Page 8 of Where the Current Takes Him (Mermate #1)

Loriun

L oriun barely made it through his penthouse door before his cock burst free of his slit. He grunted as he fumbled with his stupid human clothes and freed himself from the confines of his pants. The Omega’s scent… That mouthwatering scent filled his bloodstream, redirecting it between his legs.

No Omega had ever affected him like this before. Sure, he’d paired up with casual partners and had his fun, but never had an Omega’s mere scent aroused him beyond rational thought. Beau hadn’t even touched him, yet his body ached for the Omega’s skin on his scales.

Loriun stumbled to the edge of the pool that dominated the majority of his apartment and dove in. His tail thrashed, twisting his body until he floated, face up in the water. His tapered length lay along his stomach, twitching in the warm air.

His mind was entirely filled with shifting images of Beau’s lips, his wide eyes, his silky, golden skin, his round, sumptuous ass…

Loriun wrapped a hand around the thick base of his cock with a groan.

If there was any part of him that protested against jerking off to a man he just met, it was not nearly loud enough for him to hear it.

Loriun slid his hand along his shaft, seawater sluicing across the sensitive skin.

When he reached the pointed tip, he let out a quiet gasp.

The bundle of nerves there sent a sharp wave of pleasure through his body.

His fist formed a tight circle, and he couldn’t stop himself from imagining what Beau’s hole would feel like on his throbbing shaft.

Loriun threw back his head, sending little ripples through the pool. His hips jerked in tiny, desperate motions as he fucked his fist with nothing but the hypersensitive tip. Heat radiated from where he gripped himself, traveling down into the significantly wider base.

His motions grew stronger as he pounded deeper into his hand, until it made contact with his bucking hips.

Loriun worked his base with his right hand, then reached up with the left.

A moan fell from his lips. With each squeeze of his cockhead, a jolt of pleasure shot through him, amplified by the hand below.

Beau’s face swam to the forefront of his mind, but not the face Loriun had seen that evening.

This Beau’s expression was slack with pleasure, perfect lips forming a small “o” as he took his Alpha’s cock.

His tanned skin glistened with sweat, and his long legs were draped over Loriun’s shoulders.

One of Beau’s elegant hands stroked his own length in time with each of his Alpha’s thrusts.

With that, Loriun strained against his grip and erupted across his body. Thick, hot foam bubbled along his stomach and chest before sliding off and into the water.

Loriun let his arms drop and he lay on the surface of the water, panting and surrounded by seafoam.

Within seconds, his rational mind came flooding back, and he dove down to the bottom of the pool.

A scale brush rested on a shelf along the side wall.

Loriun seized it and began scrubbing away his crimes.

What is wrong with you? You just met him, he is clearly not comfortable around you yet, and this is how you respond? Filthy, uncivilized, whale-cocked—

Loriun cast a furious gaze up at the surface above, where evidence of his misdeeds still floated.

With a lash of his tail, Loriun propelled himself to an elegant, seashell button.

He rammed it with his fist—his dirty, sinful fist—and watched the pumps filter the contaminated water back out into the ocean, drawing fresh seawater in.

A large bubble issued from Loriun’s mouth as he heaved a sigh. If he was going to make this work, if he was going to have the family he dreamed of, he was going to have to pull himself together. Beau was nervous enough without a mentally unstable Mer to contend with.

He’d likely gone straight up to the second floor and seen the rooms meant for their future children. Based on his limited knowledge of human coupling, humans often panicked at the thought of offspring. At least, they never seemed pleased on TV.

Perhaps he should have stayed to reassure the Omega that he wasn’t expected to bear children until he was ready—that the house was merely arranged to accommodate all scenarios and future plans.

To be fair, he would have stayed if he hadn’t been at risk of breaking the zipper on his slacks. Facing an empty nursery on his first night was probably better than coming face to face with extraterrestrial dick without warning.

Loriun buried his face in his hands. He felt that he had done a decent job at concealing his inner turmoil in Beau’s presence, but had the Omega noticed his new Alpha’s uncontrollable mental careening?

Humans often seemed rather astute when it came to reading the emotions of others, but tended to be more accurate with members of their own species.

