by Brenna Zinn
"What is wrong?"
She jerked back to the present, his deep voice breaking the vision. “My parents drowned when I was four. A boating accident. I was the only one wearing a life vest.” She looked back, noting the concern etched in Kronnos's eyes.
"A terrible tragedy, Shelly. The seas can be unkind.” He shook his head. “I am sorry for your loss."
"It was a long time ago. I'm fine now, but I've been terrified of the water ever since.” She nodded toward the endless Caribbean. “Why the interest in doing it in the surf? I've got an awesome bed back at the resort. Very comfy, and the sheets are three hundred thread count ... Egyptian."
His gaze shifted to the water, his expression suddenly solemn. “The ocean is my home."
Shelly pulled away from his chest, her mind spinning. “That's impossible. No one lives in the ocean except Jacques Cousteau, and I think he's dead."
A broad smile spread across his handsome features. Humor flashed in his eyes. “You do not understand. I am a merman. I live in this water.” He removed one hand from his hold and swept it through the air towards the ocean's infinite horizon. “If you agree to be my lifemate, the seas will be your palace. You will want for nothing, and you will always be by my side."
Every muscle in Shelly's body went numb as she grappled with what he was saying. She was about to ask him if he was on drugs, but remembered how he had come in from the water, weaving and bobbing. And for just a second, when she thought her mind had been playing tricks, his lower body had appeared bound together and scaly ... like a fish's tail.
"Oh no. You can't be.” Shelly examined what she could see of his body. Every piece was in place just like any other guy. Well, any guy who lived at a gym. He didn't look like any mermen she had seen in drawings. At least not from her vantage point in his arms.
"But I am.” Kronnos grinned. “I am the great-great-grandson of Poseidon, ruler of the oceans."
Shelly shook her head. “That's impossible. That would make you...” She stared off into the distance, trying to think back to the days of Greek mythology. How long ago was that stuff? “A thousand years old?” Even saying the number was ridiculous.
"No. I am only six hundred years,” he corrected. “Mer people live long lives. And, I have waited all those many years to find you, my destined lifemate."
"I think you had better put me down. I need a minute to digest all this.” She wiggled out of his hold, managing to avoid the splash of the breaking waves. The dense sand turned her hustle from the water into a slow motion dance. Certain she had moved far enough away from any possibility of drowning, she plopped down and placed head in hands.
Kronnos followed suit and stretched the length of his powerful body across the sand, then tucked his hands behind his head. His cock, however, seemed to have a mind of its own. Rather than lie flat against his leg, the stiffened member stood up, making his presence known.
"You know,” she grumbled, “it's very hard to concentrate on a complete mental breakdown with your penis standing on end down there."
He smiled and lifted his head. “I know you have much to think about. For now, do not worry for the future. It will be here soon enough. Let us take pleasure in this time."
The lure of his amazingly thick dick prodded her curiosity. She had to examine it, touch it. Verify it was real. Only then could she focus on the gibberish he was spouting.
Shelly reached over, wrapped her hand around his firm dick and stroked. Try as she might, she couldn't get her thumb to meet her fingers. Perhaps all mermen were this big.
Kronnos smiled and lowered his head back onto his arms. “I am told my cock tastes quite delicious. Like ambrosia."
She barely refrained from rolling her eyes. Men, even mermen if there really were such a thing, were all the same. “Well, I guess I'll just have to find out for myself, won't I?"
Shelly released his cock and leaned back into the warm sand. She turned on her side and nuzzled next to Kronnos's glistening body. Though he was no longer wet, his skin shimmered in the moon's rays. Whether he was what he said he was or not, he was all man now.
She ran her hand over the bulging mounds of his pecs, locating a nipple. The flat dark skin contracted beneath her fingertips until it became a hardened point. With the pads of her fingers she twisted the compacted nub. Gently at first, then with increased pressure.
Kronnos moaned.
