Touching Paradise
Authors: Cleo Peitsche
TOUCHING PARADISE
All Romance eBooks Edition
Copyright, Legal Notice and Disclaimer:
TOUCHING PARADISE
© 2014 by Cleo Peitsche. All rights reserved worldwide. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means without permission in writing from the author. This is a work of fiction. All names, characters, events, locations and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any persons, living or dead, events or locales is entirely coincidental. This book is for entertainment purposes only.
Cover photo © 2014 by Cormar Covers.
This book contains mature content and is solely for adults.
Dear Reader,
Thank you for purchasing this ebook. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it, and I look forward to sharing more of my stories with you.
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xoxo,
Cleo
Other Titles By Cleo
After Forever/Bisexual Billionaire Trilogy (Threesome Romance)
Careless
Hopeless
Fearless
After Forever Box Set
Office Toy Series (BDSM Gang Bang Romance)
Office Toy
Client Satisfaction
Company Vacation
Flex Time
Soft Skills
Executive Package
By a Dangerous Man (BDSM Erotic Romantic Suspense)
Trapped by a Dangerous Man
Wanted by a Dangerous Man
Saved by a Dangerous Man
Tempted by a Dangerous Man
Seduced by a Dangerous Man
The Shark Shifter Paranormal Romance
Touching Paradise
Take Me Hard Series (BDSM Romance)
Ride Me Hard
Love Me Hard
Use Me Hard
Take Me Hard Compilation #1
Push Me Hard
Fantasy Playland Series (BDSM)
Sleeping Lady
Sleeping chez Sade
Wide Awake
Wide Open
His Kiss
Fantasy Playland Box Set
Mistress Moi Series (Femdom)
My Three Slaves
Cuckold Chuck
Faye-Faye and the Sadist
Bad Boyfriend Series (Femdom Romance)
Bad Boyfriend
Anthologies
Underground Erotica
TOUCHING PARADISE
is an erotic paranormal romance of 41,000 words.
Despite his billions in the bank, Koenraad is a shark shapeshifter haunted by secrets and regrets. Unable to move on with his life, he relentlessly patrols the waters near the island he once considered home. Fate puts the beautiful Monroe in his path, and duty demands he offer his services, but one look into her eyes and he knows the lonely, frightened woman secretly yearns for adventure.
Monroe is having a hard time getting into the vacation spirit. She’s surrounded by powdery white sand and swaying palm trees, but she’s terrified of the ocean. When her tour boat breaks down at sea, she’s thrilled to skip the so-called trip of a lifetime. However, a gorgeous man with a sleek yacht is determined to change her mind… and maybe her life.
Contains explicit sexual content and graphic language that may be objectionable to some readers. Includes sexual dominance and submission and very mild BDSM elements. For adults only.
Prologue
Koenraad whipped through the cool blue ocean, each slice of his crescent tail propelling him faster, the water rushing over his powerful body. Two minutes earlier, he’d sensed a boat approaching his yacht… and that could only mean one thing.
He hoped, oh god, he hoped it was good news.
A large school of bluefin tuna scattered before him in terror. He passed through a drifting tangle of seaweed, felt a clump snag on his triangular dorsal fin before tearing away.
He didn’t slow as he neared his yacht. Instead, he exploded out of the water, shifting human mid-air, landing on the deck in a crouch with a graceless, wet thump.
His light blond hair was in need of a cut, and he shoved the dripping mass out of his eyes as he straightened. The dangerously fast pounding of his heart and his burning lungs rendered him momentarily speechless, but he kept the pain off his face.
“So this is what you’re doing out here weeks on end,” Darius said in a lazy drawl. “Your touchdown needs work, but it’s a nice trick.” He was leaning casually against the rail of his own sixty-foot yacht, a straw hat shading his eyes. The whiteness of his elegant beard contrasted with his ruddy face. Despite the humidity, his Bermuda shorts and tan shirt were crisp.
Koenraad continued to gulp down air while he scrutinized the other boat. No sign of the boy, and he didn’t smell him, either. Just Darius and two bodyguards.
He turned his attention to Darius, praying the man’s next words would put an end to his nightmare.
But Darius shook his head, and Koenraad’s heart sank.
“It’s time for us to have a chat.” Darius easily hopped the twelve feet that separated the vessels.
Koenraad bristled. It was bad form to board a boat without permission, and he didn’t like or trust Darius. “You… here to help—” He really couldn’t catch his breath. Every shifter knew better than to change to human in the middle of intense exertion. It was a good way to drop dead. Too much strain on the heart and circulatory system.
“Help you what? Indulge your insanity and obsession? Seems you’ve got that well in hand.” Darius softened his assessment with an uptick of his reddish lips. “Hot today,” he said as he lowered himself onto one of the padded bench seats.
“If you’re overheated, there’s plenty of empty ocean to cool off in.” Koenraad’s voice was still raspy, but his meaning came through just fine.
“I know you’re grieving, so I’m going to overlook your tone. How about offering me a refreshment? Seems the polite thing to do.”
“I’m sure you’ve got some on your boat.”
The genteel man’s face turned sharp. “You’re swimming in shallow water, Koenraad.”
