He hadn’t felt this way for far too long. Not since...Lucas.
Oh God.
They had been so young then, and so full of hubris, the two of them. But in the defense of his former young self, he had been blinded by his light. Lucas Warrick, his sun and his moon. He'd grown up close enough with the man for them to consider each other neighbors, although Samuel Wilkins had been a farmer's son. Only later had he become a merchant sailor, and Lucas stood to inherit a dukedom.
Everything should have divided them: their stations, their upbringing, their families. And yet, that only seemed to draw Lucas towards Samuel, like a beautiful moth to a wild flame.
In time, it had become obvious that Lucas had wanted more than Samuel’s heart. He'd wanted all of him. His angel, his demon. His salvation and his damnation. And, Lord help him, he'd wanted Lucas back. Craved him like a drowning man craves air. If only Samuel hadn't allowed himself to become so blinded by his golden glow - like everyone around them - perhaps he may have seen that hubris would be the fall of them. Seen that it wasonly a matter of time before someone took slight to the golden Lord.
Even now, he still didn't know who'd been behind it. Who'd decided that they couldn't have a future Duke who had half the men in the county wrapped around his little finger. Had it been a matter of propriety, or jealousy? Lucas' cousin, wanting his title? A jealous would-be lover? A Puritan? It didn't matter. The end result had been the same.
When they'd been finally betrayed, when men came for them, to drag Samuel to the gallows, to drag Lucas off God knows where, Samuel had fought them off like a rabid dog. He'd been ready to die so that Lucas could live. But it had been Lucas they'd wanted, not some farmer's sodomite son.
So, it was Lucas who'd stayed behind to cover his escape. It was Lucas’ blood that paved his way to Portsmouth, and from there to the Caribbean.
Lucas' blood had signed the papers that made him into Samuel Hawk, the ruthless pirate and killer of men..
Was he betraying Lucas' memory with this - whatever it was - with Silver? Logic told him Lucas would never begrudge him this comfort. But logic and the heart rarely spoke the same language.
He could hide his feelings from Elizabeth, of course. His only confidante. No matter the tentative trust they’d formed, surely she, who eschewed love and emotion at every turn, would think him a fool. But she was his partner, and he couldn’t turn his back on that. She knew about his past with Lucas; he would have to tell her about his present with Silver.
Silverfin perched on the windowsill of Hawk's cabin, the storm windows thrown open towards the brightness of the waves and the bustling port of Port Royal beyond. He leaned back against the frame, stretching his poor half-leg out along the wooden sill, his good leg dangling over the edge towards the sea.
Hawk had insisted on going into town again that morning, as much as Silverfin had pouted. But he had, after Silverfin's grumbling about being sticky and sweaty, sent Hank back from town with a large wooden basin and a bucket with some rope. It had been worth the effort of hauling water up from the sea, and though he was under strict instructions not to soak his wounds it had been heavenly to finally wash away the accumulated grime of being human. Splashing around had almost been enough to take his mind off Hawk's absence.
Now, Silverfin toyed with the ends of his still damp hair, which was returning to its strange human curliness as it dried. It had regrown a few inches, he was satisfied to see. How long would it be before it returned to its former glory? A cycle of the moon or two? Maybe even sooner?
"Once it grows back, you will be free to return to the sea, regardless of how things shake out with your pirate."
Mami Wata's words came back to mind, unbidden, but Silverfin pushed them away. Surely, he'd never need to return to the sea. Not now that he had Hawk. Even after they got the gold, Hawk would still want him, wouldn't he? Surely he'd love Silverfin more, then, for being the one to give him such riches?
Still, it was easy to imagine slipping from the windowsill and into the waves that had once been his home, letting the cool water caress his skin and make him whole again.
He was so lost in his thoughts that he must have missed the boat returning to theOrca. He started when the doors to the cabin burst open and Hawk strode in, cheeks burning like he'd been caught doing something he shouldn't have. But Hawk just smiled, crossing the cabin to cup Silverfin's face, stealing a lingering kiss from his mouth. "You have the look of someone who's up to no good."
"Me?" Silverfin looked up at him in astonishment. The captain seemed in a good mood, humming in agreement as he caught hold of Silverfin's hips, pulling him off the windowsill and onto his lap on the bench.
"Yes, you. You know, I'm of half a mind to punish you for what you did the last time you sat on my windowsill."
"What did I do last time I sat on your windowsill?" Silverfin tried to think, genuinely confused. He was more confused when Hawk just chuckled in reply, stroking a hand up the inside of his thigh. He started to mouth warm kisses along Silverfin's jaw; predictably, Silverfin’s cock started to swell.
"I think you know exactly what you did," Hawk murmured, breath hot against Silverfin’s skin. He licked a line up to his earlobe, nibbling at it, before running the backs of his knuckles over the quickly growing bulge in Silverfin's trousers. "And it was very, very naughty of you."
Silverfin bit his lip on a groan, tangling his fingers in Hawk's lovely hair. He tried to squirm closer, hoping for more stimulation than just the tease of Hawk's fingers. "Am I really so terribly naughty, Captain?" He arched his hips forward to press against his lover's, satisfied to feel Hawk's cock similarly swollen and wanting.
Hawk's hands smoothed over his flanks and down to cup his ass, squeezing and encouraging the rocking of his hips. "Terribly naughty and completely incorrigible," he breathed, nipping at Silverfin's bottom lip, before lathing the bite with his tongue. His fingers continued to knead at Silverfin's ass, pleasurably possessive, as his voice lowered. "Take off your trousers."
Silverfin groaned, already pulling at the lacing and shimmying the material down his hips. He had very pleasant memories of the last time he'd been pantless on Hawk's lap, grinding against him with the length of Hawk's cock pressed hard between his ass cheeks. This time, however, Hawk manhandled him down across his lap until he was laid out along the bench, his good leg braced on the floor and his ass in the air. "What — "
"Shh." Hawk's hand stroked over the dip of his back and the cup of Silverfin’s ass, rubbing and squeezing with an appreciative little hum. "You jerked off without me."
"What?"
"In my cabin.Mycabin. Without me," Hawk repeated.
Silverfin squirmed a little, still rather confused. Hawk didn't sound particularly displeased, despite his words. If anything he sounded quite intent, his voice low and throaty in a way that always percolated straight to Silverfin's unruly cock. "I... I'm sorry? It's just, I was so swollen..."
"An apology is a start." Hawk's hand pulled away from his ass, landing with a sharp smack on his flesh.
