Blood for Atlantis Read online

  His hands make their way down to my shorts, pushing them to the ground. I step out of my shorts leaving them to get soaked on the shower floor. Laki lifts me, but this time, he pushes my back against the smooth stone wall of the shower. I open myself to him and lock my legs around his back. I can feel his thick length nudge at my entrance. My arms wrap around his neck to help hold myself in place as he takes one of his hands and guides himself in.

  I sigh as soon as I feel him enter me. Thick and strong are two words that will always be connected to my Laki. A moan escapes me as he pulls out slowly and re-enters. My hands grab for his short dark hair, and my fangs pop free. Laki continues to thrust. I can’t keep quiet because he is hitting just the right spot. I pull myself into him, burying my head in his neck. When I orgasm, I sink my teeth into his shoulder, taking a taste of his sweet blood.

  My entire body continues to quiver. Laki suddenly stops and pulls out. He turns me around to face the wall and runs his tongue from the back of my earlobe and down my neck. I want more. Laki’s hands trace my sides all the way down to my hips where he pulls me to the right position. I stand slightly on my tip toes and lean into the wall on my hands.

  He thrusts deep into me from behind. One hand on my breast, and his other hand is wrapped around my hip and splayed across my abdomen, holding me in place. Water is running down my back, increasing every sensation. I let out another moan of pleasure, enjoying every inch Laki offers me. I push myself back on him harder and bounce slightly, maneuvering him into the position that sends me catapulting over the edge once more. This time, Laki has no choice but to follow me, collapsing into me as an orgasm washes through him, spilling himself within me. I love every second of being this close to him.

  When he finally releases me, I turn around in the shower to kiss him again. I run my long fingers over his perfectly sculpted shoulders. Where I had bitten him has already healed. He tips my chin up and kisses me once more.

  “We’d better get back before Aden sends out an army to find us,” Laki teases. I know he is right. He reaches behind me to turn off the water and then disappears around the corner and returns with a towel and two white togas. Sex wore me out, and I know now that I will be able to sleep peacefully. A much needed rest before the long swim back to the yacht. Noticing my fatigue, Laki picks me up into his arms and carries me out of the gym, across Bathos, and back to our room. A perfect night under the sea with my man.

  24

  That morning I awake with Aden on one side and Laki on the other side of me in bed. Breck is still asleep on the floor, and Morgan is standing adjusting his toga. I stare at him for a moment before he realizes.

  “Do you like what you see?” he asks.

  “Are the others sirens like you?” I blurt out the random question.

  “No, I am the only one of the four of us. It’s why they sent me after you and not Aden. We all know Aden is your favorite,” his voice drips accusingly.

  “Is that jealousy I sense?”

  “I’m a siren, I am never jealous.”

  I laugh in response, causing the other men to stir awake, “I honestly have no favorites anymore. I am getting to know each of you. Aden is the smart one, Breck is the beach boy, Laki is the jokester, and you are the leader and my siren.” I pause, “And I think we were brought together by the fates. There is no other explanation for how attached I am to all of you while still learning who each of you are.”

  “I agree,” Laki rises next to me. “I barely know you, I just know I was lost without you.”

  “Oh, come on, you know me now,” I prompt.

  “The daughter of gods who takes no shit from barmaids,” Laki teases.

  I burst out laughing, “I swear that is right. If she touches you all again she is dead.”

  “She won’t be touching us now. You are scary,” Breck observes from the floor.

  “You didn’t think I was scary the other day,” I quip.

  “Oh yes, I did, scary sexy,” Breck smiles.

  I blush because I still struggle to think of myself as sexy. I pull myself from the bed and subconsciously run my hands along my body. I am softer now, and it is probably due to my lazy land life. Or, Aphrodite, may have been right. With every shift my body develops more. I run my hands over my breasts hidden by the toga and they do feel larger. Two perfect globes, whereas before, there was almost nothing there.

  “You are changing,” Aden observes my actions.

  “Yeah, I think I am,” I confirm.

  “It isn’t just your body, Meri. Your eyes are reflecting light like two perfect blue sapphires,” Laki–the jokester who sometimes plays poet–responds.

  “Nevermind all of that. Let’s get back to the yacht for breakfast,” I brush them off.

  “Oh, I was hoping we could eat at the Tavern again. I’d love to see Cara squirm around,” Breck smiles.

  “You are diabolical,” I reply.

  “I don’t even know what diabolical means,” he says as he pulls his long hair back into his man bun.

  Laki laughs, “Well, we know she isn’t into him for his brains.”

  “Okay, we need to get going.” Leave it to Morgan to stop a light-hearted moment with duty.

  “Fine, how do we get out of here without Triton noticing?”

  “We don’t, but I don’t expect him to stop us,” Aden replies.

  He was right. We make our way through the sunken dark gorge without any hiccups. When we walk past the tavern, I had to fight the urge to go see Cara. I don’t want to harm her, but some small part of me agrees with Breck. I’d love to see her squirm.

  It isn’t long before we make our way back to the lit sea floor. The pressure change in the water causes me to be temporarily disoriented although it seems my four mermen are not experiencing any problem from it. Maybe it is something I will get used to over time.

