Watchtowers : Water

by Lucynda Storey

  The chirping of insects, the songs of the birds, and other natural noises were siphoned out of her awareness. There was only Zion and the marvelous sensations he sent throughout her body. He backed her against a tree, cushioning her skin with his muscular forearms.

  His voice sounded anxious, as if some monumental decision were about to be made. “Keely, I have to know. If I make love to you now, will there be a future for us?”

  She placed a finger on his lips, traced the outline of his sexy mouth. “How can I know?” she whispered. Her concerns mirrored his. “I’m a land dweller. You’re a sea god not meant to be here.”

  Zion’s hand swept over the swell of her breast. Keely’s nipple pebbled at the light touch. He knew how to make her body sing with sensual thrumming. Frantic, she begged her mind to find a solution to the problem of their two worlds. “I know you want, need an answer from me. But, how can we be together when you can’t be on land for more than a day or two at a time?”

  His smile lit not only his face but the space between us. “You have gills.”

  She gulped. A blast of happiness jolted through her being. She’d forgotten temporarily about the implants that saved her life such a short time ago. Keely could live with him in his undersea world.

  Then came the harsh reality. The rocket of joy she’d just experienced crashed like a meteorite. Did Keely want to? Living with Zion beneath the Atlantic would mean giving up everything important to her. The Castle, Ireland, her research. Mentally, she ticked through each item on her very short, yet important list.

  The Castle had to come down. The tsunami had destroyed far too much for it to be properly repaired. Keely had no home.

  Ireland. She would miss Eire, the green of the grasses, the gently rolling hills, the pretences of the old ways. Was it really enough to hold her, though? Countless men and women through the ages had gone with the one they loved to new horizons, making a home in a strange land. No. Ireland wasn’t really enough alone to keep her on dry ground, she concluded.

  That left only her research to consider. Did she want to know the secret of her communications with the dolphins? The search had been the focus of her adult life. Were those same studies worth the risk of losing Zion, potentially forever?

  Keely heaved a heavy sigh. She would be giving up so much and knew there was no way Zion could stay topside.

  At that moment, he touched her again. The pad of his thumb grazed her cheek and his hand continued the gentle movement, sweeping over her shoulder and down her arm until he grasped her hand within his.

  The look in his eyes pleaded with Keely to put him out of his misery soon with an answer. “You won’t have to give up your studies, Keely. We can come back when we need to in order for you to publish your findings and do the academia things you need to do.”

  She glanced down to where his fingers were entwined with hers. The heat felt as if their hands were being fused together. It was in that moment Keely made her decision.

  Pursuing her dolphin research for pleasure could be accomplished in Atlantis. She didn’t want to share the findings with the world to see them abused as Amidurah had planned. Keely met his gaze with a certainty she’d rarely experienced. The burden she’d carried since her visit to Atlantis dissipated into thin air.

  “Make love to me, Zion.”

  The attack of his lips on hers buckled her legs. With an easy sweep of his arms, Zion picked up the remnants of her gown, and then lifted and cradled her next to his chest. The firm plains of his pectoral muscles, tipped by the hardened tips of his nipples begged her to touch them. Tipping her head she laved the nearest peak with her tongue, enjoying the rough intake of air whooshing into Zion’s lungs.

  With a groan, he carried her off the path, tossed the golden material onto the grass and reverently laid her upon the makeshift blanket. “Is this what you truly want, Keely? A life with me?”

  The moment of her verbal commitment arrived. “I have no life without you.”

  She resumed toying with his extended nipples, teasing the tiny hard buds with gentle pinches.

  Zion rolled her into his arms, wrapping her tightly against him. She inhaled deeply and sighed. In his arms she saw the faint traces of a future outside Ireland. With a flick of her tongue, she tasted the salt of his skin. Keely wriggled against his tight hold to kiss his shoulder and bit his neck with teeny nips. His hold lessened.

