Chapter 10

Dawn shattered the darkness all too soon for my liking. My aching muscles protested loudly as I forced my body out of the makeshift hammock I had slept in the last few nights. I would be glad when that siren was out of my hair and I got my bed back. The crew slowly emerged from their barracks below like zombies out of a tomb.

"Look alive, bilge rats! Prepare the dinghies to go ashore." They quickly perked up at my announcement and rushed around, eager for the pleasures of land.

Cael walked up beside me and looked out toward the port. "What are you going to do with the siren?"

"She'll have to go with us." I huffed.

Turronto Port was not the most reputable port around. It was ripping at the seams with cutthroats, bandits, and prostitutes, but I had little choice in the matter. I was not willing to leave her on my ship. There was no telling what kind of havoc she would cause to my ship without me onboard to keep her in check.

"Good luck with that." Cael's laughter rumbled in his chest as he left my side and helped the men ready the boats.

I shook my head and started toward my cabin to collect the little headache. I opened the door slowly without knocking, half expecting her to still be curled up in my bed. Instead, she was pacing back and forth in the room. She was dressed, her face clean, and her long red hair was tied in a braid, swaying back and forth as she paced.

"About time," she sassed and threw her hands on her hips.

"You need to take the excitement down a couple of notches," I warned as I walked up to her. As usual, she held her ground and stared up at me. "The people at this port will skin you alive if they find out you are a siren. You have to blend in."

Rhea pressed her lips into a thin line, and I knew she was holding back a rebuttal, but she just nodded her head in understanding. With her newfound submission, I motioned for her to precede me. We stopped at the edge of the railing, and I watched her as she glanced down.

She hesitated, her gaze lingering on the boats below.

"Don't just stand there." I motioned toward the rope ladder that swayed on the side of the ship.

A sheen overtook her eyes, and I was sure she was thinking about her near-death tumble from the mast. Rhea looked at me, and I simply raised a questioning eyebrow at her. With a huff, she eased her body over the ledge and slowly descended the ladder. She wobbled as her feet hit the boat that bucked in the rough waves.

"Sit here, se?orita," Rat practically singsonged as he made room on the bench for her.

She glanced back at me, rewarding me with a smile that was just as deadly as it was sweet, and then she sat beside him. Rat smiled at her, raking his gaze admiringly over her face like a lovesick puppy. The sudden urge to pick Rat up by the nape of his neck and toss him overboard overtook me, but I ignored the feeling.

"Row," I thundered, and the oars slipped into the water, setting the small boats into motion.

I was at the back of the boat with a good vantage point to observe the looming beach, but my eyes kept returning to the siren. She submerged her fingers in the water. The sheer pleasure that overtook her features when her hand dipped below the surface had me momentarily captivated. There was a rosiness to her cheeks that I had not noticed before and a twinkle in her honey-swirled eyes that was bewitching. Bloody sirens and their hypnosis. I shook my head and focused back on the beach.

Rhea sat up straighter and pulled her hand from the ocean when we were only a few feet from the beach. The boat scraped against the sandy shore, and the men piled out. Rhea stood up, wobbled, and nearly fell over the edge of the boat. Without thinking, I scooped her up in my arms, walked across the swaying boat, and placed her feet on the sand. With her body pressed so close to mine, her scent assaulted my senses, and I couldn't help but inhale the fragrance of the salty sea mixed with a touch of exotic citrus.

Shock overtook her features as she looked up at me, confusion scrunching her brow.

"You were taking too long." I provided an excuse and brushed past her without another word.

"Head to the merchant and get the supplies we need to mend the boat," I boomed as I trudged through the sand.

The crew immediately grumbled their complaints.

"You heard the captain." Cael sneered.

"You'll have plenty of time to hit the taverns, but you will get my supplies before you drink yourselves into a stupor."

Without any further protests, the men trekked off in the direction of the town. I started after them, only to be stopped by Cael's voice. "Are you forgetting something…?"

I glanced back around and noticed that the siren had not moved from her spot on the beach. She was staring down at her bare feet, sloshing them in the damp sand. I withheld a curse that threatened to leak from my lips as I stomped back down the beach toward her. I opened my mouth with the intention of yelling at her.

"It's so soft and warm," she blurted, kicking my brain off track.

Delight shone on her facial features, making her brighter than the still-rising sun.

"You've never touched sand before?" I came up alongside her, entirely forfeiting the idea of scolding her for delaying me.

"Just what is on the ocean floor. This is different somehow. We're not allowed anywhere near land. After my sister's dea—" Her eyes rounded, and she quickly stepped out of the little sand hole she had dug with her bare feet.

She stood stark straight by my side as if waiting for me to move. It didn't matter to me what she was trying to hide, but I'd be lying if I said my curiosity wasn't piqued. I stomped back through the sand with her close on my heels as I followed my crew.

I gripped her upper arm and pulled her closer to my side when we ventured into the market area of the port. When I glanced in her direction, she took in the sights of the market through rounded, awe-filled eyes. It was a small market stationed on a single road with vendors on each side, nothing spectacular or even worth my time, but by the look on her face, it was the grandest bazaar ever seen.

"Fresh fish!" a grungy-looking man with holes in his shirt announced and threw the fish in front of Rhea's face.

She instantly stopped, and her little nose twitched as she inhaled the fish. Without warning, she grabbed the fish from the merchant's hands and ripped into its flesh with her teeth.

"What the…" The man with the salt and pepper hair sputtered as he reached for Rhea.

