by daisy harris
Footsteps sounded in the distance. He pressed himself into a corner behind a filing cabinet. Despite the Central American humidity, his skin began to pucker. The door opened, and he heard David’s tenor. “Is someone there?”
He licked at his rapidly-drying lips, wondering if he could trust the scientist enough to reveal himself. David wandered into the room, and when his knees began buckling, Nereus had no choice.
“It’s me.” He strode out of his hiding place and toward the door. “I have to get back into the lab. I’m shriveling like a jellyfish in the desert here.”
David jumped back a foot and yelped. Apparently he hadn’t really expected anyone. “You scared the shit out of me!”
Nereus couldn’t help the snort that escaped his lips. “You must be the only human on the planet scared of mere-people.” David’s eyebrows drew down, and he frowned. He adjusted his glasses with renewed fervor, but Nereus couldn’t help but rib him. “Save me from the vicious merman!”
David set his shoulders and walked forward, pushing Nereus’s shoulder back. “I wasn’t scared.”
A zing of sensation ran up Nereus’s arm at the contact.
David’s breathing sped up. He moved closer. “Why do you have to go back?”
Nereus’s heart sped up even as his lips continued to dry. “I’m too far from the sea.”
The scientist’s hand reached around to grasp his ass. That warm grip pulled him forward, into a hard ridge and a solid chest. “Ah shit, I’m sorry. I just want you so bad.”
His pulse beat so hard he thought his veins would pop right out of his skin. He was out of his tank and they were alone in the dark. Anything seemed possible. Only the steadying twist of thirst held him back. “I’ve got to get closer to the ocean, now!”
The normally mild-mannered and hesitant researcher grabbed his arm and pulled him out of the office. Dang, he could get used to this new version of David.
They passed through several doors before reaching the front of the building. Night coated the walkways outside, but the human looked all around
Nereus gazed into the dark but saw little. Mere used hearing more that sight anyway. He cocked his head, but only distant snores sounded.
Long fingers stroked up his arm. David’s hand skimmed over the vinyl lab coat and under it, onto Nereus’s bare shoulder. Then that strong grip rose to behind his neck and hauled him into a kiss.
David nipped him just once, and then plunged his tongue inside Nereus’s mouth. The scientist fed like a starving man, the wetness of his saliva soothing his dry membranes. He pulled away as quickly as he’d attacked and shoved open the door.
Nereus stepped through, breathing deep the warmer, more humid air outside, not as satisfying as seaside, but better than climate control. “I have to come back later, though, that little boy…”
The alarms shattered the night.
Chapter 7
Pitbull blared from the speakers. The latest batch of mere whores danced on the white fiberglass surface of the spot-lit deck, long blond hair waving like fucking Ocean-Cruise Barbies. The Sharhazzor’s Edge sat docked at the harbor in St. Tropez, breaking every noise ordinance in the joint. His guys leaned against the cabin or sidewalls and crashed on benches, all stoned out of their minds. Rhoaver held court from his lounge chair.
His gaze alternated between the gyrating mermaids, his badass pecs, and his iPhone. Fuck if he was going any farther north. The Cape Fear would have to pass France eventually. He had plenty of time.
He scanned his Twitter feed, opening his list of dragon contacts. Looked like one of the Fear’s sharks had escaped, and with a hostage nonetheless. Now that was news! He clicked to follow every dragon in the conversation, eventually finding the escaped shark’s name— Raider ShaCrayz.
Hmmm… So it was Crayz’s kid who got free. Interesting. Even more interesting, “Raider” wasn’t a shark-shifter name.
He looked past the crowd of partying sharks and mere, pondering his next step. There were several ways to play this one, and every last one of them would lead to a win.
* * * * Her serpentine body swerved through the water alongside Raider’s. The dragoness’ large head still held its heart shape in her dragon form, which in his experience was unusual. Even odder, her eyes stayed round and gamine, rather than slanting fully like most dragons’. Raider found the differences sexy as hell, though he imagined that a lot of dragons might think her funny-looking.
His shorter, thicker shark form kept pace, eyes darting from side to side to spot an ambush. He growled her direction, gesturing for her to follow, and then led her further south. They needed to go somewhere no one knew either of them, a human area where they could blend in on the docks and no one would wonder why an elegant dragon noble was slumming with a mutant shark. Either that or they needed a boat of their own.
After several hours, she roared plaintively. Damn, he thought dragons were tougher than this! She looked tired, though in her reptile form she couldn’t say as much.
Raider resisted speaking in shark-form as much as possible. His voice came out too much like mere-song.
He’d charted their course along the coastline, but wasn’t sure about them landing in Scotland. He didn’t know the area well, but kicked hard into a promising-looking bay.
The dark green water of a harbor surrounded them. Hulls of tourists’ sailboats pierced the water at odd intervals. Oh, it would be fun to make them scream. With a rasping chuckle, Raider swept under Sophia’s body, trying to push her upward to the water’s surface to play Lock Ness Monster.
She wriggled in panic and clawed at his side. The scales of her underbelly tickled his fin, and as she slid backward along his body, his fin caught at something and she yelped.
