Merman's Kiss (Merman's Kiss, Book 1) Page 7

  I burst out laughing.

  He stares at me.

  “Sorry. You’re just acting very human right now.”

  He looks down at his folded arms. “Is that so?”

  “Yep.” I start the car. “Next stop is to the pet shop for some sea salt.”

  Chapter Eight

  The second we enter the pet shop, Damarian comes to a short stop. His gaze immediately goes to the fish tanks lined up across the wall.

  I curse to myself before following him. I know what he’s going to say. I shouldn’t have brought him inside. I didn’t think this through.

  He flashes me accusing eyes. “They are captured.” He points to five goldfish swimming around in a medium-sized tank.

  “No, they’re not.”

  “They are imprisoned.”

  “They’re here on display so people can buy them as pets. We treat them well, Damarian. Humans give their pets a lot of love and attention.”

  He clenches his jaw.

  I fold my arms. “Hey, it’s not like they can actually understand what’s going on or feel anything.”

  He gapes at me. “To what are you referring?”

  “Their brains are not advanced like ours and they don’t feel emotion.”

  “You are mistaken.” He touches the side of the glass and narrows his eyes.

  I glance around the shop. The owner is attending to a small family and the other customers are looking around. “Damarian, what are you doing?” I hiss. I hope he doesn’t plan on breaking the glass and letting all these fish free.

  He closes his eyes. I rest a hand on his arm. “Damarian?”

  He opens his eyes and rubs his forehead. “I cannot communicate with them in this human form.”

  My mouth falls open. “Communicate? You…you speak to fish?”

  “Can I help you?” The owner steps toward us.

  “Yes—”

  “Please release the fish,” Damarian says in an authoritative voice.

  The owner looks taken aback. “Excuse me?”

  “I’m sorry,” I say, holding out my hands. “He’s just…” I clear my throat. “Do you have any synthetic seat salt? For marine fish?”

  He glances at Damarian for a second before turning his full attention to me. “Yes, I do.” He leads me farther into the store. I look back to make sure Damarian doesn’t plan on doing anything stupid, but he’s just staring intently at the fish in the tank. Right before I turn into the next aisle, I see him go over to another tank, one with tropical fish.

  The owner shows me the sea salt. It’s the same one I have at home. I ask for two buckets. I’m not sure how long Damarian plans on staying, but I’m not taking any chances. From what just happened with the fish, I won’t be surprised if he goes back home today, taking all the “captured” fish with him.

  I feel a pang in my heart as those thoughts swirl around my head.

  Damarian is watching the marine fish when the owner and I walk up to the counter. He doesn’t look upset now. He looks…sad. Like he’s longing for something. It dawns on me that seeing marine fish probably reminds him of home, of the life he left.

  I pay for the sea salt and ask Damarian to help me carry them to the car. I know he doesn’t want to leave, but he nods and takes both containers, a serious expression on his face. I watch the way he carries them with no effort. Man, the guy is strong.

  When we’re in the car, silence fills the air.

  Damarian says, “I apologize for my behavior.”

  I squeeze the steering wheel. “It’s okay. I get why you were upset.”

  “I do not understand the ways of humans. It was quite difficult, seeing my brethren captured in such a manner. But now I understand that they are not captured. And you are correct in assessing that fish do not hold the same emotional capacity as the children of the sea, nor are they highly intelligent.”

  “But you can communicate with them,” I say.

  “Yes.”

  I look at him. “What do they say?”

  “They care for their young, just as we do. They scavenge for food to survive. They do not appreciate being hunted.”

  “It’s no different than when you hunt for food.”

  “I agree.”

  I start the car and drive toward home. The ride is completely quiet. I focus on the road and Damarian stares out the window. I don’t know what to think. I don’t know if he’s pissed at me, pissed at humans. Maybe he’s had enough of our life and wants to go home.

  It bothers me that I care so much, that I’ve grown so attached to him.

  I park the car and we climb out. Damarian carries the sea salt and clothing into the house. “Maybe you should go into the pool, just in case,” I tell him.

