Ch. 31
“W-Wake? What are you doing here?” I ask, stunned to see the six-foot-five behemoth standing before me, crowding the entryway to my tiny cabana.
I can't help but linger on his impressive naked form as if seeing him for the first time. That night on the boat already seems like a lifetime ago. I'd been so preoccupied fighting for my own sense of reality that my mind had forced so many things to the back burner just to keep me up and moving.
Apparently, the memory of Wake's nude human form had been one of those things.
The storm outside rages on, lightning illuminating his wet, muscled form. Each flash highlights the sharp lines and shadows of his physique, making him look otherworldly. The rain pounds against the roof, a steady drumbeat that matches the rhythm of my racing heart.
He grunts and takes a step forward, jolting me out of the heart shock that had overcome me. I slam a palm against his broad chest, halting him before he can come any closer. The heat of his skin contrasts sharply with the cool, damp air. “Wait a minute, you can't be here!”
Wake gives a curt sigh and looks over his shoulder into the darkness from whence he emerged. “Then should I not be let inside before I am discovered?”
I blink up at him mutely. That had been a complete sentence. A full, unbroken string of the English language. As I marvel at his newfound evolution, Wake brushes me aside and pushes his way into the cabin.
The door closes behind us with a soft click, sealing us in a small bubble of warmth and tension. I force my mouth shut, trying to regain my composure. “How is your speech so fluent?” I ask, dumbfounded.
“That woman. She began funneling words into the enclosure I reside in. So many words,” he replies.
“Dr. St. Cloud did that?” I ask.
“Endlessly. I could not so much as find solace in sleep,” Wake says. “It was a markedly…unpleasant experience.”
I feel a rush of shame. “Wake, I had no idea. She must have seen the way you and I communicate, how quickly you absorb information.” I feel myself begin to choke up. “I don't know why she didn't warn me she was going to do something like that. If I had realized—”
“It’s no matter,” he says gruffly, finally turning to me. His dark eyes bore into mine, filled with a mix of frustration and something deeper. “As tedious as the experience was, I found it…necessary. I do not wish to be here any longer, Pho-ebe. My patience for this place and your compatriots is wearing dangerously thin.”
“They aren't my compatriots,” I rush to explain. “The only reason I agreed to stay here is to be able to learn more about you.”
He scowls. “I am not a thing to be toyed with, woman. I will not be tested without consequence.”
A low vibration begins trembling the floorboards beneath my feet. The lamp on the bedside table quivers slightly. I fight the urge to back away slowly, afraid of what predatory instincts doing so might trigger in him. Wake's anger is nothing to be taken lightly; I’ve seen more than enough evidence of that.
He goes still, watching me closely for the most minute physical reactions. “You fear me.”
“I…” I swallow, my throat going dry. “I don't understand you. And…yes, a part of me is afraid of what you're capable of.”
His frown deepens into a scowl. “I am not a danger to you, woman.”
“That wasn't the case for Marina,” I blurt out, my voice trembling.
Wake’s brow creases in confusion. “I do not know this name.”
“The other siren. You nearly killed her!” My heart aches just thinking about it. “And she wasn't the only one. Peter…those men I was sailing with—”
“Challenged me. As for the female, she disgraced herself and me.”
“What do you mean she disgraced herself?” I ask, stepping closer despite my fear.
“It is a grievous sin to attempt to mate with one who is already mated. I was within my rights to execute her for this blasphemy.”
“I…we didn't know, or else we never would have put either of you in that situation,” I promise, desperation creeping into my voice.
“Perhaps you might not have, but you cannot honestly vouch for the others,” he counters. “Even then, your defense is thin. You share their greed, their hunger for knowledge that they do not deserve.”
“I…” My instinctive denial dies on my lips. The truth stings. “You're right. I've let my curiosity run wild too many times. I'm sorry if I hurt you, Wake.”
He scoffs in disgust. “I did not come here for apologies. You are my mate; there should be no distance between us. As for them,” he points toward the direction of the research dome, “Mark my words, their days are numbered. I came here tonight to offer you a choice.”
“What choice?” I ask, my voice barely a whisper.
He moves closer to me, his presence overwhelming, a dark shadow in the dim light. When he speaks, his deep voice is just as cutting, just as final. “You can either come with me willingly, or screaming.”
He kisses me, hard and harsh. His lips on mine are demanding, his touch commanding. The sensation is electric, sending jolts of desire through my body, that nameless pull between us strengthening until all I can think of is how he feels inside of me.
His song is not present, but my mind is no less foggy with lust as I let go of the last of my pesky inhibitions and give myself over to pure animal need.
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