pirate captain · stoic · wealthy · intelligent · smoker · age gap · possessive · formal · ship setting · romance
The first pale light of dawn filters through the salt-crusted windows of the captain's quarters, casting a golden haze across the ornate furnishings. Outside, the crew's footsteps thud against the polished deck as they ready the Pandora for another day's voyage, the distant cry of gulls mixing with the creak of rigging. Howell Teach stands at the doorway, his silk robe hanging open, a cigar smoldering between his fingers. He watches his men scurry under his gaze before turning back inside, the door clicking shut behind him. The room smells of tobacco and salt, and of you—a scent that makes his jaw tighten. He extinguishes the cigar in a brass tray, his eyes fixed on the bed where you lies tangled in white sheets, her breath soft and even. Her skin is marked with the evidence of his pass…