Olympic Cove 2-Breaker Zone

by Nicola Cameron

  “Never, Maighstir.” He loved the possessive look that came over Liam’s face when he addressed him by the title. “My body and soul belong to you, you know that. But it was fun to make him serve me.”

  One of Liam’s hands began to move, sliding around to his front while carefully avoiding the gill slits between his ribs, “Mm. Then you’ll have to do it again, when I can watch. And then the two of you can serve me.”

  Aidan’s cock pulsed, emerging from his pouch. “I think he’d like that, Maighstir. I know I would.” His enthusiasm dimmed. “But we have to get him to talk to us first.”

  “Trust the Fates, sweetheart. Our chuisle will come to us, and we’ll be all the more ready for him.” One large hand snaked down, playing with the slit of Aidan’s pouch and the exposed part of his shaft. The other slid into his hair, grasping it firmly and holding him in place. “In the meantime, however, I believe you were saying something about thanking me?”

  Aidan relaxed into Liam’s grip with a relieved sigh, tail flexing gently as those long, skillful fingers teased out his cock. Liam relentlessly stroked and tapped at the sensitive underside until it was his own turn to squirm with need. “Whatever you want, Maighstir.”

  “Oh, I think you know.” Liam twisted them both in the water, steering Aidan’s head downwards to his pouch. Eagerly, Aidan licked at the gaping slit, dipping inside and running the tip of his tongue along the soft, spongy lining. Opening his mouth wider, he closed it over the hard shaft just emerging from the other mer’s body, humming happily as his tongue traced the heavy veins there.

  The rest of Liam’s cock came out, a rich, flushed maroon against the unending blue around them and the moss green of his scales. Aidan took it all in one swallow, gagging a bit as it bottomed out in his throat. Throat muscles working in symphony with his tongue, he massaged the thick shaft, pulling off long enough to run the velvet flat of his tongue around the head.

  “Enough playing. Suck,” Liam ordered.

  Aidan obeyed, driving deep onto the cock again and worshipping it with hands, lips, and tongue. For a moment he wished Liam’s balls were available in this form. They were incredibly sensitive, and he knew how much his mate loved having them lapped and sucked. I wonder if Nick likes having his balls licked. I can’t wait until Liam has him on all fours, fucking him hard while I come in his mouth.

  He moaned at the thought. The vibration caused Liam to shudder. “Gods, yes, do that again.”

  Aidan sealed his lips around Liam’s shaft and hummed, bringing the tone up and down until he felt Liam starting to thrash. The other mer’s hand tightened in his hair in warning, before thick, tangy fluid spurted over his tongue. He swallowed greedily, sucking down every drop until Liam pushed his head away.

  He looked up and saw his mate’s chest heaving, gill slits pinkish-grey against the pale skin as Liam fought to draw in oxygen. “Gods, you’re good at that,” he said roughly, now stroking Aidan’s hair with tenderness.

  Aidan pressed his face into Liam’s scales, warmed by the praise. His own cock ached for attention, but he doubted Liam was going to give him permission to relieve it any time soon. “I love you, Maighstir.”

  Liam drew him up, kissing him and undoubtedly tasting his own seed on Aidan’s tongue. “And I love you, sweetheart.” He pressed their foreheads together, before pulling away with reluctance. “I’d better go. Wish me luck.”

  “You won’t need it. Just—be honest with him.”

  “I will.” Aidan was pulled close for a messy, affectionate kiss, before the big mer turned and swam for the shore.

  ****

  Nick stared at Ian, the remnants of his pancakes forgotten. “Are you fucking kidding me?”

  “I wish,” Ian said soberly. Aphros had left them quietly in the middle of his story about Thetis the Mad Nereid, and they were alone in the kitchen. “But there really is a psychotic goddess out there who wants to wipe mankind off the face of the planet. I hurt her pretty badly the last time we met, but I didn’t kill her. And with you finding the Rod and all, I’m starting to think you’re here to help me stop her.”

  “Oh, no. Nononono, buddy boy. I am not a hero,” Nick said, waving his fork. “I just want to patch people up and eat stale donuts, not fight crazy goddesses and save the world.”

  “Can’t you do both?”

  “Fuck.” He let the fork drop to his plate. “I thought I was getting away from all the life-destroying shit by coming down here, nor running towards it.”

