Page 8 of Magic Potions and the Merman's Lure

“At sunrise I was allowed to leave the sea again.”

She looks over at the clock on the wall, and her mouth twists with sympathy. “Damn, did you have a chance to get any sleep?”

I shrug because sleep is inconsequential compared to having the opportunity to be near my female. “Enough.”

Keri gives me a disbelieving look. “You must require a lot less sleep than me.” Her eyes skim over me and she grimaces. “And obviously less outerwear.”

“I require but a few hours,” I admit as I glance down at my bare chest and arms and then back up at her. “Am I not dressed appropriately? My sheath and rear orifice are covered as I gather is socially expected among your people.”

“Aren’t you the least bit cold?” She blinks. “Wait. Sheath?”

My lips curve. “No, I’m not cold. I’m acclimated to much cooler temperatures of the depths and find this much more pleasant than the heat of the summer. And yes, my sheath. It contains my phallus. There is not much to see, but I would be happy to show you how it works.”

“Nice try. Sorry to say I’m not quite that easy. Save it for the lab techs,” she replies with another blush.

“I find that to be a profound relief,” I state truthfully. I want a female I can win and keep with me for the rest of my long life, not one easily swayed from one nest to another.

Now she looks surprised for a moment before burying it beneath a polite façade. She tilts her head to the side and regards me like I am an intriguing thing that has suddenly caught her attention. I just barely resist the urge to preen for her.

“Adiele probably wouldn’t appreciate the fact that you’re offering for me to touch your dick,” she says slowly, “but I was under the impression that merfolk, I mean, Aquanas, are all about frolicking in waves, singing enchantments, sex with whomever they can catch, and drowning humans. And you should know that Adiele will seriously object to two out of those four.”

I stare at her, appalled. This is what humans think of us? I knew that there were some who were suspicious of us for our ability to draw humans to us, but I never thought it was this... this... ghastly. According to her description, we might as well be seagulls fluttering around the rocks, but with a taste for destroying ships, indulging in our pleasures, and eating humans. The comparison, although unintentional from my female, is insulting and stings. But even more so that she would think that I would attempt to lure a female if I were mated to another.

“That is absurd,” I reply in a tight voice. “It is clear that humans know nothing about Aquanas culture.” Such as the fact that we aren’t even homogenous. There are at least twenty subgroupings of Aquanas that I am aware of, but that is not the subject of discussion at present. “I would never betray a female I have claimed as my mate, much less try to entice another.”

Her brow furrows. “Are you trying to tell me that Adiele—”

“Will make a wonderful mate for some other male. For me, she is a friend,” I growl.

She clears her throat and nods uncomfortably, and immediately I feel guilty for snapping at her. It’s not her fault that humans are ignorant of my kind. Even when we have the rare instances of contact with humans, we do not overshare, as humans call it.

“Well, that’s why you’re here and what we’ll both be working toward trying to correct, isn’t it?” she replies quickly as she pulls on a loose garment around her already-clothed upper torso. She digs out a set of keys that she immediately puts in her pocket before looking at me with another of her frustratingly polite smiles. “Let me just call Lynn from the back to cover me, and we can get going.”

I nod in acknowledgment, even more ashamed of myself since I clearly destroyed the fragile comradery that I felt between us for a moment there. Uncertain how to repair the damage, I wait as the other human, Lynn, comes up to the front. The two females talk together in a low voice for a couple of minutes, and then we leave. I remain silent as I follow behind Keri. Somehow, I must fix this.

Chapter 6

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