Page 14 of Black Bay Enforcer (Beasts of Black Bay #3)

Mako’s Lair, as Kong had called it, was accessed via what looked like an unassuming maintenance shed.

But instead of tools and equipment, a large metal hatch sat in the middle of the floor.

From there, they took a ladder down and followed a tunnel lit by caged lights.

The air was much cooler down here and the tang of salt water was more prominent.

They stopped at a set of double doors and Kong chuckled as he pointed to the whiteboard hanging on the right side. On it was written, Gone fishing . Be back later . Below that was a doodle of a shark with its mouth open and lots of pointed teeth on display as it chased a smaller fish.

“Mako was created with shark DNA,” Kong told her. “He was the only aquatic hybrid to survive past infancy.”

That was sad. She’d never thought about it, but now, the question was blaring in her brain: How many of them had died before the military shut things down? How many children, babies, had those scientists killed?

She bit her lip to keep from asking, not wanting to spoil Kong’s good mood. She was probably better off not knowing.

“He spends a lot of time in the water. It calls to him. Sometimes he’ll be out there for weeks at a time.”

Kong flicked a couple of switches. “Oh, hey. I forgot to ask. What did the Resurrection soldiers think of your brownies?”

Her cheeks heated with a pleased blush. She’d quietly left the brownies for them and made her escape.

She hadn’t wanted them to feel obligated to eat them.

But when she’d checked in with them at the end of her shift, the pan was empty but for a few crumbs, and several of the soldiers had expressed their gratitude.

“They were a hit.”

Kong grinned. “Of course they were. Best brownies ever.” With a wink, he opened one of the doors and waved her through.

Katherine entered and then promptly froze as she marveled at the brightly lit area.

This was not what she’d been expecting. She’d kind of pictured an indoor pool like you’d find at a hotel with the strong smell of chlorine in the air and loungers placed around the perimeter.

This was nothing like that. The space was huge.

At a glance, she’d guess it ran under a good two-thirds of the base.

On the far side, suspended from the ceiling by huge motorized clamps and extending back as far as she could see, were submersibles.

There were some small ones that were probably deployed to be controlled remotely.

Some that looked like they could hold a two-man team, and beyond those, there were larger rigs.

Along the walls, there were racks of air tanks and dive equipment – some she recognized, other things she didn’t – and numerous wet suits hung on hangers.

There was a big work table with tools hung neatly on the wall above it.

Industrial shelves were loaded with what were probably spare parts.

Another work area with computer monitors and other metal boxlike things with plenty of nobs, dials, and gauges that she couldn’t hope to identify.

And in the middle of it all, was a giant pool of seawater, its dark, greenish-blue water lapping gently at the retaining walls.

It must be how they got the submersibles out. Looking up at the ceiling, she saw the network of thick metal tracks. Wow. She’d had no idea this had been under her feet the whole time.

Curious, she approached the pool, watching her step on the wet deck where some of the water had splashed over. It was deep, the walls carved out of the rock, and if it hadn’t been for the rows of submerged, recessed lights, she probably wouldn’t have been able to see much past a foot in depth.

Kong squatted down beside her. “With the external gates closed, the water shouldn’t be too cold.” He dipped his fingers in and with a little mischievous grin, flicked the drops of water at her.

She jerked away and couldn’t hold back her little squeal. The water may not be icy, but it was still chilly on her warm skin.

“Are you ready to swim?”

Katherine eyed the water dubiously. There was no shallow end, no steps for her to descend gradually into the water.

Reading her look, Kong offered, “Here,” and reached back down into the water.

He unlatched something she hadn’t noticed before and a tiled shelf separated from the wall.

He pressed his hand on it, leaning his weight into it to show it was sturdy.

“You’ll be able to sit if you want. Mako installed these when some of us started coming down here to swim. ”

Nodding, she looked around. “Is there a place for me to change?”

Kong pointed her toward two doors and she brought her bag inside the one marked for women.

It was a bathroom split down the middle with stalls, toilets, sinks, and mirrors on one side and showers on the other.

Just inside the right of the door was a floor-to-ceiling rack full of rolled white towels.

While a rack with suspended canvas hampers occupied the left side.

