He chuckled and felt her body rise and fall against him.
“You know you love it.” He kissed her. “And you know I would love to spend all day with you like this, but I’ve got a ship to sail. I better relieve Jackson before he crashes into something.”
The succubus turned toward him. “I’m still getting off in Svalsbard. I just wanted you to know.”
His buoyant mood fell. Of course Gracie was still leaving. Becoming a vampire certainly changed his life, but nothing between he and Gracie had been resolved.
“It’s up to you.” He paused, unsure how much to reveal. “Y’know, if you could deal with my work and with what Dendric does…Well, I’d like you to stay.”
Her eyes pressed tightly together, but whether in anger or sadness, he couldn’t tell. “I can’t stand by and watch you turn into a monster, John!”
Karon cut in. “Gracie, he healed me! The guy activated my vampire side, cured me of being human! How can you say that his work isn’t good?”
“Of course I’m happy for you. But there’s a price to what he does.” Her gaze darted around, anywhere but to his eyes. Then she seemed to light upon an idea. “Have you told him yet?”
Karon shifted uncomfortably. Hell no, he hadn’t told the doctor about his transition to vampire! Talk about a sure way to get tied to a table and dissected.
“You know I haven’t.”
“What, are you scared you’ll go from subject hunter to subject yourself?” There was far too much ‘I told you so’ in her voice.
“Oh please, Gracie. I’ve been a subject to him all along.” Gracie didn’t reply, which only made him squirm more.
Karon continued, “So that’s the only way we can be together? If I quit my job, or help you sabotage another catch? I spent my childhood not being what my parents or coven expected. Fuck if I’ll spend the rest of my life not living up to your expectations.”
Her face fell, and he could tell she was considering his words. He turned toward the door and paused, wishing she’d tell him to wait, wishing she’d say she loved him no matter what. But no soft, feminine words carried, not even after he’d closed the door.
* * * *
Kai’s spirits soared as the day of the Murrough Games approached. No one, not even Olaf, would share what the games entailed, but it was clear that contestants included all Alara’s men, from the lowliest enlisted man through the princess herself, as well as assorted townspeople. Though he knew he should watch as an observer, not compete himself, a part of him couldn’t resist the challenge. He also couldn’t help picturing the princess’s face- impressed and astounded as he beat her men at every task she set.
As he walked toward the water, more and more mere joined him. The whole town gathered in the streets and poured toward the docks. Kai wondered what challenges the games would provide. Perhaps they would dive to the depths of the ocean to retrieve a rare shell or jewel, or capture a fierce creature. His jaw dropped when he laid eyes on the harbor.
Netting divided the bay into large squares with raised hoops at either end. Brightly-colored, circular flotation devices filled the shallows. Over to the side he saw a large enclosed section filled with floating logs. A steeple-chase was set up-including walls, arches, and rings hung over vats of what looked like chocolate pudding. At the far end of the course a large station contained benches and some kind of human sporting equipment.
His head reached easily over all the others. Soon the mere boy who was starting to feel like a side-kick stood beside him, a huge grin across his freckled face. “You’re going to have a blast, dragon!” Kai started to wonder if maybe he misunderstood the nature of this sporting event. But the boy kept walking, leaving Kai uncertain as to what was to come next. He looked out over the crown to a raised area near the water’s edge.
The princess stood on the podium. She wore a pink sweat suit unzipped over a red sports bra. The tops of her red shorts peeked out from under her workout pants. As when she was on her exercise bike, her almost-white hair was tied up in a high pony tail, which hung most of the way down her back.
She raised a megaphone and addressed the crowd. “Greetings people of Murrough Island!” A huge roar of appreciation erupted around Kai. “As you know, the Games are open to all who want to enter. Inner-tube water polo teams will be assigned to those not part of the league.”
Several people in the crowd shouted the names of their teams and beat chests covered with logos. Alara shouted again, “Round two will be the log roll. Then the obstacle course, and last but not least the Sea to Ski!”
Despite the huge roar of enthusiasm erupting all around, Kai’s stomach fell as he considered the last event. He’d heard of skiing, it was a sport humans performed on snow. So, he would have to compete in that part of the competition as human? He breathed deeply to calm his nerves. Surely if he excelled fully enough in other areas, his weakness on skis could be overcome.
He moved toward the water and was surprised to see the other males and females stripping down to shorts or bathing suits and spreading a thick layer of grease over their bodies. Confused, he began to undress like the others. A young female next to him looked approvingly at his body, and he took the opportunity to get more information. “Miss, if you don’t mind my asking, what is that?” He pointed at the jar in her hands.
“It’s to insulate your skin against the cold and the water.” She handed him the container. Taking the initiative, she moved to spread the grease in her hands over his arm. He nodded his thanks, and stepped away from her touch.
“But the first game is something called ‘water polo.’ Won’t the contestants be in their aquatic forms?”
The girl gave him a broad smile and tapped him lightly on the arm. “Inner tube water polo—no tails allowed. It’s a good thing they pipe water from the lava tube into the bay for the Games.”
He recoiled. “We’re to compete entirely…as humans?!”
“Hell yeah, handsome! You coming to the
nachspiel
? The after-party? It’s always a blast.” He heard her speaking as he walked away through the crowd. This was a problem. No way could he win as human.