  “Yes, perhaps.”

  “Okay. Let’s put the clothing away first.”

  I lead Damarian to the guest room, which is down the hall from my room. I take his clothes and place them in the closet and the drawers. He stands at the door, and I feel his eyes burning into my back.

  I turn around.

  “The bed,” he says.

  “Yeah?”

  “It is larger than the one in the other room.”

  I take one of his shirts out of the drawer and refold it. “That’s the couch. But yeah, this is a king-sized bed.”

  His eyebrows shoot up. “King. I was not aware that humans have a king.”

  I place the shirt in the drawer. “Well, not all countries do. America doesn’t. We have a leader, but he’s not called a king. Other countries like England and Sweden have kings and queens.”

  He eyes the bed. “I do not understand why you have a king’s bed.”

  I lie down on it and stretch my arms. “It’s just called a king-sized bed because it’s big. When my parents first got married, I guess they thought they’d have many guests. This is my favorite bed in the entire house. As a kid, I used to sneak in here in the middle of the night and crawl in. My mom got so mad.”

  He steps closer and slowly lowers himself onto the bed. He sinks in a bit and stares at it. Then he bounces. “How it differs from my bed.”

  I sit up and fold my legs. “What are the beds like in the sea? What do you sleep in?”

  “Large oyster shells with seaweed.”

  A mental image of merman Damarian lying in an oyster shell flashes across my eyes.

  He stands up. “May I swim now?”

  I stand up, too. “Sure.”

  We make our way to the pool room. This will be the second time witnessing his transformation into a merman. The second time I’ll see a mythical creature right before my eyes. Damarian stares down at the water.

  “What’s wrong?” I ask.

  His head snaps to mine, like he was in a trance. “I am all right.”

  I see the anxiety on his face. I reach for his arm. “It’ll be okay.”

  He shuts his eyes for a second. “The transformation…it is quite painful.”

  That makes my heart cry for him. My hand slides from his arm to his hand, until my fingers are locked with his. “I’m sorry.” And I feel so guilty. He’s risking so much to do this, and I still don’t know why. If it’s because of me, I feel horrible for everything he has to go through.

  Taking a deep breath, he raises his arms to dive in.

  “Wait.”

  He looks at me.

  “You should probably take off your clothes. I’ll close my eyes.” I place my palms over my face.

  I hear him slowly remove his pants and then his shirt. After a few seconds, he grunts and I hear a splash. I uncover my face and crawl to the edge of the pool. Damarian is flailing around, but not because he can’t breathe. It looks as though his internal organs are on fire and he’s thrashing around in agony. Water hits the walls of the pool room, the chairs, and me.

  After about thirty seconds, he calms down. I wipe the water off my face and peer down. His beautiful sapphire tail greets me, gleaming in the sunlight and looking like crystals. When my eyes meet his, he looks m
esmerizing. His face is more relaxed and at peace.

  I smile. “Hey.”

  He returns it. “Hello.”

  I just sit there, staring at him, still finding it hard to believe that a merman is right before my eyes.

  He flips over and dives into the water, swimming to the deep side. Then he leaps into the air, creating an arc. The sunlight coming in from the window shines on the droplets of water dripping from his tail. They look like rainbow colors. It’s one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever seen. As much as I like him as a human, I have to admit that his merman form is the real him, the person he’s supposed to be.

  He lands in the water with hardly a splash. He jumps up a few more times before swimming back to me. His entire face is bright and energetic. It’s obvious he misses being a merman.

  I trace my finger on one of the tiles. “How do you feel?”

  “Very well, thank you.”

  I raise my eyes. “You can’t do that in the ocean, can you? Leap in the air like that.”

  He shakes his head. “My grandfather has told me tales of when he was a fry and had the freedom to soar in the air. But humans can detect us if we were to swim past the surface of the sea. Therefore, leaping is considered highly dangerous and has been banned.”

  “Fry?” I ask.

  He nods.

