Cresting Tide
Authors: Brenda Cothern
Cresting Tide
Published by Brenda Cothern at Smashwords
Copyright 2012 Brenda Cothern
All Rights Reserved.
Cover design by A. D. Cooper
http://coverdesign.adcooperbooks.com
No part of this work may be copied, reproduced, altered, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form, in any way, without prior, written permission from the author, except by a reviewer who may quote brief passages within the review for publication in a newspaper, magazine, journal, or on a website.
This story is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and situations are the products of the author’s imagination and intended to be fictional. Any resemblances to actual events, situations, or persons, alive or dead, are entirely coincidental.
This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.
This book contains adult sexual situations including m/m practices and is intended for readers 18+.
Dedication
To my fans, both old and new,
for continuing down
the twisted trails of my imagination with me.
Acknowledgement
To my wonderful beta readers:
Steve, Lora, Kevin, Cheryl, and Tracy.
Thank you for all your help!
Special thanks to ‘my office,’ The Body Shop!
Author Message
Thank you for buying this book. As an indie author it means a lot to me that you are spending your hard earned cash to read my work! To show my appreciation, I make a promise to you, my reader. The first chapter of every book that I have ever written or will ever write will be
FREE
on my
website
for you to read. As an avid reader myself, I know there is nothing worse than purchasing a book only to discover it is not that good. So, please enjoy the sneak peeks at the end of this book and visit my website if you would like to 'try before you buy' my other books!
About Creating Tide
Peter, fleeing from an arranged marriage to a woman, stows away aboard a merchant ship only to be discovered and pitched into the sea. Floating upon the current and awaiting death, he is rescued by a mythical sea elf.
Cuke knew his curiosity with humans would only lead him to trouble but he never expected it would lead him to love. A love filled with complications as he is bound to his watery home.
Can the couple overcome the restrictions of their races and be the fathers to their unexpected child or are they destine to be torn apart by their different worlds?
Author Note:
Contains m/m and hermaphrodite sexual practices and is intended for readers of legal age in the country in which they reside.
Other Titles at Smashwords
Shadows Series:
Goddess of Fate Series:
Destiny (Summer 2013)
The Sapphire Tower Series:
Before There was Beer Pong (Free Read)
GLBT Support Groups/Organizations
Chapter One
Sunshine, brutally hot, blazed down upon the water without a cloud in the sky to impede its deadening brilliance. The crystal blue-green waters of the Caribbean reflected light like shards of mirrored glass scattered upon the waves. The water was almost too warm, far too relaxing, and swayed with the tide causing the body that floated upon its surface to rock gently.
Peter lay on his back floating along with the current that tried to lull him to sleep. Lull him to his death. Why he fought the inevitable, his sun-fried mind no longer knew. He deserved this fate for stowing away on the
Tide Runner
. A watery death awaited any stowaway, but he no longer thought about the captain's brutal hands as they stripped him bare of his few possessions and threw him overboard. He no longer thought of trying to reach the distant shore or treading water to survive. He thought of nothing at all but instead just drifted on the ever relaxing currents of the sea that he so loved.
Cuke felt the thrill that always coursed through him when he explored the span of sea the human crafts traveled.
To the depths with what his parents and the elders decreed!
The humans were interesting and always seemed to be doing curious things upon their surface crafts. Finding the human items on the sea floor or in their sunken vessels was his greatest pastime aside from dreaming about meeting an actual human one day. If only Poseidon would grant his prayers!
Cuke heard the distant clicks and whistles that belonged to one of the resident pods of dolphin in this stretch of the sea. He listened to their excitement at finding something new before he called out to them. They urged him to join them and see what they had discovered so he swam in the direction of their calls.
It was not long before he sensed the disturbance near the surface that had his finned friends so excited. As he looked toward the surface he knew his prayers to Poseidon had been answered. The human floating above him almost looked like a sea lion basking in the sun upon the surface. Cautiously, he swam closer and sent another prayer to Poseidon that the human still lived. The closer he swam, the louder the faint beat of the human's heart could be heard.
