by Jaci Burton
The things she did with Trey were outside her area of familiarity. And yet she embraced every one of his wicked desires.
Drawing up on her hands and knees, she waited. And waited. Then finally turned her head to find him staring between her legs.
“You have a beautiful pussy,” he said, tilting his head to the side. “And so wet, too. Your lips glisten with your juices.”
Hearing his description of her most intimate body part unnerved her. He was so blatantly sexual and she, until now, had never been exposed to a man like him. Part of it thrilled her, part of it scared her to death. She was way out of her league.
“Thank you,” she mumbled, thoroughly embarrassed.
The blanket shifted as he drew against her, his shaft probing between the cheeks of her ass. When he rocked his penis against her buttocks, she trembled.
He reached between her legs and rubbed his fingers against her, then moved his cock between them and stroked the sensitized folds of her pussy. Jolts of pleasure flooded her. She wanted him inside her.
Boldly, she lifted her buttocks higher and pressed against him, unable to see but knowing what she wanted lay just between her legs. Trey laughed. “You want to be fucked, Jasmine?”
There he went again, asking intimate questions and talking dirty to her. Her nipples tingled as they pebbled. “Yes.”
“Back into my cock, then.”
She did, searching for his shaft. When it brushed her clit, she moaned at the sharp burst of desire, then mimicked her previous movements, arching her back and sliding her clit against his shaft.
“Yeah, baby, like that.” He encouraged her to continue. Jaz was torn between her desire to come and her need to have him embedded deeply inside her.
He held his shaft for her and let her rub against it. She felt the buildup of tension, wanted the release desperately, craved the fulfillment that only he could give her.
But she wanted it while he fucked her. She reached down between her legs and grabbed his shaft, positioning it at the entrance to her pussy, then quickly pushed back, pulling his cock deeply inside her.
His satisfied moan told her he’d wanted the same thing. Her cunt tightened around his shaft, taking him in deeper, every inch making him a part of her.
Trey leaned against her back and reached for her breasts, petting her nipples with his thumbs. She felt it between her legs, that lightning strike of enhanced delight. His breath tickled her ear, his heart pounded against her back.
She should have thought about the fact they might be seen. After all, many of the staff apartments faced the beach. But the fog had rolled in and enshrouded them, providing a blanket cover of privacy.
At this point, nothing in this world could compel her to move away from Trey. His warmth penetrated her skin, sinking deep into her body and flushing her with a fever that only he could break.
Then he did what he’d suggested earlier. He grabbed her hair and wound it around his fist, pulling sharply back with his hand.
Tears moistened her eyes at the painful pleasure. He held on tight to her hair and rocked against her, fucking her hard. She gave back in kind, slamming against him until she thought she’d die from the rapture.
It was wild, wicked, even vicious. They both panted and groaned as their sweat-slickened bodies met and parted, met and parted.
He thrust deeply again, and pulses of ecstasy thrummed between her legs. She let out a wailing cry. Her orgasm rushed unexpectedly over her, drenching them both in her nectar. She moaned and pushed backwards, wanting all of him.
It wouldn’t stop, the constant spread of such exquisite sensation she nearly collapsed from it. And yet, he continued.
“More, Jasmine,” he whispered, then reached around and found her clit, stroking her once again to a fevered state. She didn’t think it possible, but the tension inside her regathered with each thrum of his fingers on her sensitized flesh, each thrust of his thick cock in her.
“Come with me, baby,” he said, his voice tight with arousal. He groaned and plunged ever deeper. “Come with me now.”
Like a man who wouldn’t take no for an answer, Trey continued to rub her clit and relentlessly stroke her cunt with his shaft. The combination was too much to bear.
“I can’t…oh, God, Trey I’m coming again!” She flew over the edge, her pussy squeezing his shaft tightly until he stiffened and groaned out his climax, holding tight to her as the tremors shook his body.
She collapsed onto the blanket, Trey falling beside her and gathering her into his arms.
Tensing, she waited for his abrupt departure. But this time he stayed, pulling her close and holding onto her like he’d never let her go.
His skin was bathed with a fine sheen of sweat and she trailed her fingers over his chest, feeling the staccato beat of his heart against her palm. He kissed the top of her head and stroked her shoulder, her arm, reaching for her breasts and playing lazily with a nipple.
With a contented sigh, she watched his hands move over her body, surprised to find that yet again she could be aroused.
“We’d better get inside before you freeze to death,” he said.
Reluctantly, she agreed. “Funny, I’m not cold.”
He smiled and handed her clothing to her. “Neither am I. You make me hot, Jaz.”
His words settled somewhere between her legs. The feminine part of her triumphed in the fact she could actually turn a man on. The scientist in her knew it was merely biology. That she was nothing special.
And yet, she wanted to be.
Trey gathered the blanket and held out his hand for her. She clasped hers in his and walked toward the apartments, wondering what was going to happen next between them.
It seemed as if a wall had crumbled. Whether he’d been the one to put it up there, or she had, it was gone now.
Trey had a magical hold on her, and if she wasn’t careful she’d fall in love with him.