  She slid further up his body, finally able to tug on his earlobe with her teeth. His erection grazed her belly, begging to be sheathed within her. Zion’s hand closed around her breast, his fingers brushing lightly against her nipple sending torturous longing spiraling through her body.

  The sensual shudder shot straight through her and into her heart. He knew how to touch her, make her feel the need to be united with him. The response of her body threatened to overtake her mind. Zion made sure this was her decision. He’d already arrived at his, doubtful of her previous response. Stroking his face and looking into his eyes, Keely saw without a doubt the intensity of his love for her. “I want a life with you.”

  The sureness of her words encouraged her further. Brazenness overcame her, blotting out the thoughts she tried to put together. With a final tug on his ear, she pushed away from Zion and sat up.

  “What are you doing?” he groaned.

  She looked at the handiwork she was responsible for encouraging and grinned. Slipping lower, Keely wrapped her hand around his erection. The soft skin under her fingers belied the strength of his desire. She smiled and bent her head to take him into her mouth.

  Zion shifted his hips to the side. “Oh, no you don’t vixen.”

  With a pout, she lifted her gaze to Zion. “I want to pleasure you.”

  “And I you.”

  Sitting back on his thighs she thought a moment, attempting to keep the levity from her voice. “This could be a stalemate.”

  “I’ll not give up my wish to bring you oral pleasure.”

  Keely slid her hand down his shaft, a squeezing caress. “I suggest a compromise.”

  “What would that be,” he groaned.

  She spun around, her knees by his waist and faced his toes. She giggled. “You have such―”

  The words never made it out of her mouth. Zion grasped her waist and dragged her intimate places flush with his lips. When his tongue caressed her clitoris, Keely moaned.

  “You don’t fight fair.” For a moment she allowed his kisses, licks and nibbles to go unchecked. He tongued her as if he’d been starving, her body providing the substance he needed. Keely returned her attention to his magnificent cock, sucking the head between her lips. He filled her mouth.

  Keely moaned as he drove his tongue into her slit.

  “Neither do you.”

  With her palm she continued to stroke up and down his length, and she pulled away with a moan before licking the underside of his shaft and continuing to the lightly furred balls at the base. Languidly, she licked a testicle, feeling it move away from her lips. She opened her mouth wider and slowly sucked the orb into her mouth. Zion’s groan reverberated through her swollen nether lips.

  Instinctively, she pushed back against his face, releasing the hold she had on his testicle. Pleasure raced from her core in flashes of heat, Zion knew how to play her erogenous zones to perfection. One of his hands stroked her bottom, grazing the sensitive seam between her buttocks. The sensations scorching her flesh continued building. It wouldn’t take much to send her over the edge of passion. She wouldn’t go there without her man.

  Carefully, she shifted away from his lips.

  “I’m not done.” Passion roughened his husky voice.

  “Neither am I.” Without hesitation, she repositioned herself so she was able to look him in the eyes. Entwining her fingers around his, Keely lowered herself onto his cock. The thick shaft filled her completely. She didn’t move, letting her body moisten and adjust to his girth. Within her tight sheath she felt him stir.

  Leaning over Zion’s chest she ki
ssed him. Her tongue laved the edges of his lips, demanding to be let in to the warmth. Anticipation coiled through her when he sucked her into the hot cavern of his mouth. His hips bucked up, his length brushing against the mass of nerves within.

  Gently she pulled away from his kiss. “I need you.”

  Her words, barely a breathy moan, voiced the facts she’d accepted in her heart long ago. “I love you, Zion.”

  “I love you Keely. Never doubt it for a moment.” He withdrew his length before plunging into her core again.

  The give and take, push and pull of their coupling renewed the trembling of her sex. Her hair flew over her shoulders into her face, into Zion’s. Powerful thrusts brought her closer to the peak of pleasure she stood at moments ago. Their bodies sang together, the rhythm of their joining in a tandem unlike any they’d had before. When he caressed the puckered opening of her anus, her world began to fly apart. Faster, tighter she lifted and squeezed.

