Ruby pulled the neck of her t-shirt down and Penny saw a gigantic scar in the shape of teeth. It looked painful.
“Kino put this mark on me,” Ruby said.
“Does it hurt?” Penny asked.
“It always stays tender,” Ruby said. “But it’s…”
“Orgasmic,” Kalina said. “Or at least that’s what they say. You can see I don’t have the mark.”
“Orgasmic is a good word,” Ruby said. “If I press on it, I can practically feel Kino inside me. We’re connected through this mark.”
Now this part I kind of like.
“Anyway,” Ruby continued. “He bites you, he fucks the shit out of you, and then a tiny amount of shark sperm seeps out with his regular sperm.”
“Shark sperm?” Penny asked.
“Yeah,” she said. “Shark sperm. It stings a little, but then…well…it’s nice.”
“Nice?” Penny asked. “You’re just going to leave me hanging like that?”
“Well,” Ruby replied. “If you’re serious about this, maybe you’ll find out for yourself.”
Ruby stopped talking and her expression changed. She sniffed the air.
“Get behind me,” she told Penny. “Quickly.”
Kalina, Jagger, Hailey, Oliver, and Poet all lined up next to her, shielding Penny. Out of the water crawled five naked bodies, on their hands and knees, looking like dead things approaching the beach. As they reached the dry sand, they stood up, and Penny saw that Evelyn was out in the front.
She approached the campfire, her long black hair hanging down over her tits, her body as tight and toned as Penny had imagined. Her pussy was shaved into a racing stripe. Penny couldn’t imagine stepping out in front of others completely naked. Then she was drawn to the men around Evelyn. Each was totally naked, his cock swinging. Men of all sizes, gigantic to small cocks. None of them seemed to care about being naked. When she saw that Axel was one of them, the guy who’d pushed her off the boat, she nearly lost it, but she knew she needed to keep her cool.
“Evelyn,” Ruby said. “You’re not welcome here. You know that.”
“Where’s your fearless leader?” she replied.
She threw her wet hair over her shoulders, exposing her bare tits.
“Is that…is that his pet?” Evelyn asked, standing up on her toes to try and look past the others. “It is, isn’t it? Well, she seems to have healed quickly. Left you a few scars to remember me by, huh babe?”
Penny hated the woman for what she’d done to her and she couldn’t stop the anger growing inside. Penny might not have been the biggest of women, but she wasn’t a coward, and she wouldn’t be talked to like one.
“I’m nobody’s pet,” Penny said.
“Shh,” Kalina said as she looked back at Penny.
“She’s got some spirit,” Evelyn said. “Maybe I should rip that right out of her.”
Evelyn’s face turned so cold, so quickly, that Penny was worried she’d gotten herself into something she wouldn’t be able to handle. Yet, she was already sick, and her body wasn’t going to last much longer. This woman had more to lose than Penny, so she decided to speak her mind.
“We came here to try and form a truce,” Evelyn said.
“A truce?” Ruby asked, followed by a chuckle. “You’d never do that.”
“We should stop fighting,” Evelyn said. “We can put an end to our squabble and focus on the one thing that matters…keeping the humans out of the water. This is our home. They don’t belong here.”
“And there she goes again,” Hailey said.
“Just go, Evelyn,” Jagger said. “You’re not wanted here. You know we’re not going to make that deal with you so you’re wasting your time. Get off our island.”
“Your island?” Evelyn said and scoffed. “This was my island long before you got here, you fucking half-breed. You’re no better than this tramp.”
Evelyn pointed at Penny and finally, all the anger pent up inside Penny reached the surface and came flowing out.
“Tramp?” Penny said. “You’ve got some fucking balls calling me that you dumb cunt. Especially after your lame ass sharks failed to kill me in the water. Looks to me like you’re nothing but a sorry ass leader with a team of fucking flunkies.”
“Oh, you are so fucking dead,” Evelyn said as she stepped closer.
Penny’s new shark shifter friends formed a solid wall in front of her.