I casually stepped in front of her, blocked the man, and tossed him a small silver coin. He fumbled to catch it and then looked at me in awe at the amount I had given him. The harshness of my gaze dared him to press the matter further.

He walked away from us without another word. "Fresh fish! Get your fresh fish!"

I turned, and Rhea's eyes beheld mine, but I couldn't blame her, really. The man had shoved it in her face. I gripped her wrist and continued pulling her along beside me as I tried to ignore her inhaling the raw fish fillet. Once she finished her breakfast, I pulled out a bandanna from my pocket and handed it to her.

"You have fish on your cheek," I said when she looked at the rag like she didn't know what I wanted her to do with it.

She took it from me and wiped her face, but the fish particles still remained on her skin. I took the bandanna from her hand and stepped toward her, wiping the fish from her face. She blinked up at me a few times. I realized how close I was to her, but for some reason, I could not make my feet move to put distance between us.

"Cap, we have a problem with the supplies!" Cael yelled from up the road, snapping me from the trance.

I continued up the path with the siren close in tow and did not miss the looks of unadulterated lust that the men were throwing her way as we ventured up the narrowing street. I had hoped the baggy men's clothing she wore would downplay her sensual, lithe body, but obviously, I was wrong. The desire to slit every man"s throat that looked at her threatened to overtake me, but that was stupid. Why would I care if they ogled the sea demon? I squared my shoulders and picked up my pace, trying to put distance between me and my murderous thoughts. I stopped only when I reached the building with a broken sign that read Turronto's Tavern.

"The owner of the lumber shack is inside," Cael confirmed, clearly aggravated with the man. "He said he was going to charge us double for the supplies we needed. Something about payment due from the last time…"

"That filthy bilge rat," I cursed under my breath. "He lost those supplies fair and square last time in a card game." I booted the door open, and it crashed against the wall, causing all attention to turn to me as I entered.

The people inside parted as I made a beeline for the rear of the tavern where that leech liked to hide in the shadows.

"Captain Kai, it is a pleasure." Dante's words dripped with sarcasm as I stopped in front of the table where he was sitting.

"You seem to be causing my men some hardship. The fact that they have not run you through yet really astounds me," I answered and sat down in the chair next to him.

My crew would not dare lay a finger on him in reality. Dante ran this hovel of a port, and anyone who raised a hand to him would not likely make it back to their ship in one piece before his men fed on them like a school of barracuda.

I felt Rhea's presence behind me, and when Dante's eyes lifted from mine and took on a sheen of desire, it was confirmation that she was at my back.

"What is this nonsense about charging us double? You know bloody well you lost that game of cards for the last supplies we purchased." The anger I forced behind my words drew Dante's attention away from Rhea and back toward me.

"It wasn't a fair game," Dante whined, banging his tankard of beer against the table. I watched in mock fascination as the contents spilled over the lip of the cup and splattered onto the table.

"You do realize you were playing with a pirate. Fair isn't exactly in my vocabulary." I scoffed. "Besides, I didn't make the bet, and I didn't make you drink. It was your own fault that you were so drunk that you couldn't even read the symbols on the cards." A wicked, cocky grin graced my lips, and Dante's face reddened with anger.

He opened his mouth to speak, closed it, and stood up. I instinctively placed my hand on the hilt of my sword as he walked beside me, but I was not his target.

"I'll let bygones be bygones if you allow me a romp with your redheaded lass here." His voice dripped with libido as he gripped Rhea by the wrist and wrenched her toward him.

Rhea's body collided with his, and the contact sent a bolt of angry electricity up my spine. Rhea hissed and raised her hand to strike him, but before she could retaliate, I latched onto his wrist and squeezed.

One of his bones snapped under the pressure, but the sound could not be heard over his high-pitched screaming. Before I could think better of my actions, I slammed his palm against the table, pulled out my dagger, and stabbed it through the back of his hand, anchoring him to the table.

He continued to wail, and my men drew their swords as his goons stood and attempted to save their worthless leader.

"Look what you did to my hand!" Dante sputtered the words as he desperately tried to suck in air in between his bouts of panic. Satisfaction oozed through my being as the table became stained with the miscreant's blood.

I leaned toward him and growled in his ear. "Touch her again, and you won't have to worry about your hand because I will cleave you to the brisket, savvy?"

My gaze traveled to Rhea, who stood at the ready. If she was shaken at all from the encounter with Dante or the gory display, I couldn't tell from her demeanor.

With my hand still on the hilt of my knife, I sat back down in the chair. "Tell your men to stand down," I threatened, slightly shifting the blade.

Dante screamed so loud I thought it would shatter the glass in the room.

"Now," I threatened, giving the dagger another little jerk.

"Take your seats!" Dante whimpered through his pain, and his men immediately sat down.

"My men are going to load the supplies we need into our boats…at cost," I added for good measure, "and then we are going to pretend like this little unfortunate incident never happened." I smiled at the tears that ran down Dante's wrinkled, worn face.

"Whatever you say," Dante gritted out between clenched teeth.

I slowly stood, snatching the knife from his hand as I rose from the seat. Dante yelled and clutched his maimed hand to his chest. With a quick swipe of my eyes, I motioned for my men to move out. They began to slowly back their way out of the tavern. I placed my hand on the small of Rhea's back and ushered her toward the door, knowing that any second now, this whole thing had the potential of turning into a bloodbath.

"Nice doing business with you." I mockingly saluted Dante, putting the final nail in the coffin as I pushed Rhea out the door.