Page 15

FOURTEEN

Noah

Seeing Barb again was harder than I anticipated.

She’s aged since the last time I saw her, but I swear that look of pity instantly took me back five years.

That expression is burned into my memory.

Barb was always kind to me, but hers is the face I stared at from the altar on my wedding day. My not-to-be-mother-in-law.

Not her fault her daughter’s a piece of shit.

Or maybe it is. I guess I don’t really know her. I never had the chance.

The sudden cool of the water on my skin as I dive into the inlet washes all that away, and for a blissful moment I just float as my body shifts and I relax into my kraken form.

Then there’s a shriek and a splash and I’m face-to-face with Olivia, who has jumped into the water about two feet from where I’m submerged.

Well fuck me sideways. I didn’t think she’d actually do it.

This girl just keeps on surprising me at every turn.

Little bubbles of air escape her mouth as she kicks her legs and tries to keep herself from floating to the surface, presumably so she can watch me as my body completes the shift. Too bad she’s too late.

Of course my tentacles glow brighter and my cock decides that now is a good time to put on a show as well, growing and lengthening to almost its full size. And yeah, I love the way her gaze drops there and her eyes grow wide and hungry.

When she starts to drift toward the surface, impulsively I reach out and pull her close, winding my tentacles around her legs and behind her back, drawing her to me.

A flurry of bubbles bursts from her as she lets out a startled noise muffled by the water, but her skin tastes of nothing but excitement and arousal. No fear.

I like the way she tastes. Every sensor on every tentacle is primed to devour the taste of her. Being in contact with so much of her skin all at once like this is almost overwhelming.

She’ll need air if I’m to keep her underwater for much longer. I could release her, take her to the surface. But I’d rather keep her right here with me. So I bend the rules a little.

Leaning close, I breathe into her mouth—not a kiss—until her eyes widen and she draws in air from my lungs. My gills allow me to take what I need from the water around us.

It might be a mistake. Even though it’s not a kiss, my lips still linger on hers, brushing sweetly against the soft skin. As soon as my mouth closes over hers, she molds against me, breasts pressing against my chest, nipples hard and pebbled.

That makes it hard to pull away, especially when my cock throbs against her belly and the tip of one tentacle strays toward her succulent pussy and I get my first taste of just how slick and ready she is for me.

Fuck.

I draw back with a shudder rather than turn the breath-giving into something more.

I’ve never wanted anything like I want to kiss Olivia.

Twisting, I curl us through the water, fighting the impulse.

I should let her go. I should back away from whatever it is we’re doing here before I let myself get tangled in something that will keep me from ever surfacing again, but I can’t make my tentacles release her.

So I propel us deeper, away from the jetty, lazily rolling through patches of sunlight and shadow, enjoying her smile of wonder and the way she clings to me.

I take us further down the inlet until we can surface away from the prying eyes of anyone who does come along the road.

Not that this spot gets much traffic on a Monday in the middle of the day, but occasionally a retired fisherman picks it or a local teen wags school and comes down for a swim.

I should know. I was one of them a long time ago.

When I lift us to the sunlight, Olivia stays on her back, staring up at the wisps of white cloud in the blue sky for a long moment. Then she turns her head to look at me. “It must be so amazing to be able to do that. I wish I had half a hope of moving through the water like that.”

“It comes with plenty of downsides, don’t worry.”

“Like?”

“Like never really feeling accepted. It took people in Kraken Cove a long time to get over their shock when my family revealed what we were. I don’t think some people ever really got over it.

I certainly never felt like we were accepted in the community the same way after that.

But I guess I never did even before they knew.

I was never that good at making friends. ”

Olivia rights herself, kicking her feet to tread water. “Oh, I bet that’s not true.”

I snort, facing her, longing to draw her close again but resisting. “Shouldn’t make bets you’re sure to lose, Zeston.”

She giggles, splashing water in my face, which of course does nothing. “Or else what?”

Oh, so we’re playing that game, huh? I quirk my brow and I’m about to put the challenge to her when a sound along the bank catches my attention.

“...such a beautiful day. I can’t believe the weather hasn’t cooled off yet.”

There are people coming. And the voice of the woman sounds horribly familiar. Probably just my overactive imagination after seeing Barb. It couldn’t be.

In the middle of the inlet, we’re exposed. And much as I’ve got no fucks to give about who sees me naked, I’m conscious that Olivia may not want to be seen like this. Gently, I wrap my arm around her and guide her close to the edge where fallen logs and thick foliage will cover us better.

Olivia gives me a curious look. “What is it?”

“Shhh.” I place my hand over her mouth, gesturing to the shore where a couple is walking hand in hand along a small trail that leads toward us.

Then I stiffen. There are times I hate being right.

As the couple comes closer, I can’t kid myself any longer.

Charlotte is wearing her hair blonde these days, but I would know her face anywhere.

It’s a face which has featured in both my dreams and my nightmares.

A face that haunts me to this day. And the face of the man she’s walking hand in hand with is hardly less so.

After all, we were friends for nearly ten years, until he fucked my fiancé and stole my woman on my wedding day.

I spit onto the bank in disgust.

What the fuck is she doing here?

Of course, I know what. Visiting her parents who clearly still live here and run the local bakery. It’s just my luck that she picked today of all days and I had to run into her.

Even though I want to, I can’t look away.

Since that day, I’ve refused to see her, to speak to her. I never answered her calls, never responded to her false apologies. They didn’t mean anything anyway.