Somehow, she knew that loving Trey would hold disastrous consequences for them both.
Chapter Ten
“I’m going for a dive.”
Trey looked up from the microscope at Jaz’s determined expression. “You’re gonna do what?”
“Dive. I want to examine the coral, then scoot around where the dolphins haunt.”
“You taking a crew along with you?”
She shook her head. “No. I’ll dive alone.”
“I’ll go with you.”
She frowned at him. “It really isn’t necessary. I’m quite experienced, Trey, you don’t have to worry about me.”
For some reason he didn’t like that idea. Not that she could get anywhere near Oceana, but the thought of her diving alone bothered him. “Why don’t you let me do it instead?”
She frowned, then smiled. “Don’t be silly. It’s my job.”
He couldn’t think of a logical reason why she shouldn’t go, although he pondered it the entire day. The following morning, he watched from his apartment window as Jaz entered the water. Something didn’t feel right about this dive she was going to do. Unfamiliar emotions tugged at his heart and chipped away at the iceberg surrounding it.
Ever since their night on the beach, he couldn’t find it within him to keep his distance from her, even though he knew he should.
Without thinking about what he was doing or why, he ran to the beach and dove into the waves. In an instant, he shifted into dolphin form and headed out to watch Jaz’s descent into the dark waters. She had a light that she shined around her to lead the way, but he knew her vision wasn’t as good as his at these depths.
Trey watched, a sense of dread and impending catastrophe washing over him. He kept his distance, remaining behind her. She slowed as she reached the coral, the underwater camera she held zooming onto a whitened area of the coral field before moving off in its continued search.
But what did she hope to find down here? And especially at the depths she was traveling. Much deeper than she should, knowing a human’s capacity.
&n
bsp; And why the hell was he worried about her? He shouldn’t care what she did. This obviously wasn’t the first time she’d dived, and she was perfectly safe.
So what was he doing down here following her around like a devoted puppy? He should go to his sanctuary below while he had a free moment, then make sure he was back in the lab by the time she returned.
And yet the pull toward her was too strong. Something compelled him to remain near her. Every time he decided to leave, she’d change direction and he’d follow. Thoroughly disgusted with himself, he swept around the front of her, figuring he’d just blow by her and then head down toward Oceana.
Only she must have spotted him. Maybe she’d thought he was a shark, because she jerked upright and turned quickly. Veering to the right, she slammed into a jutting rock ledge.
She’d hit her head. Blood rose from the back of her head and she began to sink fast.
Damn! He shifted into his human form and swam quickly toward her, capturing her in his arms.
Jaz, can you hear me? She didn’t answer the thoughts he’d put into her head.
Jaz, wake up.
Her eyes remained closed. He put two fingers to the side of her neck, and near panic set in. Her pulse was weak. He laid one hand on her chest and realized her breathing was ragged and very slow.
Glancing quickly up toward the surface, he knew there was little time. She must have hit the ledge hard because blood continued to pour from the wound on her head.
There was no other choice. He turned and headed down, swimming quickly to Oceana.
He was afraid if he didn’t get her there soon, she wasn’t going to make it. There was no time to take her to the surface and find a doctor. She needed help now.
If he didn’t get the wound closed up soon…
That thought sent adrenaline pouring through his system. He fought back the panic choking him and concentrated on getting Jaz to the sanctuary.
He flew through the watery doorway and into his bedroom, laying Jaz on the transparent cover. Quickly he removed her mask and air tank, then felt the back of her head. A jagged wound the size of his fist and quite deep left blood pouring onto his hands.
There was no time to think. He placed his palm over her head and closed his eyes, feeling the power centering itself in his middle. Her wound began to close, her body repairing itself.
He laid his other hand over her breast and forced her heart rate to normal beats, thankful when her pulse kicked up and her breathing normalized.
For the longest time he stood over her, watching her sleep. He knew she’d recover completely, that it had only been a severe gash, but the thought of losing her was incomprehensible.
And the thought of why losing her meant so much to him was something he refused to ponder any longer. He covered her and left the room, heading into his kitchen for a drink.
She was going to be fine. He knew that. At least he had some knowledge of healing. Which unfortunately didn’t transfer to eradicating their dolphins’ mysterious illness. If they had been injured like Jaz had been, he could have helped them. But this disease that had grabbed hold of the dolphins was unlike anything Oceana had ever seen, and their healing powers were useless against it.
Now he had to figure out what to do next. He knew he shouldn’t move her yet, but her people would expect her back. He also knew she shouldn’t be here, shouldn’t wake up here, but he had no other choice. What was done was done and he couldn’t change it now.
He’d have to rush up to the surface and leave some message with her staff that she was going to be out of town on research. They’d buy that and it would give him a little time to get her well and back to the surface.
He’d have to erase her memory, of course, but he’d worry about the details to that later.
Right now he had to cover his tracks, and hope to hell that he hadn’t just made a huge mistake in bringing Jaz to Oceana.