  He pushed harder, deeper into her and she sank down on him, tightening around his rod. When he reached between them and caressed her swollen clit with his thumb she could hold on no longer. A scream of pleasure tore from her throat and she gave herself over to the glory of his lovemaking. Zion’s grunt of satisfaction mingled with her cries of pleasure and together they soared into a world all their own.

  *****

  They descended the cliff stairs, still unrepaired from the damage wrought by the tsunami. Zion carried the urns holding her parents’ ashes as if they were the most priceless object in the universe.

  Keely had been grateful when he offered to go with her to the mortician’s office to retrieve the remains. He hadn’t balked when she told him she wanted to sprinkle some of the ashes on the waves of the ocean and then return the urns to her cove.

  She walked across the beach toward her moored boat stronger than she’d been in years. Zion had a lot to do with it, but so had her confrontation with Amidurah. Life had a focus now that wasn’t solely inward.

  She climbed aboard and reached down to take the urns from Zion’s hands. The rose and greens of the cloisonné pottery reflected a gentle cushioning for the memory she held of her parents. No, they hadn’t been perfect, but they had loved her to the best of their abilities. More importantly, her father had loved her mother unwaveringly.

  That was how she wanted to love Zion. It would be difficult, the days ahead. Zion still needed to reconcile with his own father. Amidurah wasn’t dead, just missing. Then there was the trip to Spain they needed to make with Jade and Raiden.

  After contacting Thane Denton, he’d asked her to look for other Watchtowers. Keely recalled the conversation.

  “There are at least two others,” Denton announced.

  “Two?”

  “Have to be. There have been an abnormal number of earthquakes and devastating large-scale fires since you shut him down. Those activities represent the last of the major elements of the ancients.”

  Zion had once said something about the elements, too. Both men had their own unique insight into Amidurah that led to the same conclusion.

  “Keely, I think the other two are women.”

  “Women? Why? Because Jade and I are female?”

  “Yes.”

  Denton had said it so bluntly it had taken her a moment to respond.

  “I don’t think so, Denton. I couldn’t have defeated Amidurah without Zion. Jade and Raiden had a similar experience. We’re looking for four people.”

  Zion climbed on board and took an urn from her. He wrapped an arm around her shoulder and held her close.

  Keely leaned into him, relishing the support he lent her. Her nostrils filled with his fresh scent, her body warmed from contact with his. A sigh escaped her lips and she wrapped her free arm around his waist. She’d never get tired of this feeling of wholeness she had when they were together.

  “Come on big guy,” she whispered, and then she led him up the fly bridge to the helm station, where she putt the vessel into gear and to lead them to their rendezvous with Jade and Raiden.

  Epilogue

  Keely glanced at the faded grey structure. The old bar certainly had the appearance of a business that survived on the edge of profitability. A step above seedy, it hardly seemed the sort of establishment to house another Watchtower. She had her degree in marine biology with an emphasis on Rossi’s dolphins. Jade was a university professor. They were women of books and education. Not working at a bar on the edge of anything resembling civilization. Wouldn’t the other Watchtowers, if they existed be similar?

  Then she thought of Zion and Raiden. They were literally worlds apart in temperament, background, and attitude. Domnu only knew what they’d really find here, in this forsaken section of coastal Spain.

  A warm hand on her back bolstered her confidence. Zion knew just when to touch her and give her the extra strength she needed to face uncertain and unpleasant events. Seeking out the other Watchtowers pushed Keely beyond her comfort zone and she’d been pushed plenty lately. She leaned into Zion’s hand, drawing on the power he lent her. They had to do this. If this woman Thane sent them after was truly another Watchtower, they owed it to her to give her as much help as she’d accept.

  She glanced around one more time. Everything in this little village had a colorless appearance, almost as if the buildings were trying to fade into the pale brown earth. Keely gasped. She realized why the woman was here. The woman they were sent after was hiding, knew she had special abilities that set her apart.

  Near her ear, so low she strained to hear it, Zion spoke. “Are you okay?”

