Come, go with me

by Belinda McBride

  “I didn’t take it all the way.” He hung his head in shame.

  “Small comfort to Riley. Do you know he shifts a little? Sometimes when he’s happy, the years fall away. He’s got women chasing him all the time, all ages. He has no clue why.” She looked at Kai, her gaze steady. “He doesn’t notice men, not even that tiger shifter that Coco hooked up with, and that guy… whew!” She waved her face, and then switched back to her serious mode. “You realize that if he accidently made a child over the years…”

  “It could inherit our gifts.” Damnation. He hadn’t thought of that. And given the nature of Riley’s life, the mother would be long gone; the child would be completely unaware of its true nature.

  He took a deep breath. “I don’t know what to do, Kimber.”

  “Fix it.” She folded her arms, glaring at him.

  “I don’t know how.”

  She walked up to him, grasping his arms in a surprisingly powerful grip. “You can only go forward and seal the deal, or backward and undo it. And since I can’t turn back time --”

  “I can’t either.” He shut his eyes tightly. There was one person who could. “I have to give him the choice, don’t I?”

  Kimber didn’t answer. That told him what he needed to know.

  Chapter Six

  In the darkness, the neon sign beckoned. Riley looked up and down the street; nothing was different except the Final Cut. It was sandwiched between the bookstore and the beauty shop, just as it had been earlier. Thunder rumbled in the distance and fat raindrops began to patter on the pavement. Riley reached out, clasped the brass handle and pulled.

  Tonight, it was crowded and noisy. Music played over the sound of the televisions and several people were up dancing. The energy in the room was high, causing the hair on his arms to prickle. He caught sight of a familiar face. Genie. She smiled and nodded in his direction, then turned her focus back to the pair of men at her table. He’d really like to know what her story was.

  Opting against a table, he headed for a small booth toward the back of the room, settling against the soft leather padding. In just seconds, a waitress came. This one had breasts and her beauty was a bit more tolerable. He smiled at her and ordered his beer. Riley then watched the crowd in fascination.

  They weren’t normal people. He reached up, rubbing the bruise on his shoulder. He wasn’t normal either. After dinner with Kimber, he’d returned to the shop, catching up on a bit of paperwork. He’d gone to the bathroom and washed up; when he gazed in the mirror, an eighteen-year-old version of Dave Riley looked back at him.

  He hadn’t even been surprised. He’d faded back to normal and then closed his eyes, focusing on the sensation of smooth skin and a powerful, agile body. He opened his eyes and watched as the younger version returned. The stiffness in his knuckles and knees had come on so slowly over the years that he hadn’t even been aware of it. In that moment of change, it had melted away like an illusion.

  Now, sitting here at the Final Cut, he was himself, whatever that might be.

  As he knew it would, the air around him went heavy and damp, and he imagined that he smelled ozone from the far-off lightning. He glanced up to see Kai standing, just yards away. Their gazes met and did not break. He nodded and Kai slid into the seat opposite him.

  They did not speak.

  Riley wondered if storms always traveled in Kai’s wake, or if they came and went with his mood. Right now he was unhappy, and it showed on his face like a bank of storm clouds. At the same time, his green eyes were full of pain.

  He didn’t know what to say. He simply stared at the man who’d occupied so much of his heart for so very long. Kai didn’t appear as Riley would have expected. He was young, but not the teenage boy he remembered. He was taller by nearly a hand span; his shoulders were massive. His white linen shirt hung open to his chest, offering a glimpse of smooth brown muscle packed onto his torso. His hair was long, brown, and tied away from his face. No doubt corkscrew curls cascaded down his back.

  Kai was beautiful, frightening, and the most welcome sight he’d ever seen.

  “Riley. I’m so sorry.” His voice was deep and husky with emotion. His accent was slight, sounding of the islands. He wasn’t Hawaiian, nor was he Samoan or Tahitian. He was all of that, yet unique. “I’m so very, very glad to see you again.”

