Bella jumps up and scurries over to Gio, plopping herself down on his lap and wrapping her arms around him. “Does that mean I’m not in trouble anymore?”
He engulfs her in his massive arms and squeezes so hard it probably hurts her before letting go and smirking at her. “Oh, you’re in big trouble, all right. How are you going to explain this to your foster parents? They’re probably worried sick about you.”
“Nah, I told them I was spending the night at a friend’s house last night, and I left a note in my bedroom telling them where I really was. They’ll probably be really mad at me, but I’m hoping I won’t have to live with them for too much longer.” She grins eagerly at Gio.
Gio’s face falls, and he shakes his head, rubbing her back through her long, dark hair. “Sorry, kiddo. I hate to break it to you, but this was a rescue mission not a treasure dive. We’re not any better off than we were before. Well, except now we have Coral back.”
“We can still find the treasure.” I jump up, my tail finally dry enough for my legs to emerge.
Bella jerks her body around to gawk at me, her eyes raking up and down my naked, human body. “Holy cow, she shifted! How’d I miss that?”
“It happens when my tail dries out.” I cross my arms over my body, suddenly embarrassed by my nudity. Avery pulls off his shirt and hands it to me.
I gape at the large bandage on his shoulder and reach for it. “What happened? Are you okay? Is this why you stayed on the ship?”
“Gio shot me.” Avery smirks.
I gasp and turn to look at Gio who winces. “It’s a long story, but yeah, I did. It was an accident.”
“Tell me,” I insist, wrapping one hand around Avery’s waist and gingerly fingering his wound with the other.
The guys take turns telling me the story of how James and his crew invaded their ship, looking for me after I got away from them, and the guys overpowered them, eventually killing them. Bella and I gasp and swivel our heads around in amazement as the story gets more and more intense.
I can tell that Bella is enthralled, like she’s watching a real life TV drama, oblivious to the reality of the danger her brother was in. But I’m overwhelmed with terror as I watch the scene play out in my imagination. Tears cloud my vision, and my fingernails gouge into Avery.
When he flinches, I realize what I’m doing and let go of him, pulling away from his embrace, backing away from all of them. “This is wrong. I shouldn’t be here. Look how much danger you’ve been in because of me!”
Gio jumps up, pulling Bella off his lap, and stomps over to me. He grabs me by my arms and scowls at me. “Don’t you do that, Coral. Don’t try to convince yourself we’re better off without you. We thought we lost you once before, and we were all miserable, me especially.”
Avery bobs his head exaggeratedly. “Grumpy Gio is no fun to be around.”
“We would’ve done anything to get you back. That’s why none of us batted an eye when we found out you needed us. You’re worth every ounce of trouble we’ve gone through.”
The other guys nod their heads in agreement and close in on me.
“Let me do what I can to make it up to you, then. Let me find the treasure.”
“You don’t have to earn our love, Coral, or pay us back for rescuing you. You rescued us first, remember?” Gio says, cupping my cheek in his large, rough hand.
“I want to do this. We’re close by, and James and his crew aren’t a threat anymore. If we find more treasure, you can get custody of Bella, Avery can open his own salon, Jude and Liam can do whatever they want.”
As the words leave my mouth, I can’t believe I’m saying them. Just a few, short weeks ago, I was terrified of losing them to their own pursuits, but now I see our bond is stronger than that. It was strong enough to survive my capture, their attack, my foolhardy attempt to save my people, even their risky mission to rescue me. I know now that chasing their dreams doesn’t mean abandoning me.
“If that’s what you want to do, that would be awesome, Coral.” Gio gives me a heart-stopping smile.
“I think one of us should go with you if it’s not too far away. Do you think you can swim slow enough that I can keep up with you?” Liam says, swapping out his oxygen tank for a fresh one.
“I’ll go, too. That way we can bring back more.” Jude grins.
“Can I go? Diving for treasure sounds pretty cool.” Bella pipes up.
Gio shakes his head. “Sorry, kiddo. You don’t even know how to scuba dive yet. But I promise I’ll teach you soon, okay? You’re a part of the team, now.”