She chose him.

What more was there to say?

Only now, the sight of her is like a current dragging me under. I’m sucked into a whirlpool of ugly thoughts and in danger of coming out in a very black place.

I’m still pinning Olivia to the bank, my hand over her mouth. When she wriggles and twists to be set free, I release her and she looks around at me. “Are you OK?”

I can’t reply. I can’t even give her my full attention. My tentacles squeeze. One of which is wrapped around a tree root below the water and tightens so far there’s the dull cracking of wet wood breaking.

Charlotte and Cooper are closer now. So close they’re almost on us, though I’m fairly sure they haven’t spotted anything.

She turns to him and laughs. “Oh, I guess I spent a lot of time down here as a kid. I can never remember why I liked it so much.”

Her statement is like a long wound sliced along my side. It doesn’t sting at first. Then all of a sudden it hits me, sucks my breath away, has me doubled over in pain. This was our spot. It was where I’d always meet her.

A gasp from Olivia finally drags me out of my own head and I realize I’m squeezing her too tight, just like the tree root. I should let her go. I should apologize. Explain.

I don’t do any of those things.

Instead, I loosen my grip just a fraction. Then I use my tentacles to spread her legs for me and hold her gaze as I run my hand up her thigh. “Still want to make bets you’re going to lose, Zeston?” I whisper.

She gasps again, but now I’m looking; I see the way her pupils dilate.

“Think you can keep quiet?” As I say this, I slide my hand higher until I’m cupping her upper thigh, fingers grazing her outer lips.

Olivia covers her mouth with her hand and nods.

I smile darkly. This is what I need. With Olivia, I’m in control. I take what I want and don’t invest myself the way I did with Charlotte. That’s who I am now.

And I’m stronger for it.

I dip my fingers into Olivia’s core and almost forget myself when I find how needy she is. Though we’re still partially submerged in the water, she’s so wet her pussy is slick and slippery under my touch. Ready for me right when I need her.

My cock, gone limp while I watched Charlotte, twitches against my thigh. I’m already imagining taking Olivia right here, right now, plunging inside her warmth so she can squeeze me tight. I lean in close, breathing her in, filling my senses with her. “Gonna be a good girl and come for me?”

She trembles. The look in her eyes is hungry, pleading.

Spearing my fingers into her pussy, I relish the way she takes me. So warm. So inviting. I’m not sure how much longer I can hold off sinking my cock all the way inside, burying myself deep.

Fuck, the thought has me rock hard, grinding myself against her thigh while I work her cunt. She moans against her hand, and we share a breathless smile at how close we are to being caught.

Would I mind if Charlotte found me here like this? If I have to see her again, I must admit, this way would be preferable.

Let her remember what she missed out on.

Olivia sucks in a breath and her cunt tightens around my fingers and thoughts of my ex are suddenly the last thing on my mind.

“You like the way I touch you, hmm?”

She glances around, but it’s not lost on me how her pussy tightens even further. When I add my tentacle to rub her clit, her hand flies from her mouth and her lips fall open. And I can’t wait any longer.

Removing my fingers, I have my cock ready at her entrance before she can miss the feeling of being full. I slide home, watching the expression on her face as I really stretch her out. Her eyelids flutter and she whimpers with need.

God, she feels amazing. She’s snug and warm around my length, and with a few thrusts of my hips, she has me all the way. Only then do I come to my senses a little. I’ve gone in without a rubber. “Fuck. I didn’t bring a condom.”

She stares at me. “But you can pull out, right?”

I breathe out a sigh of relief, pressing my forehead to hers as I roll my hips to move inside her. “Yeah, I can pull out.”

I don’t have the willpower to stop now if she’s fine with it. In fact, it’s a struggle to hold my orgasm back as I plunge into her over and over. She wraps her legs around my waist, and I use my tentacles to brace us and move her back and forth on my cock as I fuck her.

It doesn’t take long before she’s right on the edge.

Her head falls back. Small damp tendrils cling to her flushed face. I almost wish we were underwater so I had an excuse to close my mouth to hers. To distract myself, I bring a thumb to her clit and give her a little nudge to help her over the edge.

Olivia’s eyes fly open and she flings an arm around my neck, holding me close. She’s trembling. I fuck and fuck her in a steady rhythm until she bursts in a sweet clench of muscles tight around my cock. The pleasure makes her whole body tense before she releases into a languid sigh of bliss.

It’s almost too much.

I grit my teeth and hold on until the last second. Until I can’t hold on any longer.

Then, with regret, I withdraw my cock, sheathing it in my hand instead.

It’s a poor replacement for the perfection of Olivia’s pussy, but it will have to do.

I won’t risk coming inside her. With a few quick pumps of my hips, I bury my face into her neck and groan out my own release.

My cum clouds the water around us for a moment as it bursts from me in waves of orange and green.

I shudder. Then I lift my head to find her watching me, a huge smile on her face.

“That was so hot.”

Laughter huffs from my chest as the understatement of her words hits me. “Yeah.” If only there was a stronger word. Hot doesn’t seem to do what we shared justice. I’m still reeling in the feeling when it occurs to me I lost track of our audience.

It hardly seems to matter now, though. And since I hear nothing on the track, I drag Olivia back into the water just so I can hold her close a few more minutes. Three tentacles and my arms curl around her tightly and I try not to think about how reluctant I feel to ever let her go.