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A groan bubbled up as I slammed down the empty bottle. “Boarding school sure didn’t work for you.” I glanced back at her. She sat on the edge of the bed, her arms folded.

“Guess not, since I was barely there for two years.”

I swiveled all the way around. “What are you talking about?”

“You think pirates are cruel? The school was horrendous. They beat me, locked me in the basement, starved me, and encouraged the girls to bully me. I was suspended eight times. I hated it there, and the feeling was mutual with the students, teachers, and headmistress. So I ran away.”

“But your father got letters from you…”

“Yeah, I let him believe I was still there. I knew he’d talk me into going back if he found out.” Her lip lifted. “And I was never going back to that nightmare.”

“Where the hell were you the whole time?”

“Surviving with other kids my age on the street. Getting better at thieving, fighting, at being a pirate, so when I came back, there would be no way you could turn me away again.”

My mouth parted in shock. I believed she had been in school that whole time. Safe. Fed. Warm. I knew life on the streets and how much more she had to fight being a petite, pretty girl.

“I had just received word from Father that he would be coming to visit me. I thought then I could show him how much I had grown, gained control over my shifting. I hoped he would be proud of me.” She stared at the ground, swallowing hard. “He never came.”

Because he died. I wasn’t sure how to respond or what to say now that I knew how she had been living at such a young age.

“Killian found me not too long after.” She wouldn’t look at me. “From there, it was all about becoming the best pirate who ever lived, no matter what I had to do.”

She desperately wanted to avenge her dad. To make me pay for all she lost.

She sniffed, quickly wiping at her eyes. “I’m tired.” She slipped under the covers, her back to me, ending the conversation.

I didn’t know how long I stood staring at her, the weight of guilt and fatigue weakening my legs. With a heavy sigh, I quietly went back to the bed, crawling in next to her. Lying still, I listened to her breathing.

“He was always proud of you,Katze,” I whispered. “Don’t ever question that. You were his entire world. There wasnothinghe wouldn’t do for you.”

She didn’t know how true my statement was.

And I didn’t want her to know.

My lids popped open, an itch at the back of my head dragging me from a deep sleep with alarm. The darkness in the room told me it was still deep in the night.

The consciousness of not being on my ship, alone in my own bed, barreled into me. I was in a cramped room, on a small bed, surrounded by the scents of raw meat and fish. And a warm body pressed into me, a purr coming from the figure engulfed in my arms.

Holy fuck.

My hand was up Kat’s shirt, my palm cupping her bare breast like it was the most natural thing to do. Panic poured into my bloodstream as I realized how calm and content I was snuggled into her, my cock cradled between her ass, happy as shit.

I didn’t cuddle. Ever. Especially with someone I wasn’t supposed to be touching. Not like this. The only time I ever laid next to someone without sex was Lexie on her last night. And then, unlike now, I hadn’t had the urge to slip her panties to the side and enter her while she slept, waking her up with an orgasm.

A noise downstairs nipped at the back of my neck. I twisted my head to the door, my stomach knotted up at the realization that the warning bells came from something other than Kat.

Staying still, I listened, anxiety clawing at my throat. My heart started to slow when nothing reverberated, thinking it was all in my imagination.

I became aware Kat had awoken; her body locked up, my hand still holding her boob, my dick still nestled in her ass. Before I could move away and apologize, her head popped up, nose wiggling, eyes going to the door. Her reaction had nothing to do with me.

“Kat?” I knew she could smell and hear far better than me.

She took another sniff, her head swiveling as if her ears were tuning in.

A creak of wood from the stairs below sounded like a scream in the silent house.

Kat scrambled out of bed, flaring terror into my veins. It wasn’t Mrs. Yang coming up the stairs. I scrambled up right as the door slammed into the wall, banging on the wood. Four men dressed in dark clothes rushed into the room, crowding the already tight space. My survival instincts kicked in, and I attacked with no hesitation.