Some of the men he’d met over the course of the last few days gave him approving nods and friendly pats on the shoulder as he passed. Clearly they were welcoming and glad of his participation. When he had decided to take part, he’d intended to win. To compete…and lose? That was unacceptable.
The contestants stored their clothes in pre-designated lockers. He considered sliding his clothes on and heading back to the Glass House. He peered at the empty street behind the crowd, planning just such an escape. Then he looked to the podium where the princess rubbed grease over her mostly-naked body. His pulse sped up as he watched her smooth the light substance over her stomach, and then her legs. All the while she stared right at him, a small smile playing on the corners of her mouth.
Chapter 5
Alara licked her lips as the dragon spread grease over every inch of his dark, muscled frame. The movements of his hands were purposeful and quick—but damn! Clearly he had no idea what the sight of him was doing to her, heck to every woman around of him. Thick slats of muscle criss-crossed his chest and rippled down his belly to disappear under the waistband of his boxer shorts. That thin material hung low and left little to the imagination. She found herself transfixed on the diagonal ridges at the side of his belly, wishing her eyes could follow where they led.
He turned his back to her before passing the grease under his shorts to coat him lower. The guy was hysterical. E and the boys put on as much show as possible oiling up and flexing for the crowd. But here this Adonis hid and hung his head, trying to avoid notice, an impossibility given his height and his charcoal coloring against the pale skin of the mere.
The polo round took place in shifts. She watched as the first teams took to the water. Each participant placed his or her rear end in an inner tube close to shore and used their arms to paddle out to their assigned area. Most of her men maneuvered in crisp motions through the water, having done this many times before. For the most part, the townspeople moved less athletically. They all enjoyed themselves though, some even laughing and towing their less-capable friends.
Her eyes drifted to the human-form dragon. The sight almost bent her over double laughing. His huge body folded into a lilac colored ring, and he kept twisting his hips to get comfortable. Once he managed to get a good seat, his long arms swung out with spastic motions. He didn’t seem to know his own strength, and he swerved into nearby mere and went spinning off the wrong direction.
She looked closer, past the humor of his uncoordinated movements. His eyes blazed with intensity, and his forehead creased in the deepest concentration. Despite the silliness and informality of the situation, he was determined to prove something.
Messy swipes at the water became purposeful, slow, powerful. Each pump of his arms propelled him more efficiently. Soon he coasted over the water, great sweeps sending him flying. Alara shuddered. She wouldn’t want to stand between him and the net.
* * * *
Skimming across the water in the ridiculous rubber contraption, Kai sunk the ball into his team’s basket over and over. By the end of the polo tournament, he panted with exhaustion but also swelled with pride. His team had won, which added points to his score as he advanced to the next round. As he paddled to the log roll area, mere slapped hands and clapped him on the back. Raucous laughter drifted over the waves. The exertion had warmed his human blood, and he felt more than ready to tackle the next challenges.
He feared that the log roll contest would be his downfall, literally. However, years of martial arts had honed his balance to a fine point. He earned one of the highest scores.
Of all the events, the steeple chase most allowed him to outpace his competition. Though some parts of the obstacle course required agility, a skill more found in mere than dragons, most depended on strength and speed, both of which he was pleased to find his human form displayed quite well.
All the contestants would start the ski portion at the same time, so Kai paused in a warm-up area to watch the others running, swinging and climbing over the obstacle course. Soon the princess stood at the starting point, and she burst forward like a demon. He’d seen several of her strongest men compete and had been impressed, but Alara was a force of nature. Her face screwed into a mask of concentration, and she swung from ring to ring and then clamored over a ten-foot wall. As she ran in the other direction, her red-short covered behind jiggled in time with her strides. He decided to suit up for the ski portion before any of the surrounding mere noticed the distension forming in his soaked underwear.
At the changing area, he dressed again and chose the appropriate size of boots, skis and poles. Olaf hovered by his side through the process, explaining the various ways to ski. At least the competition consisted of cross-country skiing; if he fell, it would only be to the ground, not down an entire mountain.
The skis added an entirely new dimension of awkward to his movements. He tried to stand from the bench and walk forward, but immediately splayed to the ground, taking several mere nearby down alongside him. One or two of them expressed anger. But others calmly helped him to his feet and gave pointers for how to move.
Olaf skied off to give Kai a demonstration. The dragon watched, trying to imagine how he might thrust his legs behind him the way Olaf did, or how he might swing his arms to place the poles. After a few moments, Kai speared his poles into the packed snow and pushed. Now that he knew to keep his weight forward and over his knees, the skis slid forward obligingly.
Next, he tried swinging his legs back and forth as he saw the other warming-up skiers do. The effort worked for about three strides before Kai collapsed again on the snow. His face pressed flush against the cold ground. A pair of powder-pink skis pulled up alongside him, and Alara’s lilting voice rained down. “Need a hand, dragon?”
He glared up at her. Surely she'd come to scoff and laugh at his failure. At that moment Kai wished that he could fake light-hearted amusement. Instead he felt humiliation pulse off him in waves. Perhaps if he ignored her she would leave him alone.
“Oh, don’t pout! Come on, let me help you up.” Her hands looped under his shoulder, and she gave a surprisingly strong heave. With her assistance he managed to stand. He brushed the snow off his pants and muttered, “Thank you, Alara.”