“Let me see about your refreshment.” He nearly added a
your highness
, but stopped himself at the last moment. He went into the galley, feeling dazed, like he’d been woken unexpectedly. Blinking, he stared at the luxury that surrounded him. The custom-made wood cabinetry and furniture alone had cost tens of thousands. Now the excess made him sick. He hated it, hated that it was beautiful, that it reminded him of happier times. He wanted to destroy everything, sink this yacht.
His money, his power, his abilities… all useless.
He braced himself against the sink and took a deep breath, followed by another. He needed to get a grip. Losing his temper wouldn’t get him what he wanted.
As soon as he’d mastered his emotions, he put on a pair of linen pants, grabbed two bottles of water from the refrigerator and rejoined Darius, who hadn’t moved.
“Much obliged,” Darius said. He took his time opening the bottle, then slowly began to slake his thirst.
Koenraad stared blindly out over the expanse of blue water. He always knew which direction Tureygua was, but if he hadn’t, the breeze would have betrayed the island’s position as due west. The scents of suntan lotion, deep-fried food and human sweat mixed with petroleum and warm vegetation.
Tureygua. It was supposed to be a paradise, but for him, it was hell. He didn’t care if he never set foot on it again.
“I know you’re grieving, Koenraad, and it’s clouding your thinking. You blame Victoria, but she’s distraught, too. Brady was her son as well. Do you think this is easy for her?”
His anger mounting again, Koenraad held up a hand, but Darius wasn’t finished. “Even if you find him, then what? He’s a shark.”
“He’s your nephew and a shifter!”
“He was an animal. A
shark
,” Darius pronounced. His steely blue gaze seemed to look into Koenraad’s soul. Finally Darius shook his head. “What was your plan, anyway? Would you have kept him in your pool? Fed him fish flakes twice a day?” Darius removed his hat, revealing a bald dome fringed with snowy white hair, and set it on his knee.
“Why are you here?”
“Courtesy. I’ve asked Victoria to patrol Tureygua. She’ll be here in a couple of days. Plenty of time to clear out if you need to—”
“No.” Koenraad looked down at his hand, surprised that it was suddenly wet. He had crushed the water bottle in his fist. He stiffly walked into the galley to dispose of the ruined plastic.
The oceans would reek of Victoria, and she would, no doubt, be fighting to get into his bed, spouting nonsense about keeping the shark shifter lines pure, about replacing Brady.
She had torn his life apart twice. Once when she got pregnant after an ill-advised one-night stand when he was twenty-two. That moment of weakness had been a mistake… yet it had led to the best thing in his life.
Yes, Brady had been different. Six years old and he’d never learned to speak, and he was so frail that he seemed half his age. Often, the boy would spend hours staring at the ocean with unbridled longing. But Koenraad had known his son’s gentle soul. Brady wasn’t a mindless animal, not then and not now.
The second time Victoria had ruined his life was when she allowed Brady into the ocean alone. For that, Koenraad would never forgive her. Or himself.
He had spared no expense in the search for Brady, burning through tens of millions of dollars within weeks. Through bribery or promised favors, he’d forced every marine shifter he knew into the search. But increasingly, it was clear that he was the only one who cared.
Koenraad didn’t give a damn if his son never managed to shift human again. Once he found him—and he would, even if it cost every cent of his fortune—then Koenraad would shift shark, and they could leave for good. They would migrate the globe together, skirt the ice of Antarctica, taste the waters of Australia.
He was going to find Brady, and that meant staying near Tureygua. He wouldn’t quit or be run off.
The boiling rage settled to a simmer, and he stalked back out onto the deck.
He planted himself in front of Darius. “If Victoria shows up here, there will be blood in the water.”
“No one wants to patrol islands instead of living free. I know it’s a bad job. If I had someone else to do it… Don’t suppose you’re interested?”
Koenraad glowered down at Darius, but he knew the older man had the upper hand. He’d been trapped.
Darius offered up a thin smile. “It’s for the good of the community.”
“If I agree—”
“Victoria stays away. Frankly, I don’t see why you hate her so much—”
“She’s a manipulative monster.”
Darius shrugged, donned his hat and stood. “Runs in our family. I’ll send over a contract tonight.”
Chapter 1
Two Years Later
The wind rushed in from the dark ocean, ruffling the bottom of Monroe’s lime-green bridesmaid’s dress and raising goosebumps over her bare arms. She wanted to hide under the blankets in her hotel room, beyond the reach of the chilly Caribbean evening breeze. Instead, she took another nose-burning gulp from the bottle of champagne she had swiped during her graceless escape forty minutes earlier.
She needed to pull herself together.
Five more minutes. Then she’d go back inside.
She eased off her heels and flexed her toes while holding onto the rail for balance. The concrete of the balcony was chilly under her feet. Why was the evening so cold, anyway? When she’d arrived in Tureygua that afternoon, it had been so blistering hot that she’d longed for the icy streets of New York.
Several stories below, young surfers smoked something that hadn’t popped out of a cigarette machine. The individual words of their banter were swallowed by the laughing cadences of their speech.
She sighed and took another swallow. Even though there was a roomful of people who loved her not so far away, she felt lonely, stuck halfway between youthful freedom and adult responsibility.
“Monroe!”
Monroe groaned when she saw Tara, looking like an adorable green pompom in her dress, coming unsteadily toward her.
Repositioning herself to hide the bottle of champagne, Monroe forced a smile onto her face. The effort made her cheeks ache. “Are the newlyweds having fun?”