He chuffs her under the chin, and she rolls her eyes at him.
“But I think you guys should wait till morning. I know you feel amped up right now, but it’s been a long day, and it’s dangerous to dive when you’re exhausted.”
“I made some food if you guys are hungry,” Avery says.
He shrugs when everyone turns to look at him in surprise. “I had to do something. I couldn’t just stand there and stare at the water, worrying.”
Jude raises an eyebrow at him. “I didn’t think you knew how to cook.”
“Well, it’s just grilled cheese and bologna sandwiches.”
“Sounds perfect.” Jude slaps him on the back, and we all head to the galley.
We sit around the table like a strange but perfect family, enjoying the meal and the simple pleasure of being together. We linger long after the food is gone, none of us wanting to interrupt the moment. Eventually, Gio’s eyes droop shut, and his head falls forward.
He jolts awake when I shake his shoulder. “Gio, I think you should go to bed. You’re falling asleep at the table.”
He yawns loudly, stretching his long, tatted, muscled arms over his head. “Yeah, I suppose so. I’m just enjoying the company.”
He stands up and tosses his wadded napkin on the table then glances around at the others for a second before turning his gaze towards me. “Coral, do you want to come with me?”
My heart stops for a moment, and so does everything else as Gio’s words sink in. The others stay silent, letting me know it’s okay. In fact, they look downright happy about it.
My heart starts beating again, this time in double speed as I slowly stand up and take his outstretched hand. The heat of it ignites me. The others busy themselves clearing the table, and I catch Bella grinning as we walk away.
Gio leads me down the hall towards the bedroom at the end. A bed with a rumpled blanket sits off to the side of the cabin. The white walls are bare, the only decoration is a few articles of clothing draped haphazardly.
A hint of his scent lingers in the air, a masculine combination of sun, sweat, sea, and that certain scent that’s all Gio. It goes straight from my nose to my center, creating a swirl of desire inside me.
“It’s not silk sheets and scented candles, but I guess it’s better than a pile of palm leaves under a handmade shelter.”
I turn towards him and take his other hand. “I don’t care where we’re at as long as we’re together.”
He drops my hands and reaches for me, engulfing me in his massive embrace. I feel safe, encased in his arms. My body shudders in release as the stress of my captivity sloughs off.
Gio’s hands stroke lazily up and down my back, but his grip is still tight enough to keep me pressed up against his firm body. My skin blazes and prickles at the same time. Slowly, his lips drop to mine, claiming them again and again. He alternates between gentle nips of his teeth, long pulls of his lips, and deep strokes of his tongue.
My hands are trapped at my sides, but I’m able to lift them just enough to grab ahold of his waist. I feel off balance, so slip my fingers into the waistband of his shorts to keep myself upright even though I know he won’t let me fall.
When he finally releases his tight hold around me, I slide my hands up his broad, bare chest, my fingers fluttering over the smooth ridges of his abdomen then tracing the black swirls of his tattoos.
“How do they make these marks on your sk
in?” I ask, realizing I have no idea.
“They take a needle with ink in it and jab it into the skin over and over again.”
I gasp, leaning in closer to examine the intricate lines. “That sound so painful. Why do you do it?” The designs are beautiful, but I can’t imagine purposefully subjecting yourself to that much pain to get them.
Gio sighs and holds out the bicep where his parents’ names are written. “I got my first one shortly after my parents died. In one moment, I lost everything — my parents, my home, my sister. I wanted a way to keep them with me somehow. Plus, I was young and wild, angry at everything. I was hurting so bad on the inside, I thought physical pain might distract me from it.
I got a few more after that just because I could. I was too young to get a tattoo without parental consent, but I didn’t have any parents, and I was big for my age. I could pass for older. Being the only kid in high school with a bunch of tats made me feel strong when the rest of my life left me feeling powerless. After I joined the Navy, it was just something to do when we had shore leave, so I got more. I haven’t gotten any in several years, though, until this last one.”
He rolls his wrist, revealing a beautifully-drawn mermaid with a multi-colored tail on his right arm. The word Coral swoops around the flowing, brown hair. I reach out and stroke it, overwhelmed.