A sharp trill interrupted Loriun’s stewing. He swam to the surface and reached for the phone still tucked away in his abandoned pants. His scales cast water from his fingers before they even reached the device, though phones had been entirely waterproof since the Mer arrived.

“Loriun Kolhn speaking.”

“Good evening, Mr. Kolhn, this is Tioa Pomio at Poseidon Omega Clinic. My apologies for calling at such a late hour, but I’m sure you understand how last-minute all this has been.”

“Ah, yes, of course. Thank you for returning my call.”

“Certainly. It looks like your Omega’s previous doctor has already scheduled an appointment for tomorrow morning at 9:30 a. m.”

Loriun’s brow furrowed. “His previous doctor arranged it?”

“It seems that Mr. Montgomery has extensive medical records, and his previous provider has submitted a request for any further records to be shared. They were quite involved with his care.”

His jaw tightened. A request for his Omega’s personal medical information to be shared?

“Will Poseidon be honoring that request?”

“No,” Tioa replied. “All medical records in Paeil are sealed, unless the patient’s residence is transferred to the mainland.”

“Good.” Now that the flicker of rage had been quelled, the other half of the receptionist’s words sank into him. Anger was quickly replaced with anxiety. “You said he has extensive medical records? Is he ill?”

“I am not at liberty to share that information, Mr. Kolhn.” The voice on the other end of the line was apologetic. “I can, however, tell you that he would not have been accepted into the Mermate program if he had a significant health concern.”

Some of the tension in Loriun’s muscles relaxed. “I understand. Thank you, Mr. Pomio.”

“Just Tioa,” he corrected. “We will see you and Mr. Montgomery at 9:30 tomorrow morning. Have a pleasant evening.”

“You as well.”

Loriun lowered the phone, staring unseeingly at the deep blue wall. Now an entirely new worry had overtaken his thoughts. What could be the reason for his Omega’s lengthy medical history?

∞∞∞

Loriun was staring blankly at the enormous display of pastries at his local bakery.

He was the only Mer in the building, given that Mer were incapable of digesting several key components of baked goods.

The humans eyed him as they collected their morning pastries and placed coffee orders at the counter.

Humans like croissants, right? But… how many do they need for a meal?

He squinted at the rack of buttery crescents. There were several sheets filled with dozens of the same, plain croissants.

Surely, he reasoned, if there are this many available for a single morning, they must require quite a few.

Feeling more confident, he unfolded a large paper bag and began transferring pastries from their sheet. When he felt, spiritually, that the number was sufficient, he replaced the tongs in their holder, and folded the top of the paper bag. The line had thankfully dispersed by the time he was done.

Loriun set the bag on the counter and glanced up at the menu. As he suspected, it was filled with milk-based offerings. He shuddered.

“A large iced americano, as well please.”

“One large iced americano and… a lot of croissants. You know these contain dairy, right?”

“Yes, they’re not for me.” Loriun’s gaze finally dropped to the cashier, and he felt his eyes go wide.

The young man at the register was scaled, and small fins were visible at his ears.

Yet the scales were muted shades of silvery blue, and the fins spiraled into the shape of a human ear.

The gloved hand that was counting Loriun’s pastries showed little webbing through the clear plastic, and his thick, Mer-like hair had been cropped short.

A hybrid.

Either the teen didn’t notice Loriun’s shock, or he was used to it, and simply said, “That’ll be $81.25.”

Distracted, Loriun raised an eyebrow at the screen displaying his total. How did humans survive if their food cost this much? Another mystery for him to unravel.

He paid the astronomical fee, received his coffee, and slid back into his car.

It was a nondescript, light gold sedan with a standard Mer interior—nothing too flashy.

Loriun had seen the kinds of cars wealthy humans owned, and he’d never quite been able to make sense of it.

All he cared about was comfort, durability, and how hot the interior became when sitting in the sun.

As he pulled out of the parking lot, it occurred to him that Beau may have been less than impressed by his ride. Perhaps he had expected a luxury sports car. Loriun sighed, adding the worry to his ever-growing mental list, and turning out onto the road toward the beach house.