  Without speaking, Riley stood up, left a bill on the table and walked away, knowing the other man would follow. He passed the main door, heading for the rear access. Following the dim green of the exit sign, he opened the door out onto a wooden dock. As he’d expected, it floated on a saltwater canal. Kai moved almost silently, but he knew the other man followed when he heard the creak of wood. Kinda weird that a dude his size could move so quietly.

  He turned and stared at Kai.

  The other man stood motionless, waiting. His expression was apprehensive; it looked odd on that regal, arrogant face. Riley moved toward him, pushing him into a shallow alcove by the wall, pinning his body in place. They froze like that, hip to hip, chest to chest. Kai was taller, but the difference wasn’t so much that he couldn’t look him in the eye, pull him down for a fierce, angry kiss. He dug his fingers into Kai’s hair, feeling the curls coil around his hand as though they were alive. He forced his tongue into the other man’s mouth, let his teeth click and scrape against tender skin. When Kai broke away and tried to speak, Riley kissed him again.

  After that, all thought fled and Riley was a creature ruled by his body. His cock hardened and throbbed, his balls ached, his heart slammed against his ribcage. Pulling at the white shirt, he bared Kai’s chest, hands roaming, and then he lowered his head, mouthing the man’s pebbled, erect nipple. When Kai touched him, he grabbed his hands, holding them out of the way.

  This was for Riley. This was for all the years of memory. He’d been a boy then, and willing to let Kai lead, but now he was a man. He needed to assert himself on this flesh and blood version of that dream. He jerked open Kai’s loose pants, working them down over his hips.

  Like the rest of him, his lower assets were beautiful. His cock was thick and meaty, his balls swung heavily. Black hair curled tightly at his groin. His loins were lean and defined; supple, toned muscle ran down his thighs. He shoved Kai around simply to look at his ass. It was magnificent. Riley bent down, nipped the taut skin of one buttock, reached out, and gently cradled his balls. He smiled as a moan broke from the big man. It was as deep and resonant as thunder.

  The sound reverberated through Riley and he reached around, clasping Kai’s cock. It was hard as a rod, yet soft as velvet. He leaked from the tip and shuddered as Riley pumped him. This wasn’t going to be romantic. It wasn’t going to be pretty. Riley dropped his shorts and shoved his shaft between Kai’s massive legs, striking his balls as he thrust. He pulled back, and pumped forward again. Once he caught Riley’s intention, Kai tightened his thighs, creating a warm, tight passage for Riley’s cock.

  Every stroke nudged past the larger man’s balls, and Riley pumped his shaft, hand fucking him in time to the rhythm of his hips. Kai leaned against the wall, one hand reaching back to rest on Riley’s leg.

  “Riley… need you…” Kai moaned. In answer, Riley pressed himself into Kai’s back, his chin on his massive shoulder. He wrapped his free arm around Kai’s waist, pulling them together as close as humanly possible.

  They fucked like that forever, but not nearly long enough. Sweat slicked their bodies, even as fluids seeped from their cocks. They were silent, only their panting breath and the slap of skin breaking the silence. Somewhere in the distance, lightning illuminated the sky. It felt like lightning was spearing through his body. Riley’s body went taut; he thrust once, twice, and felt the spill of Kai’s seed over his hand. As though that was his signal, he came. Pulses of semen jetted from his body, smearing slick and warm between Kai’s powerful thighs.

  As his body wrung itself out, he looked up at the sky, losing himself in the vista of roiling clouds directly above them. They flashed
purple and green and white. Kai gave one final gasp and a jagged bolt broke from the cloud, striking and arcing, leaping from roof to boat to building in a crazy electrical dance.

  Kai went limp in his arms, sagging against the wall, carrying Riley with him. They panted and huffed, both sweaty and drained. Kai twisted and reluctantly, Riley leaned back, only to find himself pulled forward into a pair of powerful arms.

  “How I’ve searched for you! How I’ve longed for you, Dave Riley,” Kai murmured into his hair. “Now that I’ve found you, it won’t be so easy for you to slip away again.”

  Riley thought about pulling back and arguing. It had been Kai who’d vanished, right into the depths of the sea. But it felt good where he was. All the emptiness within was filled. “Did you make that lightning dance around the canal?”

  Kai chuckled. “I was a little excited. Couldn’t hold back.”