“I wanted to be able to look at it any time I wanted to, but I also wanted to keep it close to my heart.” He lifts his wrist and presses it to his chest, right over his heart.
I pull his hand away and replace it with my head, pressing my cheek up against his flesh till I can hear his heart beating. He lays a hand on my head and drops kisses on my hair. We stay like that for a long moment, reveling in the feel of our closeness.
Eventually, Gio leads me over to the bed and sits down, pulling me between his knees. His fingers slide under my tee shirt, tickling the curves of my waist as his hands travel higher, pushing the shirt up with his arms, revealing my nakedness. When he gets to my breasts, I raise my arms and pull the shirt over my head.
Gio groans and wraps his hands around my waist, pulling me closer. He takes a nipple into his hot, wet mouth and sucks on it while he palms the other breast in his hand. The rough skin scours my tender flesh as he kneads it. I grab onto his shoulders for support and throw my head back, losing myself in the sensations. When I moan, he grabs me by the waist and tosses me onto the bed.
In one quick yank, his shorts are off. My eyes go wide at the sight of him. His rippling abdomen narrows to a flat triangle sprinkled with dark hair. Below that, his thighs are thick with hard muscles, framing his groin. His body is just as large and powerful as his personality.
He must sense my trepidation, because he grins at me, a rare gift he’s given me more in the last few hours than in the whole rest of the time I’ve known him. “I’ll go slow and gentle, I promise.”
“What if I don’t want you to?” I smirk back at him.
He growls and throws himself on top of me, assaulting me with his mouth. He holds most of his weight off me with his strong arms, but he hovers less than an inch above me, threatening to crush me with his massive body. I don’t feel scared or trapped, though, just protected.
His hard thigh is pressed between my legs, taunting me. When it gets slick with my desire, he nudges my legs open and moves his other leg between them. He stares at me as he enters me, his gaze piercing me until the intensity is too much, and he slams his lids closed.
When he’s inside and opens them again, something has changed. It’s not just lust I see there anymore, or even relief, it’s possession, commitment, devotion. He maintains his gaze until we both come undone.
Afterwards, he rolls to my side so he won’t crush me and props his head up on his hand.
“I don’t do relationships, Coral.” His words, so contrary to the look in his eyes, stun me, and I go still.
“Women were always just a pastime, a source of pleasure, release. I was never willing to love anyone because I was too afraid I’d lose them if I did. The moment I met you, I knew I would fall for you in a heartbeat if I got anywhere near the edge. I thought I could protect myself by keeping my distance, but as soon as you were gone, I realized it was too late. I’d already fallen.”
His words and the continuing look of love in his eyes soothe my anxiety some, but I know there’s more, and I need to hear it as much as he needs to say it. But my heart rips when I glimpse the hurt in them as he tears his eyes away from mine.
“You can’t imagine the pain, Coral. Not only from losing you, but the guilt of putting you at risk. Then, when I knew you were safe but I thought you’d left on purpose, my heart was shredded. The pain was everything I’d ever imagined it would be and worse. I never want to feel that again, Coral. I won’t survive it.”
He returns his gaze to me, his eyes boring into my soul. “I’m all in, Coral. You have my heart, you have all of me.”
Please don’t hurt me. He doesn’t say it, but I hear it in his mind.
“I won’t,” I whisper under my breath, hoping it’s a promise I can keep.
Chapter 12
Coral
I jump out of bed in the morning, eyes popping open as soon as the sun streams in through the window. Gio stretches an arm across the empty expanse of bed I’ve left behind. He rolls over with a groan, the sheets tangled around his large body, the sunlight shimmering on his bronze skin.
“Where you going?” His voice is a husky growl.
“Treasure diving!” I grab my tee shirt and pull it over my wide smile.
Gio scrunches his face in contemplation and narrows his eyes at me, the black spheres glinting. “How about some pearl diving first?”
My excitement veers in another direction when I see the images in his mind. “It is still early. Jude probably wants to sleep longer.”
