CHAPTER FIFTEEN
ELLIOT
Selena’s voice rings with false cheer as she waves at me from a dozen paces away in the moonlight. Her curly brown hair bounces as she makes her way over to us. My eyes narrow the second they land on the hulking figure behind her.
Chase. With his faux bleach-white hair and wannabe-cool tattoos.
Every muscle in my body tightens instinctively, my sea lion stirring beneath my skin with a low territorial growl. I fight the urge to move between them, shielding both Selena and Catherine in one motion.
Even though I know both women can hold their own, I don’t trust him.
Sea lions and sharks do not get along in the animal world.
Apparently that rivalry carries over into the human one too.
While Selena isn’t mine—only one woman holds that title in my head now—she’s still the closest thing I have to family in Crescent Cove. And I’m not about to let some shark circle too close.
“Chase.” I nod once, clipped and controlled.
He deserves a good ass whooping.
“Elliot.” His sharp-toothed grin gleams in the moonlight. “What a surprise seeing you here. I figured you’d be nose-deep rescuing some poor wittle turtle instead of prowling beach parties.”
My jaw tightens.
The ocean breeze shifts salty and cold between us while music from the bonfire thumps faintly in the distance. Around us, people laugh and dance barefoot in the sand, blissfully unaware they’re standing in the middle of a predator standoff.
My sea lion presses closer to the surface.
Mine.
“I was about to say the same thing about you,” I reply coolly. “Didn’t think sharks liked crowds. Too many witnesses when they smell blood.”
Chase chuckles darkly. “Depends. Sometimes crowds make hunting easier.”
His gaze drifts past me toward Catherine near the fire pit and something ugly twists low in my stomach.
Absolutely not.
It was bad enough he was here with Selena. I wasn’t letting him anywhere near my Wren.
I take a slow step forward. “Maybe you should turn tail and find some other waters to haunt. Crescent Cove doesn’t exactly welcome predators who don’t play by the rules.”
“Oh?” He cracks his neck lazily. “You calling me dangerous, seal boy?”
“Sea lion,” I correct automatically. “And dangerous would imply subtlety. You’re more like a feeding frenzy with anger issues.”
Selena snorts beside him, trying to hide it with a cough.
Chase’s eyes narrow.
“You always bark this much?” he asks. “Or is that just a defense mechanism because deep down you know sharks sit at the top of the food chain?”
I fold my arms across my chest. “Funny. Last I checked, sharks spend most of their lives hunting seals because they can’t catch anything smarter.”
“Ouch,” someone behind me mutters under their breath.
His nostrils flare.
“You got real brave all of a sudden.”
“And you got real close to my people.” My voice drops lower. Sharper. “That’s usually when I bite.”
My sea lion practically preens.
Yes. Bite him.
“Careful, pup.” Chase steps closer, towering enough that most people would back down. “You’re starting to sound territorial.”
A slow smile pulls at my mouth. “That’s because I am, and you’re in my territory.”
The air between us crackles.
Conversations begin quieting as nearby shifters notice the tension. A few humans and witches glance over nervously before drifting farther down the beach.
Shifters know what this is.
Two predators sizing each other up.
Chase glances toward Catherine again. “Would be a shame if your little water witch got caught up in something messy.”
Every instinct in me snaps taut.
Sand shifts beneath my bare feet as my claws threaten to surface.
“Leave her out of this.”
“There it is,” Chase says softly, his grin widening. “Knew there had to be a reason the friendly neighborhood rescue mutt suddenly grew teeth.”
Sock him. Right in the throat.
“I’m not a mutt,” I growl.
“And I’m not a villain.” He spreads his arms mockingly. “Yet here we are.”
His shoulder slams into mine as he lunges.
A challenge.
The shark equivalent of blood in the water.
My sea lion surges violently.
Before I can think better of it, I shove him back, his heels digging trenches into the sand.
The crowd gasps.
Chase grins.
Wrong move.
He swings first.
I duck easily, feeling the rush of air over my head before he stumbles slightly in the uneven sand.
“What?” I taunt, bouncing lightly on the balls of my feet. “Losing your balance there, Jaws? Thought sharks were supposed to be graceful.”
“Oh, I’m gonna enjoy this.”
He lunges again, faster this time.
His fist clips my cheekbone and stars burst across my vision. Salt floods my mouth where my teeth cut into my lip.
The crowd erupts.
Catherine shouts my name somewhere behind me.
My sea lion roars.
I drive my fist straight into Chase’s ribs with enough force to send him staggering sideways.
He laughs.
Actually laughs.
“Better.” He wipes blood from the corner of his mouth. “Maybe you’re not just some overgrown aquarium mascot after all.”
I launch at him before I can stop myself.
We crash into the sand hard, grappling violently. His strength is brutal, all raw force and predator instinct, but sea lions are built to survive shark attacks.