He turned to see what happened and found her curling into a ball, her body sinking to the grassy floor of the lake. The most delicious scent filled the water. He circled her, trying to catch her eye to ask wordlessly what was wrong, but she shot off toward land, leaving him confused and alone.
He darted after her, his fin rising close to the surface of the dark water. Her long spiked tail disappeared between a rocky cleft and he followed. Beyond the rocks lay a small cove, secluded and dark in which the water led up to a tiny, crag-enclosed beach.
Sophia had already shifted to human form. He caught a glimpse of her fantastic tits and adorable ass before they slipped under her dress. He shifted to human a second later. His cock bobbed as if asking whether now would be a good time to take payment on his trade.
She swiveled on him, eyebrows lowered in anger. “You hurt me!”
He tried to figure out what could possibly have happened, and then noticed her little human hands crossed over her crotch. “How…?”
“Your fin caught on my vent!” She said it as if he’d done it on purpose.
Raider grabbed his jeans from her outstretched hand and pulled them on, pissed. Of all the ways he could hurt someone in his shark form, he’d never considered accidentally stabbing them in the pussy. “I’m sorry, sweetheart. I don’t know where everything’s located on a dragon.”
Her lips pursed and her eyes narrowed. “Okay. I’ll assume you didn’t do it on purpose—this time!”
“Don’t worry, there won’t be a next time!” His dick shriveled in agreement. He didn’t know why he was so angry. Maybe because he’d been having fun, and he hadn’t in a long time.
“What were you trying to do?” He wasn’t certain, but she seemed sad, hurt, and maybe a little sorry.
“I was trying to scare the tourists.” When her forehead knitted more tightly in confusion, he explained. “Like the Lock Ness Monster. You know, you’re being a sea dragon, and tourists all come to this part of the world because of…Okay, you have no idea what I’m talking about.”
“No, I do know the legend. But why would they be frightened of me? I’m extremely un-threatening.” She bit at her fingernail and looked at her feet.
The expression made him want to reassure her, though wh
y he had no idea. “I’m sure you can be very scary, especially to a human.”
Her chest puffed up as she gave a huff of indignation. “Everything scares humans! They don’t count!”
Raider pulled his poncho over his head, tired of shivering in the cold and arguing with this female. “You have to start somewhere, Sophia. If you’re too embarrassed to scare the piss out of a human, you’re not going to be able to stand up to anyone else.”
He grabbed the dry-bag out of her grip and shoved his hand to the bottom to locate her shoes. “If we’re going to walk out of here to get supplies, we’d better start now.” The dark would affect Raider less than the dragoness since his built-in sonar worked day or night. But he didn’t know about dragon night vision. He headed toward the rocks, searching for a seam through which to hike out.
He turned to find Sophia still rooted to her spot on the beach. “Let’s go back.” Her voice held a determined edge. He returned, coming to a stop right behind her. “I want to try it.”
“What?”
“To scare them. It’s getting dark, how badly could I humiliate myself?”
He took a few more steps, rounding to her front and allowed his smile to widen and his teeth to grow just a bit more pointed.
* * * * Sophia swerved by the edge of the sailboat, rolling broad waves across its side. She heard shouts as the Bayliner’s occupants, a middle-aged couple, rushed out of the cabin and leaned over the edge of the sidewall. Raider swept between her and the hull, urging her away. Of course, slow build up, that’s what he’d taught her. She swam a few hidden circles, to let the retirees gather on their deck and then kicked hard for the bottom of the lake, pointing her head and foretalons to the floor. When she reached the grassy mud, she pushed off with her front, then her hind legs. Her body launched to the surface, breaking through the membrane of water and into the cool night sky for a split second before diving back into the waves. Screams erupted, not just from that one boat but from vessels at all ends of the lake.
Shock and excitement lit a sparkler inside her body and she could barely hold still. Her hips snapped like a firecracker, and she flew through the water, circling the lake partway before dashing back to her and Raider’s cove. The shark fell behind at some point, but as she pulled her dragon body out of the water and shifted to human, he appeared, his fin rising out of the water before a human body rose, first head, then wide shoulders, then arms and waist, then…
Her chest felt like a popcorn popper, and her throat went dry. “That was fantastic!” Her voice sounded breathy, hoarse. And the look in his eyes stole the air from her lungs.
He stalked toward her, tiny explosions inside her becoming more frequent. Suddenly she became very aware of her nakedness and how cold the night air felt on her wet skin. She yearned to press up against the crisp hair trailing down his body and bask in his heat.
Raider didn’t stop until he was much too close, and then he grabbed her shoulders and crushed her breasts against his chest. His one hand hooked behind her neck and tangled in her hair, dragging her mouth to his. The other hand took her breast in a rough hold, twisting the peaked nipple between two calloused fingers.
She gasped, and a thick tongue speared into her mouth, licking her along the palate until he took her top lip between his teeth and bit. His fingers plunged past her ribcage and down to her hip, then took hold of one side of her bottom and squeezed hard. He molded the flesh, pulling her tight against him, his engorged sex organ a searing imprint at her belly.
His tongue spread her lips again as he stroked hard once, urging her mouth wider. Digits reached into the cleft of her rear and lower. A panicked squeak left her lips.