  Riley sighed and relaxed a bit more. His shorts were still around his ankles, but he didn’t really care. Besides, his shirt probably covered his ass.

  Like a child, he buried his face against Kai’s broad chest, overwhelmed by the entire day. It felt so damned good to be held. “What are you?”

  “There isn’t really an answer for that question.”

  Finally, Riley looked up at him. “Who are you, then?”

  “I’m Kai. I’m a descendant of Maui.”

  He pronounced it differently than the name of the island, and Riley scrambled through his memory of mythology. “Maui the Trickster? The Hawaiian god?”

  Kai gave a small, lopsided smile. “Most of Polynesia has stories about Maui, though he’s never limited himself to the South Pacific. But yes, I’m a grandchild of the Trickster.”

  “That makes you a demi-god.” Riley pushed back from Kai, staring at him in disbelief. He looked human, though clearly he had some influence over the elements. “You knocked me off my board today.” He glared at the big man who still held him tightly. “And you bit me!”

  “I might have been a little overexcited.” Kai grinned sheepishly, but his smile quickly fled. “My grandfather is secure in his belief that we are divine. I personally believe we are a bit more mundane. Though I admit our abilities are a bit more extensive than those possessed by the average shifter.”

  “You really aren’t a merman then.”

  Kai smiled gently. “No, I’m not a merman. Though I do have fun with the drunken fishermen. They tend to react strongly when they see my tail.” His smile faded. “I can be a bird or even a dolphin, anything the ocean might give life to. I cannot follow a human onto dry land. Not far, anyway. All those years ago, your boat vanished into the storm. I found the Melody at a dock in Miami, but never found you again. And then I lost even the boat.”

  “It capsized. My father… my father was alone, moving the boat to a hurricane hole. The storm caught him and he went down with the boat. They never recovered the Melody.”

  “I’m so sorry.” He didn’t argue when Riley pulled away, dragging his shorts back up his hips. Kai pulled his pants back on but left the shirt hanging open. “Come over here.” He pulled Riley to the edge of the dock and they sat, feet dangling in the high tide.

  The water was cool around Riley’s ankles, tugging at his flip-flops. He had an overwhelming urge to slip in; to let it carry him where it would. He was still sticky with sweat and semen.

  “What did you do to me?”

  Kai sighed and kicked at the water. He didn’t look at Riley. “I began to… convert you.”

  “Convert me? Like… to your religion? Or to metric?” Riley felt the stiff smile on his face. Suddenly, the kaleidoscope of emotion began to slow down, focusing on fear and apprehension. Anger joined the mix as well.

  “No. Not a religious thing.” Kai didn’t laugh at the crappy joke. He licked his lips. “Back then, I was rash and impulsive. I started something… I thought you were my soul mate. I didn’t think about what you might want or need. I took you in the water. We both climaxed… an offering to the ocean. I took you down deep and you breathed through me. The storm that pulled you from my arms was Grandfather Maui stopping what I should never have started in the first place.” He gazed sadly at Riley. “I began a ritual mating. That night was the first step in creating a bond between us, one that linked your life to mine. It also began to alter your body. That’s why you didn’t age.”

  Riley shook his head, as though he could throw off the confusion. “I did age. I’m nearly fifty, have the wrinkles to prove it!”

  Kai then did something… impossible. He gestured to the water and a spout sprayed upward, settling into a shimmering, solid looking sheet. One more flick of the hand caused the darkness to fall away, just in the space around Riley’s head and shoulders.

  “Look.”

  It was a mirror fashioned of seawater, illuminated by lightning. He swallowed, more than a little frightened of the creature that claimed to be his soul mate. Slowly, he gazed at his reflection, completely unsurprised to see a young man. Not the eighteen-year-old youth, but a man in his prime. His blond hair was golden and gleaming; his blue eyes were the color of the sea. His skin was tanned and smooth. Looking down, he saw the firm muscle and powerful build of his body. He hadn’t looked this way for years. No, that wasn’t correct. He’d never looked like this… glowing and otherworldly, a bit more like that magical waiter than a human.

