Page 9 of Magic Potions and the Merman's Lure

Keri

I don’t know what to make of Ro. He’s obviously an easygoing male, and flirtatious to the point that it has the unusual effect of making me feel a little playful, too. But I can’t forget that there is a good possibility that he may not mean anything by it. Flirting likely comes second nature to his kind.

It’s also a good reminder that my flirting skills suck. All I managed to do was insult him, and now he’s retreated into himself and follows behind me as if he is a condemned man walking to his execution. He isn’t even speaking to me. I had hoped he would have forgiven my ignorance in that incredibly embarrassing moment, but it doesn’t look like it’s going to be that easy.

I’m not even entirely sure why I care so much. I can’t readily dismiss what I learned from the merfolk book. After meeting Ro, I read the rest of the book, wanting to know exactly what I’m dealing with. There wasn’t a lot left to it beyond basic anatomy, and it went directly into what looked like a collection of lore from across the world, which was neutral to ambivalent at best.

Even if it’s missing information, it’s still informative in a way that lets me know whoever wrote it knew something of what they were talking about, and everything printed within its pages makes my stomach turn. I should be glad of Ro’s sudden distance because that means I’m safe from succumbing to him and being dragged beneath the waves as his mate. Really, I should be ecstatic.

Instead, I feel something hard and heavy settle deep within my chest like an unappealing, miserable lump of cold, wet noodles.

I bite my lip as I glance over at him, and his pale blue eyes turn toward me. Their color is so icy that that a shiver runs through me. With his flat expression, his gaze feels cold and predatory. I’m starting to rethink our agreement. Not that Mr. Clarence gave me room to decline. I understand why too. This is a rare opportunity to collect a thorough database on Aquanas.

And we aren’t going to get anywhere at all if we aren’t talking to each other.

I lick my lips and give him a timid smile. “They’ve set up the lab to accommodate working with an aquatic person.” I almost said “being,” and I’m glad I corrected myself—I don’t want him to think even for a moment as we go into this that I don’t consider him a person. “We might start with some basics. I understand that they have a tank that should be more than long enough to accommodate you, but if it’s cramped at all or you don’t like it, we can see about changing stuff around. I want you to be comfortable while we do this.”

He gives me a quiet look, but then the corners of his mouth curve and I feel a wave of relief rush through me.

“Thank you, Keri. I am sure it will be fine, but I appreciate that you are so kind and considerate of my needs.”

I can feel my cheeks getting warm, but I nod quickly and pretend to focus on the large building at the end of the road as we get closer.

There is no one there when we arrive, and I’m pleased that The Society has given us free rein of the space and our privacy as we work. Silence greets us as I unlock and open the door, and the motion sensor lights come on the moment we step through the door. If nothing else, that breath of darkness before the lights were triggered would have been enough to tell me just how empty the building is. The lights flick on one by one as we make our way down the hall, our footsteps echoing.

I clear my throat, feeling a strong need to fill the silence so it feels less like the backdrop of a horror movie. “Mr. Clarence said that the third lab on the right has been set up and reserved for us.”

Ro makes a noncommittal sound in his throat in response but doesn’t say anything else as he follows me. There is a sterile, chemical smell from cleansers that I expected, but I wonder if he finds it unpleasant. A lot of fae have a sharp sense of smell and find a lot of things humans use, from perfume to cleaning chemicals, to be unpleasant. He doesn’t comment on it, but I’m relieved when we come to our lab and open the door to the sharp, bitter scent of seawater. There’s still an underlying smell of disinfectant and whatever was used to clean the lab, but the strong scent of saltwater seems to make Ro relax as he regards the room with open curiosity.

The first thing my gaze lands on is a giant metal hook suspended over a large tank, big enough to comfortably hold a dolphin, set up against one wall. It dominates the room to such a degree that I barely even look at the padded examination table or the small conference table set up in one corner with a pair of chairs set around it. That damn hook fills my vision entirely like something waiting to be baited to drag a shark from the depths. I swallow uncomfortably as Ro tilts his head and studies it.

“Clever,” he murmurs. “That will be very helpful for getting in and out of the water.”

I blink and look at it again. I suppose so.

He glances over at me and raises his eyebrows. “Shall I get in then? I believe that you wish to start here... I assume to record the way everything looks and works beneath the water.”

I give him a pleased look, happy at his initiative. The less awkwardness, the better.

“Yes, please. I’ll set up the video equipment and get the camera.”

He nods and his fingers skim his waistband—and then he completely drops his pants.

My eyes catch at the bulge of flesh between his thighs, and I turn bright red with embarrassment as I quickly realize that I’m staring. Yet I’m so fascinated that I can’t seem to look away. Nor does he move.

This is very awkward.

Ro chuckles softly, filling me with a fresh flood of embarrassment. “I assume that you wish to take pictures of the anatomical differences in my landwalker form before I get into the water.”

My tongue is stuck to the roof of my mouth, but I nod before hurrying over to fetch the camera from where it’s charging on the conference table. He waits patiently for me to return and then stands still, with his hands out from his sides as I proceed to take photos of his genital sheath and then every part of his body from his curiously unwebbed toes to his smooth, unmarred neck that shows no hint of gills and the surprisingly coarse fall of his hair. The last truly surprises me when I reach forward and touch it after getting a good picture of the thick strands. It looks shimmery and silky, but its texture reminds me of a heavy pelt, like fur from a polar bear or something.

And Ro watches me expressionlessly the entire time so I can’t even begin to guess what he’s thinking. I feel like a creeper invading his privacy, but he signed up for this and in fact made the suggestion to start with the photographs, so I don’t feel too bad for it.

The moment he feels that I’m done, he turns from me and leaps for the hook with a powerful flex of his muscles. The moment his hands curl around it, his body swings with its momentum so that he arcs over the tank and then drops with a splash when he lets go. My awe at his athletic ability takes a prompt backseat when his chest begins to glow and flex and gills push up from his skin, drawing in his first breath of oxygenated water. That glow from his chest brightens and runs down his legs and throughout the rest of his body. It’s blindingly bright, and I shield my eyes and squint against it, but I’m unable to see anything more until it finally settles into a soft illumination. He banks it, seemingly at will, and turns toward me with a flick of his fins.

I stare at him for a long moment and his lips quirk as he gives a pointed look to the remote in my hand. Oh, yes! The video recorder. I turn just enough to point the remote at the system to turn it on before spinning back toward him again and moving closer to the tank.

“Ro... can you hear me when you’re in there?”

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