It hadn’t exactly been the closure I needed, but my mother’s acknowledgment that I’d tried to fix my mistakes was enough….
For now.
Besides, I meant what I said about never needing anyone else as long as I had Pim. She was everything and now I had to share her with a mutt.
The moon stayed hidden behind clouds threatening drizzle as Pim carried the pup into our bedroom and set him on the floor. Rigging creaked and engines hummed, waking from their seven-day nap as Jolfer prepared to set sail for a midnight cruise.
I hadn’t asked where we were going—this time, the itinerary was his choice. The only instruction I’d given was to follow the summer and to hold a poll with the staff to find any destinations they’d like to visit.
I’d been sailing with vengeance for too long.
This time, I wanted to have fun—for everyone on board.
Pim dashed into the bathroom, returning a few seconds later with her arms full of clean towels.
I sat on the bed with a smirk, rolling my eyes as she fashioned a bed for the newest member who was far more interested in exploring the bedroom and sniffing scents of blood and fighting even though the room had been cleaned since.
Pim giggled as the mutt raced back and leapt all over her. I’d never heard a sound like it fall from her lips. Something so pure and simple. I’d always hoped I’d be lucky enough to hear her laugh so freely but didn’t think it would ever happen.
Whatever I thought about owning a dog, I now loved that damn fleabag as it gave Pim yet another avenue of healing.
She fucking glowed, and it took all my willpower to just sit back and watch instead of scoop her up and make love to her.
If I didn’t know her past horrors, I would’ve thought she was innocent and confident—someone far too unsullied for the likes of me.
Sometimes, I looked at her and felt ancient in comparison—as if she was too young to withstand my bullshit brain and the emotional baggage that came with it. But then I’d see a flash of a silver scar or see her wince on sore bones, and I’d remember she’d withstood things far worse than anything I could ever do.
Her body had been in a battle, her soul had lived far more than it should, and it’d transformed her into someone so much wiser and better than I was.
I could spend hours watching Pim bathe and settle in the cute rascal, but my desire for her kept escalating.
My obsessive brain sticking on one thought.
Her.
It was her fault.
She shouldn’t be so fucking sexy when she was happy.
I needed to tell her how much I loved her. How watching her be so sweet and gentle with the dog raised caveman urges to protect and care for her, too.
But I also didn’t want to interrupt her joy at settling in the mutt who leaped and chased, tumbling beside her to get his belly scratched. Its short fur and random collection of sherry and amber spots meant he wasn’t the prettiest thing, but he sure looked fucking happy.
His concave little belly also looked empty.
How long since the poor thing ate?
Using my cell phone, I called the kitchen and requested food suitable for a puppy and fresh water to be brought up.
I’d give Pim and her four-legged beasty a little longer to get acquainted, but once the mutt’s midnight snack arrived, Pim was all mine.
I don’t particularly like sharing.
We didn’t have to wait long. The gentle knock on the door shot me upright.
I strode to open it, smiling at Greta holding a tray full of shredded chicken and gravy with a jug of water and an extra porcelain bowl.
Handing it to me, she grinned. “New pet, I see.”
“Something like that.” I smirked. “Have a good night.”
“You, too.”
Closing the door, I set up dinner and water by the towel bed Pim had designed and made a mental note to take her dog bed shopping the next time we reached a port. For now though, the mutt was safe, fed, and had somewhere to call his own.
That means Pim is all mine.
Taking her wrist, I pulled her from the floor, intending to push her onto the mattress and do whatever I damn well pleased with her.
However, she rolled her arm and dislodged my hold. “Not yet.”
“Not yet?” Frustration bubbled. “What do you mean, not yet?”
“I mean, I have something for you.” She smiled down at the dog as he woofed and shoved as much chicken into his tiny mouth as he could. “I want to give it to you.”
I chuckled under my breath. “And I have something for you, so let’s get into bed.”
She laughed. “Mine is real not just sex.”
“Not just sex, huh? Are you already over sleeping with me, Pim?”