Heading to one of the sinks, she set her bag on the countertop and dug inside.

She’d been a bit leery about the whole bathing suit issue, so before she’d left for work, she’d been sure to pack a pair of shorts and a dark T-shirt just in case, but Perrin had caught up to her at lunch.

Once again, the other woman had come through for her with a modestly cut one-piece in dark blue trimmed with black that zipped up the front and still had the tags on it.

Katherine had offered to pay but the other woman had waved her off, then gave her that intimidation stare when she’d insisted, forcing her to back down. At least for the time being. Katherine would figure out a way to pay her back, she’d just have to be sneaky about it.

Perrin had also tried to pump her for information about the night before but Katherine didn’t go into specifics, only that she’d had a nice time. She didn’t want to confess her embarrassing blunder of how she’d not only fallen asleep on Kong but drooled on him too.

For a minute there, Perrin had tried to intimidate her again with that probing stare, but Katherine had stayed strong. The woman had finally shrugged, commenting, “It must have gone well if Kong invited you to go swimming.”

It must have. Katherine’s belly fluttered with a giddy feeling.

Not only had he invited her to swim, but Kong had also brought her breakfast. Katherine hadn’t told Perrin about that.

It had been a sweet, thoughtful gesture, and if she hadn’t already been berating herself for the night before – and if she’d been wearing something a little more sophisticated than Hello Kitty pajamas – she probably would have appreciated it more at the time.

Only once she’d gotten to work had it hit her and then, she couldn’t stop smiling. ORION had even commented on her good mood.

Dressed in the bathing suit, her hair neatly contained in a bun, she grabbed a towel on the way out and nearly tripped over her own feet.

Kong was shirtless, in just a pair of black board shorts.

Tan, tattooed skin, slabs of muscle, a chest dusted with dark hair, and abs that went on for days.

The effect on her was stunning. It was like her brain just stopped for a minute there as her eyes drank him in.

Heaven help her, he was perfect.

Katherine had to admit she had a type – big, muscular men did it for her – but admiring pictures of people like Jason Momoa, Roman Reigns, and Olivier Richters online hadn’t prepared her for seeing such a beautiful specimen in the flesh.

She was about to start drooling again, and this time, she wouldn’t be able to blame it on sleep.

She needed to focus on something else. Jerking her gaze away from all that exposed skin, her eyes fell on the diving equipment and she blurted, “I once took an open water diving course.”

She and her friends had been planning a trip to the Caribbean so it had seemed like a good idea at the time. They’d all signed up, intending to do it together.

“Did you like it?”

Katherine waved a hand in front of her face. “The mask made me feel claustrophobic.” She’d felt like she couldn’t breathe even though she was getting plenty of air through the regulator.

“I’m not a fan of diving,” Kong confessed. “It’s fun to paddle around in here, but if I’m going to be underwater for any length of time, I prefer a submersible if possible.” He paused a beat before adding, “Ready to get your feet wet?”

She nodded and dared another look at Kong to see if her brain would short-circuit again. Still gorgeous, but she was pretty sure she had a handle on things.

She watched as Kong squatted down and levered himself into the pool, the muscles of his arm bulging and flexing as it took his weight.

He disappeared under the water for a moment and then popped back up, his skin wet and gleaming.

Smiling, he shook his head vigorously, sending droplets of water flying.

Had she thought she had a handle on things? Dry Kong was a stunner. Wet Kong was a fantasy come to life. She was staring again and couldn’t seem to stop.

He shot her a lopsided grin. “Are you coming in?”

The water would probably help cool her off. At this rate, she was getting so hot her skin would steam. Carefully, she sat down at the edge of the pool and dunked her feet and the lower half of her legs in the water. It was cool, but not too cold.

Kong held out a hand. “Need help?”

She didn’t, but she still took his hand because it gave her an excuse to touch him. And she wanted to touch him. Badly.

With her free hand, she pushed off and sunk into the water up to her chin, bobbing in front of Kong.

He was so close that she could see the hint of dark beard grain on his jaw, the trails of water droplets glistening on his skin.

Her eyes met his. He had little flecks of gold in his brown irises that she hadn’t noticed before.