Steaming Desire - Melissa Young

Chapter Eight - Kiara

Not able to focus on my task, I clenched my jaw, angry at myself, Knox, and The Captain.

When I got back last night from the cells, the Captain found me wandering the deck on my way to the cabin. He called me into his room and fucked me.

I knew that I couldn't expect him to pay any attention to my life, but I cried for god's sake.

I couldn't even say that it was a good fuck since I bawled my eyes out the whole time, but he seemed to go off on it so, whatever.

It wasn't even that big of a deal since he never really paid attention to my emotions, but this particular time felt different. It was like he didn't want to see it, and didn't care that I hurt on the inside.

I got bored the first minute and found my mind somewhere else.

Finding it downstairs with Hunter and Knox, cuddled up between them, fucking the two of them at the same time and loving every second of it. I despised the way I couldn't stop thinking about Knox because even though we hadn't done anything, I still wanted him here.

The connection I felt the moment we touched was something else entirely, and I didn't want to feel it because whatever it was, I couldn't call it anything else than bad news. I had wanted to stay with him, I really did, but my thoughts spun in my head again, and I couldn't control them.

I shook my head and continued to look out over the sea in front of me, slow waves rocking us back and forth, with one eye on the map below me. The island of Nesbotania was less than seven miles south from here, but I still didn't know if we could make it with the small amount of food we had left. I knew that Marcus felt bad about the food that he sent down to Knox and Hunter, and it broke my heart. He was so delighted when I lied about Knox fasting so that he didn't have to scrape together two portions instead of one.

"Wench," The Captain yelled from the quarter-deck. I took one last glance at the paper in my hands and shouted the coordinates loud enough for him to hear. "You can start with dinner then." He spun the ship's steering wheel in the direction I had given him.

It took a while to get down from the crow's nest, since I didn't usually climb in the ropes. I combed down my tangled hair with my fingers on my way to the kitchen. It was a dirty little kitchen that none of us liked, but it made decent food.

Walking into the open doorway to the kitchen, I got met with the eyes I had least expected to see. Knox stood hunched over the counter on his toes, reaching for something in a cabinet. This could not be happening, I had just gotten Hunter out of this kind of trouble, and now Knox occupied my attention?

"What the hell are you doing here?" My yelling wasn't as impressive as I thought it would be while whispering, but it would suffice. He rolled his eyes and sighed before he faced me.

"I am here to bring you back down to us, Hunter was sure that you wouldn't come back down, so I got the noble job of getting you," he told me in a sarcastic tone. I folded my arms over my chest and lowered my eyebrows.

"You are not off to a great start if you are going to talk me into helping you again." The second the words fell from my mouth, my head snapped around. I hadn't taken into account that somebody might be listening.

"I am not here to talk you into it," he made air quotes at the word 'talk'. I crooked my head for him to continue. "I gave you a chance to walk on your own, and if you don't come with me, I am going to drag you."

"You wouldn't get five feet with me unless I-" My sentence was cut short when low mumbling suddenly erupted through the room. I gasped when I realized how it would look to them if they found us here. Three or four pairs of shoes clicked against the floorboards, and there was no doubt in which direction they were heading.