Page 19 of The Noble's Merman

“I feel the same. I don’t want this night to end.”

And with that, Mo reached out, around Kent’s waist, and he pulled him close into a sudden embrace. Kent’s heart pounded, his own chest now pressed firmly against the merman’s, his necklaces grazing their skin. The smell of salt water was soothing, Mo’s body radiated a sweet warmth, his hands petted gently on Kent’s back. He was wrapped in a blanket of sea and comfort, in the arms of his new, precious companion. He returned the embrace, caressing the back of Mo’s shoulders, resting his lips on Mo’s collarbone.

It was strange. In some ways, Mo felt incredibly human. The torso of a man, arms of a man, and his wonderful, handsome face. Even how easily they could talk to each other felt so familiar. But Mo was someone from a completely different world, and Kent was reminded of that, as his tail pressed against his legs, fin brushing around his feet.

But their differences didn’t matter in this moment. He wanted to stay close to Mo, to keep holding him, touching him, regardless if he were human or not.

“When will you be out here again?” Mo asked, his lips close to Kent’s ear.

“Well…” He sighed against Mo’s long hair. “I don’t think I can come out here every day. Perhaps every other day, or every two days, depending. So not tomorrow, but I will try my best to be here the day after that.”

“That is fine. I will wait for you, whenever you can come.”

“All right. Oh, Mo—” he backed up slightly, gazing into the merman’s blue eyes, hands resting on his waist, “—I’m terribly sorry that I made you wait yesterday, only for me to not show up.”

“It was nothing.” He smiled. “I told you, I don’t mind. I have nowhere better to be.”

“You said before you don’t have a family. Does that mean… you don’t have a wife, either? Or… someone who you’d call your beloved?”

Mo chuckled, “No, I’ve no lover. What about you? Do you have one?”

“N-no, I don’t.”

Another pleasant flutter traveled down his abdomen as Mo petted Kent’s sides with both hands. His grin was so inviting, so alluring, like a dream…

What if we…?

However, he knew he had to get back to land, else he start worrying the people back home. He raised a hand and put it flat on Mo’s chest, hairs tickling his fingers. “I don’t wish to admit it, but I should be heading back.”

Mo’s smile waned, yet he nodded. “Yes, of course. We can pick up where we left off next time, right?”

“Right.” Kent nodded back.

The two made their way back to the shore, with Mo staying in the water while Kent stood on the beach. He shook his hair out as much as he could to dry it, patting himself down lightly with his cravat like a towel. Oh, if Turner sees me, won’t he think it’s strange how wet I’ve gotten? Well, it was still about a half-hour walk back to the estate, so hopefully he would be mostly dry by then. He’d brought a lantern this time to light his walk back through the woods, thankfully, but he needed to be mindful to keep the gifted sea crystal deeply hidden in his pocket, to not alert Turner that he met up with anyone out here.

Once he got his clothes on—the ones he left on the shingles, anyway, he’d yet to get his coat and shoes from near the trees—he looked toward Mo in the water. “Till next time we see each other again. I promise, I’ll be back when I can.”

“Till next time, my dear Kent,” he said, smiling that same handsome smile, giving him a wave.

EIGHT

It would be another two days before Kent managed to make it back to the beach. His father had been making condescending comments at dinner about Kent ‘enjoying the scenery around Stubbington’. He could tell Herbert was still suspicious of what he was doing in the evening, and didn’t want to keep pressing his luck, worried his father would pry further and have Kent show him where he went—and who he was with. Especially after talking with Mo, remembering how cruel humans could be, he was afraid of the power Herbert held as the Earl, and what he could do with it if he learnt the existence of merfolk.

There was still a small, optimistic lingering thought: perhaps his father wouldn’t be cruel. Throughout his life, he wouldn’t ever describe Herbert as an abusive parent, but one that maintained order and held expectations. And ever since Kent’s mother died of illness ten years ago, Herbert had become more protective of his family.

But even still, Kent felt hesitant to open up. He didn’t want to ruin what he currently had with Mo. At least Katherine was on his side, excited for him to meet with his merman friend, protecting his secret.

As he met with Mo on the beach, he offered him more human food—some cheese this time. It was so charming to see the merman devour it like it was the most delicious thing he’d ever tasted, thanking Kent generously and not hesitating to ask for more for next time. Oh, he would bring him any and all human foods he could, if it meant seeing Mo smile like that every time.

Mo also gave Kent another gift. In his palm rested a scallop shell, a cream color, glittering with water droplets. Kent’s heart fluttered with glee as he accepted the present. It was such a sweet notion, how Mo brought him something so stunning, and how now they’d come to some sort of agreement to give each other gifts for each encounter. Kent wouldn’t have it any other way.

Now having become part of their usual routine, Kent opened up his merfolk history book and continued to read. Moving on from the section on magic, he read about where merfolk lived, their cities and their homes. Portica was the city Mo lived near, located somewhere in the middle of the English Channel, and Kent mused how perhaps the name stemmed from the same origin as Portsmouth, as they sounded similar and were somewhat nearby each other. There were a few other cities further out in the western Atlantic where the names were written out, but Kent couldn’t pronounce. Though when he tried, Mo recognized what he meant to say instantly, clicking the correct names in his mer-tongue. He learnt more about Portica, the central bazaar and the merchants that sold things there, the grottos where merfolk lived, and the magnificent castle that hosted the royal family.

They continued on, talking to each other so comfortably and effortlessly, Kent didn’t even notice the sun setting until the stars were hanging overhead. He needed to be heading back, and Mo could sense it too, as he asked Kent another question: “I understand if you have… obligations and things to tend to in your human realm that may prevent you from coming here. But I was wondering—is there something, or someone holding you back from coming to the beach as oft as you’d like?”

Kent gulped, then gave a nod. “Well, yes, actually. I suppose… I don’t wish to keep you in the dark about these things so I should tell you…” he rubbed his palms on his breeches, “So, you know that most humans don’t know that merfolk exist. And—I don’t wish to reveal you to the people I live with, since I don’t know how they’d react or what they’d do with that information. I have told my sister, however. I trust her with everything, I hope you don’t mind.”

“I don’t mind who you tell about me, if you say they’re trustworthy.” Mo smiled, easing his nerves a pinch. “But you said, the others?”

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