“You won’t touch her,” Ruby said.
“Who’s gonna stop me?” Evelyn asked. “You, the knocked up one? Or the blonde hooker next to you? How about this Metallica wannabe half-breed or his negro dyke of a girlfriend? Or the gay pretty boy? Or the chubby monkey? How about the albino mute? Can anyone in this ragtag band of fuck ups oppose me?
She looked back at her men and laughed. They laughed along with her. Then Penny saw him. His face had been shrouded in the darkness, but he’d leaned to the side enough for moonlight to illuminate him and she saw that one of his eyes was missing. The flesh had been melted or regrown to cover the missing eye, but it had to be the shark that had attacked her that day in the water. Fear finally hit her, but so did rage.
“You,” Penny said as she pushed past the others and was about to walk past Evelyn when the female leader grabbed her arm in a strong grip. “You’re the asshole who bit my leg in the water!”
Evelyn might have stopped her from moving forward, but she couldn’t stop her from getting her words out.
“Tasted like chicken,” the guy with the missing eye said.
His band of brothers all laughed. Evelyn put her nose next to Penny’s hair and sniffed, inhaling her scent.
“Smells like chicken too,” she said. “Would you like to talk shit now? Now that the others can’t save you in time?”
“Get your hand off me,” Penny warned.
“I could rip this arm out of its socket,” Evelyn hissed back.
“I said, get your hand off me,” Penny said again.
“Or you’ll do what?” she asked.
Penny knew that the time for talking was over. She’d seen the evilness of Evelyn’s ways and knew that this woman was about to do something to prove to all the others who was in charge. There was no getting out of this, not without blood being spilled. She just needed to make sure it was Evelyn’s blood spilled first.
Without further hesitation, Penny gripped the neck of her beer bottle, keeping it tight to her side, preparing to strike.
“You know what?” Evelyn said. “I should turn her. I should take her into my group and turn her myself. Thane won’t like that one bit, and I’m counting on that.”
She turned to walk away, pulling Penny’s arm to drag her toward the water.
“Evelyn!” Ruby yelled. “Get away from her.”
“Nah, this one’s coming with me.”
It was her only chance.
“Hey,” Penny said. “What’s happening to your face?”
Evelyn stopped and put a hand to her face.
“What?” she asked.
“This,” Penny said as she swung the beer bottle upward and slapped it against the side of Evelyn’s face.
The glass broke and cut her. Evelyn howled and let go of Penny’s arm.
“You’re fucking dead!” Evelyn yelled. “Get her!”
“How about you don’t?” came a strong voice from behind Penny.
She looked back to see Thane, Kino, Faith, and Rickshaw walking toward her, all completely naked. Like ancient warriors stepping onto the battlefield, they moved out of the darkness of the ocean and into the moonlight, each dripping wet. The beauty and power of these four were on full display.
“Look what your bitch did to me!” Evelyn yelled at Thane.
“What are you doing on my island?” Thane asked as he reached Penny and held out a hand to help her up.
Penny took his hand and stood, finding herself in his arms.
“You okay?” he asked her.
“I’m fine,” Penny promised.
> “She’s not fine,” Evelyn announced. “Look at her. Smell her. You all know it.”
“You should leave,” Penny said.
“Bitch, be honest,” Evelyn demanded. “You’re here for a reason. You want him to cure you.”
“Stop it, please,” Penny said.
She’d been tough so far, but she didn’t know that Evelyn knew about her sickness. Nobody did except Sylvia. What would Ruby and Kalina and the others think if they knew she was dying? Would they still accept her as one of their own? Or would they turn her away?
“What is she talking about?” Kalina asked.
“Tell them,” Evelyn said. “Go ahead.”
“I have leukemia,” Penny admitted. “I have adult-onset leukemia…and I’m dying.”
“Oh my God,” Kalina said from behind her.
“She’s fucking dying!” Evelyn said, followed by a laugh.
“That’s enough!” Thane said.
“Is it?” Evelyn asked. “I don’t think it is. Tell them why you’re really here, princess.”
