Page 4 of Marked By the Sea

Cutting the line mid-moan, I turned from their spectacle to make sure they hadn’t been spotted by the humans. They played a risky game, but that only turned the fiends on more. I wasn’t the only one who was irritable and tired of this fruitless hunt. They’d given in to each other, unable to keep their cocks to themselves. As kids, we’d agreed to remain loyal to each other, swore to refuse any advances from our kind. Mixing wasfrowned upon. This might have been our very last chance to hunt together. An involuntary growl fell from my lips.

Literal seconds before I was about to turn from shore, a boat launched from land. There wasn’t much daylight left, so this one would be out late. Unable to deny the magnetic pull, I dived beneath the surface. In seconds, I was beside the catamaran. I swam alongside the two parallel hulls as they ventured further into the sea. The waves pushed them forward as if telling me this was the one. I tried not to get too excited. I’d been disappointed time and time again. What felt like hours later, the boat finally stalled, and I ventured higher. Twinkling lights lit up the sky. A female voice moaned as a male seductively murmured into her ear. I was not interested in snatching males, and his partner was not to my liking. Resigned to the fact this venture was useless, I turned when a female voice cut through the dark sky.

“Can we go back to shore now?” she pleaded, her voice full of raw fear.

Before I knew what was happening, I had climbed up the side of the boat. Unable to fight the urge to see her, I peeked over the deck, and my gaze froze on her. She stood at the top of the stairs. Her thick body shielded in a thin white material over her breasts, and a skirt that hugged her hips fell loosely around her. Two large braids ran down her back. The color reminded me of seahorses and turtle shells. Standing at the top of the steps, she held onto the railing for dear life. The older woman laughed.

“If we’ve seen one wave, we’ve seen them all.” Her melodic voice called to something buried deep within me. Before I could analyze it, it happened. The itch. My black claws danced along the glinting metal. I couldn’t look away.

“I’m proud of you for facing your fears, but read the room, darling.” The woman laughed before continuing below deck. Their loud footfalls echoed as the couple disappeared.

“As if I had a damn choice. You literally carried me onto this damn boat. If you actually cared, you would have left me home.” A tear strayed down her cheek before she turned and faced the ocean. She batted her tear away and took one shaky step after the other until she came to a halt. Grasping her chest, she gasped and fell to the floor. Tucking her legs into her chest, her slender arms wrapped around them as she buried her head.

I watched her with rapt fascination. Unable to stay away, I moved up, only to bump my horns against the railing with a clang. She looked over her shoulder, and I froze. I could have dipped into the sea to hide myself, but that would have been counterproductive. Instead, I held her gaze as her eyes widened. Two different colored gems—one a blue sapphire and the other a smoky quartz. The Gods smiled on me that day. I’d gone in search of a gem, and two stared back at me.

I found her.

Chapter 4

Amora

One minute, I shivered from fear; my body shook as the surrounding blue rocked us back and forth. Squeezing my arms tighter around my knees, I failed to remain calm. I refused to stare at anything outside of this boat. I didn’t need to see the powerful waves to know what they could do to this small boat. A clinking sound cut through my thoughts. I swiveled around so fast; I was sure I’d have whip lash. The pain was forgotten when my gaze locked with a striking blue.

The color reminded me of the sky on a bright, cloudless day, paired with cheekbones and a chiseled jaw. My jaw dropped when I realized he was on the other side of the boat. Pushing off the wood floor, I walked toward him on shaky legs. When I made it across the deck, I stood a few feet away when it hit me. He wasn’t human. I don’t know how I missed the large black horns that sat proudly atop his beautiful black hair. They curved inward before heading up and then curling out. That should have been the first thing I saw, but of course, it wasn’t.

Searching the rest of his features, my eyes dropped to his ears, or what should have been his ears as they jutted out from his head. Ear fins. He had ear fins. My focus dropped to his neck where gills widened and closed, as if he were breathing through them. Oh my gods. He had gills. Was this a mermaid? No, I think the right term was merman. He wasn’t singing a song, though,nor was he trying to lure me to my death. I must have hit my head because this wasn’t happening.

