Page 64 of Hook

“You have a license?” she confirms.

I yank her against my side. “Of course, that’s why call me captain.” I wink.

She rolls her eyes. “I thought you liked it because you’re a narcissist.”

“That too,” I say, trying not to get offended by her judgement.

The engine of the boat roars to life, and the sound is music to my ears. Over three months it’s been out of action, and finally I can take to the ocean again.

I sit in the driver’s seat and yank Gwen onto my lap. “Where would you like to go?”

She looks at me and I see a flicker of annoyance in those emerald eyes mixed with desire. “I don’t know. You’re the one that knows the ocean.”

“Santa Catalina is beautiful,” I say, squeezing her hip. “Although it may take a couple of hours to get there.”

Her lips purse. “Isn’t there somewhere closer? I don’t want to spend that much time with you.”

“Liar,” I say, holding her tighter. “You know two hours will speed by once I have you chained to the bed in my sex room.”

Her thighs immediately clench together, proving me right.

She shakes her head. “How far have you been on this thing?” Gwen asks, clutching onto the counter in front of us, as she tries to change the subject.

“I’ve been to the Caribbean in it. I was at sea for about seventy days in total to get there.”

Gwen looks shocked. “That’s a long time. Did you have a crew with you?”

I nod. “Of course, I couldn’t handle this thing on my own for that kind of trip.”

“How come you sailed there? Isn’t it easier to fly?”

I sigh heavily, as that trip was part of me running away from it all. Ma came with me while we regrouped and tried to work out how we could recover everything Piero stole from us. “I needed to get away,” I say simply.

I don’t speak about that time to anyone, not even Ma. Kira’s loss haunts me to this day. I’ll never be able to come to terms with the fact she died and I survived. Kira was always good and pure. She didn’t deserve to die so young.

Eighteen years old.

“Cillian?” Gwen is looking at me in an odd way. “Where did you go?”

I try to push away the dark memories infecting my mind away. “Nowhere, princess.” I tighten my grip on her hip. “How shall we spend the next two hours?”

“Surely you need to steer the boat,” she says.

I smirk at her. “No, it has autopilot.” I type our course on the computer to Santa Catalina and ensure it’s plotted correctly, and make sure the radar is on, too. “I don’t have to focus at all.”

Her lips purse together. “Can we enjoy the scenery?”

“Are you saying you don’t want to scream my name the entire way?”

“I’m saying I’m sore and wouldn’t mind a break.” There’s a vulnerable look in her eyes because she’s being honest with me, and so I nod in response.

“Of course, princess. Whatever you want.” Saying that, I’m not exactly thrilled. It means we need to talk, something I’m not good at. “Let’s go onto the deck.”

I allow her to jump off my lap and she leads the way out of the helm and onto the main deck, where there’s a jacuzzi. “How about a dip?” I ask.

She shakes her head. “I didn’t bring a swimsuit.”

I chuckle. “Do you think you need one, considering I’ve seen you naked enough times?”

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