“I’m here because I want to be,” Penny said. “I’m here because I’m falling in love with Thane.”
“Love?” Evelyn challenged. “You barely know him. You don’t love him. You only want the shark dick and some of that good shit running through his veins, so he can heal your fragile ass. You’re fucking dying. Get off this island and go back to your hospitals. You’re not wanted on this island. Or on any of the others around here.”
“I said that’s enough!” Thane yelled.
He stepped toward Evelyn angrily. One of the sharks, a big brunette with a goatee moved between them. It happened so quickly that Penny could barely register it. Thane shot out with one of his hands and struck the man in the throat. The guy’s eyes went wide, and he clutched at his neck, trying to breathe. Thane swung a fist upward, catching the guy’s chin and sending him flying backwards onto the beach.
“Enough,” Thane added. “Unless one of you wants to be next.”
“I think I got my point across,” Evelyn said. “I’ve tried to talk sense into all of you. We could team up, but you choose human lives over your own. Something’s coming. I can promise you that. And you’ll all suffer for it. For now, have fun with your sick little bitch.”
Evelyn snapped her fingers and then backed away, keeping her eyes on Thane as she and her group made their way back to the ocean. When they all finally turned and ran, it was too dark for Penny to see them change, but they were gone in the blink of an eye.
Thane turned to Penny and rushed at her. At first, she thought he was angry, but then he wrapped his arms around her and kissed her hard.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” he asked, holding her so tight.
She wanted to melt into his arms and join him in his skin. She hated her own weak and breakable body.
“I hurt all the time,” she said, tears finally falling from her eyes.
Somehow, being exposed the way she had, seemed to make her situation ten times more real. She’d spent so much time trying not to think about it or speak about it and now it was out in the open.
“It always hurts, and I always feel like shit,” she added, “but when I’m with you…it hurts so much less.”
Thane held her head against his chest as he spoke to the others. Penny closed her eyes and listened to him.
“You all heard what she had to say,” he said. “But I don’t give a shit. This is my woman. She will be treated as such. If she hurts, we’ll help her. If she’s in danger, we’ll protect her. Penelope is my woman. That’s all that matters. None of this other shit.”
All around her, she heard the others murmur words of acceptance. They didn’t hate her. And Thane had made it perfectly clear that she was his.
***
He’d arrived in time to make sure Evelyn didn’t tear his woman into bloody bits. Penny was naïve. She had no idea the trouble she was getting herself into. Fighting Evelyn wouldn’t be like fighting any other pure human. The evil bitch was as strong as she was savage.
She was mean too. The information she’d exposed to everyone was cruel. Penny was dying. He’d known something was wrong with her, but he had never realized it was something so serious. He’d already been afraid of losing her, of not being able to protect her, so hearing that she might die regardless was like a dagger to his heart. He wished she’d told him sooner, but it didn’t matter now. The story was out. The strength of him and his people was something they took for granted every day. He couldn’t imagine what it must feel like to have that stripped away from you over a fucking disease.
Now, with Penny in his arms, he didn’t want to let go. His cock pressed against her stomach and he wished he could take her right there in front of everyone. He wanted to make love to her and make her understand how much he needed her and help her understand how he couldn’t live without her now.
For fuck’s sake. You were almost taken from me. If I’d been only a few seconds later, Evelyn would have killed you.
“Are you okay?” he asked.
“I’ll live,” she said. “Well…for now.”
She looked up at him and smiled through her tears. Her ability to make light of a situation even when it wasn’t funny at all, was something he truly admired. She had so much strength in her.
“I’m so sorry for not telling you,” she said. “I was afraid you wouldn’t want me anymore.”
“I want you even more,” he told her. “But we need to talk.”
The others caught on quickly that it was a moment the two needed to spend alone, so they retreated to their cabins. Alone, standing on the beach, Thane had never felt so at home. He had his woman in his arms, her warmth against his chest, and the sound of the waves breaking behind him.
“Do you think the others will hate me?” Penny asked.
