Page 55 of Catch of a Lifetime
“Welcome,” he said automatically, then squinted at me. “For what?”
I shook my head. “Nothing.”
“Right. Remember now, don’t forget to stretch before and after, and stay hydrated.”
Oh my god.
“And you tell that Dave, if he steals my fish one more time, I’m getting out the harpoon.”
“Will do.”
He waved and trotted off to his Land Rover.
I stood in the doorway until he was out of sight, and then I continued to stand there, leaning a shoulder against the doorframe and gazing out to sea.
It was a truly glorious day. Blue sky, froths of pink and blue wildflowers, waving green and gold grass all the way down to the rocks and tiny golden wedge of sand which was all I could see of my beach from here.
Beyond that lay the wide open sea.
And Dave.
16
An hour later, I was surrounded by that wide open sea. I hadn’t wanted to wait as long as it would take to drive to the harbour where I moored theRosy Dawn. I kept a small wooden dinghy with a crappy old outboard motor down on the beach from April to October, and all I had to do was pull on my boots, grab a jacket, a towel, a bottle of water and some sunscreen, and run down to the shore.
Dave was waiting for me.
I didn’t even need to check in on him to know he was there. I felt him like a tide in my blood, drawing me out to sea.
Once I was out on the water, the wind picked up, tossing spray into my face. I pointed the dinghy at the horizon and went out and out and out, until the coastline behind me was nothing more than a dark, hazy smudge.
I faced front and kept on going.
Eventually, I slowed and shut off the engine. It was cold as hell out here, despite the bright sun. I’d warm up as soon as Dave found me. When I was with him in the water, I left petty human problems like hypothermia and the need for oxygen as far behind me as I left the land.
When I was with him, I wasn’t sure that I was entirely human anymore.
Perhaps the future held more options for being together all year round than I thought.
But Jerry was right. Worrying about all of that was for later.
Now was my summer of mad shagging.
I stripped down to my boxers, perched on the gunwale, pinched my nose shut, and rolled off the side. Dropping through the icy water, I stared up as the light-tricked surface danced above me.
I sensed him, then. Coming for me—and coming fast.
He was a pulse in the water all around me, penetrating all the way down to my bones. I turned myself in lazy circles, trying to spot him.
And then—there.
A rush of terrifying speed, heading right for me. I kicked up for the surface. He was on me before I made it.
He drove me backwards through the water as his body impacted mine, his arms coming around me and his powerful tail driving between my legs as he rolled us.
A demanding mouth landed on mine and he sent out a welcoming vibration over and through me, parting my lips with his and pushing his tongue inside.
My hands were in his hair, holding him to me as I thrashed my legs, trying to get them around his hips. He reached down and gripped my thighs, pulling them up. Once I’d locked my ankles, he gave a single, powerful flex of his body and we rose up to the surface.