* * * * *
Jaz woke with a start, clawing at her throat and gasping for air. She bolted upright and opened her eyes, fighting the feeling of suffocation that surrounded her.
Only she wasn’t drowning. She wasn’t even in the water.
She also wasn’t home.
Where was she? She blinked and looked around, never having seen a place like this before. She was in a bed. Felt normal. So did the blankets surrounding her. Except everything was nearly transparent.
She blinked again, certain her eyes deceived her, and yet it was true. She ran her palm over the mattress, which felt just like a regular mattress, except she could barely see it.
How odd.
And she was naked. Which was interesting because she certainly hadn’t been naked when she was diving Where were her clothes? How had she gotten here and why couldn’t she remember anything?
Fighting the pain that stabbed at her temples, she rose and wrapped the silken sheet around her body, mentally pulling forth the last thing she remembered. Her mind was wrapped in a fog, her head pounding. She felt her head for any injury, wincing when her fingers moved over a sizeable bump on the back of her head.
What the hell had happened?
The last thing she remembered was diving, then seeing a shark or something.
That was it. She’d bumped her head. She remembered the sharp pain, but after that it was all a blank. If she’d lost consciousness while diving she should be dead. She’d have sunk to the depths beyond which a human could survive.
But she obviously wasn’t dead.
Or was she? This place certainly looked like nothing she’d seen before. Maybe it was heaven, or some obscure after-death place. Not like she had any experience in either of those locations.
The room was near dark, and yet the walls of whatever building housed her were transparent. Outside looked like…water.
In fact, water surrounded all the walls. She walked out into a hallway. The place was structured just like a house. The hallway led into a couple other rooms that she didn’t venture into, because she headed toward the end of the hall where there was a source of light.
A living room, a kitchen and even a dining area greeted her.
Regular looking furniture, but sure as hell irregular at the same time.
She was underwater. But how? What was this place? And why was she alone?
“Hello? Is anyone here?”
No answer. She stepped to a doorway, realizing immediately there was no door handle. The sound of the currents was very strong here. She placed her hand on the clear glass.
But there was no glass. Her hand slipped right into water. Water that stayed outside the door and didn’t come into the structure. She quickly pulled her hand back. It was dripping wet.
What the hell?
She did it again, sliding her hand through the open doorway, only this time she left it there. Wriggled her fingers. It was water. Withdrawing her hand, she licked her wet fingers.
Salty water. Ocean.
She was in the ocean. Or something nearly like it.
The water outside was as clear as standing on land, not murky like the dark ocean depths. Only there were no people walking by.
There were fish. Colorful, strange fish she had never seen before. A new species perhaps? They were smaller than a dolphin but larger than a salmon or trout, and striped with every color of the rainbow, from blues to yellows to lavenders and reds. Each of the stripes glowed like a neon sign.
And dolphins! A dolphin raced by, then turned and stopped at the doorway.
It looked amazingly similar to the Bottlenose who’d washed up on the shore the day after she’d rescued the others. Perfect skin, no scars, same markings.
“Is it you?” she asked, feeling a little ridiculous for talking to the dolphin. She reached out her hand and the dolphin approached, rubbing its snout against her palm.
“It is you!” Instinctively, she knew it to be true, even if her mind refused to believe this was anything other than a dream. At this point, anything or anyone even remotely familiar filled her
with joy.
But how could it be the same dolphin? He was in the aquarium tank, and sure as hell hadn’t jumped out to join her in the ocean. Yet, she was convinced it was him. “Am I glad to see you, pal.”
The dolphin hovered, seemingly watching her.
“I wish you could talk. Then maybe you could tell me what I’m doing here. And while you’re at it, where I am.”
But, of course he couldn’t answer her. He didn’t swim away, just hovered near the doorway, his tail fluke swishing. Suddenly he moved away for a few seconds, then back, then away again. Almost as if he was trying to get her to follow him.
“I’d like to, pal, but I can’t breathe in the water like you can. Wrong kind of mammal here.”
The dolphin shook its snout back and forth and opened its mouth. If she didn’t know better, she could swear it was trying to communicate with her. She wished she’d done more in-depth research into dolphin communication. She’d been studying them for years, and yet not once had she trained any with hand signals or rudimentary communication techniques.
Knowledge like that sure would have come in handy right about now.
Then the dolphin did something remarkable. He poked his head past the watery door, allowing her to pet him. He even exhaled a fine mist of water, seemingly taking in the air in the room.
Just physical contact with another creature made her feel less lonely, less in the dark about where she was.
“Thanks, babe,” she whispered, kissing the dolphin’s snout. She could have sworn he grinned at her. When he wriggled a little further in, Jaz was shocked. Half in, half out of the water, the dolphin regarded her with curious…
Blue eyes? Dolphins didn’t have blue eyes.
Maybe she really was dreaming, because the dolphin’s eyes looked remarkably like Trey’s, a clear crystal blue that seemed so unusually vibrant.
“Your eyes look just like Trey’s,” she said, knowing the dolphin didn’t understand her, and yet needing to keep talking if for no other reason than to hear a voice. The silence surrounding her was driving her crazy.