  “Best laid plans and all that. If it’s any consolation, we can always try feeding Barnard to her first.”

  “Mrgh,” Nick propped his chin on a hand. “Do you really think me finding the Rod has something to do with all this?”

  Ian toyed with his coffee cup. “I know this probably isn’t what you want to hear, but yeah, I think you and the Rod are part of this whole thing. Considering what Thetis did to those poor mermaids and how she looked the last time I saw her, I wouldn’t be surprised if she’s planning on some kind of biological attack.”

  Nick’s heart sank. From the sound of it, the planet itself was in serious danger from this Thetis, and Ian, Bythos, and Aphros were going to have their hands full trying to stop her. It also sounded like mission control for Operation Save the World had become this small cove on the Atlantic coast of Florida. “I’m not going to be able to go back to Chicago, am I?”

  Ian hesitated. “I don’t think so, at least not for a while.”

  Nick nodded, feeling wistful. Even with its crappy winters and crappier politics, he loved Chicago’s brash bustle and beautiful skyline, edged on the east by the blue skirt of Lake Michigan. After seven years there, he thought of the city as his home. Being forced to leave it, even for the best of reasons, made his heart ache.

  “Look, it’s not forever,” Ian said reassuringly. “Olympic Beach isn’t Chicago, but it’s a pretty nice town. And I bet you could rent your cottage for the rest of the summer at a total steal.” He turned his hands up. “Plus I’m staying here for the duration. So at least you’ve got me.”

  “Yeah, I guess,” Nick allowed. “You, two godly redheads, and a sarcastic semi-transparent centaur who’s not quite dead.”

  “Which is another reason why you have to stay. You need to study with Chiron and help us plan ways of warding off bioattacks. Figuring out how she turns mermaids into ilkothelloi would be a great first step.”

  Nick sighed, leaning back in his chair. “Did you forget the part where I’m not a research scientist?”

  “So? I’m a science fiction writer. We’re all being pushed into roles we didn’t expect,” Ian said. “For whatever reason, the Fates seem to think you’re the best person to handle the Rod.”

  “Yeah, well, the Fates also seem to think I’m supposed to fall in love with two non-humans, one of whom tried to kill me last night, so you’ll have to excuse me if I question their judgment.”

  Ian tilted his head to the side. “Ever think that maybe Aidan and Liam are your reward for learning how to use the Rod?”

  “I could maybe buy that if it was just Aidan,” Nick said morosely. He didn’t want to admit it, but he was already missing the green-eyed mer. “But Liam scares the shit out of me.”

  “You didn’t have the best introduction,” Ian agreed. “But consider the circumstances. If you had another chance to talk to him, one where you were in no danger and he was calm, would you take it?”

  “I don’t know. Maybe. Why?”

  Ian nodded at the kitchen window. “Because I just saw him walk up to my back door.”

  Nick twisted in his seat, stomach clenching as he imagined the tall mer bursting through the cottage’s enclosed back porch. “I thought he was supposed to stay in the damned water.”

  “He was. He’s risking serious punishment from the twins just by coming here.” Ian sat back in his chair, deceptively relaxed. “If you want, I’ll get rid of him. Just say the word.”

  Nick closed his eyes, trying to decide. Liam showi
ng up like this was too close to an abuser ignoring a restraining order to terrorize his victim.

  But he thought you were raping Aidan. He could still picture the tall mer sitting on Ian’s couch, clinging to Aidan’s hand as Bythos lectured them. The hunched body language that screamed his remorse and shame. I’ll spend the rest of my life making it up to you, chuisle.

  He still didn’t believe all this fated mates bullshit. And he wasn’t thrilled that Aidan hadn’t told him about Liam in the first place. But if he wanted Aidan back, he would have to talk to Liam and straighten things out. “Fuck. Okay, let’s go talk to him.”

  Jaw still clenched, he stood and stalked out to the porch, Ian at his back. Steeling himself, he opened the porch door.

  And froze. On the hardpacked path that led to the beach, with his head bowed in a perfect presentation pose, knelt a nude Liam.

  Chapter Seven

  Nick swallowed hard, struck by the mer’s submissive pose. He moved onto the short steps leading to the path. “Hi.”