  “What’s that?” The only meaning that pops into my head is French fries.

  “Young.”

  “Oh, you mean merkids. Fry.” I giggle. “That’s really cute.”

  He smiles.

  We grow silent. I feel like I should leave, maybe give him privacy to enjoy being a merman. But just as I’m about to get up, he says, “Join me.”

  “What?”

  He pats the surface of the water. “Join me.”

  “Oh.” That causes my cheeks to flame for some reason. Maybe because swimming together with him while he’s in his merman form feels…intimate. “Are you sure?” I ask.

  “I am quite sure.”

  “Okay. Just give me a minute to change.”

  I exit the pool room and climb the stairs to my room. My wetsuit is slung over a chair. My eyes trek to my closet, to where my bathing suit is stashed. I bought it a few months after Kyle and I started going out. I hadn’t worn a bathing suit since I was twelve, when I began surfing. I wore only wetsuits because of surfing and because I felt extremely awkward in bathing suits. But once Kyle and I were dating, I wanted him to see me as something more than a surfer girl—I wanted him to find me sexy. I never got around to wearing the bikini, though.

  But now…

  I head to the closet and shuffle the contents around until my hand closes around it. The fabric feels soft and foreign against my skin. I pull it out. It’s a royal blue bikini Leah swore I look amazing in. I’ve tried it on a couple of times in my room in front of the mirror, but I didn’t feel comfortable. I guess I don’t see myself as sexy.

  I stand in front of the mirror and hold it against me, studying myself for a few seconds, imagining it on my body. I shake my head and throw it aside, then reach for my wetsuit.

  Damarian’s swimming when I return to the pool room. He’s moving so fast he could probably beat the world record ten times. I drop down to the edge and dip my toes into the water. Merpeople must have acute hearing, because that small movement sends Damarian rushing toward me. When he’s only a few feet away, he makes a short stop and sprays me with water. I squeal and cover my face.

  He grabs onto the edge of the pool and lifts himself, supporting his weight on his elbows. He grins at me.

  I laugh, and something inside me stirs to life. I don’t know what it is. I haven’t felt this alive in a while, not since I started falling in love with Kyle.

  I raise my leg and poke him in the shoulder. “Some people don’t like the taste of salt water.”

  He scoffs. “You live in the sea almost as much as I do.” He treads his hands in the water, then falls back and floats, his tail rising in the air. He twirls around on his back and makes a circle. I remember doing that as a kid in the public pool when I just learned how to swim on my back.

  I place my palms on the edge and slide into the pool. Damarian flips forward. We’re only a few feet apart. I can feel the strength of his tail. It’s creating currents in the water.

  This is way too intimate. Every part of me wants to run.

  Damarian swims a little closer to me. “Now we are in my world.”

  “Well, almost.”

  He swims even closer and I feel the heat radiating off his body, despite the cool temperature of the water. It’s a good thing we’re in the shallow side, because I’m not sure I would be able to stay afloat if we were in the deep.

  He takes hold of my hand and gently moves me until I’m behind him. Then he takes my other hand and pulls me to my tippy toes, locking my arms around his neck. “Place your legs around my torso,” he says.

  I go still, butterflies flapping around in my stomach.

  He waits.

  I raise my right leg and wrap it around his middle. The contrast between his skin and scales is striking. His chest feels hard and his skin soft, like a man, but his tail is slimy and sticky, like a fish. I slide my leg higher up his back and chest. Then I do the same with my left foot.

  I’ve never been this close to a guy since Kyle and it’s sending all my emotions into a frenzy. It’s hard to breathe. My body begs to sink into him, but I try to put some distance between us, which isn’t easy.

  “Do not release your arms and legs.”

  Before I can process his words, I’m flying in the air. The sunlight bouncing off his tail is so bright it nearly blinds me. I squeeze my arms and legs tighter around him. A second later, we crash into the water. I didn’t have a chance to hold my breath and I swallow a ton of the salt water. Damarian leaps into the air again. I gasp for air. When we enter the water this time, I’m ready and hold my breath. We jump two more times, and it’s the most amazing thing I’ve experienced in my life, even better than a rollercoaster ride or bungee jumping.

