Goddess of the Sea (Goddess Summoning #1)(27)

Time had no meaning. She tried to scream Gaea's name, but the words were ripped from her mouth, lost in an unnatural gale of noise and light.

And then she was plunged back into the water. Only her body didn't obey her with the awesome power of a mermaid. This time she could feel her human legs kicking feebly against the angry current as she struggled for the surface. She couldn't breathe and her lungs screamed. Finally, she broke through the surface and gulped air.

The sky was black and bruised looking. Waves crashed over her head making her sputter and choke. The peaceful cove was nowhere in sight, nor was her dolphin friend or the goddess. She could see an unfamiliar shoreline a daunting distance away from her. Trying to keep a growing sense of panic at bay, she started swimming for land.

The skies opened and rain began to pelt her. A white-capped wave hit her, and CC was slammed under the water. She clawed for the surface and realized that in the liquid blackness she couldn't tell which direction was up. All rational thought fled her mind and panic surged through her as she flailed helplessly in the drowning darkness.

Strong hands gripped her by the waist and lifted her, holding her above the seething water so that she could suck air into her burning lungs. She coughed and gagged, vomiting the seawater she had been unable to keep herself from swallowing. Her body shook uncontrollably. She could feel hands holding her waist securely. Her naked back was pressed firmly against the hard muscles of a man's chest—she could feel his deep, even breathing. She thought that he had to be standing on firm ground to be able to support her so well. With shaking hands she rubbed her eyes clear of saltwater, expecting to see the shore close before her. Instead, it was still a too distant line of darkness.

Confused, CC twisted around to find that she was being held in the arms of an oddly familiar stranger. His wild black hair hung in runnels around his shoulders. He didn't speak, but his sable-colored eyes were fixed intently on her.

Questions surged through CC's mind. How could he look familiar to her? Hadn't Gaea sent her to a medieval world? Had the goddess made a mistake?

And then realization hit her with a rush of dizzy wonder. He looked familiar because he reminded her of the man from her dream! The one who had called to her so desperately the night she had summoned the goddess and danced in the rain.

Fascinated, CC stared at him. His broad chest was bare and smooth and felt hard and warm against her naked breasts. The corded muscles of his arms flexed with the effort of holding her above the surface. But instead of being able to feel the muscles of a man's legs against her own bare legs, the lower half of her body was pressed firmly against a single expanse of slick, warm flesh that flexed and beat steadily against the current. She glanced down. Even through the swirling water she could see the orange and gold brilliance of his thick, banded tail.

Chapter 8

CC gasped with shock. The thought that flooded her mind was that she had to escape, and she pushed violently against his chest, kicking her way free of his arms. Instantly another wave battered her, pulling her under the water again. When she felt his hands on her, she forced herself to be calm and to quell the overwhelming urge to fight. She allowed him to lift her back to the surface.

This time, instead of holding her securely against his chest, he grasped her waist and held his arms straight out from his body, keeping her as far from him as he could. CC could see his thick tail beating hard against the water below, keeping them afloat.

"If you do not allow me to help you, you will drown." His deep voice sounded surprisingly gentle. "Your new body cannot breathe under the water."

"Who are you?" she asked breathlessly, pulling her water-soaked hair forward to cover her naked breasts.

"I am called Dylan."

"I won't go back to Sarpedon."

The merman's brows came together, and he shook his head. "I am no friend to the son of Lir."

"He didn't send you here?" She couldn't stop shivering.

"No." The word was clipped.

"Did Gaea?"

He shook his head.

"How—" she started to ask, but he broke in urgently.

"Undine, I must get you to land." He paused and looked deeply into her eyes. "It would be best if you would put your arms around my shoulders. I…" He hesitated again, trying to catch his breath, then he continued with an apologetic shrug. "I do not have the strength to carry you to shore as I am holding you now."

And he obviously didn't. His breath was coming in gasps, and the muscles in his arms were tight and quivering. CC could see the effort it was costing him to keep them afloat in the choppy waters. She looked at him more carefully. If he had been human, he would have been a tall man. The merman's torso was well defined; his arms were powerful and his flat abdomen rippled with strength. But he didn't have the bulky cords of muscles that had packed Sarpedon's frame, nor did he have the other merman's overwhelming size. Obviously, mer-creatures came in different shapes and strengths, just like people.

"I give you my oath that I will not harm you, Undine." Dylan spoke the words slowly and clearly, enunciating carefully around his ragged breathing. "Look—" He shifted one hand from her waist, causing her to slip a little way down in the water. He grasped her arm, still keeping her head and shoulders above the water, and with his other hand, he reached toward her breasts.

"Stop!" CC jerked back.