Prince Gavin is powerless to refuse when his father demands he secure an alliance with a distant kingdom. At first, he sees the journey as a chance to prove his worth and indulge in the grand adventures of his dreams. Yet nothing seems right about his father's paranoid insistence he travel by merchant ship while disguised as a diplomat. Once out on the open sea, Gavin learns he's been tricked into boarding an infamous pirate ship: the Ebon Drake. Captain Marcas Drake is delighted to discover the courtier he's kidnapped is really a prince. Acquiring such a hefty ransom will prove once and for all he's a brilliant pirate in his own right, not riding the coattails of his father's fame. And using his charms to seduce his prisoner makes for an entertaining pastime. But unfortunate events turn the Ebon Drake's crew against their captain before the ransom can be carried out. Marooned, Marcas and Gavin's new equal footing turns the pirate's sensual game into something else entirely. However, being stranded on a tiny island becomes the least of their worries when rescue arrives in the form of the bloodthirsty Crimson Queen, a pirate who's been chasing Marcas for years. Working together to escape the queen is their only hope of freedom and a chance their growing love might outlast their misadventures.