50. Carol

50

Carol

* It's the strangest thing.* Moss's voice caressed her mind. * Your friends are all watching us from the shore, and it's almost like they didn't expect us to bring back a shipload of crooks for them to deal with.*

*I can't imagine why.* Carol surfaced and rolled on her side to try and glimpse the shoreline. * How long have we been gone?*

All she knew was that the swim back had been longer than anything she'd ever done before—but she'd been swept up in the kraken's wake, lending her extra speed.

And let's face it, she thought to herself. I wasn't paying attention to the time. I was paying attention to him.

Moss. Her mate. Her kraken . Or… kraken-octopus hybrid. Given new life by the bond between them.

Lance and the rest of the team rounded up the stranded sailors. * Though what MacInnis plans to do with them once he's got them, I don't know. Call their parents and tell them they've been naughty?*

*He's got connections with shifters in law enforcement back home, but I don't know about here.* Guilt twinged in Carol's stomach. She should be out there, helping.

* No, you shouldn't. You've done your bit. And if MacInnis is the sort of employer who expects someone to get back into it half a second after being kidnapped, I've got some words for him.*

* I was back in the chair two days after the last asshole tased me.*

*And how did that work out for you?*

Carol readied herself for the swell of shame at how Lance had relegated her to babysitting duty—then paused.

* He tried to give me time off, * she said at last. * But I didn't want to seem weak. I'd already messed up by letting Briers almost get away with the dragon eggs. I needed to show him he could rely on me.*

She'd been afraid. Afraid she wouldn't be enough—not for her job, and not for Moss. And who she was going to be, now that she wasn't scared all the time… she would have to find out. And she wasn't afraid of finding out.

She was excited.

*How is your shark?*

She considered. As her shark swam at Moss's side through miles of ocean, she'd felt closer to it than she had all the rest of her adult life. And now? It felt… content.

Like it was finally in the right place. Like she was finally in the right place.

* My shark's just fine, * she told Moss, and shifted back into human form.

The sensation of saltwater against her bare human skin was so different from the feel of it against her shark's hide. Their bodies were designed to sense different things—temperature, movement, touch.

A tentacle slid against her leg, and her shark reacted instantly. She whirled in place, ready to bite down—

And got a mouthful of saltwater.

"Oh god," she spluttered. "I'm sorry, I—"

Moss's laughter was like a warm hug. * My bad.*

"You did that on purpose!"

* Did I? What about this? *

Darkness flooded out from him. This time she saw it wasn't the darkness of mere shadows; it was the endless black of the deep sea, a cloak that hid every danger that haunted sailors' nightmares.

Phantom tentacles wrapped around her as he shifted, holding her safe from the water flooding in to fill the space his kraken had occupied. And then he was in front of her.

The phantom touch of his magic was cool, like water running over her skin. His hands were warm. He pulled her to him, and for a moment she felt his power squeeze her, possessive and predatory at once—then all she felt was his arms around her. She melted into his embrace.

"You're sure you're okay?" His voice was husky. The playfulness was still there, but there was a seriousness in his eyes she'd only seen before when he was talking about his past.

She rested her hands on his chest. The thud of his heartbeat echoed through her body. "Which of the long list of things that might not be okay are you talking about?" She showed him her teeth in a smile so he knew she was joking. "I'm at one with my shark for the first time ever. I'm with my mate, who's decided not to go rot in a hole at the bottom of the ocean. I—I know who I am now. And I get to decide what I do next with that."

"And Fairchild?"

She wrinkled her nose. "Honestly?"

"You don't give a shit?" Moss laughed.

"He's my boss's problem now. Eloise, his daughter, she's still out there somewhere, and I'm worried about what he said about what she's planning. And there's the Soul-Eater. And whatever's waiting for us in the shadow dragons' fortress. But…" She met his eyes, her gaze steady, and found the same love she felt for him reflected back to her. "I'm ready."

"To save the world?"

"If that's what's on the menu? Sure."

He sighed. "I figured as much. But, about that…"

"Preep!"

Golden wings flashed at the edge of Carol's vision. Maggie circled above them, crowing with delight, then flapped away, chirping loudly, as though she was shouting to the others, Here they are, I found them!

"Preep-eep!"

Carol laughed out loud. Moss watched Maggie wing away, then reached up to press his thumb against her lower lip.

* I love your smile, * he said, his voice sweet and hotly possessive at the same time. * I hope I'm going to get to see more of it.*

She was smiling again before she knew what was happening. "We'll see."

"No promises?"

I would promise you anything you asked. "I mean, you did save me from walking the plank earlier."

"The way I remember it, you dove headfirst off the plank."

"And not even into your waiting arms."

He pulled her close. "My arms are done with waiting."

No matter how many times she felt it, nothing would prepare Carol for the sensation of Moss's naked body pressed against hers. She slid her arms around his neck, her pulse racing. Nakedness was normal for shifters, but being naked had never felt so vulnerable before. So wonderful. Her breasts pressed against his chest, and an electric thrill raced up the inside of her thighs as she wrapped her legs around his waist.

"Eep-eep!"

Moss's sigh rumbled deliciously against her chest. "Or maybe they're going to wait a bit longer. Endless tides, are all dragon hatchlings this much work?"

"Prr-eep!" Maggie landed on his head in a tumble of shining scales and wings.

"And there are two more waiting to hatch," Carol reminded him. The look of exasperated trepidation on Moss's face warmed her all over.

Saving the world was one thing, but dragon hatchlings?