I climb back on the bed and flop down next to him, and he slides over and pushes open my thighs before crawling between them. The sun is a lot higher in the sky by the time we surrender to the day, and I’m so weak and shaky I’m not sure I have any energy left for swimming. But the smells coming from the kitchen tempt us out of our haven.
“Man that looks awesome, Jude. Thanks.” Gio thumps Jude on the back, humming in appreciation as he loads his plate with eggs and sausage.
“Uh, you’re welcome.” Jude quirks an eyebrow at Gio’s enthusiasm.
While we eat, we talk animatedly about the dive and the treasure we might find.
“Are you guys ready to go?” Gio jumps up from the table as soon as his plate is clear.
“Wow, Gio, you seem lively this morning. I guess going to bed early helped, huh? Got a good night’s sleep?” Jude chomps suggestively on a sausage link.
I blush and sneak a peek at Gio who’s smiling broadly again. I could definitely get used to Happy Gio.
Bella raises an eyebrow and glances around the table. “Aren’t you guys jealous that Coral spent the night with my brother? I’m pretty sure they—”
“That’s none of your business, Bella.” Gio cuts her off, his smile morphing into a frown.
“Gotta admit, it’s kind of tough, but some of us have already had a turn. Gio’s was a long time coming, and I think we can all appreciate the effect it had on his personality.” Jude grins.
Gio turns his scowl towards Jude, and Bella slowly looks from one guy to the next, trying to figure out who has and who hasn’t.
“Can we not talk about this in front of my 15-year-old sister?” Gio grabs his empty plate, glaring at Jude.
Jude shrugs and picks up a few things to take back to the kitchen. “Well, it was nice while it lasted.”
Gio takes Jude’s plate from him and stacks both his and Jude’s on top of Bella’s, leaving the pile in front of her. “Bella, since you’re here, you might as well be useful. You can take care of these dishes while we’re diving. And make some lunch, too. There’s plenty of supplies in the fridge and pantry.”
Bella pouts but doesn’t put up
a fight, relieved her punishment isn’t worse than that.
I feel reenergized after Jude’s breakfast and eager to get going. Everyone else is also. We head out to the deck where the guys don wetsuits, vests, and fins. Since Bella’s in the kitchen, I strip off my tee shirt and walk naked over to the diving platform. I can feel four sets of eyes on me as I jump into the ocean.
My tail immediately unfurls in the cool, salty water, soaking it up like a sponge. I do a couple flips and swim a few loops while I wait for the guys to join me, reveling in my freedom. After just one day being human again, I miss the feel of the sea. I’m reminded again of my mother’s new shoal and the way those merfolk live. Can I find a way to marry the two worlds I love so I can have them both? It’s something I’ll have to talk to the guys about. But first, there’s a treasure waiting for us to discover.
Jude and Liam jump in the water a few minutes later, laden down with equipment to help them do what comes so naturally to me. Once they’re underwater, I head off in the direction of the shipwreck not too far away from my shoal, the one I found the gold at when we were on the island.
It takes more effort to swim slow that it would to swim fast, but the guys need to keep up with me since they don’t know where the shipwreck is. It’s strange to have them down here with me. They look like aliens from another world, like in the space movies that Jude likes to watch. But I’m thrilled to have them with me, exploring my world.
Their body language shows their excitement when the shipwreck comes into view, a hulking pile of algae-covered wood. I can’t help taking off ahead of them, stretching my fin as I dart towards the wreck.
Once I’m inside though, anxiety squeezes me as my mind flashes back to memories of hiding from the shark who wanted a taste of my blood and being captured by the divers who wanted even more than that. I peek my head out a window, making sure no other boats, or sharks, are floating nearby.
Satisfied that I’m safe, I swim deeper into the murky depths of the ship, hunting for the gold that was here before. But when I get to the room where the bars were at, there are none to be found. I backtrack, thinking I’ve taken a wrong turn somewhere, but I can’t find the gold anywhere. I float slowly through the green water, disturbing snoozing fish but trying not to stir up clouds of sediment as I dig through the refuse on the floor of the ship, searching for anything of value.
The Mermaid's Return_A Reverse Harem Romance Page 11
