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Standing in their shared hotel room, Penny pulled the corner of her dress down and showed the tender bite mark to her best friend. Sylvia was appalled.
“That’s fucking gross, Penny,” she said. “That’s not okay. What he’s done to you is not fine.”
“It’s fine,” Penny argued. “In fact, it’s better than fine. This mark, as painful as it looks, is practically the same as Thane putting a ring on my finger. And what I’m telling you is true. He said I could tell you if I was sure you wouldn’t tell anyone else. So here I am.”
“Like putting a ring on your finger,” Sylvia repeated with a roll of her eyes
. “So…what? You’re half shark now? Like instead of a wifey you’re a sharkey?”
Both women remained quiet for a second, neither wanting to give the other room to wiggle out of the argument. Then, Penny couldn’t hold back any longer and burst out laughing. Sylvia joined her. Yet, even through their happy tears, Penny realized she couldn’t answer Sylvia’s question. She didn’t have enough information to go on, which was strange considering she was about to abandon her life and move into his.
She knew he cared about her, maybe even truly loved her. Was she his wifey? Was she half shark? Thane had told her to stay away from salt water and only allowed her to go see Sylvia if he could supervise her journey out to Juan Diego’s boat himself, to make sure not even a drop of salt water touched her skin. Then he escorted her the entire way. Even now he was relaxing on the boat, waiting for her to finish so he could take her home.
“I think so,” Penny said, “But I’ve never shifted. Thane said it hurts like hell the first few times and he’s not sure I’m ready for it yet.”
“This is fucking crazy,” Sylvia said.
“I know it is,” Penny said as she continued packing her clothes into her suitcase.
She needed her own clothes on the island. She didn’t mind wearing Kalina’s old dresses, but she could only mooch off the other woman so much without looking bad. Having no clothes was one thing. Refusing to go get your own clothes was something else.
“So, you’re just going to ditch life back home and stay out here on Shamu Island?” she asked.
“Shamrock Island,” Penny corrected her. “And yes. I have nothing back home.”
“And your doctors?” she asked. “Your medical appointments? You’re not healthy, Penny, remember?”
“Thane promised me all that is over now,” Penny replied. “That’s part of the process. All I need to do is shift for the first time. Once I do that, I’ll be immune to human diseases.”
“Of course, you will,” Sylvia said, blowing her hair away from her face. “You know how insane that sounds, right?”
“You’ve heard the rumors,” Penny said. “I know you have. And you’ve fucked a wolf shifter, so don’t go getting all high and mighty on me now.”
“You can’t stay here,” Sylvia said. “It’s not right. You have a life back home. You have me, remember? Your best friend.”
“Come with me,” Penny said, dropping her final bunch of clothes into her suitcase.
Sylvia didn’t reply. She only stood there looking at Penny’s bag.
“I’m serious, Penny,” she finally said. “Don’t do this.”
“Do this with me,” Penny begged. “Imagine how free life would be. We chill out on a beachy island all day, then jump into the ocean and eat our fill before returning to a bonfire party at night where we have animalistic sex with our lovers. Tell me a life that’s better than that.”
Sylvia wouldn’t answer her.
“At least come out there with me and see for yourself,” Penny said. “I’m sure Thane won’t mind if you ride along with us.”
“I can’t,” Sylvia said. “Jameson is doing that thing with the college kids this afternoon. The party barge. It’s supposed to be massive. Wild drunken fornication on a floating island. I thought you’d be here to go with me.”
“Hot young chicks flashing their tits everywhere. Nice,” Penny said. “Sad I’m gonna miss it.”
“Hey,” Sylvia said. “Drunk boys sometimes flash their cocks too. You might really be sad you’re going to miss it. Come on, stick around. Please? For me? Then you can at least ride with me to the airport tomorrow.”
“I can’t,” Penny said. “Things are kind of crazy right now with…”
“The shark people,” Sylvia interrupted her. “Right.”
“Don’t be like that,” Penny said.
