"So, I'm not in heaven?"
They were already shaking their heads. "No, my child," the king guy said. "You are not dead but have been rescued and brought back to us to take your rightful place as our princess and heir. We are grateful you're with us once more."
The water was definitely making me feel goo goo. He just said princess again. Had I boarded the last train to crazy town? It bloody well felt like it.
"What happened to…" I searched my brain for their names. "Kai and Dylan?"
"Your betrothed are near."
"Wait. My betrothed?" What screwed up dream was I in?
Not heaven, apparently, but I was probably drowned by the big guy. And now I had a betrothed? Was I in hell?
I stood finally, acutely aware of how cushioned my bare feet felt on whatever I'd stepped on. I looked down to see tiny, luminescent shells.
Yup, I drowned. This was getting more and more bizarre by the moment. No-one had a floor made of shells. And a room that looked like Elton John had okay'ed the décor.
When I finally looked up again, the queen was standing directly in front of me.
"Woah," I mumbled, not sure whether I was more startled at her ninja like creeping skills, or because she was unfathomably beautiful. Probably both. I found I was easily impressed nowadays.
"My sweet." Her voice transfixed me and I wanted to immediately step into her space, to take comfort from a hug.
I shook off the alien feeling.
"There's so much we need to tell you and that you won't understand right now. But we are here to help you transition. We've missed out on so many years with you." A sparkle of a tear clouded her eye and she blinked, rapidly.
My hair, which had been nearly up in a bun before the burly guy had dumped me in freezing water, sat around my shoulders. The colour looked more vivid than even I remembered. And I should bloody know my own hair, right?
Things weren't adding up.
"Where am I?" Did I really want to know the answer to this one? Yup, I did. If only to prove I wasn't Looney Tunes.
"You are in Lormont, the kingdom you will one day rule with your chosen one."
"And just where is…" I hesitated before ending the thought. "Lormont?"
"Scotland."
I breathed a sigh of relief, and giggled. Well, I'd been expecting the worst, but Scotland was doable.
"Three miles below it and through the portal."
Well, wtf.
"I'm underwater?" I needed to keep them talking whilst I made a plan to get out of nut city. What was it with me and meeting oddballs today?
"Yes, dear. Your home. You are our daughter and we were forced to send you up to the land to live in safety."
Daughter. I rolled that word around my tongue, not daring to say it out loud. How many years had I longed for someone, anyone, to call me their daughter? I pushed back the rawness sitting in my throat.
Well, it was too little, too late for this mushy bullshit.
"I want to go home." My voice shook even to my own ears. "Now."
The king had joined his queen and both had a sadness about them. I ignored it, stepping away from this weird family unit and walking to a window, but not before grabbing that muffin and devouring it in no time.
Mmm. Better. At least my stomach wasn't running on fumes now.
The frame of the window was gold and I reached out to touch it.
It was warm to the touch and my mind couldn't compute why that was.
We were high up, wherever we were. It felt like we were in the clouds, but I could see everything in stark detail below.
It was then I saw the beefy dudes from the beach. They were standing in front of a sparkling lake. There were lakes underneath the sea? I shook away the thought. I wasn't underwater. There was no way. I carried on my survey.
Massive trees surrounded the water and made it look magical. And oh-so-very familiar. Had I dreamed of this before? I frowned. It was floating in my mind but I couldn't quite grasp it.
And then I was once again distracted by those two men who'd lingered in my mind ever since I woke up or came too or whatever.
Was I in some sort of land of promised orgasms? I watched their easy movements and sighed inwardly. This dream was everything.
I allowed myself to stare at them. They were dressed similarly and their tans were near identical, and they both had long hair. But that's where the likeness stopped.
And all I did was keep looking back and forth to check that fact.
This was all so strange. Nothing made sense. And I needed to get to the bottom of it.
My brain had switched to auto pilot and was taking a nap right now.
I went to step away from the window, but was distracted by the feel of my skin. I glanced down, noticing my attire. What the--?
Yeah, the room I was in was ornate and beautiful, but I was dressed in an aqua blue silky dress that blew it all away. It sat against me like a second skin and it almost felt like I was naked. It was the most stunning dress I'd ever seen. I shifted and the colours shimmered like an oil slick. Every colour under the rainbow. Wow.
