Chapter 29

Chapter

Twenty-Nine

Down, down, down, they went. To doom or salvation, who could say? A dim voice whispered that this was madness, and it definitely was, but Reid clung to Nireed, tucked his face into her neck, bowing to her and the ocean's will.

Into the depths she pulled him, the surface's light a halo that became fainter and fainter, forsaking safety for the black void. Only her light showed the way.

Fronds of sea kelp brushed his back as they descended into the forest below, some of the stalks as tall as trees. This was where she came to think, where she went to find peace. That day she told him, and that mountain they'd climbed, seemed so far away now. A whole other world.

She laid him gently on a bed of silt, her hands sliding up his body to cup his face.

Every inch of her was alight with bioluminescence, a shining constellation in this place of darkness. His Starfish. A sense of wonder filled him as he brushed his fingers along her cheek, an amber blush answering his touch.

He loved her. More than anything. It wasn't lust that brought him here. Lust alone couldn't bear the risk, pushing the limits of even his advanced recreational diving abilities.

As she unzipped the front of his wetsuit, and loosened his belt, baring him to the ocean's caress, her amber light illuminated his skin, giving it its own otherworldly glow. A rush of glacial water should've followed, he was sure, but Nireed radiated heat that chased away the cold. With great care, she reached between them, enclosing his hard length in her webbing and claws, easing him out.

The place where her scales parted for him glowed, a swirling vortex at the center of the universe. Such unearthly beauty, a cosmos at his fingertips, never failed to leave him breathless and in awe.

He tapped the pouch at his side, and her answering grin was a fierce, ferocious thing in the dark of the deep—all sharp teeth, more grimace than smile—and yet, he only felt its warmth.

Here, at the bottom of the ocean, as he knew it, he was safe in her arms.

Carefully, Nireed withdrew a square foil packet from the pouch, tearing it open with the pads of her fingers. Mirroring what she'd seen him do before, she pinched the tip as she rolled it on, sheathing him completely. There was a cock ring in the pouch, too, and he had her slip it over him and down to the base to help keep the condom secure.

It was a gamble. This whole damn thing. He couldn't be certain it would hold up down here—the condom, his air supply—and yet, he wanted this with his siren. To wholly give himself to her in her place of peace.

And really, if one of those things had to give out, was it so bad if he gave her the baby she'd asked him for? There wouldn't be a more fitting place than here.

Maybe his emotions were running away from him. Or nitrogen narcosis talking.

Or maybe this was a confirmation of something he'd always felt but couldn't admit because the thought of being a parent was as terrifying as it was exhilarating. A grand adventure of its own, and if there was ever someone he'd embark on that journey with, it was her. He could do anything with her fearlessly by his side.

Lying together on the sea floor, everything felt right.

They pressed their foreheads together, aligning their bodies just so. She pressed a kiss to the corner of his mouth, taking care not to disturb the regulator, and his hands fell to her hips, steadying her as she sank down upon him.

Her lithe, undulating body delivered each stroke with sinuous grace.

Rapture of the deep, that felt like heaven and sin.

He rose to meet her, but she pinned his hips, bumping her nose to his in quiet admonishment. Let me , it said. A gentle reminder to conserve his energy and his breath.

If they were anywhere else, he'd protest. He couldn't take and not give at least as good as he got, but now was not the time for bravado. This was her domain, his life was in her hands, and she should reign supreme.

He lay back, opening himself up to ravishment. Have your wicked way with me.

And his siren smiled, holding his gaze as she delivered, deploying her whole body to the task. She rose and fell in time to the pulse of the ocean, measured out by the swaying fronds around them, her light growing ever brighter. She was glorious like this. A goddess of the deep.

So taken by the sight of her, by the pleasure she wrought, he barely registered her lifting his wrist to check the time on his watch. He'd a finite air supply, something that needed to be monitored. If they didn't budget enough time to safely ascend, he'd get decompression sickness. Or worse. He'd run out of air and drown.

That should alarm him, and the fact that he couldn't concentrate on anything else but the sensations her body doled, but his limbs felt heavy, blissfully lethargic.

Nireed pressed a kiss to his palm before laying it above his head, her unhurried movements soothing. "I've got you," she mouthed, before redoubling her efforts.

All he could do was stare up at her, enthralled by her intoxicating spell.

It wasn't long before his back arched off the seabed, euphoria stealing over him.