“Oh, Ashley, I do love when you’re sentimental.” I straightened out my smile. “Now tell me what you were doing on my ship for the last two hours.”

A blanket of stillness settled over him as his mien took on the severity of man in command of a room.

“This is your ship.” He set a loosely curled hand against my cheek, using the backs of his fingers to gently push my hair away. “Topside, you’re the captain. I will never undermine you in front of your men.” His hand went rigid in my hair, capturing a fist full of locks. “In the privacy of our quarters, I am your commodore and captor.”

My chest lifted on a thrill of pleasure. I commanded the ship. Ashley commanded the bedchamber. Priest, on the other hand, was a man of many talents. Skills that had been earned through his roles as a footman, gunner, pirate captain, husband, and libertine. But the one he favored was his position as Groom of the Chamber. He’d taken care of Ashley for years and was blatantly clear about his intentions in doing the same for me. He was the backbone of our three-part relationship.

“She’ll go along with that,” he drawled from the bed, watching my reaction, “until you try to dress her in ribbons, lace, and other frilly nonsense.”

Truth. I bit back a smile.

“I prefer her without clothes.” Releasing my hair, Ashley gripped my thighs and spread me wider. “Jesus, you make me hard.” His jaw tensed as he stared at my cunt. “I can see his seed dripping out of you. You’re a damned sinful sight, one that would make the devil weep.”

I waited for him to touch me there, but his expression turned thoughtful. Watchful. He wasn’t finished listing his demands.

“I want marriage.” His incisive gaze flicked to mine, to Priest, and back to me. “I don’t care about formalities or ceremony. I want a marriage that’s recognized by both of you.” He clasped a possessive hand between my legs. “You will be my wife, bound to me in the same way that you’re bound to Priest.”

Currents of joy rocked beneath the keel of my heart.

Priest folded his hands over his abdomen, his silver eyes on Ashley. “After everything we’ve been through, I already consider our triad a binding union. She’s our wife. Yours and mine. If you need a formal declaration, I’ll give it.” The corner of his mouth crooked as he looked at me. “She’s Mrs. Cutler, Mrs. Farrell, Captain Sharp, Benedicta Leighton…”

“Goldilocks.” Ashley studied my face. “I love you. Be my wife.”

“Already yours. Your wife, your lover, your captive, a pirate who loves both you and your best friend above all else. And we shall be blinded by our love for life and beyond the ends of the sea.”