Page 1 of Freed by the First Mate (Pursued by Pirates #1)

Kai squinted through the dim early morning light, shivering as he tried to force his frozen fingers to move faster.

He still had six coats to finish before Mr. Kim woke up, and he couldn’t afford to have his meager pay docked again.

He hissed as the needle pierced his thumb, barely able to feel the sting through the cold.

He couldn’t stop so he simply wrapped a thin scrap around the wound and hunched over again, ignoring the ache in his back from endless hours of nonstop sewing.

His needle flew as he finished the hem, the sun slowly rising outside.

The extra light filtering in through the door helped him avoid pricking himself again and he finished without any further incidents.

He knotted the thread quickly and folded the coat to put it aside, reaching for the next one.

Just as he was holding the needle up to thread the eye, the sunlight streaming in the doorway flickered and vanished.

Kai looked up, goosebumps rising at the sight of five hulking men standing in the doorway and blotting the morning light from view.

Pirates .

Kai’s heart leapt to his throat with fear as he sat frozen in place, terrified and unsure what to do.

His sleepy little town on the cove wasn’t a usual target for pirate raids, although they occasionally had a crew show up at their market looking to stock up on supplies in a less trafficked port.

The last time they had had a serious raid had been ten years ago, and Kai still had nightmares about it.

His parents had been killed and his best friend kidnapped, vanishing overnight in a whirlwind of flames and swords.

Memories of that night flashed before Kai’s eyes, and perhaps that was why it took a moment for him to notice one of the pirates stepping forward.

The man was tall and strong, with broad shoulders and a sharp jaw.

His heavy boots were loud on the wooden floor and Kai flinched away instinctively.

Kai looked up at the pirate in fear but just then one of the others shifted and a beam of light fell on the man’s face.

Kai’s breath caught at the sight of familiar, piercing eyes and brown curls under the brim of the pirate’s hat.

Curls he hadn’t seen in ten years, since his best friend was torn from his side never to be found again.

“Hyuk?” he gasped.

“In the flesh,” the pirate said with a smirk, removing his hat with a flourish and bowing deeply to Kai. “Missed me?”

The coat fell from Kai’s hands and he launched himself at Hyuk, stunned tears pricking at his eyes as Hyuk’s thick, strong arms caught him effortlessly and spun him around. Hyuk kept him close even when he let Kai down again, wrapping his arms around Kai’s waist and pulling him in close.

“I’m sorry it took so long, baby,” Hyuk murmured, his voice so low and deep it sent shivers down Kai’s spine.

Kai couldn’t help melting closer, the warmth of Hyuk’s solid, firm chest melting into his own too-thin frame.

He closed his eyes in relief, trying not to show exactly how much he was affected by Hyuk’s words.

He had thought he would never see Hyuk again, but he had never forgotten about his best friend…

or that one blissful night they had shared before Hyuk’s disappearance, hours passing in a blur of heated kisses and fumbling hands.

It seemed Hyuk had never forgotten either, from the sensual purr of his words to the way his hand slipped dangerously low over the curve of Kai’s ass.

Kai’s cheeks burned with the sudden rush of desire swirling low in his stomach as he pressed closer, huddling closer to Hyuk’s warmth and hiding his face in Hyuk’s neck as Hyuk’s hand naturally moved even lower to squeeze his ass.

“Hey, Hyuk! Are you ever going to introduce us to your little boyfriend?”

Kai had entirely forgotten about the other pirates and he jerked in surprise at the exasperated shout.

He tried to scramble backwards but Hyuk easily caught him and reeled him back in, spinning Kai around so that he was facing the pirates with Hyuk at his back, Hyuk’s arms wrapped low around his waist and Hyuk’s chin hooked easily over his shoulder.

“Don’t worry, sweets,” Hyuk drawled. “They’re just jealous. Nico over there is used to being my favorite.”

“Hey, you said I was your favorite,” one of the others teased, elbowing someone who must have been Nico. “Isn’t that right, Simon?”

“None of us are the favorite,” Simon said, rolling his eyes. “Hyuk’s been fantasizing about his sweet, innocent Kai for years. And, I have to admit, I can certainly see why.”

Kai’s skin prickled at the way Simon’s eyes slid hungrily over his form with such obvious desire Kai could almost feel it.

He squirmed a little in Hyuk’s arms, flushed and unsure how to react.

These pirates were overwhelming, each roguish and handsome in their own way with bulging, corded muscles, tanned skin and a casual, sensual confidence that was unnervingly attractive.

“Kai,” Hyuk said, shamelessly nuzzling against Kai’s cheek, “I’d like you to meet four of the members of my new crew. That’s our Quartermaster Simon, our Navigator Nico, Thomas is one of our snipers, and then that is our Captain, Omar. I’m the First Mate.”

Hyuk’s voice was proud as he introduced his crew.

Kai’s chest ached as he realized Hyuk was truly happy.

