#billyflint

It is pure coincidence that he is on deck when Billy returns. Pure coincidence he sees Captain Strongjaw helping Billy into the dinghy as if he couldn’t do it himself. Pure coincidence he sees the hands lingering on Billy’s waist, how Billy leans into them. Pure coincidence he sees just how small Billy looks next to Captain Strongjaw’s hulking figure, how Billy tilts his head up to smile at him. He clenches his jaw and turns away.

“Send him to my cabin when he arrives,” he says to Mr. DeGroot and nods towards the beach. He doesn’t look back and he doesn’t wait for an answer before he goes to his cabin and sits down at his desk. He looks over his notes again, the information about their next price, the route he mapped out. They’ll set sail tomorrow and all preparations have been made. There is nothing left to distract him from the thoughts of Captain Strongjaw’s hands on Billy. He doesn’t understand why Billy keeps seeking him out. James won’t deny that he is able to overwhelm anyone with his sheer size but he is too stupid to distinguish a lucrative price from a waste of time and resources, his success the result of sheer luck and a not completely useless crew. And still he is the first Billy seeks out every time they land in Nassau and he is relieved from his duties.

He doesn’t have to stew in his thoughts for long before Billy knocks at his door and enters, flushed and loose-limbed. His scent should fill the room, still sweetened by his waning heat, but it is covered by the overpowering stench of Captain Strongjaw, cloying and thick.

He wrinkles his nose and balls his hand into a fist. He regards Billy until he is fidgeting in place. “You took your time.”

The blush on Billy’s cheeks deepens, shoulders tensing up. “My alpha didn’t think it wise to let me leave too early.”

His alpha. How insolent of Billy to allow Strongjaw that position.

He glares and Billy crosses his arms. It shifts the collar of his shirt, revealing a bruise on the nape of his neck, too close to his mating gland.

“You know the whores say this to keep you longer and earn more money?”

Something flashes over Billy’s face, too quick to read, and he lifts his chin. James’ eyes drift to the damned bruise again. Strongjaw must have given it Billy while his knot filled him. Did Billy beg for his bite? Did he encourage Strongjaw? Where else did Strongjaw leave his marks? His nails dig into the palm of his hand and he forces his hand to relax.

“I didn’t go to the brothel. Grog- Captain Strongjaw took care of me.”