Page 21 of The Dark Will Fall (Twilight Lake #5)
Rainn Shallows
As a Selkie, Rainn Shallows spent most of his time underwater. Before the ‘War beneath the Waves’, he spent even more time lounging on the rocks of the Skala Beach, basking in the moonlight in his seal form.
Because of his penchant for having his feet solidly on the ground, or in water, he had never expected to be in the talons of a siren—wings spread, flying over the Night Court.
Rainn soon discovered that he was not suited for flight. In fact, he made him feel somewhat nauseous.
Shay Mac Eoin did not seem to feel the same roiling travel sickness. The Nymph fell asleep, exhausted from expending his magic.
If they’d had more time on the beach, Rainn would have helped Shay with his little problem—Nymphs fed on sexual energy after all.
But when Arden had offered to fly them back to the Twilight Lake, Rainn would have been a fool to say no. Rainn Shallows had no intention of walking a fortnight, on foot, thirsty and exhausted.
Arden was on a one-siren mission to rescue his mother, Nuada.
Rainn would have told him how foolish it was to go against Balor without a plan, but he didn’t know Arden that well.
Arden was, after all, the son of one of the Tuatha Dé Danann just as Maeve was.
And Rainn had seen what Maeve could do when she was truly pissed off.
Aside from the bugs in his teeth, Rainn kept his mouth well and truly shut. To keep from vomiting on himself.
The dried river path led to the shore of the Twilight Lake, nearest Tarsainn.
Rainn Shallows had never seen the lake from above, but as they got closer to the border, the slice of sunshine from the Day Court made it easier to see the faelight under the waves.
Rainn squinted, trying to make out the contours of the fortress below the surface, when a wave of heat slapped his face. The shock of it made Arden careen to the side.
Shay Mac Eoin finally woke up, but struggled to keep his eyes open.
“The snow has melted,” Shay murmured tiredly. “The lake is boiling.”
“Boiling?” Rainn echoed in horror, lifting his voice over the roaring wind. “How can you tell?”
“Those bubbles.” Shay jerked his head towards the lake.
Arden swerved for the trees, avoiding the water entirely. The landing was much rougher than the takeoff—the bristling heat and the mass of trees were to thank for that. Arden had insisted he could carry the two fully grown males, but he had worn him down.
They tumbled into the bracken, once spongy and frosted, now crisp with heat.
Shay struggled to lift himself, pressing a hand against the trunk of a tree. His head flopping, and his eyes closed. He was ready to pass out, even before their fall.
Arden brushed the dry leaves from his chest and ruffled his wings indignantly. “I have to get my mother back.”
“And you have a plan, do you?” Shay groused. “You don’t know the lake, and you don’t know Balor. You don’t even know if Balor took your mother.”
Arden bared his teeth. “I know more than you do, whelp. I may be Nuada’s youngest child, but I have a century on you both.”
Rainn held up his arms in a disarming fashion. “Do you want me to turn around?”
“Why?” Arden snarled.
“Privacy. For the dick measuring competition.” Rainn quirked a brow.
Arden’s cheeks turned pink, and his eyes narrowed. “I do not wish to join Maeve Cruinn’s collection of males.”
Rainn snorted. “Do you hear that, Shay? We’re a collection.”
Shay did not answer.
Rainn turned to his friend as the Nymph slowly slid into the undergrowth, unconscious.
Rainn cursed. “Unless you plan on actually getting your cock out, I need you to take a walk.” Rainn pinched the bridge of his nose.
“Why?” The siren cocked his head to the side.
“Because I need to charge the Nymph.” Rainn’s lips pursed. “He feeds on sexual energy, and I’m going to molest his sleeping body.”
“You’re going to fuck him, while he’s asleep?” Arden spluttered.
Rainn shrugged. “I have permission.” He waved the siren away. “Just go.”
Arden opened his mouth and closed it again. “I’ll patrol the water’s edge.”
Rainn nodded staunchly.
The Selkie waited until he could no longer hear the clomping footsteps of the siren. The winged prude had no need for stealth on the ground when he snuck up from above. Rainn would be surprised if any animal or fae within ten miles couldn’t hear Arden’s path.
Rainn knelt down by Shay’s side. The Nymph remained face down in the leaves, his braids curiously still. The Selkie sighed, reaching out and brushing a braid away from Shay’s cheek. “What am I going to do with you?” He sighed. “You need to tell me if you need to feed.”