Would he have a beautiful voice? I shook my head as a smile tugged at the corner of my lips because I was probably out cold on the floor, but all I could think about was the beautiful… merman staring at me. I had zero preservation skills. None. But if this was a dream, it didn’t really matter, did it?

I knew one thing for sure: the locals had been right; there were sea creatures. All it would take was a closer look to confirm what kind. Were there tentacles holding him up? Did he have a tail? Did he have scales? Were they blue, like his eyes? As if enchanted, my feet took me closer. That’s when I realized he was ogling me as much as I’d been him. His gaze roamed over me; his eyes held me captive, even as they trailed down my body approvingly. My cheeks heated and a warmth spread through me. Before I knew what was happening, I stood in front of the rail. Years of being afraid of the water and I didn’t even blink before finding myself inches from it. I was close, really close, but all I could focus on was the two-horned man in front of me. He was within arm’s reach. Was this a dream? I pinched myself and cried out from the pain. Yeah, I’m awake.

“You’re… beautiful.”

The words were out before I could stop them. I flushed with embarrassment. I hoped to the gods he couldn’t understand me, but I also hoped he could. If he did, he didn’t show it. Maybe he was used to compliments?

“I’ve seen the signs the locals have up, but I didn’t believe you were real. Are there more of you?” He didn’t say a word, and I took that as he couldn’t understand a thing I’d said. Trust me to try and speak to a sea creature. My eyes drifted to his chest, and my lips parted. His nipples were pierced with gold, and from what I knew of mermaids from lore, they loved treasure.That could be a stereotype, but I was going on limited, very hypothetical information.

“That’s… hot,” I whispered.

But how did he get them pierced? Could he walk on land, or was there an underwater city with shops? I giggled at that. Sneaking a peek, I couldn’t see anything below as his rib cage was pressed against the rail. I’d go with merman until I saw any tentacles. His chest gave way to dark gray scales. Reaching out, my fingers hovered just above them. Lightly, I touched him, and his nipples hardened. Good gods. All thoughts of anything beneath the sea evaporated as I squeezed my thighs together. His chest rose and fell as a low growl reverberated in his chest. Looking up past my lashes at him, he stared down at me with a hooded gaze.Oh.

“Try not to turn on the merman,” I chastised myself. He couldn’t understand me, but from the way the corner of his lips lifted, I knew he was amused by my mumbling.

“I didn’t know mermen had horns. I was literally just laughing about the fear the locals have about you. Do you have magical powers? Can you control the s-s-sea?” I asked. Closing my eyes, I refused to look behind him. My lashes fluttered open and I focused on him, and him alone. Luckily, it wasn’t a difficult task. His massive frame blocked it from my line of sight.

“At first, I thought you were in trouble, and I was going to help you because I thought you were a man. Well… I guess that part’s right. You are a man; you’re just not… human. Can you shift? Like the stories say?”

I was still talking to him like he could understand me, but I was curious. Could he walk on land?

“Are you more man, or more creature?”

The god of a man tilted his head to the side, a small smile on his lips as he watched me. The sound of footfalls echoed up the hallway. My parents were coming back, and my eyes widened ashe realized it too. Did that mean he would disappear now? What if I never saw him again? His smile didn’t disappear, but his eyes flashed.

I’d been foolish. How was I supposed to know he had no plans of leaving empty-handed? Webbed fingers wrapped around my wrist, and before I knew it, he yanked me over the edge. Clawing around me, I tried to grab something—anything. Desperation mixed with fear filled me, and the last of my old life I saw before I toppled over the edge was my mother’s brown eyes. My worst fears came to life as my gaze lowered and I took in the deep blue as I hurled toward it.

Before we hit the water, I found myself clutching to him. My legs wrapped around something hard. I’d been wrong. So fucking wrong. He wasn’t like a normal man; now that my cheek crashed against his abdomen, he had to be over seven feet tall. And his tail wasn’t blue like I’d assumed; it was black. It was at this moment I knew I was going to die. The water swallowed me whole seconds before darkness took me.

Chapter 5

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