He broke away. His muscles jumped and bulged with strain. He strode to where the dry bag hung on a rock wall and pulled out his pants. “Um…yeah, sorry about that. You’re okay, right?”
The excited thumping in her chest hardened, slowed. Mercy, if he was rejecting her too…Tears welled up. This was ridiculous. Was it too much to ask that a shark-shifter who probably hadn’t seen a female in years would find her attractive?
He walked to where she stood and held out her dress. “Listen, I didn’t mean to…”
“What is so wrong with me?” She knew it was pouty and pathetic to ask, but here in this little beach, she couldn’t stop the words from escaping.
His head pulled back as his eyes shot wide with fear. Clearly, the idea of being exposed to her feelings terrified him. “I’m not sure what you’re asking me.”
She snatched the dress from his grasp and hastily pulled it over her head. “Nothing. I’m not asking you anything.” She pulled on one, then another sock, then her boots and stood up, testing the tread on the sand. She started walking toward the rocks when his thick fingers wrapped around her arm. “Tell me why you’re mad at me. I didn’t think I hurt you just then. I stopped myself.”
She pulled her arm away from his grasp, exasperated. “Yes, I know. But why? You seem to be attracted enough to me!” Sophia held her eyes determinedly at his face, making sure not to scan lower to check.
He grabbed her hand and pressed it, open palmed, onto the heavy stalk bowing forward in his jeans. “What do you think?”
Something at the base of her body melted, but his fierce gaze stopped her from leaning into him.
“But why do you even care if I want you? I’m just a monster you’re using to lure your hero.” He threw her hand back, and she clutched it to her chest. His footsteps sounded between the rocky crags, and with a strange emptiness in her heart, she swung her dry bag over her shoulder and followed.
* * * * Adrenaline spiked at the blare of the siren. David tugged the labcoat wearing merman through the door and down the long driveway leading from the main building behind the staff housing. He heard Nereus curse as his soles met gravel. Without shoes and not spending much time on legs the guy’s feet must be killing him.
“I’ve got to go back!” Nereus rasped as he pulled his arm from David’s grasp.
“Shit no. You’re getting out of here.” He didn’t know where this
sudden certainty came from, but he wrapped his fingers around the
merman’s arm again, urging him into the passenger side of his ragtop
Jeep Cherokee.
Shouts carried over the paved sidewalks, but as David started the
engine and curved into a small trail in the foliage, the trees muffled
the voices. The Jeep bounced over roots and through mud. “Where the fuck do you think you’re going?”
To be honest, David didn’t quite know. He’d barely explored
further than the surrounding chicken grills and sundry stores, and he
had no idea where this little trail he’d seen staff walk down to smoke
cigarettes led. “Can you tell which way to water?” he shouted over the
noise of the engine.
“Of course! Can’t everyone?” The jeep launched over a
particularly thick branch and almost sent both of them flying. For some reason, Nereus’s comment struck David as hilarious.
“No—human, remember.” He swerved to a grinding halt when they
reached a chain link fence. “Fuck me!”
The merman slammed a hand on the dash. “I have to go back. I’ll
die.”
David started the engine again and pulled Nereus to him, kissing
his mouth hard. “Put on your fucking seatbelt.”
They shot forward, and David drove along the inside of the fence.
With any luck, security had followed them far enough into the forest
that they couldn’t easily get to the main exit. The vehicle jostled them
into the fence, then into the foliage, but David punched the gas at
every ditch.
Finally the main gate approached. No guard stood at the entryway,
but it was locked. David rifled through his pockets, hoping that for
once in his life he hadn’t lost his key
card. His fingers landed on the
hard plastic rectangle.
He reached out the window and swept it through the reader and
the metal bars started pulling open automatically. He sped through the
doors and out into the street beyond.
His blood thundered in his veins. Panic started to creep in. What
the hell had he just done? Nereus squeezed his hand. “So what’s the
plan? Drive through the streets of Panama City with a dehydrating
mere in a lab coat?”
David’s hysterical laughter bubbled up. Nerves made his head feel
like it was being crushed in a vice. Everything seemed surreal. He
shoved back the druggy feeling of adrenaline withdrawal and tried to
think clearly. “We need to get you to water, the most direct way
possible. Do you think they’ll send the police?”
Nereus seemed to note the hysterical edge to his voice, because
long pale fingers stroked down his arm, calming him. “Yeah,
probably. I think they’ve paid off the local cops. But I doubt law
enforcement around here is terribly fast.” Nereus laid his head back
against the seat, starting to fade.
David swung the Jeep toward the city lights. DORC perched up in
the hills, so he had a good view of the harbor. “Hey, baby. Once we
get into town I need you to point me in the right direction, okay?” A thick voice spoke from beside him. “Did you just call me
baby?”
David snorted. “Yeah, I guess I did.” He thought his passenger
might tease him for the term of endearment. When no snappy
comeback was forthcoming, David urged, “Hey, heads up. I need you
conscious.”
“Don’t need to use my eyes to find water. Opening dehydrates
faster. Same with mouth.” His slurred speech stopped.