Cuke broke the surface several meters from the floating man. The clear membrane that protected his eyes from the wind of the sea slid into place but that did not obstruct his view. What he saw before him took his breath away! The man was the most beautiful creature he had ever seen. Hair the color of the sandy sea bottom floated away from an angular face. Sun blisters were starting to form on full chapped lips that were under a slightly crooked nose. Long pale lashes that could barely be seen were at the end of the man's closed eyes. Cuke wondered what color those eyes could be but before he could splash the man awake to see for himself, the human began to sink. Panic replaced Cuke's fascination and building desire as he dove beneath the surface.
Peter knew he was either dreaming or he was dead. He hoped it was the former and not the latter. Either way there was nothing he could do about it but enjoy the sensations. He was floating upon the surface of the sea, but not as he was before. This time he felt as if he was moving though the water even though he was still lying flat on his back. He concentrated on the feeling and it was then that he felt the hardness that was rubbing against his pant-clad ass.
So this is a dream after all
, he thought,
might as well enjoy it.
Peter tried to push back against the hard cock that was continuing to rub against the crack of his ass but he could find no leverage. He lifted his arms and it was then that he realized he was being held. One arm was wrapped firmly across his shoulders while another was wrapped around his waist. Peter brought his hand down to grasp the arm that held him securely under his chin, but the moment he touched that arm, his brain short circuited. He could make no sense of what he was feeling under his water pruned fingers but he knew that it was not flesh. All thoughts of the pleasure that the hard cock was causing flew from his mind as he began to frantically flail away from the thing that held him.
Cuke watched the human as he raised his arms then brought them back to settle down onto his own. He was startled when the man began to thrash and cried out when sharp stabs of pain shot through his arm as several layers of scales were scrapped away. Cuke pushed the human away and swam quickly backward out of the man's reach.
Peter's eyes flew open as he began to tread water and search for the thing that held him. When he turned to look behind him, his mouth fell agape and the sea took that moment to give him a taste of her deadly poison. Instantly, racking coughs started as Peter tried to catch his breath but his eyes never left the creature before him.
Myths and legends of merman, selkies, sea elves, and other creatures flashed through his sun-drained mind but all he could do was stare. The being treading water several feet away from him was like nothing he had ever seen in the lore books. Hair that looked like kelp fell long and loose over pale green scale like skin and floated gently upon the rocking waves. Long pointed ears stuck almost straight back from the side of its head but it was the eyes that Peter could not tear his gaze from. They were oval and seemed to shift between the deepest green to the deepest blue while flecks of golden glitter danced within like snow falling on a winter day. No lids graced the mesmerizing eyes that stared back at him with curiosity and something else that made him think of the hardness that was recently pressed against him.
Cuke watched the human's eyes grow wide and had his answer to their color. They were the palest blue of the sky when the colder months came to these waters. He was not sure what the human would do and tried not to think about the warnings his parents and elders had drilled into him since he was a child.
"Wait," Peter croaked out from his parched throat when the creature ducked under the waves.
Cuke heard the sound the human made as he submerged, but he did not resurface. Instead, he swam lazy circles around the human just out of reach. The sea was healing his scratched arm but he spared no thought to the minor pain. He could scent the man's arousal the closer he swam and it was as if that scent drew him to the human. Cuke already missed the feel of the human against his chest as he swam them closer to the shore.
Peter scanned the water around him as if he were searching for sharks. For all he knew, sharks may be less dangerous but somehow he doubted that the sea creature wished him harm. If the aqua-man had wanted to hurt him he would have and what about the arousal he felt? Surely that was not just something his sun baked brain had cooked up.
A hand touched his bare calf and he yelped before he could stop himself and he turned around in the water. Peter could barely make out the aqua-man as he swam beneath the surface, even though the water was crystal clear. It was as if the creature blended into the environment like the lizards of the tropical jungles and he soon lost track of where the aqua-man went.
Cuke touched the smooth pale skin of the man's leg and darted away. He had to get the man to understand that he meant no harm and the only way he thought he could do that was by touch. However, he still did not trust the man not to hurt him again. It did not escape him that the human was larger than he. Not only longer but wider as well and Cuke knew that those who were larger were usually stronger. He darted in for another touch but when the human flailed again, he darted away.