Pirate's Promise (Sentinels of Savannah #5) - Lisa Kessler Page 0,32

head through her legs, and gripped her thighs. She gasped, grabbing his head as he straightened, so she was up on his shoulders.

“Now toss the hose out!” he shouted.

She should not be enjoying having her legs wrapped around him. The damned ship was taking on water. She slipped the hose out the porthole and looked down at him smiling up at her from between her legs. He was too damned sexy.

“Okay, it’s outside,” she said.

“Good.” He reached up to grab her waist, then lifted her over his head like she weighed nothing and set her feet back into the water. “Now, we pump.”

But her brain heard hump. Heat coiled low in her belly at the thought. He bent down and started pumping the handle up and down.

Her eyes widened. “We’re seriously saving the ship by hand?”

He chuckled and looked at her over his shoulder. “We have an electrical one, but there’s too much water here for that one. Don’t want to risk electrocution.”

“I thought you were immortal.” She cocked a brow.

“Aye, but it still hurts like hell.” He met her eyes. “And you’re not.”

“True.” She nodded. “Do you need me to take a shift?”

“Not yet.” He switched hands, keeping the pump arm moving. “Distract me.”

The veins in his chiseled forearms were starting to rise, distracting her without even trying. She was supposed to be doing the distracting. “With what?”

His wicked grin almost made her laugh. The ship pitched again, and she sloshed through the water, struggling to stay on her feet. A jolt of adrenaline sped through her bloodstream, but Greyson seemed unfazed.

“Did you always want to work for the government?” he asked.

His question gave her something to focus on other than drowning in a sinking pirate ship, and she was grateful, eager to think about something else. “No. I wanted to be a detective. When I was little, my cousin was killed by a hit-and-run driver. They never caught the guy, so I thought I could make sure other families got the justice we were denied. I worked for the NYPD for a few years.”

He switched hands on the pump again, sweat shining on his face, but to his credit, he wasn’t out of breath yet. “How’d you end up chasing after paranormal beasties?”

The rest of the crew either hid, or had lost, their piratical accents for the most part, but Greyson’s turns of phrase were brazen and unapologetic. She shouldn’t find it so sexy.

The ship rocked, groaning around her like a wounded animal.

She blurted out, “My partner in the police department turned out to be a demon. You can’t unsee something like that, and I couldn’t tell anyone.”

God, had she ever admitted that out loud before? She blinked, wishing she could reel her words back in.

Greyson didn’t deny that demons existed, or toss out a snappy comeback—he just kept pumping the water. “Must’ve been a shock. Was he yer friend, too?”

“I thought he was.” She shrugged, crossing her arms. “We used to watch movies at my place sometimes.”

He switched hands on the pump again, looking over at her for a second. “How’d you get away?”

She reached up to her face, absently wiping over the scar on her cheek. “I had already called for backup before he revealed himself. He must’ve wanted me alive? He ran when the sirens showed up.” She swallowed the lump in her throat. “I didn’t want to chance seeing him again, so I quit my job and started digging into FBI and CIA cases involving unexplained phenomena. Agent Bale must’ve discovered all my snooping or something. He approached me about working for Department 13.”

Never in her life had it been so easy to talk to someone.

Greyson’s pumping slowed for a moment as he met her eyes. “Walking this earth as long as I have, I’ve seen things most people would only meet in nightmares. You’re strong to dive in and investigate rather than run away.”

Nightmares. She swallowed the lump in her throat and pushed to change the subject. “Let me pump for a minute.”

He straightened and took a step back. She gripped the handle and channeled her nervous energy into saving the ship. “What about you? Did you always want to be a pirate?”

He wiped the sweat from his brow. The veins on his arms were enlarged from the exertion. She wet her lips as another wave of heat gathered low in her belly.

“No.” He crossed his arms, surprising her with his defensive posture.

When he didn’t elaborate, she asked, “So, what did you think