Chumming with a Great White - Charlie Richards Page 0,17

lose his balance and, with a surprised yelp, began to topple.

“Easy, Graham,” Eban called as his big, strong arms wrapped around his torso. “Let’s have you sit down first.”

Graham blew out an embarrassed breath even as he allowed Eban to guide him to the ground. “Geez, that was dumb.” Once upon a time, Graham wouldn’t have had any trouble removing his jeans on a beach.

Those days are long gone.

Sitting on the sand, Graham watched as Eban removed his footwear, then the rest of his clothes, leaving him in his underwear.

“One of these days, I’m going to have you teach me how to put that thing on and off of you,” Eban told him from where he knelt beside him.

As Graham removed his leg, he furrowed his brows. “Why would you need to know how to do that?”

Eban shrugged. “Because I like taking care of you.”

Graham figured it was as simple as that. The man was a shifter and had a different set of instincts. In fact, they were instincts that Graham was becoming appreciative of.

“Okay.” Graham set his leg on his pile of clothes. “Ready.”

Sliding his arms around Graham’s back and knees, Eban easily lifted him. He still found himself shocked at his lover’s strength. The way he handled himself never failed to give Graham a boner.

Fortunately, Eban always seemed happy to take care of it, too.

Just thinking about sex had a predictable reaction on his body. His blood rushed to his prick, and he began to thicken.

Eban growled softly. “Hopefully, this water will help us with our problems,” he grumbled, frowning. “I hate leaving you hangin’, my mate.”

“I can’t help it when I’m in your arms,” Graham admitted. Never before had he thought such sappiness would cross his lips.

“Good.” Eban gave him a swift kiss, then took them deeper.

When the cold water hit Graham’s foot, then his ass, he hissed. Once his body was half-submerged, his burgeoning erection died a swift death. He figured that was a good thing, though.

“Okay, I’m gonna put you on your feet.” Eban winced. “Uh, foot?”

Graham laughed softly. “The fact that you forgot... actually warms me a little bit.”

Eban grinned, then kissed him again. His tongue lingered in Graham’s mouth, and he welcomed the play.

With a groan, Eban tore his mouth away from Graham’s. “Ugh. You’re so fucking sexy and distracting.”

Winking, Graham stated, “Well, I guess you better let me meet your shark so we can get back to some other fun stuff.”

Nodding, Eban carefully placed him down.

Graham easily caught his balance, moving his arms through the water and floating. Swimming during therapy had always been a favorite. Hearing splashing, Graham spotted Eban moving farther away.

“Remember, Graham,” Eban stated, treading water ten feet away. “You’re perfectly safe with my shark.”

“I know, Eban,” Graham replied, trying to soothe his worried lover. Never would he have thought the big confident man would have such fears, and he wanted to help put them to rest. “It’s still you. I know that. Stop worrying.”

Eban nodded. Then he sank under the water. Bubbles broke the surface as the water churned. After a few seconds, there was nothing.

Graham swept his gaze around the cavern, searching. Finally, thirty feet to his left, a fin broke the surface of the water. He sucked in a surprised gasp, shocked at how huge it was.

“Damn,” Graham whispered, staring intently.

The fin moved left, then right, making figure eights in the water, but it never drew closer, even after several minutes.

Reminding himself of his vow to assuage Eban’s fears, Graham began swimming slowly toward the circling shark. To his relief, the animal didn’t try to get farther away. He reached his shifter’s shark and brushed his palm over the animal’s side as it swam past.

On the next pass, Graham kicked with his arms and legs and lunged upward. He brought his hands up and managed to grab onto his dorsal fin. The shark sank a little lower in the water, allowing Graham to get more comfortable hanging onto his back.

Then the shark sped up.

Graham laughed as his body cut through the water at an impressive rate. Waves rippled around him. The feeling of freedom surged through him, and Graham realized swimming with his shark was going to become a favorite activity.

Examining the creature, Graham realized he had to be at least eighteen feet long. Even in shark form, there was considerable scarring on his right side in front of his fin. In fact, he could easily see how Eban must have fought off another large shark.

After