Page 45 of Riding the Tide

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

“AREYOUsure?”Blaircrossed his arms over his chest and glared at Marcus.

“Yes.” There was an underwater cave Blair could reach even though he couldn’t breathe underwater. There was a beach and tunnels leading aboveground. “Stay on board until I transform.”

“I’ve seen you transform before.”

“I know, but it isn’t pretty. I’d like to spare you from that.”

“Fine! I don’t know what the big deal is, but I’ll wait here until you tell me to join you. Happy?”

Marcus pressed a brief kiss to Blair’s lips “Yes. And thank you.”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah.” Blair waved his hands toward Marcus. “Get on with it already.”

With a laugh and another stolen kiss, Marcus dove over the side of the boat. He didn’t know what the big deal was about him being in the water when Marcus transformed, but he wasn’t going to argue over it.

Blair waited by the ladder, his fins ready. He thought about bringing his snorkeling mask, but what was the point? He almost wished he’d rented scuba gear so he could stay under longer with Marcus.

From the second he found out exactly what Marcus was, Blair wanted nothing more than to explore that fabulous tail of his. He clutched the railing, his anticipation building. He’d been swimming with Marcus several times, but not like this. Not in his merman form. Well, he did during the attack, but he’d been too shaken up to notice much.

The water churned where Marcus went in. Blair stared. Under the water Marcus twisted and turned. It was hard to see since the sun had set and twilight was upon them. A shadow moved under the water, a shadow which was suddenly much longer than a human body. Blair slipped on his fins and waited for the final signal. Finally, Marcus’ head cleared the water and he waved.

And just that quickly, he was gone, but it was long enough for Blair to notice the pointed ears and something on Marcus’ wrist that humans didn’t have—a fin. Excitement raced through him. This was an opportunity precious few humans ever had.

He slipped into the water. Off to the right and several feet below him something floated, but he wasn’t concerned. He could see the blue hair in the water. Taking several deep breaths, and clearing his mind, he prepared to submerge.

He slipped under the waves, enjoying the water closing over his head. His first glimpse of Marcus in his merman form, and his natural habitat, almost stole his breath away. Lord, with that tail of his he was a really, really long—and sleek. Sinuous.

Blair wanted to get his hands on it. Like his hair, Marcus’ tail was blue, but that didn’t begin to describe the color. Iridescent came to mind. The luminous blue colors seemed to change as Marcus’ tail moved lazily in the water.

Marcus fit his surroundings perfectly, as did his gorgeous blue hair. He’d wondered, but now Marcus’ coloring finally made sense. He was part of the landscape—something that Blair obviously was not, with his tan skin and golden blond hair. Marcus’ long blue hair floated around his head.

Fascinated, Blair watched Marcus’ tail swish back and forth gently in the water. His beauty was otherworldly and a little eerie. Still, he took Blair’s breath away. Marcus called to him in a short, sharp click as he rose through the depths.

He held his hand out, and Marcus clasped it. Surprised, he glanced at their hands. Marcus’ was webbed. He pulled Marcus’ hand closer wanting to examine it but Marcus clicked again and wrapped his arm around Blair’s waist. Oh yeah, he forgot about the whole breathing thing.

Marcus whistled and they took off. The water rushed past Blair as they swam past huge coral reefs that exploded with color. A multitude of fish darted in and out. As they swam past, Blair noticed the rocky outcrop covered with algae not far from them. He wrapped his arms around Marcus.

With a flip of his tail Marcus propelled them toward the opening of the underwater cave. He barely noticed the trash humans scattered about on the rocky ocean floor. As they drew closer to the cave opening he glanced toward the surface.

Beams of light penetrated the water. A click drew his attention, and he glanced at Marcus. The sound was reminiscent of a dolphin and just as loud. It made him smile as they ducked through the opening of the cave and shot toward the surface.

His head cleared the water, and he took a big gulp of air. There were several holes in the ceiling of the cave that let the rising full moon shine inside. Surprisingly it was brighter than he would have thought.

The next several hours they swam in the cave, playing around. Blair laughed helplessly. Not only could Marcus outmaneuver him, he could out-swim him. Of course. He splashed Marcus and found himself pulled underwater.

They play fought, rolling and tussling together in the dark waters. The fins didn’t do him much good. They certainly couldn’t compare to Marcus’ tail. He smiled inwardly. Marcus was very careful with him, always making sure not to keep him under longer than he could tolerate.

During one of their mock battles, Blair lost his swim trunks… which ended up on the beach. Finally, when Marcus sensed Blair was getting hard, he swam toward the beach beckoning Blair to join him. He rested on the beach, still mostly in the water. He reclined on his elbows, his tail flipping lazily as he stared at Blair, a dare clear on his face.

Blair snorted as he joined Marcus on the beach. “What was that look supposed to be?”

Marcus’ tail slashed the water. “What look?”

“That look that said I’m might be scared to join you here on the beach.” Blair traced Marcus’ lips. “I’m not afraid of you.”

Marcus raised a blue eyebrow. “No?”

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