  Keely nodded. The tight ball her stomach had churned into loosened. On the transport, Keely and Jade talked of their own fears, how they faced them with the men at their sides. “She’s afraid. She knows what she can do and she’s hiding.”

  The door of the bar slid open with their approach. She followed Jade and Raiden through the doorway, with Zion behind her. The scent of smokeless tobacco and alcohol rushed through the open doorway. The bar was busy and many patrons sat staring at a media screen. Threading their way through the crowd, Raiden led them to a table near a back corner. Keely sat in the crook, two walls near her back. Jade sat on one side of her, while Zion sat on the other. Raiden occupied the fourth seat. Domnu, let us look like two couples enjoying one another’s company and a drink.

  “Is she here?” Jade whispered.

  Raiden nodded. “I feel power here, a lot of it.”

  A waitress, weaving her way through the crowd, approached and the men ordered ales. “House red,” Keely requested.

  Jade reached out and patted Keely’s hand. “Same for me.”

  “What if she doesn’t listen?” Keely remembered her own stubbornness at welcoming Jade and Raiden into her life.

  “We’ll do what we can, and eventually look for the other Watchtower. You threw us off your beach, if you remember.” Raiden frowned. “I wasn’t sure if you knew how to use that Sig or not, but I wasn’t going to push you and find out either.”

  The waitress returned with their drinks, setting them on clear, plastic coasters. Zion threw some sort of currency onto the round tray and the woman smiled. “Let me know when you’re ready for another round.” She winked. “Or anything else.”

  Shock flashed through Keely, but before she could snappily reply, “He has what he needs already,” Zion used the opportunity handed him.

  “Actually, you could help us. We’re looking for Opal Wolfe. She is the proprietor, right?”

  The stocky woman looked them all over. With a quick, edgy glance over her shoulder, the waitress inadvertently indicated just who Opal was. Keely noticed Opal at the bar talking with an attractive man. He appeared as out of place in this bar as she was sure they did.

  Zion continued. “I can see you’re busy tonight. When you have a chance, would you have Opal stop by our table?”

  The waitress nodded and headed directly to the bar.

  Keely swirled the wine glass by the stem between her
fingers. Afraid her nervousness would give her away before they had a chance to really talk with Opal, she quaffed a large portion of the wine, letter the fruity alcohol burn down her throat. The drink hit her stomach like a lead fishing weight.

  The scrape of chair legs rasped in the noise filled room like the beginnings of an earthquake. Zion snaked an arm around her shoulders and nuzzled her neck. “It’s okay; everything is going to be fine.”

  She leaned into him again for strength and reassurance. She glanced at Jade. Raiden, too, had secreted her in the curve of his arm. Keely sighed. Everything would be okay.

  The confidence lasted a mere millisecond. Striding toward them Keely spotted Opal. Swallowing her anxiety, Keely went on the offensive. “Opal Wolfe?”

  Momentarily, Opal appeared stunned. Quickly, she recovered her aloof aura and pulled out a chair. “Who would you be?”

  “Friends,” Keely responded, trying to get the conversation steered in the right direction.

  “Really.”

  Uh oh. This wasn’t boding well. She made introductions in a rush. “Jade. Raiden and Zion.”

  “Well, now that we all know each other...”

  Keely smiled. Any time now, one of the others could jump in. She wouldn’t mind at all. Nothing. No one volunteered. She took a deep breath. “Are you familiar with the EPA?”

  Slowly, as if the words were being mined from some dark recess of her being, Opal replied. “I am.”

  “Then you’ve heard―”

  How about we just skip ahead to you telling me what they have to do with you four or me for that matter?”

  Keely was about to explain when Zion intervened. “We have reason to believe that you can control fire.”

  “Do you still believe in Santa Claus, too?” Opal looked around the table. “I really don’t have time for this.”

  “We know about the fire in your school,” Jade said patiently. “We know about you Opal, what you can do, and we’re not the only ones.”