“Did you see what they were doing?” he asks.
She shakes her head. “They were just walking.”
There’s no mention of the conversation they were having, and I can’t be the only one that heard it. Is she going to keep that from Weston? Or does it not matter for whatever he has planned?
He nods and places his hands on his hips, the motion drawing attention to the carved out muscles that dip below his belt. This time I’m the one averting my gaze.
“We won’t stop the searches,” he says finally. “But make sure that everyone is aware of what happened and on high alert. Smaller search areas, back well before sunrise. We don’t need any more run-ins.”
“Aye, Cap,” Sig says with a nod.
“Go get some sleep, all of you,” Weston says, dismissing us but not moving a muscle. Sig walks to the mast, shaking Jorn’s foot to wake him before he hops down to the deck. Auralie and Stassia head toward the steps, Stassia stealing one last look at shirtless Weston before raising her eyebrows at me with a smirk. I fight to not roll my eyes before following behind them.
“I’ll stay out of the room so you can get cleaned up,” Weston says just as I am about to walk past.
“I’m more comfortable using the crew’s showers, thank you,” I say, without even a hitch in my step. I won’t take his offer as considerate in any way, not after he manhandled me only moments ago. He didn’t consider how I felt about it then, apology or no apology.
He doesn’t respond and I almost make it to the stairs before I whir back around, facing him. I want to call him out, let him know I know his plan, his motives, even if it tips my hand that I’m still not completely on his side.
“Am I just a bargaining chip to use against Dane? Is that why you were following me around the island?”
Surprise flashes on his face, probably at divulging I know he followed me.
“That’s what you think?” he asks, his face stoic and his voice even once more.
I raise an eyebrow and fold my arms across my chest. “Tell me I’m wrong.”
“No, princess. You aren’t just a bargaining chip.” His throat bobs as he swallows whatever else he was going to say, and silence stretches between us.
“How do I know you’re not lying to me?”
“You don’t,” he says, cocking his head to the side. “You’re just going to have to trust me.”
I huff and turn back around.
Trust goes both ways.
I’ll never be able to trust him, not after everything that has happened, every Voyager he has stolen. But despite my mind screaming that he’s lying to me, manipulating me and trying to keep me unsuspecting, something deep down feels like his words are genuine.
I only make it one step before I hear him speak again behind me.
“Give it back, princess.”
I drop my head back with an aggravated sigh before turning back toward him to find he hasn’t moved. “Give what back?”
He drifts across the deck, stopping a few steps from me.
“Do you think I forgot?” His eyebrows raise in a challenge, and I keep my face trained.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“The dagger,” he says and extends his hand toward me. I glance down at it, the same hand that was tangled in my hair minutes ago, before looking back up at him.
Narrowing my eyes with a scowl, I reach behind me and yank the scabbard out of my waistband, chucking it as hard as I can at his chest before stomping down the stairs.
Tonight may have been valuable for my relationship with the girls, but it definitely wasn’t enough time away from Weston.
So much for trust.