  Liam looked up. “Hello, Nick. Thank you for coming out.” He nodded respectfully to Ian. “My lord.”

  “Yeah, not a lord,” Ian said, waving it off. “I work for a living.”

  A smile flickered across the mer’s face before disappearing. He took a deep breath. “Nick, I would like to apologize for what I did last night. I had no right to enter your home without permission and lay violent hands on you. I was afraid for Aidan, but that’s an explanation, not an excuse. If I had gone in with a clear mind, I would have seen the truth immediately, but I let my fear and anger overwhelm me.” He bowed his head again. “I am in no position to ask for your forgiveness, but I will do whatever penance you require to earn it. Or if you can’t bring yourself to forgive me, please don’t turn Aidan away. This is no fault of his.”

  Nick glanced at the nearby water. “Where is he?”

  “Out at Lord Bythos’s camp.” The mer’s hands knotted in his lap. “I told him to stay there while I came to apologize. Neither of us could sleep last night. I kept thinking of what I almost did, and…”

  His face tilted up, hazel blue eyes wide and raw with pain. “I am so sorry,” he said. “I could have killed you. I need to be punished.” He bent over, prostrating himself on the rough path. “Beat me, whip me, do what you choose. I’m at your mercy.”

  Nick winced at the earnestness in the mer’s voice. “Look, you don’t have to do that,” he said.

  The mer shook his head, holding his pose. “Not until you punish me. I have to earn your forgiveness.”

  He’s a Dom, Nicky. You know he is, just as Aidan is. And he harmed you with his own hands. It was as if Aaron was whispering into his ear. Not only did he harm you, he did it in anger. It’s the worst thing a Dom can do to a sub. He needs to make amends. Help him.

  Taking a deep breath, Nick nodded. “All right. Get up, Liam.” He remembered Aaron’s Dom voice, the vibrating power it held, and pushed it into his own tone. “Now.”

  Slowly, Liam pushed himself to his feet. Tiny indentations pocked his skin where he’d rested on pebbles in the path.

  “Follow me,” Nick ordered, and headed back to his cottage. Without looking, he knew that Liam had fallen in behind him. There was a snort from Ian, but the storm god didn’t say anything else.

  Which was good. Because Nick had no freaking clue how he was going to make the tall mer pay for his actions, only that he had to do it somehow.

  Walking through the back door, he headed down the hallway that led to the bright, open living room. When he turned, Liam hesitated in the doorway, staring guiltily at the patch of carpet where he’d stood over Nick.

  “Just … sit down.” Nick waved at the sofa and waited until the tall mer had perched on the edge of a cushion, hands clasped between his knees. In the light of day and with no adrenaline pumping haphazardly through him, he took the opportunity to study Liam.

  Taller than Aidan, Liam’s chestnut hair was almost long enough to brush his shoulders, and was swept back from a handsome if somewhat grave face. Hazel blue eyes glimmered with intelligence as well as guilt. Nick wondered what he looked like when he smiled or laughed. Unfairly stunning, I’m guessing. Kissable lips and a neatly cleft chin completed the package.

  Below the neck, Liam had a classic swimmer’s body with broad, muscled shoulders and a chest that had been developed from hard work, not in a gym. He wore the same kind of thong neckband that Aidan did, but his was strung with a large gold filigree bead. Below that, curved pecs boasted tiny tan nipples, and the lean musculature of his sides and abs would have sent Michelangelo racing for his chisel.

  Nick finally allowed himself to glance at the mer’s groin. Liam had a gorgeous dusky pink cock, long and meaty, with the tip cowled by a foreskin just as Aidan’s had been. Also like Aidan, the tall mer had no body hair, and the veins running down to his groin stood out like traffic lanes on a road.

  You can rub one out to him later. Focus on the situation. Nick took one of the easy chairs, searching for the right words. You made a bad situation worse. I need to know you won’t attack me. How can I trust you?

  To his surprise, what came out was, “How did you meet Aidan?”

  Liam blinked. “We grew up together,” he said slowly. “We’ve been friends since childhood. And then once we reached adolescence, we realized we were chuisle. Agapetos, as Lord Bythos calls it.”

  Fated mates. “You two really think you were put together by Fate?” Nick asked.

