Unfortunately, the current had other ideas, and they wound up looking like one of us when we were floundering around on the backs of our shells.
“Shall we take pity on them?” I asked, glancing over at Nyx.
“Maybe we’d better, considering we might find ourselves in the same position one day, or worse, stuck while shifted and unable to change forms.”
“Fair,” Nyx replied, scrambling to his feet, then helping me up so we could pull our mate to their feet.
Curvy and solidly built, Kekoa was heavier than they looked and stronger too. They yanked while we flailed before landing face first in the water. I came up sputtering while Nyx kicked up a bit of a fuss as he flipped himself over and half-stood before the rolling surf caught him just behind the knees and toppled him over again. We wound up bobbing in the water, laughing beside him as the water lapped around us.
“Great, now there are two sneaky asses I have to watch out for,” Nyx grumbled as he ran a hand over his face. “I’m doomed.”
“Yeah, you are,” Kekoa said. “But I’m sure there are worse ways to go.”
“He’s right,” I said. “As far as doom goes, there are so many things out there you should fear more than us.”
“Like the Bog of Eternal Stench and Rodents of Unusual Sizes,” Kekoa blurted. “Oh, and don’t forget The Hell of Being Cut to Pieces.”
“The Chinese have a lot of hells,” Nyx quipped as we all cracked up laughing again.
“Oh my God,” I said, “no way you just quoted three of our favorite movies while fucking with him!”
“Pretty sure I did,” Kekoa replied. “Was a hell of a way to find out we like some of the same movies.”
“I’m not sure if I should dread or look forward to the way you introduce us to the rest of them,” Nyx replied.
Kekoa just winked at him. “Afraid. I’ve got a dirty mind and a creative streak that’s gotten me into trouble a time or two. You might find me sprawled across your bed in nothing but a Creature from the Black Lagoon mask.”
“The old-school fish-face one or the modern, sleek, slightly sexy variety?” I asked.
‘Now I think I’m just going to have to surprise you,” Kekoa said.
“You’ve got my vote,” I said. “I wouldn’t turn that down for anything in the world.”
“I-I…” Nyx stammered.
“What? Spit it out already,” Kekoa demanded. “You either like the idea or you don’t. It can’t be too hard to decide.”
“How about both?” Nyx remarked. “Because the jump scare when I snap on the light is sure to be epic enough that Lani might want to have his cell phone handy to record it, while the rest of the show will be hot as hell.”
“See, it’s all good then,” Kekoa said.
“How is me getting the crap scared out of me good?” Nyx grumbled.
“Fear makes the adrenaline spike, and adrenaline makes for one hell of a fuckin’ good time,” Kekoa replied at the same time as I said, “Well, it does make the pre-prep easier.”
“Tell me you did not just make an enema joke?” Kekoa said.
Snickering, I just shrugged. “In a roundabout way, I suppose I did.”
Nyx just sighed and shook his head. “Like I said, doomed.”
I clasped my hand on his shoulder and squeezed. “Yeah, you are. Sorry, buddy.”
He just cut me a look and stuck his tongue out at me. “No, you’re not.”
“You’re right, I’m not. I was just trying to make you feel better, though if you are going to resort to sticking your tongue out at me, you should think about putting it to good use.”
“I just did,” he replied, and as if to emphasize the point, stuck his tongue out at me again, and this time, he followed it up by blowing raspberries at me. “And a major #fail on the whole,making me feel betterthing.”