We fight dirty.
My elbow slams into his jaw.
His forearm crushes my throat.
Sand sprays everywhere while nearby partygoers scatter backward, shouting.
“Elliot!” Catherine’s voice cuts through the chaos.
Chase hears it too.
And the bastard smirks.
That’s what finally snaps whatever restraint I had left.
I slam him onto his back, the breath leaving his lungs in a grunt. My fist cocks back—
“BOYS. ENOUGH.”
Selena’s sharp voice cracks across the beach like a whip.
Both Chase and I freeze.
I blink, suddenly realizing half the damn beach party is staring at us.
Someone’s recording on their phone.
Fantastic.
Selena plants herself between us, murderous fury radiating off her frame.
“I am not doing this tonight,” she snaps. “Elliot, I’m fine. Chase, you’re an asshole. Both of you need to stop measuring your—”
“Selena,” Chase warns.
“No. Absolutely not.” She points toward the ocean. “You. Move.”
Chase spits blood into the sand before leveling me with one last cold look.
“Not worth fighting over territorial instincts anyway,” he mutters.
“Oh yeah?” I shoot back, chest heaving. “That’s not what it looked like from where I was standing.”
His eyes flash dangerously before Selena physically shoves his shoulder.
“Move, Ariel.”
He snorts once, then turns and stalks after her down the beach.
Only once they disappear into the crowd do I finally unclench my fists.
My knuckles ache.
My cheek throbs.
And when I turn around, Catherine is staring at me wide-eyed in the firelight.
“I’m sorry I lost my temper and ruined the night.” I reach up, touching my cheekbone. I’m definitely going to have a black eye to match the one I gave Chase.
Serves him right for even looking at our mate.
“You were pretty brave back there.”
Catherine presses her cold drink gently against the side of my face, and the throbbing in my cheek instantly dulls. Condensation drips down my neck, but all I can focus on is her standing this close to me beneath the moonlight.
I shrug, like getting punched by a shark shifter is an everyday inconvenience. Before she can pull away, I slide an arm around her waist and tug her against me.
Her breath catches softly.
It’s all part of the fake dating. Putting on an act, I remind myself. Just a little physical chemistry between two people.
“Selena is like a little sister to me.” My thumb brushes the bare skin of her back above her sundress. “And then when he threatened you…”
My jaw tightens as Chase’s words replay in my head.
Would be a shame if your little water witch got caught up in something messy.
Protect her.
Mine.
Catherine’s expression softens instantly before her lips press against mine in the gentlest kiss.
Soft. Sweet. Careful of my bruised face.
The world goes quiet for half a heartbeat before a chorus of hoots and whistles erupts from the crowd still lingering around the bonfire.
“GET A ROOM, FITZGERALD!”
“ABOUT DAMN TIME!”
“THE WATER WITCH KISSED HIM BACK!”
Catherine jerks away with a startled laugh while I grin against her mouth.
“Ignore them,” I murmur, stealing one more quick kiss anyway.
Her cheeks flush pink in the firelight.
“Shh.” Her fingers brush along my cheekbone again, featherlight despite the possessive concern in her eyes. “He’s gone now.” She studies the bruise beginning to bloom across my skin and frowns. “We should probably get some actual ice on this before it swells more.”
“You sure?” I ask, watching her carefully. “Don’t want to drag you away from your first full moon beach party.”
She tosses her head back and laughs, and goddess, that sound hits me right in the chest every damn time.
“Elliot, if you don’t get me home before midnight, I might turn into a pumpkin.”
“I’m pretty sure it was the carriage that turned into a pumpkin,” I counter. “Not the princess.”
“Well, if we wait too long, the swelling might make your head as big as one.”
I gasp. “Wounded. First physically, now emotionally.”
“You’ll survive.”
“Debatable.” I lean closer conspiratorially. “Think I need mouth-to-mouth.”
She rolls her eyes, but she’s smiling now, fingers still resting against my jaw like she can’t quite stop touching me.
“Tough call. You are pretty dramatic for a sea lion.”
“We’re sensitive creatures.”
“You bark and pick fights with sharks on beaches.”
“And you liked it.”
Her lips part, clearly ready with a comeback, but nothing comes out.
Because she did like it.
I can see it in the way her pupils widen. The way her fingers curl slightly into my shirt.
The way she’s looking at me now. Slowly. Carefully.
Like she’s starting to realize this thing between us might be more dangerous than her magic.
If only it wasn’t just until summer ends.
“Touché,” she finally mutters weakly. Then she leans back, examining my face with exaggerated seriousness and tapping her chin. “Hmm. Yep. Definitely severe. You may require extensive nursing before bed.”
“Well, you don’t have to ask me twice.”
She squeals as I scoop her into my arms bridal style.