He was thriving as a pirate, somehow, surrounded by a crew of handsome, swashbuckling men he clearly adored and maybe even loved.

Loved more than he had loved Kai, apparently, if he had never even tried to come back.

Meanwhile Kai had been left alone and penniless in the wake of the attack, and had spent the last ten years clinging to survival by a thread. He was happy that Hyuk was happy, of course, but it hurt to realize just how low he had sunk compared to his former best friend.

“Captain-”

“Oh, alright,” the captain said. He pulled a dagger from the array of weapons hanging at his waist and Kai snapped back to focus, staring at the razor-sharp edge of the metal blade glinting in the sunlight.

“Park Kai, I hereby invite you to join our crew.”

He flipped the dagger in his hand and threw it at Kai, blade pointed at his heart. Hyuk snatched it effortlessly out of midair and held it out for Kai, hilt first.

“Do you accept?”

Kai stared in breathless shock at the dagger that had been hurtling towards him seconds ago.

“W-what?” he asked, tilting his head back to look at Hyuk in confusion. “Accept?”

“We need a tailor,” Hyuk explained patiently. “We’ve been making our way back here over the past few years, ever since they rescued me, to find you and steal you away.”

“Rescued you?”

“I was trapped with those pirates who took me for seven years,” Hyuk said, his face darkening with pained anger. Kai’s earlier, petty, jealousy dissipated instantly. He squeezed Hyuk’s arm in empathy, heart aching for a very different reason than before.

“I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay,” Hyuk said, taking a breath.

His face hardened, taking on an expression so flint-sharp and menacing Kai could instantly imagine Hyuk as a feared pirate on the high seas.

Kai wasn’t scared, though. He could never be scared of Hyuk.

“Omar rescued me halfway across the world and we hunted down every single one of my captors until not even a memory of them remained. We tore the ship apart for scraps and rebuilt it into our Beaut’.

We’ve been searching the world ever since, putting together the best crew on the seas as we made our way back here to find you. I never once forgot you, you know.”

Kai’s breath caught in his throat at the easy declaration, his heart fluttering.

“BOY!”

Kai yelped at the sound of Mr. Kim’s voice, blood running cold as he realized there were still five unfinished coats scattered around him. Before he could do anything Mr. Kim appeared in the back doorway of the tiny shop, face twisted into a cruel snarl.

“You- you’re working for Mr. Kim?” Hyuk asked, pulling Kai closer protectively. “Isn’t this your parent’s shop?”

“They died in the raid,” Kai explained, watching in fear as Mr. Kim’s gaze fell on the obviously unfinished coats. “I-I’m an apprentice, still.”

“You’re useless, is what you are,” Mr. Kim snarled. “I knew you’ve been cavorting on the side, you worthless s-”

Nico took two strides forward and used the hilt of his sword to tap Mr. Kim on the head. Mr. Kim crumpled to the ground instantly, still and unmoving.

“Is he-”

“Just knocked out,” Nico said. He grinned, showing all of his teeth. “Though I’d be happy to put him to sleep a little more permanently, if you know what I mean.”

“Later,” Omar said dismissively. “Kai, do you accept our offer? Our ship is small and swift, operated by a skeleton crew of fifteen, sixteen if you join. We hit our targets fast and without warning, using the element of surprise to get in and get out with minimal damage and maximum reward. However, this technique relies on our ship going unnoticed. We need a broad array of disguises and new flags to fly under so that we can change our appearance on a whim and sail under the radar. Hyuk says you’re the best tailor around, and he thought you’d be a good fit for the other aspects of our crew’s relationship. ”

Kai looked around at all of them, their teasing banter and subtle innuendo playing back through his head.

“You mean sex.”

Omar shrugged expansively.

“Sex, romance, love, play, whatever you want to call it,” he said.

“You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do, but we need to be able to rely on each other blindly and without question.

Intimacy is encouraged to foster close relationships, but even if you don’t choose to partake everyone has a place within the hierarchy of our ranking positions. ”

“The Captain is at the top, of course,” Simon said.

“Hyuk and I are second and third. Hyuk takes control in battle and overarching strategy, I am in charge of ship discipline and accounts. The others are more or less on the same level, each in charge of their own specialty while they’ll defer responsibility in other areas.

Those who have been with the crew for longer tend to have more authority, although there are some exceptions. ”

“And you , pretty boy,” Hyuk purred, “will start out at the bottom of the pyramid just like everyone else. You’d like that, wouldn’t you?”

Aside from that one night of desperate kisses and fumbled handjobs with Hyuk when he was fourteen, Kai didn’t have any sexual experience at all.

He didn’t exactly understand what wordplay Hyuk was hinting at, but the innuendo wasn’t lost on him.

He looked around at the tiny shop he had been trapped in for years, and knew his answer.

He reached out with one shaking hand to grip the handle of the dagger, fingers curling around the cool metal of the hilt.

“I accept.”