Page 30 of Echo and the Homicidal Sea Panda

Echo ached to reach out and console him. To slip into Mael’s arms and hold one another tight, but he needed to hear the answer.

And needed to see Mael’s face when he said it.

“I saw you out there, bathed in moonlight,” Mael murmured, closing the gap between them when Echo hadn’t been strong enough to move closer. “And I couldn’t look away. You were stunning. I sensed a connection, even then—though I refused to admit it to myself. We were enemies. There’s no way I feltanythingfor a dolphin.” He paused a moment, frowning. “Then I realized you weren’t a woman, and that confused me all the more.”

Echo froze. “Are you telling me you’re straight?”

“I am.” Mael shook his head.“I was—up until I saw you.”

Echo digested that in the pause Mael took.

“I fought the attraction, but every night I returned to see if you were there, telling myself it was the sharks I was really hunting when deep down I knew it was you. I lied to myself for weeks, denying what I felt.” Mael threaded his fingers through Echo’s hair. He wrapped his hand around the back of Echo’s head, tilting it slightly. “I’d return home after you left at midnight, sink into my bed alone, and you’d end up haunting my dreams. When daylight came, I couldn’t stop thinking of you. You completely robbed me of focus. All I could think about was going out on patrol so I could see you again.”

His lips neared Echo’s. Echo pressed up on his toes, ready for it.

“The last few days, I tried to think of a way to approach without scaring you and making you run. I was on the brink of crossing the line, but then you did,” Mael murmured. “I kept my distance because I wanted to find out what it was you were searching for. Then I saw the sharks beside you and my heart nearly stopped. I’d been so consumed by you I hadn’t noticed them. I’m not sure I’ve ever swam that fast. I was terrified I’d arrive too late and lose you before I could even make you mine.”

Echo pressed his palms against Mael’s chest. “I’ve never thanked you for saving me.”

“Hold your thanks,” Mael said, his voice low and strained. “My inattention is what put you in danger.”

Echo lifted a hand to Mael’s cheek, the alpha’s beard scratching his palm. “You saved me, nonetheless. Thank you.”

Mael turned his face and pressed a kiss into Echo’s palm. He turned back and held Echo’s gaze, the heaviness of guilt seeming to linger. “There was another reason I held back, too. Not just because I was a nosy motherfucker and wanted to see what you were up to.”

Echo searched Mael’s gaze, curious what the reason was.

“I feared I’d be lost after one look in your eyes,” Mael whispered, his lips slowly moving closer. “And you know what?”

“What?” Echo asked, his lips a heartbeat from Mael’s.

“I was right,” Mael said before kissing him.

9

Mael drew Echo closer, deepening the kiss. Echo tasted of cinnamon and honey—and he was sure he’d soon grow addicted to the flavor. If he wasn’t already. He lowered both hands and gripped Echo’s bottom before lifting his little dolphin onto the kitchen counter, never breaking the kiss. Echo wrapped his arms around Mael's neck, drawing them closer. Mael wasn’t sure he’d ever be sated—the possessive drive to touch Echo was near constant. The need had been there from the start, from that first glimpse across the water.

How he’d held back, he didn’t know.

Once he’d had Echo in his arms, there was no going back.

Echo moaned as Maelstrom deepened the kiss. He swept his tongue across his little dolphin’s, reveling in the sensation. Mael had never been much of a kisser. Not that he hadn’t enjoyed it to some degree, but it had always felt like a requisite dance he needed to perform before he could get to the big show. A way to prime the pump. He did as much as he needed to please his partner and then got on with better things.

Kissing Echo wasn’t a chore. It felt just as intimate as the other things they’d done. Maybe it was because Echo was his mate, maybe not, but he suspected he could spend an entire day kissing his little omega and nothing else—and enjoy every second of it. He gathered both sides of Echo’s face in his hands, those kisses driving him wild.

Echo wrapped his legs around Mael’s hips, hinting he wanted more than kisses. Mael trailed a hand down and under the hem of his sweater. Gripping the base of Echo’s shaft, he groaned when he found it rock hard. He leaned back, breaking the kiss, just so he could watch Echo’s expression as he stroked the length. On each upward stroke, he rolled his thumb over the glans, collecting the pre-cum leaking there and using it to lube his hand.

Echo’s eyes rolled back in his head, a rasping moan erupting from his lips.

“Mael,”he whined, rocking his hips up to meet Mael’s fist.

“What do you need,pepi?”

Echo shivered against him.“Atu… uaua ake.”

More… harder.

Mael grinned inwardly. Delphinidae shifters, from orca to the many breeds of dolphin, had all originated in the South Pacific eons ago. His grandfather and countless ancestors had been Maori, specifically. Family was everything to orca, their pod was only family members, some more distant than others. Their traditions and language were a vital part of their history.

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