Bite Me Harder (Guardians of the Deep 2)

“Have you never been in a pool?”

“Never,” she said.

Her breath rose and fell rapidly, and he knew he might have taken things too far. He should have warned her first. Yet, he’d had no idea that she would be so petrified of the water.

“It’s no big deal,” he said, kicking off one of his shoes, tearing off his sock, and dipping his toes in the warm water.

“What if I turn?” she asked.

“You said salt water does it,” he said.

“It does,” she said, “but this is kind of one of those risks I’ve never taken. My kind…we don’t really mess with water outside of the ocean.”

“Well, you shower, right?” he asked.

“Of course,” she said. “But that’s not the same.”

She bit at her bottom lip, and Rafe nearly melted with her nervous expression. He couldn’t help it. He needed to kiss her. He moved to her slowly, taking her hands in his, and kissed her, feeling her lips tremble beneath his. She was so scared and the shudder in her mouth turned him on more than it should have. He wanted to say, “fuck the pool” and take her to the bleachers alongside it so he could pull her onto his lap and kiss her some more. But he couldn’t get past her terror.

“Haven’t you ever been squirted with water?” he asked. “Like at a party or something?”

“Sure,” she said. “I guess.”

“And that didn’t turn you,” he said. “So why would a chlorinated pool?”

She looked up at the dark ceiling and squeezed his hands.

“I’m sorry,” he said. “This was stupid. I didn’t mean to scare you. We can go if you want.”

“No,” she said. “I think I’d like to try. I’ve never gone swimming in my human body. I mean other than when I’m shifting back into human form when climbing on to a boat or moving toward the shore. It’s not something I can do recreationally I mean.”

“You really don’t have to if you don’t want to,” Rafe said. “I never…ever…want you to do anything you’re not comfortable with.”

“Can you turn off the lights though?” she asked. “In case, you know, in case I do shift? I don’t want you to see it.”

“Of course,” he said.

He didn’t want to. Nothing about her could turn him off. He knew her beauty would manifest itself in any form. He would love her whether in legs or in fins. Yet, he could understand why she would be nervous. He imagined he would be too if he were in her position.

Rafe turned off the lights.

“I’m nervous,” she said in the darkness.

He reached for her and kissed her once more. His fingers found her waist where he held her tight and caressed her sides. She sighed into his mouth.

“I could never think differently of you,” he said. “If that’s what you’re worried about.”

“How do you know that?” she replied.

He didn’t have an answer for her. He wanted to say something smooth, but nothing came out. Instead, he felt her remove her dress. The sound of it hitting the ground made his cock stir in his pants.

“Here,” she said as she handed him her bra and then bent down to retrieve her panties. “Can you do something with these?”

Rafe would as soon as he could turn a light on. To try and go anywhere now would surely mean tripping and falling flat on his face.

“Be careful,” he said. “It’s dark.”

“I can see,” she said. “It’s one of my super powers.”