Page 45 of Tik-Tok

North swallowed hard. “So either we all win, we get trapped, or … I die?”

“Celyna didn’t say youdied, necessarily.” He grabbed the bottle from the desk and took a swig straight from the source. “Only that you were sucked through and lost.”

North opened and closed her mouth a handful of times, forehead creased, eyes glittering with worry. Finally, she met his gaze. “I don’t want to get lost anywhere.”

“I don’t want that either.” Tik-Tok slumped so that he sat on the edge of his desk. His whole life had been spent trying to catch and kill a monster. And now that victory was in front of him—right in front of him—he wasn’t sure he should risk it. Was killing his father worth losing North? For all he knew, his father had already been murdered in the other world and his entire mission was in vain. But he refused to consider that possibility. “Celyna also told Dax that if the portal closes once we go through, none of us will return. That means you would have to stay nearby. We don’t know how your magic works yet and we can’t risk putting distance between you and the portal.” He released a humorless laugh and drank again. “The more I consider it, the more I think maybe I should stop. Let the past go.”

“No.” North dashed to his side and pulled the rum from his hand, placing it back in the cupboard. “After everything you’ve told me, I’m invested.”

He snorted. “Invested?You’re willing to die for my revenge?”

“That’s only one scenario, isn’t it? Everything could work out,” she said carefully. “Also, you said I would be lost, not dead.”

“North, no.” He hung his head.Fuck. How could he let her risk her life in exchange for the chance to end his father’s? But … how could he not? They would simply have to put off the portal until Celyna could see how to do it safely. After waiting for decades, what was another year? Ironic decision, considering he’d been ready to do anything to make it even a single day sooner. He looked over North, eyes slowly scanning from her feet up to meet her gaze, and resigned himself to the delay. The risk to her life wasn’t worth it. “I’m sorry for slamming the door in your face earlier.”

North feigned a gasp. “Am I hearing things? It sounded like you apologized, but that can’t be—”

Tik-Tok silenced her with his lips. The kiss was so sudden that she froze beneath his touch. Just as he was about to pull away, to apologize again, she moved against him.

He was in awe of the softness of her lips, how perfectly they slanted over his. His kiss was demanding and rough, her answer gentle and pliant. She tasted like fruit sweetened by salt—cherries, and the sea. He cupped her cheeks, held her in place, as her hands fisted in his tunic. The first sweep of her tongue nearly undid him. Groaning, he slipped his own out to meet hers. Brushing and twisting together in an intoxicating dance, each passing moment of it was too much and not enough. He wanted more. Wanted to taste her everywhere.

No. Damn it—no.

Forcing himself to break their kiss, Tik-Tok rested his forehead on hers, still holding her face. “You make me feel things I don’t want to feel,” he whispered. “How did you get so far under my skin, my star?”

North used his shirt to tug him nearer. Her breasts pressed against his chest, each heavy breath she took going straight to his cock.Respectable pirate, respectable pirate, respectable pirate, he chanted silently to himself. When a soft, impatient sound came from her, the mantra completely shattered.

Respectable, my ass.

“Kiss me again.” North leaned up on her toes, bringing their faces closer together. Her breath skated across his lips, drawing him in as if she were the siren on board his ship.

Tik-Tok flicked his tongue out, tasting her. “If I kiss you again, I’m not sure I’ll be able to control myself. And I don’t—”

“It’s not like I’ve never touched a cock before.”

“You…” He lifted his forehead to better see her expression. The prettiest shade of pink colored her cheeks, her lips plump and red because of him. “I thought you’ve never been with a male before.”

“I haven’t,” she admitted.

Tik-Tok studied her, his head tilted to the side, and warred with himself over sayingfuck it.He wanted to bend her over his desk. Take what she’d offered on multiple occasions. Rip the fabric from her and replace it with his hands. His tongue. His body.

An intense throb in his cock made him shift.Fuck.There was no denying this—denying what was between them. His fingertips slipped from where they tangled in her hair and trailed gently down the sides of her neck. In a strained voice, he asked, “How farhaveyou gone with someone?”

“I’ve kissed.” North licked her lips, staring at his. “And I’ve been touched.”

“I meant before me,” he clarified. “Before I brought you on my ship, how far had you gone?” Trailing one hand down to caress her breast over her clothes, he brushed a thumb over her hardened nipple. “Was I the first to feel these?”

North pushed her chest into his touch. “Yes.”

He held back a groan and skimmed his free hand down her chest, over her stomach, to lightly graze her mound. “And this?” He knew the answer—if no one had fondled her chest, they most certainly hadn’t explored her tight channel—but he wanted to hear her say it.

“Only you,” she breathed.

He moved both hands to grip her hips. “Then, tell me, what bastard let you touch his cock without making sure you were also satisfied? Was it the male you found after Birch rejected you?”

“It wasn’t like that.” She spoke quickly, her hands flattening over his abs. “I wanted to forget about Birch, so I snuck to a gathering in the woods and found a male. We kissed and I … took him from his trousers, but then I stopped it.”

Jealousy nibbled at Tik-Tok’s insides. The thought of her delicate hands gripping another fae’s length… A small, possessive growl rumbled in his throat. “Will you stop me?”

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