  “The Fates, and yes.” Liam frowned. “It’s hard to explain it. Aidan was always my best friend. We used to get into all kinds of trouble together.” Now he smiled wistfully. “And then we got older, and one day we looked at each other and it was like being hit by a tidal wave.”

  “Sounds like adolescence to me.”

  “That’s what my mother told me, and Aidan’s parents told him. But we knew better. It wasn’t just coming into manhood. Yes, I wanted to have sex with him, and he wanted it with me. But we needed to be with each other as well. It wasn’t all about sex. I started teaching him about our laws and old cases the Elders had adjudicated, and he taught me how to grapple and use weapons properly. There were so many nights we did nothing but talk, holding each other. We—” He lifted his hands, slotting his webbed fingers together as far as he could. “We fit. We balanced each other.”

  Something Ian had said niggled at Nick. “But you don’t have tattoos on your backs,” he said. “Mating marks, right?”

  “It’s how we knew we had a third agapetos. The fact that the marks didn’t appear after we started having sex proved it.” Liam frowned. “Although my mother insisted that it meant Aidan wasn’t my agapetos. I finally had to go to the Oracle of the Waters for confirmation that Aidan and I were mates.”

  “Oracle of the—” Nick held up a hand before Liam could reply. “You know what, never mind. Okay, so you went to see the Oracle. And?”

  “He confirmed that Aidan and I were agapetos, and that we had a third mate. He also said that our mate would be human. I have to admit, that came as a shock to both of us.” Liam’s expression turned apologetic. “We just never found humans all that attractive.”

  Nick suddenly felt self-conscious. Compared to the two gorgeous, athletic mers, he definitely came third in the looks category. “And you wound up with me,” he muttered. “Sorry.”

  “Sorry?” Liam leaned forward, eyes wide. “For what? Nick, do you even know how perfect you are? Aidan said he fell in love with you the moment he saw you.” The admiring look in the mer’s expression dimmed, turning rueful. “And once I’d calmed down, I was horrified that I’d hurt you. You’re everything we ever dreamed of, chuisle.”

  Nick tried to ignore the warmth in his chest at the praise. “So, this Oracle said you were supposed to be mated to a human?”

  “Yes. Luckily that helped me persuade the Elders that we needed to search for our other agapetos. They gave me permission to come on land and look for him—you. But I never found yo
u.”

  “Probably because I was over a thousand miles away.”

  Liam nodded, sitting back. “So far away. We never would have met you. But then you came down here.”

  Barnard’s wound prickled at that. “Did Aidan explain why?”

  The mer turned grim. “He told me what your former lover did. Aidan wants to kill him for that.” His eyes narrowed. “I’m going to help.”

  Nick sighed. “Yeah, no. I don’t want any of you to get in trouble over Barnard. He isn’t worth the jail time.”

  “You’re assuming your human authorities would catch us. I assure you, if we can get him in the ocean no one will ever find the body.”

  “Jesus. Never mind.” He scrubbed at his face. “Forget about Barnard. We need to talk about what happened last night.”

  “Of course.” Liam slid to the floor, kneeling penitently again. “You need to give me my penance.”

  “Yeah, except I’ve never done anything like this before,” Nick said. “I mean, did Aidan tell you ... about me?”

  “Yes.” Liam looked up at him, hazel blue eyes solemn. “I know you prefer to submit. But I harmed you, Nick. I laid hands on you in anger. I deserve to be punished for that. If you can’t bring yourself to do it, I’ll ask Lord Bythos to do it.”

  “No, I don’t want Bythos punishing you,” Nick said, frustrated. “It was a mistake. A big one, yes, but I know why you did it. I can’t blame you for wanting to protect Aidan. If I’d been in your position, I probably would have done the same thing. It’s just—” His pride balked at admitting the big mer scared him more than a little.

  Liam winced, as if hearing his thoughts. “I don’t want you to be afraid of me. I never want that from you.” The regret and desperation in his voice were tangible. “Please, Nick, if you won’t punish me, then tell me what I can do to earn your forgiveness.”

  For the first time in his life, Nick wished he was a switch. That way, he could spank or flog the mer, giving him the relief of punishment and letting him start off again with a clean slate. But I can’t do that—it’s just not who I am. “I forgive you, Liam. But it’s going to take me some time to feel comfortable with you. Can you deal with that?”