  He floats upright in the water, expecting me to slide off. But my arms and legs are stubbornly locked around him. I don’t want to let go.

  But I know I have to. I untangle myself from around him and drop into the water. We’re in the deep side now, so we’re both treading. His tail swooshes against my leg a few times, making it tingle. I tell myself it’s normal to be attracted to him despite the tail. It’s totally normal. Yep.

  His eyes search mine expectantly.

  “That was the best thing I’ve ever experienced in my life.”

  He smiles shyly. “Yes?”

  “Yes.”

  “I have always wished to do so with my sisters, but we cannot leap in the sea, as you know.”

  My heart drops into the water. I avert my gaze from his. Sister. Is that how he sees me?

  “Let us have a competition,” he says.

  I’m burning to ask him how he feels about me, but I don’t want to ruin the fun we’re having. So I brush it aside and say, “You mean a race?”

  “Yes.”

  “No fair. We all know who’s going to win.”

  He spreads out his arms and falls onto his back. “You cannot be so certain. Zarya has defeated me quite a few times. I admit I allowed her to do so twice or thrice, but she is only a fry.”

  “Zarya. Your sister?”

  “Yes.”

  He’s slowly floating farther and farther away from me. I swim closer until I’m at his side. I rest my hands on his chest and heave myself onto him, straddling him. It’s only once I’m on him that my cheeks boil. I’m sitting on him like a surfboard. What’s wrong with me? This is way too intimate.

  He seems shocked with my behavior, too, because a big swallow makes its way down his throat. His gaze travels from his chest, to my legs hanging off his sides.

  “I’m sorry,” I mumble, turning my head away. “I’ll get off.”

  He touches my cheek with the back of his webbed fi
ngers and forces my face to meet his. “Do not apologize, Cassie.”

  I can’t look him in the eye. “I’m riding you. This is so humiliating.”

  “I do not believe it is, for I know we both very much enjoy it.”

  My cheeks are still scorching. I don’t know what to say or do. My attraction to him is so intense, something I’ve never experienced before. Things moved so slowly with Kyle. We went from buds to best friends to boyfriend/girlfriend gradually.

  His tail bounces. The fin catches my attention. It’s sapphire like the rest of his tail, but it’s much more translucent and looks like silk. I haven’t touched that part of him. I twist around and bend toward it. I didn’t realize how long his tail is—my arm is too short. I get on my knees and stretch my arm. My heart pounds as my shaky hand inches closer and closer. I feel Damarian stiffen under me. When my fingers make contact, I spring back. His fin is hard and feels like rubber, and it’s sticky like his tail. I can’t say I’m not disappointed—I was hoping it felt feather-like—but it makes sense that it feels hard. He’s got a lot of bones and muscles there because the fin gives power to the tail.

  His tail drops down and I almost lose my balance and fall off. He quickly picks it up. “I am truly sorry, Cassie. I did not intend to hurt you.”

  It looks as though his whole tail is trembling. Because of me? I swallow, turn around, and scoot toward his chest. “It’s okay.”

  I remain seated on him for a little while, with our eyes locked on one another. I slide off and swim toward the wall, holding onto the edge as my heart returns to a regular beat. I hear him treading in the water behind me.

  “M-maybe we should get out,” I say.

  He’s quiet for a few seconds before saying, “Yes, perhaps we shall.”

  I swim toward the ladder and climb out. I feel his eyes on me, and that causes my legs to quake. I don’t want to look at him, because I’m so confused by all these feelings.

  But I do know one thing: I don’t want Damarian to ever return to the ocean.

  Chapter Nine

  Damarian is back in his human form. We’re sitting on my living room couch, wrapped in towels, although one of us is naked underneath. I shut out any thoughts relating to the fact that he’s got nothing on. He’s so close to me, and that causes every hair on my body to stand on edge. I wrap the towel closer to my body and shiver.