Page 25 of Rock of Stages
Van’s sly grin left his face, and he looked earnest for once. “It sucks, trust me, I know. But it’s a good thing, Caleb. The mate bond isincredible. To be so connected with someone…” His expression turned all wistful and moony. If I wasn’t so torn up about Naiya, I would’ve given him crap about it.
“Hell,” I grumbled, “it’s new, faint, but I still feel it and—it’sagony.I know she’s out there, beneath the waves. Somewhere I can’t reach.” I stood and began pacing again, unable to stop myself. “How am I supposed to protect my mate when I can’teven breathe in the same space she’s in?” I shook my head and swallowed the bitter taste on my tongue.
“The universe had a real good time in this case,” Damien muttered.
“Tell me about it.” I crossed my arms over my chest. “I can’t stop wondering if she’s okay.” In a smaller voice, I added, “If she’ll really come back.”
Rex stepped forward. “She will. She’s your mate. She’ll feel the pull too.”
“Yeah, have faith, man.” Van strode over and clapped a hand on my shoulder. “Look, you’re an insufferable, grunting piece of barking stone ninety percent of the time, but Naiya makes you more bearable. Like a cuddly pet rock—or less stony, at least.” He grinned, as if amused by his nonsense. “So for our sanity, we want her back, too, and are here for you.”
I huffed out a quiet chuckle. “Thanks. I think.”
“What can we do to distract you?” Damien asked.
I glanced at my bandmates, all who’d gone through the same yearning for their mates, and who’d survived. They were now happy with their mates onboard. I had to have faith that it could work out for me as well.
Something in my chest eased. Even stone cracked under pressure without support. Looked like mine came in the form of three shaggy supernatural fools who had my back.
I sat at my drum kit and grabbed my drumsticks. “Let’s play.”
“Finally.” Van grinned, sauntered over to the mic stand, and wiggled his ass in my direction—a move he knew would rile me up.
“Shake it somewhere else, shifter.” I punctuated it with a drum roll and began to play.
CHAPTER 16
NAIYA
Ididn’t see my father for two days, during which time I talked to others in my pod and told them my plans to leave. Several of the single mermaids had me repeat the stories of the world above, the ship, and especially the different species of supernatural men onboard.
“Wait, wait—start over. Tell me about the vampires again,” Marina insisted with deep interest.
“Well, I met two. Damien is a guitarist in Caleb’s band. And Celeste is a two-hundred-year-old vampire who’s super rich and sophisticated and likes art and fancy things. She’s Van’s mate.”
“The jaguar shifter, right?” Julie pouted. “Too bad they’re all taken. Are all shifters that wild?”
“They’re all different,” I explained. “Van is a jaguar, Rex is a wolf, and their personalities are as opposite as I can imagine. But one trait they all seem to have is that they’re very protective of their mates.”
“Like you, with a gargoyle.” Julie leaned close. “Who would have thought you’d fall in love with a shifter with wings?”
A smile bloomed across my face. “He’s incredible. Not just strong and protective, but considerate. He’s so caring and looks out for me.”
“That’s it,” Marina declared. “I’m swimming to the surface and finding myself a hot rockman too.”
“You’d get distracted by an octopus and beg him to wrap all eight arms around you,” Julie teased.
We laughed and teased each other some more. They would always be my pod, but I had another home waiting for me above the waves.
When my father swam over, the laughter abruptly stopped, replaced by a quiet underlining tension. Our podmates exchanged glances.
“Naiya, can we talk alone?” he asked, his voice low.
What did this mean? “Of course.”
We swam from the others and I contemplated what he’d say. Would he banish me forever? We stopped beside a curtain of kelp.
He turned to me and let out a slow exhale. “You’ve always been different than any of your siblings—of anyone I’d known. Curious. Adventurous and unafraid.” His voice was heavy with resignation. “I thought if I bound you here, I could keep you safe. After your mother died, that’s all I focused on—keeping my children safe and secure. And by arranging the marriage, it would give you something to keep you occupied—a new adventure.”