  We swim the entire way back in silence. I make small observations of myself and my men. I seem to be larger now than they are. My tail is longer than even Breck’s and Aden’s who are the tallest on land. Subtle changes are taking place each time I shift. Soon, everyone will be able to notice I am something more than a regular mermaid. I can’t help but wonder what else is coming my way. I have no doubt that something is coming . . . . There is a sense of foreboding in each of our actions. I am certain that is why the swim back to the Yacht is done in silence.

  The platform lowers upon our arrival. I sigh a breath of relief when we are lifted from the water. The warm sun feels good. I may be made of the sea, but I have learned to appreciate life above it as much as life below. Two separate worlds completely unique in their beauty.

  I wrap my changing body in a towel and watch as each of my men do the same. The sense of changing time is upon me. Every time I look upon them, I realize I don’t want anything to change. All I want is for us to get to sail the world on this luxury boat. All I want is for time to stand still and simple moments like these to last forever.

  Voices draw me out of my daydream. Morgan and the guys are talking with the two who kept watch while were gone. Dealing with new people isn’t something I am in the mood for. I ignore them and head towards my cabin to put on new clothing.

  In my peripheral, I see Morgan watching me leave. His attention never leaves me, while the others talk. A shiver slides down my spine as if he were singing me a song to entice me to his bed. I want nothing more than to be sung to while Morgan takes me. To experience something that is uniquely him.

  The smirk doesn’t leave my face as I make my way back to my room. All of my cares wash away when I am alone with my men. It is as if my problems don’t really exist, or at least I like to pretend they don’t exist.

  Déjà vu is present in every move I have made today. That doesn’t change when I drop the towel and begin sorting through the drawers for something to wear. After I pull out a shirt and shorts, I shut the drawer and look up. Morgan is standing in the doorway watching.

  In most instances, I think I would have felt startled,
but this all seems familiar and natural. I raise an eyebrow, taking in his salt and pepper hair, dark eyes, and wide bronzed chest. My eyes follow down to the striped towel still wrapped about his hips.

  “My eyes are up here.” His husky voice fills the silence of the room.

  My stomach does a somersault, and my breath hitches in my chest. He moves in, closing the space between us. The clothing I was holding in my hand falls to the ground. I carefully bring my fingertips to his chest, touching him ever so lightly. It is still hard to believe he is real. He appeared at my door like he knew he was on my mind, and I wanted him to follow me. The moment is surreal.

  His eyes look down upon me like dark pools of never-ending night, “Do you want something?” he asks.

  Oh, there are so many things I want from this man. So many naughty things that make my core ache and my fangs appear. I take a deep breath, trying to control my nerves before asking, “Will you sing for me?”

  His face goes grim as he closes his eyes, “My voice can change your emotions and perception. I want you to want me without that influence.”

  My eyes are looking at his chest as his words deflate the well of hope I had. He places a rough hand on my chin and tilts my head up to him, “You have heard me sing once before.”

  I nod, as it is true, “I have no memory of it. It was short and only to persuade your way into my home. I only . . .”

  “What?” he prods.

  “I have never heard a siren’s song, and you can rest assured I already want you.”

  The corners of his mouth widen in a smile, “You sang a siren’s song once. I will never forget how all of Atlantis heard your voice echoing out from beneath the earth. I saw people stand in awe for hours captured by the song you sang. The picture you painted of comfort and then a sadness so deep, even the gods wept salty tears.”

  I close my eyes, remembering when my body was submerged in blood in pure darkness. The screams of the other potentials were echoing, and the only thing left for me to do was sing. I had no idea it left the cave like that.

  “They led us into caves deep below Atlantis. Each of us were taken into rooms that were bare of light. In each room, was a pool of blood so deep, it had no end. We were stripped and were placed into the pools. My form shifted, and when I could not drown out the screams of the others who had nightmares from within the dark, I sang. My heart sang first to comfort them, and then it lamented having to kill them. I’m not a monster,” I say in a whisper.

  “No, you’re nothing close to a monster to me.” He pulls me into an embrace. Morgan is only a few inches taller than me, but he is so strong, solid, and real.

  “Will you sing to me?” I ask one more time.

  “If you trust me, I will.”

  I lean into him, resting my head against his shoulder to signify that I have not changed my mind, and my trust is his. I want my siren to sing to me.

  I miss the first few chords of the song he sings, but the magic he weaves with them is unforgettable. The cabin melts away, and we are standing on a rock with turbulent seas below us and a clear star-speckled midnight sky above us. Colors of green and blue swirl around my feet, and words come forth from all around me. Music melds with each word he sings–violins and guitars in a haunting rendition.

  . . .The twilight gleam is in her eye

  The night is on her hair

  And, like a love sick leannán sí,

  She hath my heart in thrall

  No life have I, no liberty

  For love is lord of all

  My hand sweeps, out fingering the colors swirling around me in awe. I have never seen such a show of nature in all my life. It is as if Morgan has harnessed the northern lights and placed them about me on this rock, beneath this starry sky, surrounded by turbulent seas, just to express his love . . . to me. He is giving me a full load of his magic, but laden within is his heart.