I shook my head. This had to be a dream. It was screwy and amazing and…
Arron popped into my head. He'd miss me, right? Whatever reason he had for missing my birthday would be believable, and he'd make it up to me by buying me cake.
That's what best friends do.
And if I was stuck in a dream underwater, he'd look for me, I was sure of it. Being my best buddy since primary school, he'd seen me at my best—and usually my worst.
He was always there and I adored him.
He wouldn't let me suffer underwater with great food and perfect dresses, and sexy beasts who seemed to be lusting after me.
Kai and Dylan were in the large room, now. I watched them walking towards me and a pang of longing struck me hard.
Okay, so having lusted after Arron for so long, I was now dreaming of two more men who were basically straight out of my fantasies.
That's a hell of a problem for a girl to have.
Moments later, the king guy was at my elbow.
"My daughter. We present to you your betrothed."
There it was, that word again. Daughter. I wanted to bite his head off for calling me that. Then his other words penetrated my thick skull and I backtracked.
Because there in front of me, Kai and Dylan kneeled a respectable distance away, heads bowed. Both of them.
"Which one--" Shit, that slipped out. I clamped my mouth shut.
They looked up, eyes full of mirth and something else. Lust? The thought excited me. It was so foreign that I felt drunk on the way it felt to be lusted after.
"Why, both of course." The king laughed.
The queen laughed.
I almost threw up. Both? "Nope. This ruse has gone on long enough. I don't know who you guys are, but I'm not a princess, or your daughter, or their betrothed."
They'd got to their feet now, and I attempted not to look at them too much.
They were way too much men for my experience. I didn't need two. Hell, I didn't even need one. It just was simply nice to have one, once in a while.
Silence stretched between us.
"I want to go home." The words hung heavily in the silence of the room and I repeated them, just in case anyone was in doubt.
They all stared at me.
"Child, this is your home." The queen stepped forward. "Let me give you your rightful stones, and all will become clear." She moved towards me, hands outstretched as she held something sparkly.
No. I moved away, looking quickly for an exit.
This wasn't right.
I saw a way out and I ran, very aware of the beautiful feel of my dress as it wrapped around my legs.
No other soul was about, and I ran through a maze of doors into rooms that were more beautiful than the last.
Tears fell as confusion wrapped around my heart and tightened.
At last, I could see outside and I ran down a long spiral s
taircase to reach my destination.
Waves splashed against the lake's shore. Up close, it looked more like an ocean it was so large and formidable. I headed towards it.
If I could make it to the water, my dream would end. I was sure of it. And this had to be a dream.
I heard my name called behind me.
The men - my betrothed - were following me, but they were hanging back.
They could have grabbed me in moments, but they weren't.
I stepped into the warm water and waited. Nothing happened. I was still here in this dream. I kept walking. The water rose to my waist before panic rose in my throat.
The surrounding trees caught a gust of wind and whistled as they stretched their limbs to the limit. The horizon looked far away. So much water between me and the two moons.
What?
That couldn't be right?
I counted again. Yep, there were two, all right.
Whatever coffee I was drinking, I was giving it up the moment I was awake. I was hallucinating. I had to be.
I couldn't swim. Yet here I was, willing to drown again in my imagination? I stopped, turning to face the shore. Both men stood there. Waiting.
I needed this to end. For reality to hit me hard.
My tears became sobs. I didn't know what to do, how to stop this.
I continued into the sea, up to my neck now.
I was bobbing in the water, attempting to keep my feet on the sand below, but I was slipping.
The waves were slowly getting stronger, lapping at my head. I spluttered once, twice and then I was under the water.
I opened my mouth to scream and stopped. It felt different.
I looked down at myself and watched as my arms paddled, completely in sync and keeping me afloat. I looked to my feet. But couldn't find them.
A tail was in their place.
This time, I did let out a scream, though only the passing fish could hear me.
I was a mermaid.
How in the blue hell was this happening?
Chapter 3
Let me catch you up so far.
I'm a frickin' mermaid.
Yeah, that's all I got.
I was floating. And when I say floating, my big ass tail was swishing about like a flipper.
And I was scared out of my skull because, hello, wtf? And I was still in the damn water. The water I was supposed to be scared of… but wasn't.