At the sound of his approval, Shelly's belly tightened. A flood of hot pussy juice rushed to her already wet panties, soaking the silk fabric. She placed a leg over Kronnos's legs and rubbed herself against the length of his solid thigh.
Kronnos grabbed his thick cock in his fist. With long, fluid motions he pumped his shaft from its base to its head. His breathing quickened as the speed of the continual up and down movement increased. Soon the steady rhythm produced a glossy bead of cum on the wide tip of his prick.
"Nectar of the gods.” Her musings, little more than a whisper, were barely audible over the waves crashing against the shore. Shelly licked her lips. The dewy cum on the end of his penis caused a rush of saliva to her mouth. She had to taste him.
Her hand skimmed down his chest and over the bumpy terrain of his sculpted abdomen. When she reached his hardened penis, Kronnos relinquished control, allowing her to man-handle him once again. She slithered down the side of his until her cheek brushed his hips, and then leaned on top of him, placing the wet tip of his dick in her mouth.
The sticky-sweet cum tasted like nothing she had ever experienced. An intoxicating mixture of sweet and salty, reminiscent of rare rice wine.
Hungry for more, she plunged further. She lowered her mouth over as much of him as possible, while her hand offered continuous sliding motions. With her tongue, she licked and sucked, feeling swollen veins pulsing along the sides. More and more drops of his honeyed dew sprang forth, and she greedily lapped at them.
After a few minutes, he rested a palm on her head. “Stop now, treasured one.” His husky tone penetrated the sound of the surf. “I wish to save my essence for our joining."
Shelly pulled his cock from her mouth but cupped his balls, not wanting to end the intimate contact. “Joining sounds pretty good right now, and those Egyptian sheets aren't getting any younger. I'll race you to the bedroom."
Kronnos drew himself upright and pulled Shelly onto his lap, her chest facing his. “To claim you as my lifemate, we must join in the space between both our worlds.” He removed the cord with the coral from around his neck. “If you wear this and I am nearby, you will be safe in the water. You will not drown."
He tied the necklace around Shelly's neck then kissed her on the lips. The combined actions created a firestorm within her stomach. Flames alternated with ice in a terrific battle for control of her insides. Her breathing stopped, and her lungs burned. She clutched at her neck and gasped for air, but her throat was constricted. She couldn't get any oxygen in or out.
"Do not fight it, Shelly,” he soothed. “Let the change happen."
Bright sparks flashed before her eyes. Every muscle in her body tightened, then relaxed. What was happening?
Then, as quickly as it started, her airways opened and her breathing resumed.
Lightheaded and dizzy, she sucked in a gulp of atmosphere, tasting the salt of the ocean breezes. “What did you do to me?” Her voice was little more than a croak.
"The amulet you now wear is protection from the ocean.” He lifted the small piece of coral from the hollow of her neck. “If you should decide to be my lifemate, the protection will last forever, regardless of where I am."
Shelly covered his hand with hers. “This whole lifemate thing you keep talking about, is that for real? Are we really talking about being mates for life?” She searched his eyes.
If he was lying, would she pick up his telltale signs? She hadn't with Rick and look where that got her.
He squeezed her hand before letting go to brush a curl away from her cheek. “What I tell you is the truth. On the fiftieth
year of my birth, the oracle prophesized our meeting. It is our destiny to live out our lives together."
"Out there? In the sea?"
With a finger, he lifted her chin. He locked his gaze onto hers. “Yes. In the sea."
Shelly's shoulders slumped, and she uttered a small, pitiful groan. Of all the places to be spend the rest of her life, why did he have to choose the water?
She looked back at the endless ocean. A shiver rolled down her spine. “And for all this to work we have to do it in the surf?"
"Yes. In the space where the water meets dry land.” He held onto her shoulders, turning her back to face him. “After the joining you must make an important decision. Stay on dry land or come with me to my palace under the water. The choice must be yours, and you do not have long to make it."
Shelly raked over Kronnos's powerful upper body then noted the longing in his eyes. Strange as it sounded, she really could see herself living with this man forever. In a palace, no less. But it would all be in the water, the thing that terrified her most.
