“I remember I went to visit you once when you were staying with Benny and I think I had on a new necklace,” Penny said. “Yeah, it was fashion jewelry, something cheap I picked up at Macys. Anyway, Benny opened the door and as soon as he saw the necklace he started singing ‘Material Girl’ in a high-pitched tone. So…yeah. Madonna made me think of Benny.”
A large thump came from outside somewhere on the boat and Sylvia jolted upright in the bed.
“What was that?” she asked.
“I’m sure it was nothing,” Penny said.
“Didn’t sound like nothing.”
A knock came from the door above them, the one that led below deck.
“Yes?” Penny asked.
“It’s me, babe,” Thane’s voice called out from the other side.
Sylvia felt a mixture of relief with fear as she thought of him on the other side of the door.
“Come on down,” Penny said.
The door swung open, and Thane climbed down. Sylvia’s heart thudded in her chest. This guy was a shark. Not only a shark, but the leader of the sharks. Plus, he was gorgeous and was absolutely fucking naked.
“Wanted to check on you,” he said as he stepped closer.
Sylvia held her breath and watched him. His entire body was beaded with water. His dark hair was dripping, and his face was beautiful. She’d met him before, back in the hospital when Penny got attacked once and knocked off a cruise ship, but he’d been fully dressed, and he didn’t look like this. This time he seemed harder, more solid, and she was thinking about his body, not his enormous cock which hung freely between his legs. She knew she shouldn’t be staring at it like this. This was her best friend’s man.
Holy shit. I’m going to hell. I can’t stop looking at it. At him. At it. It’s definitely calling to me. It wants me to look at it.
Sylvia had to shake herself out of her stupor. No cock had a mind of its own. Or they did, but not really, but really... she couldn’t get her mind right. Not with the thick, still wet from the ocean, cock in front of her.
“His face is up there,” Penny said.
It was a joke they made often, but usually it was about their own tits, whenever a guy would get caught checking them out. If he was looking at Sylvia, Penny would call him out on it. If it was Penny captivating him, Sylvia would make it a point to let it be known. They loved the look on a guy’s face when he got caught peeping. Only this time, she’d done it to Sylvia, and she was mortified.
“Bitch,” Sylvia said under her breath as she tried to steady her nerves and calm her pussy.
She knew it couldn’t be only the look of the guy drawing her attention like that. He must have been pulling her gaze that way with some kind of supernatural power. That was the excuse she decided to settle on. He was supernaturally cock teasing her, and her body had reacted, even while knowing he was completely off-limits.
Man, I need to get laid. This is getting ridiculous.
“I was circling the boat, making sure you two were safe,” he said as he leaned forward to kiss Penny’s forehead.
His cock bumped Sylvia’s hand and she jerked it back.
“For fuck’s sake,” she said. “Are you trying to kill me? Can you please put some clothes on? I can’t handle this.”
Penny laughed and pushed Sylvia’s shoulder.
“You better get used to this,” she said. “I had to. You’ll see once you get to the island. When the guys step out of the water, they’ve shed their clothes. Kind of like the Incredible Hulk, only more naked.”
“Oh shit,” Thane said. “I’m so sorry. This is inappropriate. I didn’t even think about it. It’s so normal for us and…I only wanted to let you both know you’re safe.”
“The three of us you mean,” Penny corrected him as she rubbed her belly.
“It’s quite alright,” Sylvia said, smiling and doing her best to keep her eyes off his cock. “I feel safer already.”
Chapter 8 - Rafe
“Shamrock Island, huh?” Kane said as he polished off a harpoon gun with the intensity of a father cleaning his gun and waiting for his daughter to return home from her first date.