  “This isn’t right, Kai.” He blinked rapidly. He’d put in his years. He’d been a good person, built a business and did his best for the people around him. He’d earned the right to grow old. At the same time, the joy of youth and health coursed through him. He loved it… and he hated it. “Your grandfather stopped you before. But you started it again. Today.”

  If the situation wasn’t so dire, he’d laugh at the guilty look on Kai’s striking face. “I, uh, suppose I never outgrew being rash and thoughtless,” Kai said.

  “Ya think?” The seawater mirror slipped back into the canal, and the light slowly faded, leaving them in the darkness. Yet Riley could see. “Can it be undone?”

  “I had hoped…” Kai broke off. “Yes. My grandfather can sever the tie. It will be painful. Worse than before.”

  “I searched for you for years. Decades.” Riley straightened, getting ready to stand. “I never fell in love after you. Every time I thought maybe I’d met someone special, my very soul grieved for you. Now you’re telling me it’ll be worse? Fuck, Kai!”

  The other man grabbed his shoulder, holding him in place. “He can sever it completely, Riley. But you will lose your memories of me, of all that happened between us.” He looked away and bowed his head.

  “What about you?” If he’d been bound to Kai, then surely he’d have the same need for Riley. If he spoke the truth, he’d been searching for years.

  Kai met his gaze. “I will not forget.” He turned to face Riley, stroking his face. “But you can choose otherwise, Riley. You can choose a future with me, as my lover and soul mate. We will live however, wherever you wish. We can have a boat and sail the world. Or we can live here and sell surfboards. Anything, Riley. I will do anything for you.”

  “But it’s forever.” He shook his head. Staying young had its appeal, but immortality?

  “Nothing is forever, Riley.”

  He sighed. “How old are you, Kai? Do you even know? How many lifetimes have you spanned?”

  The demi-god didn’t answer.

  “You were young when we met; was that your real face, or did you wear that face to seduce me?”

  “That was my face when I was with you. I didn’t… manufacture it to deceive you.”

  Riley was liking this less and less. He stood with more agility than he’d had in years. “I can’t choose to spend my entire future with you based on a year back when I was a kid.”

  Kai swallowed. He nodded. “But you loved me. As I loved… love you.” He glanced up at Riley. It was so hard seeing the hope slowly fading in that sea green gaze, but Riley didn’t look away.

  “I need y
ou. I want you like nothing I’ve ever felt before.” It was true. Even now, his cock was hardening. He wanted to take the man back to his home, to take him into his bed and stay there forever. “Maybe I loved you then. I don’t know you now.”

  The hope died. “Come, go with me, Riley. Give me a week… a day. Come to the ocean with me. See my world.”

  Riley felt the weight of despair crushing his heart. He wanted to accept, yet needed to refuse. “I’m human, Kai. I wasn’t meant to live forever. I wish it could be that way. I wish the two of us could sail away together. I wish that year on the Melody had been forever. I wish things could be right for us.” He paused and cleared his throat. It was tight and painful. “You’re the grandson of a god. If he’s the only one who can make this right, that’s what has to happen.”

  “Riley.” Kai started toward him, hand outstretched. He then pulled back, clenching his hand into a fist. “If that is what you want, that is what must be.” He watched Riley for a long moment. “I will always love you, Riley. I will return with Maui. We will make things right.”

  But not for you, Riley thought. Even as the thought crossed his mind, Kai dove gracefully into the water, vanishing from sight. He indulged in a moment of self-pity, coupled with guilt. He couldn’t live out his life that way, no matter how appealing. No matter what Kai had started, he was human. Humans and whatever Kai was just weren’t meant to mate and live happily ever after, circling the world in a sailboat.

  Although… that’s what he’d always dreamed of. A catamaran, going back to the life he’d lived so long ago. But instead of his father, he’d be with his lover. His love.

  “Oh… Shit. I wish…” For a moment, he nearly called Kai back. Now that he was out of reach, Riley craved him, missed him. The thought that Kai would continue to suffer as he had… “I wish. Oh, Kai… I wish!”

  He walked slowly down the dock, heading back up to the street. As he left, a figure emerged from the shadows.