"If we go through with this, just how long do I have?” She shifted herself on his lap. The pleasant feel of his hard cock rubbed against her ass, a reminder of what she could look forward to for the rest of her life, if she made that choice. “Please tell me six to eight months, because if I decide you're legit and run off with you, I've got a lot of arrangements to take care of back home in Boston. I've got a waste-of-talent job to quit and a whole apartment full of stuff to sell."
He shook his head. “You have until midnight. That is when I must change back to my natural form and return to the ocean. Back to my home."
A lump caught in Shelly's throat. “Midnight? That's not much time."
"No. It is not,” he agreed. “I can only take this form once every twenty-five years and remain this way for one full day."
The pulsing ache in Shelly's womb intensified. She wouldn't be satisfied with anyone but Kronnos. She had to have him tonight, feel his incredible stiff dick inside her. “I don't have to make the decision in order for us to get it on, right? I mean, there's really nothing stopping us right now, is there?"
"Only your fear of the water.” He raised an eyebrow and frowned before leaning back on his elbows. “There is no other way. The first time we join must be on the beach, in the surf.” Nodding to her neck, he added, “Your amulet and I will protect you. You must trust in our powers. The ocean will not harm you while I am near."
"Well, I certainly believe in your power to seduce. I'm as horny as a hormonal seventeen year old in the back seat of my dad's Chrysler 300."
Shelly bit her lip, considering her options. The water coming ashore wasn't that deep. Plus she could keep her head on dry land. No chance of drowning there, unless a really big wave came along.
She squeezed here eyelids shut, searching for courage from somewhere deep inside. She could do this. “Okay, big boy. I trust you."
Before she had a chance to blink an eye, he had her up in his bulging arms and down at the end of the beach. There he placed her on the sand, her lower body quickly becoming wet with the tide.
Shelly lay very still, trying to relax as warm water from the Caribbean ebbed and flowed over her legs and hips. Her heart raced, and adrenaline pumped throughout her body.
Kronnos lay beside her, stroking up and down her stomach and chest. “You are very beautiful, my treasure. Your skin is so soft, unlike anything I have ever touched."
He cupped the fleshy underside her breast and squeezed. With his thumb he made intricate circles around her areola, tightening the sensitive skin. He bent, taking her hardened pebble in his mouth. Once there, he scraped the sensitive edges of her nipple with his teeth, all the while sucking and licking the tip.
Shelly arched her back, pressing her swollen breast further in his mouth, willing him to increase his suction. Fear of the waves lapping over her faded as she concentrated on the tender torture of his teeth and lips on her nipple.
Kronnos swept his hand down to her hips and removed her soaked panties. With deft fingers, he spread the lips of her pussy, locating her nub of desire. Using small, spiraling strokes, he massaged her clit.
Shelly exhaled on a shuttering moan. She rocked her hips, pushing her aching mound harder against his slick fingers. She needed more. More of the incredible throbbing pull to her womb. More of him to satisfy her need to be fucked.
He slipped two fingers in and out of her drenched pussy, while his thumb continued to rub her sensitive kernel. Over and over again his fingers stroked, his tongue teased her breasts, both coaxing her to jump off the edge of sanity into abyss of ecstasy.
"You are ready, my beautiful pearl,” he whispered roughly. “It is time.” Shifting his body on top of hers, he spread her legs and positioned himself between her thighs. He gripped his engorged cock, placing the tip at the swollen point of her entry. “I want you very badly, Shelly. I do not think I can be gentle."
"For the love of Pete, don't be.” She grabbed his tight ass. “I want to feel every inch you inside me. Please, fuck me. Fuck me now."
She gasped as he slid in his rock hard dick. Though she was no virgin, his thick cock stretched the walls of her tight pussy, taking her breath away. She leaned back into the warmth of the sand and relaxed, allowing her muscles to contract and expand with his movements.