Rafe didn’t reply. He didn’t need to. It was a rhetorical question if it was even a question at all. He could have taken a boat out to the island himself, but Australia had something like seven-hundred islands and finding one without knowing its exact whereabouts could be a real pain in the ass. Yet, he would travel anyplace he needed to if it meant seeing Kalina again. The way her blonde hair hung down in that ponytail and was wavy or naturally curly might be a better way to describe it. He envied her hair and the way it caressed the back of her neck. He was jealous of the air that seeped in through the small hole at the center of her pouty lips. He could imagine what it must feel like to be inside her, filling her mouth and her lungs. He wanted her sexually, of course, but with her it had been different than it had been with any other woman. He could imagine sitting with her naked, face to face, his ass planted in the sand as her pussy clenched around his cock, neither of them moving, but instead looking into each other’s eyes and seeing who would be the first to thrust. He would lose. He wouldn’t be able to handle being in that moment with her and not going that extra step. His cock throbbed thinking about it and he had to plop down in the swivel chair next to Kane’s desk.
“You’re killing me, boss,” he said. “Take me out there with you.”
“And why would I want to go to Shamrock Island?” he asked. “Why would you? We need to be setting up plans for the big festival. Do you have any idea how many people will be cluttering the beaches and swarming the shallow waters? We’ve got real shit to deal with. Why would you want to waste mine and your time going out to Shamrock Island?”
“You know why,” Rafe said.
“That girl is trouble,” Kane said. “I warned you the other night and look what happened. The second I walked away, a band of bikers showed up and almost took your head off.”
“I can take care of myself,” Rafe said.
“Sure looked that way when I walked up and found you still brushing pieces of that broken hotdog stand or whatever it was off your clothes.”
“The guy had a hell of a kick.”
“And why do you think that was?”
“No idea,” Rafe said. “The motherfucker eats his spinach.”
Kane chuckled and blew out some dust from the harpoon gun.
“I know her secret,” Rafe said. “And I know you’re working with them. It’s not like that’s a big deal. You told me yourself.”
“Correction,” Kane said. “I’m not working with anyone. Those ferocious fucking beasts all deserve to die. They’re able to go places I can’t. They’re able to do things I can’t. I’m using them to help me save lives. That’s all. If it comes to a point that I no longer need them, I will kill them. And if you’re all strung up on that tight little blonde, that could complicate matters.”
“Take me to Shamrock Island,” Rafe insisted. “You can fire me if you want, but I don’t give a shit about this bullshit agenda of yours. Bottom line is…I want her.”
“Fire you,” Kane said under his breath. “Nope. But that’s the attitude you need to have in this business. I might make a shark hunter out of you yet. Grab your gear and for god’s sake, put on your fucking polo. We’re professionals.”
“So, you’ll take me?”
“Yep. Guess I need to have a talk with good ol’ Thane anyway.”
With a new pep in his step, Rafe left Kane’s desk and went to pick up the polo he always kept draped over his chair. He hated wearing the stupid thing unless it was absolutely necessary. As he slipped it over his head, he couldn’t help thinking he must look like a school kid putting on his uniform.
“Stupid shirt,” he said to himself. “Stupid lunch box. Stupid shoes.”
He laughed at his own crybaby temper tantrum, purposely making himself sound more and more like a little kid until he could find the funny in his situation.
; “What lunch box?” Becca asked from behind.
“Ha,” he said. “No lunch box. It was a joke. An inside joke.”
“With yourself?”
“With myself,” he said while looking down at his feet.
He’d gotten busted at a ridiculous moment of silly self-reflection.
“I’ve got good news and bad news,” the older lady said as she placed a hand on his shoulder.
The glum look on her face worried him.
“Give me the good news,” he said. “I don’t want any bad right now. I already have to wear this fucking shirt.”
“The mouth on you,” Becca said with an exaggerated exasperation.
“You love it,” he said.
“I do, but you’ll never find a proper young lady with language like that,” she said.
“You have no idea the proper young lady I’ve met. Becca, I’m telling you, the girl is the one.”
She was shocked.
“But I thought I had a shot,” she said, again with her fake gasp and about-to-go-faint expression.
“You did,” he said, “But this one blew me away.”
“Well, I’m happy for you, babe,” she said. “Plus, I’ve got a hot date tonight too. Stan. I don’t know if that’s his real name, but his screen name is StanBigStud501.”
