He grinned, his infuriating smile lines etching themselves into his cheeks. The vibrancy of his maroon gaze seemed to ignite alongside them, sparking with a liveliness I’d only ever caught whenwewere speaking to one another. It was as if every time I fully addressed him, he…enjoyed it?
Oh, for fuck’s sake, Rohen, can you think with your head and not your pussy for five seconds?
“To me?” he growled, stepping through the crowd of men that hadflooded the deck. “It looks as if you’re trying, but pathetically failing, to take your own life.”
And just like that, I was reconsidering my little plunge.
Swallowing the scream of frustration I wished to unleash, I smirked, craning my head to the side. “Aw, does theruthlesscaptain of the esteemed Bloodmarked have a bit of a soft spot? Careful, Vayne, I may actually like how concern smells on you.”
A tick danced over his temple, his jaw feathering in response to my disobedience. His eyes ignited with notable wrath as he angled his chin to the side, shaking his head in disbelief. The two-second smirk that graced his lips was anything but kind and contained something far more complex than a warning.
It was a threat.
Where others had missed the shift, I hadn’t, and I delighted in knowing how easily I could get under his skin with something as simple as challenging his title. The utter power that dripped from him didn’t scare me. If anything, it enticed me, making mewantto see just how much of my bullshit he would take before he cracked.
Ineededhim to crack because I had yet to see his darkness.
His deckhands had wasted no time exploiting my body, their curious hands traversing my flesh with a promise of more. A promise they hadyetto fulfill, and I wasn’t sure why. Buttheircaptain,Caspian fucking Vayne,hadn’t grazed a single finger across my skin or threatened to beat me for anything I’d tossed his way. Sure, his tongue was wicked, and I desired nothing more than to carve it from his mouth, but I had to fucking know why he wasn’t like his crew.
Why isn’t he just as vile as the rest of them?
“Get the fuck off the gunwale.” Caspian’s snarl infiltrated my internalized analysis of all I thought he was, his brows dropping to hood his enchanting stare.
“Or what?” I pressed, getting off on the idea of humiliating him in front of his men.
“That wasn’t a question,little siren;it was a fucking order.”
“And last I checked,” I hummed, curling my fingers around the swaying rope overhead. “I don’t follow your fucking orders.”
Agitation billowed off him in thick plumes, his tongue dancing over his bottom lip as his patience fractured. Balling his fists at his side, his knuckles whitened until the wounds that coated them became a beacon of all he could unleash if he so pleased. The ruby scabs matched his irises, which pulsed with a flash of something intangible and vibrant.
Lust? Anger? Hurt?
Gods, why do I even give a shit?—
Not realizing I’d glanced away, his fingers closed around my wrist, ripping me from where I stood. As my bare feet slid across the soaked wood, its dampness did nothing to help me battle the male I hadn't noticed had moved, the man who now worked to silence me into submission.
Refusing, I fought back, spitting in his face as I attempted to break free from his hold. “Let me go, you incessant asshole!”
His voice dropped to a hushed whisper, words only meant for me slithering between gritted teeth. “If you wish to run your wretched mouth, fine, but you willnotspeak to me as if you own this damn ship in front ofmy men.” Tugging on my arm once more, the gap between us shortened. “I will not repeat myself,Rohen;get your ass off my fucking gunwale.”
Is that the first time he's called me by my first name?
Why the fuck do I care?
WHY THE FUCK DO I CARE?
Matching my heightened internal monologue, the three words tumbled from my lips before I could stop them. “Gods, you’re maddening!”
He merely chuckled, his fingers digging into my skin with enough force to bruise. “I am not here to be pleasant. Now, be the obedient bitch Malrik has molded you into and?—”
The moment my abuser’s name left his mouth, I drove my heels into the wood, pulling back with every ounce of ire his continued insults had ignited within me. Not expecting the determination behind mydrawback, his grip faltered, and my balance wavered alongside the freedom I’d secured. Stumbling, I lifted my chin and cast a sneer in his direction, preparing to hurl a taunt over his inability to secure me.
That was until the gods reacted as if wishing to mock everything I was and all I desired to be.
A wave capable of overturning the ship slammed against the hull, the smug satisfaction on my face paling into a sinking realization. My feet vanished from beneath me, and Caspian’s expression shifted into what one would assume looked like…concern? Before I could analyze the nuances of his turbulent personality, the sky flipped into my line of sight, becoming visual confirmation that I was, in fact, going overboard.
The scream that tore from my throat as gravity took over did little to prepare me for my plunge. My stomach tumbled, nausea overcoming me as I fell victim to the lack of control I truly had. With my nearing collision with the water, I sucked in a mouthful of oxygen, and right before its frigidity greeted me, I heard someone scream.