Kronnos thrust himself forward and back, pushing in and pulling out his stiffened rod. His chest heaved, and his breathing quickened. The veins in his neck pulsed with his rapid heartbeat.
Shelly tightened the muscles of her vagina, gripping him as he propelled his penis deep inside her soaked core. He placed both his hands at her sides on the wet shore and tilted forward. His gyrating hips rammed her mound without mercy, taking her closer and closer to the point of no return.
When he bent and sucked her breast with his hot mouth, Shelly cried out, loosing herself in pleasure. She squeezed her ass and flexed her thighs, making the rapture of her coming last as long as possible.
Kronnos freed her nipple and raised himself. After three powerful thrusts, he bore down his hips, closed his eyes, and groaned. His entire body shuttered with his release.
After a moment Shelly regained her senses. The roar of the waves pounding against the beach filled her ears. The scent of salt and the sweet bouquet of flowers rode lightly on the breeze. And the most incredible man—a merman—weighed heavily on her body, as well as her mind.
If what he said was true, she would have to decide in a matter of hours whether or not to spend the rest of her life with him.
In his palace.
Under the water.
A chill washed over her, and the resulting goose bumps had nothing to do with the incoming tide.
* * * *
Shelly crept out of the bedroom in the honeymoon suite on tippy toes, clasping the ends of the white cotton sheet that covered her body. As quiet as she could, she pulled the door closed behind her. The latch caught with a near silent click, but she paused anyway, waiting for any sound of movement from the slumbering Kronnos. Once satisfied her giant was asleep, she walked outside to the patio and collapsed on the chaise lounge.
Her weary body ached. Her pussy and thighs felt horse whipped and ridden hard. Little wonder she was so sore. Not wanting to waste a single moment of their time together, they had spent the entire day in bed. Half the time they talked. The other half they either made tender love or had mind-blowing sex in every position imaginable.
Shelly smiled. The experiment with the ice cream and the time on the bathroom counter had been particularly nice. Watching him in the mirror while he fucked her from behind had been a first. Maybe having mirrors installed over a bed wasn't such a bad idea. Those hipsters in the seventies might actually have been on to something.
Despite their incredible sex and attempt to get to know each other through questions and answers, twenty-four hours simply wasn't much time to make a decision affecting the rest of her life. She had decided to marry Rick after dating him f
or four years. Look what a mess that choice had made.
She held little doubt now Kronnos actually was a merman. As crazy as that might be, everything he said, plus what she saw when he came in from the water seemed perfectly reasonable. He also gave her the impression he genuinely cared for her. Though their time together was short, she really liked him. But what woman wouldn't be ga-ga over the great-great-grandson of a god, who happened to have a killer body and a face that was easy to look at?
Shelly clutched the small piece of coral hanging from her neck. Trusting a little trinket most people put in their fish tanks and believing Kronnos's line about lifemates was the bit she couldn't swallow. That, and the whole “live the rest of her life under the ocean” thing. If what he said was true, the rosy amulet and her agreement to be his mate for life was enough to keep her alive under water.
As if she would ever want to test that story.
Just being near the water in the honeymoon suite was tough. If it hadn't been for Rick, she would have been in the mountains instead. Making love in the surf earlier that morning had been frightening, and she only had the waves lapping up to her waist. No way she could actually have water over her head and try to breath. She would have a heart attack from fright before she ever drowned.
Once again destiny dealt her a bum hand. Even with a trump card thrown in for good measure.
How could she stay with the best thing to come her way when he lived in a place that terrified her? It just wasn't fair.
A tear rolled down Shelly's cheek, followed by another. Within minutes her face was wet and hot from sobbing. Her heart squeezed as though compressed by a vice.
"Why do you cry, my treasure?"
Startled, Shelly jerked in her chair. She turned to see Kronnos standing in the doorway, a towel draped around his waist.
She wiped her eyes with the back of her hands. “I'm fine. A little sand flew into my face, but I think I've got it all out. Don't worry about me."