“501 like the Levi jeans?” he asked. “Damn, how old is this guy?”
“Hmm, never thought of it like that,” she said. “I suppose so. Maybe it means he’s a big stud in those jeans. I like big.”
Rafe tried to stop it, but his mind went there. Suddenly, he could see Becca bent over on all fours and a big bull of a man hitting it from the back. He could imagine she was a wild one. An enthusiastic and experienced lover, and that was a turn on. But Kalina was his woman now, even if she didn’t know it yet. It was all about her. Forcing his mind far from his imagination, he pointed a scolding finger at Becca.
“This is so not appropriate talk for the work place,” he joked.
“You’re so right,” she said with a wink. “I’ll make sure to tell you all the juicy details tomorrow.”
“So, what’s the good news?” he asked. “You have me on the edge of my seat.”
“Petey is doing great!” she exclaimed. “Come on.”
She took his hand and dragged him to a giant cage where the seagull was mixed in with a couple others. Petey was chilling, watching a TV in the corner of the room, and didn’t even look his way.
“Petey, what’s up, man?” Rafe asked.
The bird looked at him and squawked.
“What’s the bad news?” Rafe asked.
Becca smiled and said, “Petey’s an asshole.”
“What?” he said with a laugh. “He’s great. Look at him. He doesn’t bother anyone.”
“Try feeding him,” she said. “He’s a diva. If he doesn’t like what you give him, he looks at it, pecks at it, then walks away.”
“He’s a man with taste,” Rafe said.
He thought about Kalina again and how badly he ached for her.
“And that I can totally understand,” he added.
Chapter 9 - Kalina
The island was uppity that day, that was the best way to put it. Everyone was down by the beach staying far enough away from the water that they wouldn’t accidentally shift but not so far that they couldn’t enjoy the fresh ocean breeze. Kino and Rickshaw tossed a football back and forth with Oliver in the center. Monkey in the middle with a bunch of bare-chested, great looking monkeys. Kalina couldn’t deny the fact that the men she was surrounded by every day were hunks. But they all had their woman already, and besides, they were all like brothers to her. She’d never slept with any of them other than Thane and never would.
Ruby brought a cooler of beer down to the guys. Of course, they didn’t have electricity on the island, but they had generators for random use. Juan Diego made sure to keep them supplied with enough gas to keep them going if and when they needed them. This morning, with a barbecue on the horizon, cold beer was a necessity. The kids, Tiko, Malena, and Little Ricky, ran from the cabins with Hailey racing behind them growling with her hands up and fingers out like claws. The kids screamed as they dashed over to Oliver, hugging his legs and messing up his only chance to snatch up the football and free himself from his undesirable position in the middle.
Paisley whistled at Rickshaw and called out to him, “Look at that body, baby. Somebody’s been working out.”
“You guys are in love, aren’t you?” Kalina asked as Paisley approached.
“How about severe like,” she said. “I like the hell out of that man. Maybe love. I don’t know.”
The way the woman kicked at the sand was hint enough. She was in love with Rickshaw. Shark women were like that sometimes. Too damn stubborn for their own good. Faith had been in and out of relationships with most of the men on the island. She had always been a free soul and it saddened Kalina that her friend might not ever find anyone. As if mentally called out to play, Faith stepped out of her cabin rubbing her eyes. Even without makeup and her hair a mess, she was a beautiful woman. She had a raw fire to her and Kalina always thought if she weren’t trapped in this paranormal lifestyle, her friend would be on the back of some guy’s motorcycle riding from town to town. She was an ol’ lady at heart. Maybe that was why she was still single. She hadn’t found an ol’ man worthy of her. Any guy too weak would find his motorcycle swiped and Faith riding off on it alone into the sunset. The thought made her laugh.
“What’s up, bitches?” Faith asked.
“Talking about love,” Kalina said.
“What else would the sapster of the island talk about?” she replied.
