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Because Juliette isn’t mine. She never was, and she never can be. “You know what will happen if he sends the royal navy after us.”
“He’s tried it before.”
“It was different before. He wants me dead, but he knows he has time since we don’t raid villages on the coastline like some of the others. If he finds out we took his only daughter, he’ll rally the entirety of his force against us.”
Cai shrugs. “So maybe he doesn’t find out.”
I give zir a sharp look. “People talk, and Juliette doesn’t exactly blend in. First port we make, whispers will start, and it will only be a matter of time before they get back to her father.”
“So you did think about it.” Ze gives me a triumphant grin. “I knew it.”
I open my mouth, pause, and glare. “I have a responsibility to the crew. Putting them in danger for my personal desires will get me voted out.”
“You’ve made the crew rich beyond their wildest dreams, and you’ve invested a fortune in The Kelpie to make things downright luxurious. You’d have to start murdering them one by one, and even then it would take some time for the rest to turn on you.”
If the royal navy came after us, being murdered by me would be a mercy. Death by hanging is a bad enough end, but no doubt we wouldn’t get there quickly. The king’s pet executioner has a reputation for torturing his captives for days…sometimes weeks.
I shudder. “No. It’s too risky.”
“To us…or to your heart?”
I’m saved from answering by Juliette walking out onto the deck. I tense as her gaze sweeps over me, but she turns away and walks to the railing. It takes less than thirty seconds for her to start drawing people in. The crew knows better than to get too close, but Daichi gives me a smirk and leans against the railing at Juliette’s side.
He says something to make her laugh, and the sound races across the distance between us to burrow right into my chest. Gods, but she looks even better now that she’s cleaned up than she did straight out of the sea. Her wavy black hair falls to her shoulders in waves I want to dig my hands into. Even stiffened by the salt of the water, her dress is far more luxurious than anything else on this ship. It’s also more risqué than what’s in fashion in court right now, the fabric clinging to her breasts and stomach and hips.
Even as I watch, Daichi leans closer and rakes a charming look over Juliette, earning another laugh. What is he saying?
“Keep grinding your teeth like that, and there won’t be much in the way of teeth left.”
“Shut up,” I mutter without taking my eyes off the pair. It’s only because I’m watching so closely that I see Juliette cast a sly glance in my direction and then place a hand against Daichi’s chest.
I’m moving before I make a conscious decision to, bounding down the stairs and stopping in front of them. “Daichi, you have somewhere to be.”
His grin widens just a bit. If I thought for a second there were harm in him, I’d toss him overboard and…
What am I saying?
Daichi has sailed with me for three years. He’s one of the best navigators I’ve ever worked with. The crew adores him, and his charm and humor—and skill at telling stories—make a world of difference on longer voyages. He’s one of mine, yet I’m standing here, truly considering painting the deck red with his blood. “Go.”
His grin dies at the sharpness in my tone, and he jerks straight. “Yes, Captain.”
Juliette barely waits for him to move away to spin on me. “Are you serious right now?”
“Keep your voice down.” In seven years as a captain, I’ve only lost my reason a handful of times, and only under the most extreme of circumstances. This is not that, no matter what my instincts are telling me. “You will not undermine me in front of my crew.”
She tosses up her hands and makes a sound that’s pure frustration. “For gods’ sake, Maura, what do you want from me? It’s certainly not me, so if you could loop me in, I would— Ack!”
I grab her arm and haul her behind me back to the cabin. Even as I do, some part of my mind demands to know what the fuck I think I’m doing. That voice has kept me alive over the years, but right now it’s drowned out by pure frustration.
I slam the door behind us and whirl around to face her. Now’s the time to say something, to crush the possibility of a future between a fugitive and a princess of the realm once and for all. The words are right there on the tip of my tongue, the precise phrase to shatter us.
