Page 28 of Magic Potions and the Merman's Lure

I pick the cup up and give the contents a curious sniff. It smells pleasing. Still, I watch my mate over its rim as she takes a delicate sip, and I follow suit. The spice of the drink washes over my tongue and I freeze thoughtfully, entirely uncertain, as I allow the flavor to settle and swallow.

“You are right!” I am so pleasantly surprised that I immediately snatch up a roll and stuff it in my mouth, eager for another burst of flavor. I only just barely get it swallowed before I take another sip and settle back into my seat with a happy sigh, my eyes closing as I savor the taste. “Ah, delicious.”

At my mate’s giggle, I open my eyes to peer over at her. The corners of her mouth curl, and she points her sticks at me.

“I knew that this would be a great idea! And look at you getting the hang of chopsticks so quickly! I’m kind of jealous actually. It took me months to even be functional with them,” she admits.

I preen at the compliment and her smile widens as I quickly eat three more. She then blinks as I dive in and retrieve a fourth, a tasty prawn right from under her nose.

“Okay, you’re a little too good,” she adds dryly.

I grin but slow down my pace so that I can once again resume savoring the flavors as my female fills me in about the rest of her day. As I did little else but wait for her to be released while I amused myself with the television in my room—still a wonder to me after all this time flitting along the coastal cities among humans—I have little to offer the conversation. So I eat and listen, and tip back tiny glass after tiny glass of the exceptionally delicious sake that rushes over my tongue and pools with heat in my belly. It is not until we are half done with the meal that the conversation turns toward some of the customs and habits of Aquanas at meal times, all of which she listens to with the same rapt focus that she always gives me. It flatters me that she finds it so interesting since it is hardly what I would consider information of interest, and I wonder if perhaps she feels even a small amount of the desire to be together that I feel every day. Truthfully, at this point I want to simply bask in her attention any way I can get it. I would reveal to her every secret and possibly earn the scorn of my entire pod just to have her feel as I do.

More than anything, I want the day to never end so that I can remain here by her side, but I am far too aware of the sun. Even indoors I can feel it sinking lower on the horizon. When our meal concludes, there is no time to walk her home or to enjoy the docks with her. The sky is orange and scarlet with the last fires of the sun, and so I take her hand in mine and let her walk with me to a private little alcove where I found a secure dry spot to store my clothes during the night.

Keri’s eyes follow me as I strip and slip down into the cool water but my heart clenches painfully in my chest when I feel an echo of sadness from her. I am helpless to offer her much meaningful comfort and it’s all I can do not to claw at my forming tail with frustration as I drop deeper into the water. My fins flick, propelling me back further from the shore, and we watch each other for a moment until I cannot stand it any longer and dive down into the darkness.

Only when I am certain that she has left the embankment do I break the surface and watch her sorrowfully as she heads down the dock in her little orange dress that reminds me so much of the sun.

Chapter 19

Ro

I glide through the water of the pool, ignoring the dolphin randomly nudging my side that the council insisted on observing in the tank with me lately. I have no patience for its antics today. Not when I am more interested in what Keri is speaking about with Adiele at the far end of the pool. Pushing the dolphin aside, I swim toward them without trying to make it too obvious.

Adiele’s arrival is a surprise. I am very aware of her opinion on the smell of salt water. She complains of it every time I come into her shop while she is lighting another large bunch of sweet-scented incense. For her to come to the outdoor pools and this close to the shore means that she is enduring it for a reason. And I want to know what it is. Unfortunately, both females happen to fall silent as I draw near and lean back against the side of the pool to soak in the sun. My lips quirk at the vision my mate makes. She is truly as lovely as any female Aquana sunning herself on the rocks. If it weren’t for her friend’s presence, I would try to snare my female and draw her into the water with me. An Aquana’s seduction is always best below the waves and it seems that I am blocked at every turn.

As much as appreciate and admire Adiele, her presence while I am attempting to court my mate is an annoying inconvenience. She knows it, too. I can see it in her smile as she suddenly turns her head and smirks as I draw near.

“Hey Ro, what’s with your pool buddy?” she calls. “He seems to really like you.”

I cast an exasperated glance behind me and sure enough the dolphin is right there. Annoyed, I flick my tail at it, and it careens away to avoid the slap, giving me a moment of peace.

“Irritating beast,” I mutter.

My mate laughs as she turns to watch. She leans toward Adiele confidingly. “Mr. Clarence was so sure he would get some fascinating data on a sort of dolphin-Aquana interspecies relationship. I think he’s going to be disappointed. Ro tries to escape Felicia here more than make any effort to communicate with her or interact with her at all.”

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