Page 32 of Cursed By a Siren's Kiss

I felt his heat before he even stood within a foot of me, and I pressed my lips together in a tight line. Swallowing, I turned myback to him, refusing to let him see the tantalizing effect he had over me. What the hell was wrong with me?

“We’re in this together after all,” he replied, his voice husky at my back, his breath warm on the nape of my neck.

“Unfortunately.”

I couldn’t let him get under my skin, where I felt the hum of power within my hold. I needed to be vicious to survive, to claim my rightful place on the throne.

I gritted my teeth and turned to him, realizing all too late that he was far closer than I’d thought as my nose came nearly within an inch of his chest. I tilted my chin, annoyed at the difference in height between us as I said, “Is there anything that I can do to help?”

“Stay out of the way,” he replied, a hint of concern flickering in his inky gaze as he tucked my rain splattered hair behind my ear. “This storm is going to be rough, and I don’t need you distracting my crew.”

“Fine,” I huffed, knowing he was right. His crew already distrusted me enough, and they needed to focus if they were going to push through this storm and remain in one piece. As much as I would love for the sea to claim their ship, it would only be my own undoing.

I pushed past Kipp and closed myself into his cabin, leaving him and his men to do what they all did best. They’d sail us through this storm, or we’d all perish in these murky waters. At this point, I wasn’t sure I cared either way.

Hours passed with me in the cabin alone as the storm raged on, and Kipp and his crew worked tirelessly to see us through the worst of it. Now, I lay on the edge of the mattress, my back turned to the door and the blanket draped over me like a second skin. The storm thundered and lightening still lit the cabin as it slashed through the sky, but it no longer rocked the ship with its violent waves, the worst of it behind us… for now.

The door creaked open, and I felt him enter our close quarters, his boots stepping carefully through the room as he plopped himself down into one of the chairs by the desk. I rolled over, watching him lazily as he untied his boots and let them clump to the floor. His movements were slower than usual, and a weariness clung to him from the hours he’d spent seeing us through the worst of these angry seas. He groaned as he leaned back, wincing slightly as he rolled his shoulders, his clothing clinging to him with the dampness of the storm.

“We’ve made it through the worst of it,” he said, a breathy air to his words. “Patton will see us through the night.”

I didn’t say anything. I just shifted back further, giving him room to lie down since he was obviously exhausted. Kipp tugged his dampened shirt over his shoulders, moaning with the effort and heaving with breath as it fell to the floor next to his chair. His fingers tugged at the belt around his waist as he climbed to his feet.

Quickly, I rolled over, facing the wall so that he could change from his wet clothing in what little privacy I could offer trapped as I was in these cramped quarters. He chuckled at my back, but the sound of rustling fabric continued. Moments later, I felt him crawl into the bed next to me.

The storm may have quieted outside these walls, but it raged on within us both as the tension grew. Every muscle in my body strained against a desire I wanted no part of. I gritted my teeth,refusing to let my desire, my lust, to take us both over an edge from which there would be no returning.

“Just stay on your side,” I warned him, my voice low and dangerous. “And I will stay on mine.”

I heard the smirk in his words as he replied, “Wouldn’t dream of crossing that line, princess.”

I felt his warm breath at the nape of my neck, felt his gaze at my shoulders. He breathed heavily, the sound of pain in every breath. I knew I could make him forget it all, I could loosen those bones, those muscles, all with my touch, my body. The power surging within me wanted to give in to it, but I refused to submit.

“Sleep well, Talia,” he whispered, his voice heavy with his own unspoken desires. “For tomorrow, we face our demons together.”

“Goodnight, pirate,” I replied, my heart still pounding in my chest as my eyes drifted closed.

For once, the storm outside seemed insignificant compared to the one brewing within us both.

Chapter 21

The Stupid Ribbon

The Siren

“Secure the main mast! Brace for impact!” Kipp yelled, and the crew scrambled into action.

Rain pelted my face, stinging my skin as I stood at the bow of the ship with a white-knuckled grip on the railing as the bow dipped and lifted with every violent wave that crashed into the hull of the ship. The tumultuous sea churned and roared; the force almost deadly in the deafening howl of the wind. The constant barge of storms threatening this ship worried me more than I’d like to admit. Could Poseidon know about my current predicament? Could he know that if this ship broke on these waves, that my life would be forfeited right along with it?

“Always so dramatic,” I muttered under my breath as I rolled my eyes. Another wave rocked the ship and my bare foot slipped on the wet deck, my knee cracking into the wooden boards with a damp thump that sent shocks of pain up my leg. I gritted my teeth against the agony as I lifted myself back up.

“Need a hand there, Talia?” Kipp asked, handing the helm of the ship over to Patton as he approached me with that smirk of his. He approached with a slight limp in the leg I’d just injured with my fall.

I glared at him, hating the way my heart skipped a beat whenever he said my name. “Stay away from me, pirate,” I snapped, my traitorous mind flashing tantalizing images of myself wrapped around his thick body. The lustful desires clawed at my insides like a constant torment. My newfound powers a double-edged sword—power at the cost of this incessant need. I wish my mother would have been able to warn me of this.

“Fine,” he said, throwing his hand up in surrender. “I was just trying to be helpful.”

“Your kind of help is exactly what I don’t need right now,” I retorted, turning back toward the roiling sea ahead. His footsteps sounded at my back as he left me alone. Already, the throb in my knee had ebbed.

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