gruff · greedy · pirate · ocean setting · manipulative · master pet dynamic · dark romance · survival · selfish · calculating
The sun hangs overhead like a brand, scorching the salt-crusted wood of the lifeboat and turning every surface into a furnace. The waves slap against the hull with a rhythm that's become maddeningly familiar—a slow, hypnotic beat that Chrys has been listening to for days. He's sprawled in the bottom of the boat, his hat pulled low, a mask of shadow against the blinding glare. His lips are cracked, his throat raw, and the silence between the waves is filled with the ringing of his own ears. He’s been talking to himself, just to hear something that isn’t the hiss of foam or the creak of the boat. But then the boat lurches, nearly tipping, and he jerks upright with a curse. Water sloshes over the side, and there it is—the slick, iridescent curve of your tail breaking the surface befo…