore softly.

Then Yves was lifting Rowan, positioning him over his erection and withdrawing his finger.

He didn't even give Rowan a moment to breathe before he forced Rowan's hips down, burying his massive cock in Rowan's hole up to the base. Rowan cried out in surprise and sudden pleasure. He'd prepped himself in the bedroom beforehand, but his fingers weren't nearly enough to match Yves's length and girth. Yves gave him only a moment to adjust before he was lifting him again, fingers bruising on his hips, and slamming him down. Rowan's back arched, a deep guttural moan escaping. His head tilted back. Yves sucked a mark onto his exposed throat.

"Pretty baby," he moaned, "you wanted this, so move."

Rowan's legs were already shaking from the huge cock buried deep in his ass, but he did as he was told. He began riding Yves's cock, angling so that it would hit his prostate with every thrust. His hands tightened on Yves's shoulders, and Yves groaned.

"Fuck, you're tight." His large hands framed Rowan's tiny waist. His gaze fell to watch Rowan's perky cock bounce beneath the skirt, a small patch of wetness seeping through the fabric. Rowan was losing it. He hadn't expected this to be so hot, impaling himself on Yves's cock again and again, feeling every throb, every ridge of vein. The pleasure was already building uncontrollably in his gut, and the stretch and burn of his dripping hole around Yves's cock was addicting.

"Yves…" His hips stuttered. "Please touch me." He hated how much he craved this. How addicted he was to this man who was once his bitter rival. It was going to be so hard to leave.

Yves smeared precum down over Rowan's weeping cock and began to stroke him in time with Rowan's hips. Taking pleasure from the front and back, Rowan's moans grew louder. He was so close…only a little more and…

"Captain!" John burst into the room. "I followed your orders, but Logan's hurt—" He stopped short at the sight of Rowan in his captain's lap, clearly fucked out. "Shit."

Rowan's mind came crashing back into stunned reality in an instant, the high of his potential orgasm forgotten in the face of John's words.

"Logan's hurt?" Rowan disengaged himself from Yves's lap. A bit of wetness dripped down the inside of his thigh, but he didn't care. "How? Where is he? What happened?" He started forward, but his attention snagged. John's face was smudged with black powder, little scrapes and pin-pricks of blood dotting his cheeks and neck. Then the rest of John's words sank in. "Wait. Following orders? What the fuck is he talking about?" He wheeled on Yves who was refastening his pants over his still hard length .

"What is he talking about?" Rowan asked again, his fists clenched at his sides.

"I can explain…" For the first time since they'd met, the Deep Water Demon looked frightened. He took a tentative step toward Rowan, hand outstretched. "No one was supposed to?—"

"It doesn't matter now," John interrupted. For once he wasn't his usual stoic self. "Logan is in the infirmary. It's bad."

Rowan pushed past John without a word. Yves made to follow, but John stopped him with a firm hand on his arm.

"Leave it."

Yves wrested his arm free from John's strong grip, but John blocked his path again.

"Let me pass."

"No," John said. "We fucked up. Let him be with his friend. He needs to cool down before you try to explain."

"What happened? How did it go wrong?" Yves argued.

"I'm going to tell you something for your own good. You're prideful and selfish. You're ruthless. It's what makes you a great pirate. But it won't serve you well in love. You can try to talk him down from this. But if you love him, you have to accept his decision. No matter what it is."

All the fight went out of Yves's shoulders. That word. Love. He hadn't let himself even think about it in so long. He knew the terms of his life well, the terms of his darkness, and love was not a part of them. An impossibility. What he felt toward Rowan could never be love. Neither was it merely a continuation of the obsession he'd harbored for the Ghost Hawk from the very beginning. It was possession, the feral need to keep Rowan by his side. Yves was on the cusp of losing the one man who could be his equal. And through his own selfishness, he'd managed to push Rowan away even further than he ever would have gone on his own.