Shay responded with a shaky exhale, his eyes pinched closed in pain. “ This... Is... Why... I... Don’t... Use... My Lure.”
“If you used it more, you wouldn’t react like this.” Rainn groused. “This is burnout.”
“ Fuck... You .”
Rainn quirked a brow. “Funny. Because right now, the only one being fucked is you.” The Selkie punctuated his statement by hooking his thumbs in the loops of Shay’s britches and pulling them down in one swift, sharp movement.
“It’s alright, love.” Rainn leaned over and whispered in his ear. “I’ll be gentle.”
Shay groaned, his eyelids fluttering as he faded in and out of consciousness. “ H-h-hurry up !” He croaked.
Rainn ran his hand over Shay’s rump, slapping his arse, though the Nymph didn’t flinch.
He bit his lips and unbuckled the buttons of his own trousers, fisting his cock and stroking it from root to tip.
Rainn brushed his thumb over the tip, feeling a bead of precum.
The Selkie chuckled under his breath as he pumped Shay’s cock with a disciplined pace—slow and torturous.
Rainn felt his own cock grow hard in his trousers, enjoying the sleepy moans and sighs of the Nymph, as Shay rocked his hips and fucked his hand. Shay’s round ass tensed, the toned muscles visible through the skin.
With his free hand, Rainn lifted his fingers to his mouth, dousing them in saliva.
Unable to resist the sight of the Nymphs' inviting hole. With one arm around his hip, still stroking Shay’s cock, Rainn maneuvered his thumb to the puckered hole of Shay’s back entrance, pressing lightly but not dipping inside.
Shay pushed back, greedy and demanding, thrusting into his hand as he gained more energy by the moment. The air was thick with his lust as Rainn pushed his thumb inside of Shay’s back entrance, feeling the hot, tight skin. The Nymph jerked, his cock growing hard as it leaked onto Rainn’s hand.
Shay let out a sigh of protest when Rainn withdrew his thumb, though his disappointment did not last for long.
Rainn pulled his cock free and stroked it as he lined the hard member against Shay’s hole. Still glistening from the saliva on his thumb. Before Rainn could form a thought, Shay rocked back and impaled himself on Rainn’s cock to the hilt.
“Greedy Nymph.” Rainn moaned, clasping Shay’s hips as he began to thrust.
They dressed quickly and then made their way through the trees. Following the heat and stench of boiling saltwater towards the Twilight Lake.
Rainn had expected Arden to be long gone, but the siren stood on the beach, overlooking the lake.
Tarsainn sat below. The water no longer bubbled, but steam rose from the lake's surface.
Shay approached the water first, kneeling down to get a better look.
Arden’s gaze was fixed faraway, as if he could see through the impenetrable steam.
“Don’t touch the water. You’ll burn yourself.” The Siren did not look at them as he spoke.
“Tarsainn is down there.” Shay pulled his hand back, frowning. “The Mer—”
“The Mer are likely boiling,” Arden said without emotion.
“Why?” Rainn had stood back until that moment, watching the two males. The Selkie would be the first to admit that he was more of a follower than a leader. He was happy to default to whatever Shay Mac Eoin decided, but it seemed that none of them had a plan or any idea what had happened.
Arden did not answer the question; instead, he asked another. “Do you know what happens when you boil a fish?”
Rainn felt the lump in his throat grow. The thought of so many Mer in that boiling water...
“Balor did this.” Shay stood up. “As revenge for Scylla.”
“Or perhaps, she was trying to get Cormac’s attention.” Rainn offered.
“She doesn’t know he’s dead?” Shay’s braids shifted in the breeze. The air of the lake was no longer frigid but painful.
Rainn clenched his fists. He didn’t want to say that word . ‘Dead’ seemed so final. “Maeve has come back before.”
Shay eyed him as if he were mad. “And you know that she was dead?”
Rainn’s jaw hardened. “I felt it.”
Shay scratched his chest, revealing the top of the demonic brand on his chest. “I can still feel her,” Shay admitted. “But we know next to nothing of the Tuatha Dé Danann.”
Both Shay and Rainn turned to Arden expectantly.
The Siren was wary. “What?”
“How do you communicate with the gods?” Shay cocked his head to the side.
Arden eyed him as if he were an inch tall. “You pray.”