  Morgan’s voice is now taking on the harmonies of sound and weaving them through every fiber of my being. My head falls backwards, and the ache between my legs quickens. Morgan’s song is caressing my body in a way a hand could have never done. Soon, the image of night sea is washed away, and we lay in a bed of the softest clouds. He purrs over me, lighting tingles down every extremity.

  When he enters my core, his song continues, each note enticing me to the brink and then letting me ease back down. I am on a rollercoaster of need, and I have never felt so alive. He holds himself over me with strong muscles flexing under his tan skin. His eyes pierce into me as his song changes ever so slightly, urging me to feed.

  On the cusp of an orgasm, I latch my legs around him tight and hold him within me. My arms drag his face down to mine. I run my tongue from his ear lobe to the juiciest part of his neck. My fingers entwine with his dark hair, and my teeth pierce his skin. His song and body push me over the edge into oblivion. Colors dance on the backs of my eyelids as I spasm my release and take my fill. The sweet nectar of his life force adds an element of completion.

  Morgan collapses on me in my bed. Our breathing is heavy and in time with each other. I have enjoyed all of my men in one way or another, but nothing will ever compare to having sex with a siren. He finally rolls off of me after a few minutes of us trying to regain composure.

  “Who is driving the boat?” I ask when I am able to speak again.

  “Aden,” comes his husky reply. His voice is still dripping in passion.

  I look Morgan in his eyes and say the only thing I can think to say about what I just experienced, “Thank you.”

  He smiles before pulling himself together and climbing out of bed, “Do you mind if I use your shower?”

  “I remember someone once telling me what is mine is also yours,” I reply with a sated grin stretched across my face. I roll over, pushing myself down into the covers, finding peace in my current surroundings.

  25

  I wake being tossed from the bed. The entire cabin is rocking back and forth. I climb to my feet, steadying myself. I fall back to the ground while trying to slip some shorts over my widening hips. I curse the sea briefly as I try again.

  I throw on a crop top in case I need to make a quick shift. Shorts will rip and be ruined, tops, on the other hand, need to work for swimming in and not disrupt my scales. Once finally clothed, I grab my dagger, strapping it to my waist and head to see what in the world is going on. Deep down, I am hoping it is a routine storm, but part of me knows nothing in my life is ever routine.

  The door flies open to the deck, and all I see are the white crests of waves hitting our vessel, the sky is still blue with not a cloud in site.

  “Damn him!” I curse under my breath, slamming the door shut. It is obvious Poseidon knows what is up and is either trying to kill us or change our minds.

  “I don’t think this is Poseidon,” Aden says from behind me.

  I turn around ready to argue, but something stops me, “Who is it then?”

  “Amphitrite.”

  I am not understanding his logic,”But . . . .Why?”

  “She is trying to warn you, and to protect you. If you turn around now, I bet the sea calms.”

  “Care to test your theory?” I ask.

  He nods and takes my hand, leading me through the cabin and up some stairs to a navigation room. I find Morgan manning a wheel, speaking sea talk, which I have no understanding of, to Laki and and Breck.

  “Try to steer the in the other direction, away from Atlantis,” Aden suggests.

  “That is counterproductive. It is going to take time to turn this thing around in this,” Morgan says and gestures out the window to the waves slamming us.

  “I think Aden may be right. Just give it a try,” I plead with him.

  He gives me a look, “Okay, but give me an explanation as to why.”

  “We think it is Amphitrite trying to keep Meri safe,” Aden explains.

  “Safe? She is trying to sink us!” Laki retorts.

  “We are mer-people, what do you think would happen if we sink?
Would we drown?” Morgan yells back. Looks like it is a three versus two scenario.

  We all stand holding on to various things anchored to the yacht to keep our balance. Morgan focuses on the wheel and maneuvering the giant beast we are riding upon. We are all silent as Morgan barks orders when he needs help. Sweat drips off his brow as the minutes edge by.

  I have no understanding of how a boat of any size works. What I do know is what I can see, and it is definitely taking some level of skill to get this thing where we need it to be. Sure enough, the waters became calmer and calmer as the boat turns to Morgan’s will.

  “Looks like Aden was right,” Breck observes, which gets him a punch in the shoulder from Laki.

  “Boys,” I give them a look that tells them to cut it out.

  “She has to sleep sometime, doesn’t she?” Laki asks.

  I shrug my shoulders, “Does an ancient goddess really need to sleep?” It is a rhetorical question.

  “Doubtful. Not if she thinks she is protecting her granddaughter and the Key,” Morgan answers.

  “Probably only cares about me being the Key,” I sigh. “So, what do we do now?”

  “Wait until night and try again,” Aden answers, and Morgan vocalizes his agreement.

  “We should all get some sleep. It is going to be a long night,” Aden says.

  “Yeah, I guess that is a good idea,” I reply, even though I know there is no way I am going to be able to sleep.

  “I think I will get something to eat first,” Aden adds while looking at me. I can’t resist the smile stretching across my face.

  “I’ll join you.”

  I squeeze into the galley with Aden while he pulls out four slices of bread and begins to prep our food, “I haven’t spent much time with you since my memory returned.”