Page 16 of Coral Prince Conundrum
I swallow and nod. “Thank you.”
I eat in silence for two minutes longer while trying to ignore Daryl’s soulful brown eyes. “Now, here’s the hard part.” He stands and crosses his arms. With a smirk he asks, “Why’d you do it?”
I stand up and bite back the soreness in my body. “There is…much I have not told you. Pass me that towel, please?”
He turns to the rack, and I carefully peel off my wet shirt. “Well, you better start talk-ING!” he yelps. Daryl’s eyes are blown wide.
I look down—there’s nothing interesting here except my bare torso. I shrug and take the towel from him while he stares at the floor.
“I am afraid the more I tell you, Daryl, the more danger you will be in.” I towel off and wrap the white towel around my shoulders. “The last thing I want to do is allow you to get hurt.”
He scoffs. “And that little stunt with the brake fluid?”
I frown and step out of the tub. “I needed to destroy Tishman’s Fishery without hurting you.”
“News flash: that food truck doesn’t even sell my dad’s tuna anymore. You’re kind of barking up the wrong tree.”
I shake my head and dry off my pants. I am not sure why he is referring to barking and trees, but it must be an American saying. “I understand that now.”
He scrunches his eyebrows, crosses his arms again, and tilts his head. “What do you got against Tishman’s Fishery, anyway? I mean, besides the fact that we harvest a lot of fish.”
My back tenses up as I slowly wrap my shoulders in the towel. “It…is much more than that.”
“Please, enlighten me.”
I huff at his bitter tone. “Tishman’s Fishery plunders the seas at an alarming rate, far more than could ever be considered sustainable. In your quest to massacre tons of schools of tuna, you capture and slay other species that you cannot sell, collateral damage in the name of capitalism. That is nothing to say of the environmental waste byproducts.” I take a seat on the tub. “I have done research and seen the actions of your ships with my very eyes, Daryl Tishman.”
After staring at the ground for several long moments, I sense him cross over to me. He sits on the tub, and the urge to leaninto him grows even more. “You should know that…I hate my dad’s company too. I am all too aware of the way his fishermen recklessly catch fish and damage the ocean. I’ve been trying to enact policy change for years, but Dad won’t listen to me.”
Guilt rises in my throat, and I look in his eyes. He almost seems contrite, even though I am the one who destroyed his vehicle. Daryl is patiently explaining himself. He isn’t even responsible for the company, and if I had not acted so quickly, I would have known that.
“It’s part of why I got into marine biology. I’m kind of the antithesis of my dad.” He laughs, ashamed. “I’m a disappointment to my family, and at the same time, you hate mebecauseof my family. Can’t say I blame you.”
I glance at his dark eyes staring at the floor, and then I take in his coffee-colored complexion, smooth skin, and full lips. Something about him makes me act carelessly. Why can’t I make proper decisions with him, the way a king-in-training should?
“I don’t…hate you.”
He looks up in surprise. I continue, “The reason I’m so…serious about this all is because…well, I’m actually a?—”
“Alright, you two.” Layla barges into the room, and Daryl darts away from me. Her words have popped whatever bubble we had around us. “It’s dark out, and I’ve lost way too much time today bathing you. I’m running a business here, after all. Let’s get in my truck, both of you.”
“Do we need to go to the beach at this hour?” Daryl asks.
A slight panic creeps up my spine. I desperately need to continue talking to my friend, but the seawater calls to me. “Yes. You want him to get better, right? He needs someone there to babysit him, and it ain’t gonna be me. I got too many princes to meet with in the hotel. So grab a towel, Daryl, and let’s get moving.”
Her tone does not invite room for argument, and she disappears. I shrug and follow her. After shutting the room door, Daryl trails after us, holding another towel. “Hey, Seero,” he whispers.
“Hm?” I walk quickly since we’re both several yards behind Layla. The various guests pay us no mind as we stride down the corridors to the parking lot.
“What were you about to tell me? Something about you actually being…something?”
We stride down the stairs and continue walking, unable to get a moment to properly converse. “You’re not like a snake monster or demigod, are you?” Daryl laughs and huffs as we continue to almost run to keep up with Layla.
I chuckle once we reach the exit to the outside world. “No, I am none of those.” I hold open the door and look directly at this handsome man. “My name is Searoyal Dagat. I’m the heir to the throne of the Coral Kingdom, the Coral Prince.”
CHAPTER EIGHT
Daryl
