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imagine it is.” Captain Ford hesitated. “Do you wish to dine with me again tonight?”
    They were now belowdecks in the cramped passageway leading to the captain’s cabin and the best of the guest cabins, where Peter was sleeping.
    â€œIf you would like me to.” Peter stepped closer, deliberately allowing his body to press against the other man’s, and enjoyed the slight hitch of his breath. “In truth, I expect more than dinner. I expect to be entertained.”
    â€œAnd what would that entail?”
    â€œYou, naked on your knees, sucking my cock?” Peter met the captain’s flushed gaze. “That would be my first request.”
    â€œI . . . would be more than happy to oblige you, Mr. Howard.”
    â€œGood.” He turned to his door. “And Captain?”
    â€œYes, Mr. Howard?”
    â€œActually, I’d like you to be naked when I arrive. I’d also expect you to be hard for me.”
    The captain groaned. “I already am.”
    Peter half-turned to meet the captain’s eyes. “Then stay hard and don’t touch yourself or make yourself come. If you do that, I will have to punish you.” The sound of voices behind him made him nod. “Good afternoon, Captain.”
    He escaped into his cabin and firmly shut the door, his smile dying. Sharing a night of passion with his old friend wouldn’t be a hardship. He was skilled enough to give the other man exactly what he craved without his lover knowing that his heart wasn’t in it. He’d decided while up in the crow’s nest that he had to move on. Had at least to try to get past the huge hole in his heart that Abigail had left behind. He’d even found the courage to admit that she had done the right thing. They weren’t happy, and despite all the fairy tales, love hadn’t been enough to protect them from the rules and regulations of society.
    If he and Abby had been married and chosen to look elsewhere for sexual pleasure, no one in the ton would’ve blinked an eye. But because they wanted to be honest and yet still protect James and his heir, their liaison was considered a threat to the standards of society. If it hadn’t been for young Jamie, they could’ve lived together in sin quite happily and never ventured into the ton again. But the title and Jamie’s expectations made that impossible.
    Peter stripped off his shirt and washed his face and upper body in the cold water from the jug by the basin. It was almost time for dinner. He could smell a hint of burnt chicken wafting up from the galley. Being on Captain Ford’s ship was quite strange. If he’d chosen to leave Valentin all those years ago and sailed the seas with his lover instead, he might never have met Abigail and James.
    He sat down on his bunk to towel down his torso. Would that have been for the best? He shook his head, even though there was no one there to see it. No, despite everything, he couldn’t regret finding out that love did exist, even though it appeared that love for him would always come with complicated and painful conditions.
    A knock on the door had him reaching for a clean shirt.
    â€œCome in.”
    â€œCaptain’s compliments, sir, and would you care to join him for dinner in his cabin?”
    â€œNow, Rob?”
    The cabin boy grinned. “Yes, sir. He should be finished with his ablutions.”
    â€œThen I’ll join him.” Peter patted the boy on the top of the head and followed him out into the cramped passageway. He knocked on the captain’s door. “I think I can find my own way from here.”
    Rob winked at his rather lame jest. “Good for you, sir. I’ll be off to have my dinner now so you won’t be disturbed.”
    Peter waited until the boy disappeared down the ladder and went in. Jason Ford was standing naked on a sheet of canvas sail, sluicing the remains of a bucket of water over his head. Peter watched in