“No,” he said. “Never.”
“I swear I didn’t come here for a cure,” she said. “I didn’t seek out Gerri Wilder. She found me. But…I guess there’s a small part of me that likes the idea that you might be able to help me too.”
“I might be able to,” he said. “But it’s not something simple. It’s complicated…and it hurts.”
“I’ve heard the horror stories,” she said. “Bones cracked like glass.”
“Yeah,” he replied.
He inhaled, taking in the scent of her hair and closed his eyes to keep it in his thoughts forever.
“Don’t do that again, please,” he said as he took her face in both of his hands and forced her to look him in the eyes.
“Do what?” she asked, smiling back at him.
“Provoke her,” he said. “You have no idea how vindictive she is. She’s incredibly strong too. The shark is in our blood, even when we’re in human form. She’s ferocious.”
“I’m pretty ferocious myself,” she said. “Once you get to know me.”
He leaned down and softly bit her shoulder. She didn’t bear the mark, but he wanted her to. If he’d changed her, he knew that setting his teeth against her mark would have her coming right there in his arms. He wanted Penny to come again.
“I’m counting on that,” he finally replied.
“Take me into the water,” she said. “Show me your world.”
“I can’t do that,” he said. “It’s too dangerous.”
“We can stay close to the shore,” she said.
“Not out there,” he said, pointing toward the ocean. “Evelyn could be out there watching us, waiting for the right time to attack.”
She leaned her forehead down and touched it to his chest.
“Wait a minute,” he said. “I think I know a place.”
Twenty minutes later, he pushed through a wall of trees that led to a beautiful salt-water lagoon. It was a scene straight out of a romance movie. The moon shone down from above and a small waterfall provided a gentle, soothing roar. Trees and foliage surrounded the water, all except the small beach area that led into the water.
The lagoon seemed to
glow in the moonlight. Green and blue fluorescents from something beneath the water. Thane had always loved the majestic quality of this place. He’d stopped coming here when he discovered the freedom of the ocean. But this was perfect for his time with Penny.
“This is amazing,” she said.
“I haven’t been here in a long time,” he said. “I prefer the open sea.”
He held her hand and walked closer to the water.
“That’s salt water?” she asked.
He nodded.
“So, if you touch it, you’ll…”
“Yep,” he replied. “I don’t know about this. If you see me that way, you might freak out. You might want nothing to do with me after that.”
“There’s nothing you could do to change how badly I want you,” she said.
Thane looked down at his own naked body and wished she were no longer wearing her dress. She seemed to get where his mind was going, because she reached down and lifted the dress over her head. She dropped it to the ground, and Thane felt his throat go dry. She was gorgeous, and her tits begged to be touched. He cupped one in his hand and circled her nipple with his thumb. Goosebumps rose around it, like braille beneath his fingertips. The sensuality of the moment caused his cock to stir, and when she reached out and took hold of him, he grew in her hand. Her touch felt so fucking incredible.
She looked up at him and her eyes seemed so big, so hopeful, so adorable. Her lips, so pouty. When she slowly dropped to her knees, he considered pulling her up, but she was a woman who knew what she wanted, and when her hand cupped his balls, he knew there would be no stopping her.
Her fingernails ran over his skin, and the slight scratch of them was like a jolt of lighting through his body. He jerked and stood up on his toes. She laughed and when he looked down at her, he loved how she stared up at him as she leaned her head to the side and licked the underbelly of his cock. She was a seductress in a cute, innocent woman’s body.
Pulling her hair back into a ponytail and holding it with her free hand, she finally opened her mouth and put her lips around the head of his cock. He closed his eyes and savored the feel of her warmth around him, sucking him, taking him all in. Finally, he reached out and held her ponytail for her, so she would have both hands free. She showed her appreciation by wrapping her fist around him and pulling down hard, tightening his skin as she lowered her mouth, grazing her teeth against him. Then she pulled up on him as she pulled her mouth away.
Oh, Bite Me: Paranormal Dating Agency Page 10