“Sapster?” Kalina asked, truly not understanding what she meant.
“Like you’re sappy, Toots. You’re the Disney princess of the island. You’d probably be Sleeping Beauty if you weren’t afraid no prince would show up to wake you and you’d end up sleeping forever and missing out on all the fun.”
“There’s a lot of truth to that,” Kalina agreed.
“You’ll find love, Kalina,” Paisley assured her.
“Running out of single guys here,” Kalina said. “Maybe I should start trying to hook up with Horace.”
All three of them made a fake gagging sound. Horace was the biggest sweetheart in the entire world. He was an old sea turtle shifter who, when he wasn’t in his green-shelled form, was nothing more than a hippie full of knowledge and magic powers. There was a time when Kalina didn’t think his powers strayed beyond lucky guesses under the influence of all the weed he smoke, but she’d been wrong. He’d proven time and again that he had real healing qualities and was the one person to go to when one was truly lost. To put it into perspective, Kalina always thought of him as the Rafiki of their people. Their own priest-like baboon from The Lion King.
Okay, enough of this childlike thinking. Enough Disney. In those movies there’s always a happily ever after. I need to come to terms with the fact that I might find only an ever after.
The sound of a motorboat in the distance tickled at her senses. She scanned the horizon and everyone else did the same. Juan Diego’s boat was distinguishable from all others. They’d heard that one arrive and depart so often it was little more than natural background noise. This, however, was different. Kalina tried to get a fix on it, and as she did, the boat finally came into view.
“Should we hit the water?” Paisley asked.
With Thane gone, the natural leaders tended to be Faith and Kino. They were the two Thane looked to most often for support.
“What do you think, Faith?” Kino asked. “Wanna go for a swim?”
“I’m lazy,” she said. “Just woke up. Let them come to us.”
“Yeah, good idea,” Kino said as he tossed the football too low and Oliver caught it.
“Fuck,” Kino said.
“Guess whose dumb ass gets to go to the middle?” Oliver said. “And you better prepare to be there for a loooooong time because you
left me there forever, you prick.”
“I am what you eat!” Kino hollered.
“Funny,” Oliver said.
The boat approached quickly and when it finally became clear who was driving, Kalina felt her knees get weak. Kane was steering, but next to him was the gorgeous figure of the man she hadn’t stopped thinking about since last night. Rafe waved at her and she gave her own lame wave back. Her breath quickened, and she looked down at her body, wondering if the bathing suit she wore and the jean shorts looked sexy enough.
Thank God I’m not naked.
Kalina, like the others, wasn’t shy at all about her nude body. She walked around in her bare skin quite often, but she knew it would be strange for Rafe if he drove up and found a beach full of nudists. He might get scared away. It would have been more normal for Kalina and her kind to stay in the nude. It would make sense since they were constantly shedding clothes and having to pick up new ones, but they’d made it a point to try and stay dressed as often as possible with the kids around. At some point, the children would need to mingle with regular people in the real world and it wouldn’t help matters if they were used to strolling around with all their private parts dangling around. Right now, Kalina was so glad they’d made this decision.
Before the boat came to a complete stop, Rafe hopped off and landed in the water. It must have been deeper than he’d expected because he let out a loud “whoop” and went under. He bounced back up completely wet and Kalina fell for him all over again. She loved his innocence. His willingness to make a fool of himself and laugh it off.
“What a goof,” Faith said at her side.
“He’s endearing,” Kalina argued.
“Whatever,” Faith replied.
“Oh, he’s cute,” Paisley said.
“Back off,” Kalina snapped, looking at her friend with a warning glance.
She was kidding, of course. But then again, she wasn’t. Paisley was the curviest of the girls on the island. She had the body of a real woman as she liked to call it. Plump thighs, big, soft tits, and a roundish face that was cute as a button. She and Rickshaw made the perfect pair since he was the largest of the men, big and muscular but more like a strongman kind of body.
Bite Me Harder (a paranormal shifter novel) (Guardians of the Deep Book 2) Page 8