I looked around and saw two figures swimming towards me.
My betrothed.
"Your mother needs you to take your stones." Dylan swam to me, stopping close. I could feel his raw sexuality through the water, pulling me closer. I wanted to cling to him. To wrap my--no, wait, my legs were gone, at least for the time being. This would take some getting used to.
Shit.
"I'm a god-damned mermaid."
Dylan looked amused. Kai, looked like I was saying the most obvious thing in the world.
"Somebody could have told me before I jumped into the water."
"We were under strict instructions from your mother."
I ignored the familial reference for now. "That's great. But you guys are supposed to have my back. I'm your betrothed, apparently."
Kai slipped his arms around my body from behind. "I have your back. Always."
I was momentarily lost for words. Dylan smiled at me and I smiled back. I relaxed into Kai, not worrying too much that a weird ass looking fish was staring at me like I was supper.
I looked at their legs. They were very much there. And they were functioning under water as they would above. How in the blue hell this was happening ten feet down, I didn't know.
"So, what are you both, then?"
"We are descendents of the great Zeus."
"You're brothers?"
Dylan shook his head. "Technically no, but he made us. We are demi-gods."
I looked away, very aware that I was the mermaid in a god sandwich. And it felt damn good.
"I don't know how to swim, how to be in the water."
"Yes, you do." Kai was at my ear. His tongue darted out and his arms tightened. "Follow your instincts. You know how to be yourself."
I nodded. He was right.
Well, I had to admit, I was taking this whole mermaid thing pretty well.
Maybe I really led that much of a boring life, I was happy to grasp at even a hint of excitement.
Yeah, that was probably true. Arron was the only excitement in my world up until now. I missed that man so much. He would fit well in this man sandwich.
Kai spoke again, but this time he was at my side. "Trust us, little one. We will guide you to safety."
I looked at them. Loving the feeling of being protected. They felt like my family. A family I'd never really truly had.
It felt right. Normal.
Now that was a word I don't use about myself.
I looked at my fishy tail. It was even more beautiful the closer you looked at it. I tried to decide what it looked like, to remember this first time I saw it. It was an oil slick covered unicorn who shit rainbows. Yeah, that was definitely it.
We all swam together. In seconds we were back at the shore.
The queen stood in all her glory looking on. I was on my bum, on a rock, wondering what was supposed to happen next when I felt an itch on my foot. I bent down and scratched it, surprising myself that I had feet again.
This shit happened fast.
I glanced down and notice my dress had come back. It was definitely gone a moment ago and I'd barely given it a thought to have only a bikini top covering my jollies.
I stood up, making sure my feet were still useful. I was pleased to say they felt good. I did a little jig on the spot, just to make sure my appendages still worked as they should.
Dylan smiled wide. Kai lifted his eyebrow at me.
God damnit I wanted these two men badly.
Was that wrong with my libido in this place?
The queen touched my hand, bringing me back to reality.
"These are your stones, dear one. They will show you your path, both in the past and the future, if you desire. Wear them with you, always." She handed me a beautiful bracelet.
At first it looked like a simple chain and cluster of silver beads. But as I looked closer, the colours of the beads changed to show amazing gems, in all colours and cuts.
I gasped as I watched them move into a cluster.
Kai held his hands out to mine.
"May I, princess?"
All I could manage was a nod.
He took them from me, and placed the jewellery around my wrist. It fit perfectly, and once again, the stones moved into place to lay gently against my pale skin.
"Thank you," I said softly. These were mine. From the moment the metal came into contact with my skin, I knew they belonged with me.
Whatever magical new world I'd found myself in, I knew I somehow, some way belonged.
"You need some private time to meditate on your stones. They will tell you all you need to know about us—your family."
Family.
Well, shit me, isn't this a turnout for the books?
I needed to tell Arron about all this. He wouldn't believe it all.
"So tell me, have you got wi-fi here?"
Chapter 4
Technically, I was the princess of these parts. The stones had hinted at everything I wanted to know. And yes, there was wi-fi, of a sort. And no, I hadn't managed to speak to Arron yet. I was in a magical underwater haven, and he was the one who was incommunicado.
My mother had told me why they'd taken the opportunity to hide me as a child. I could tell she found it hard to share her stories, so afterward my time with her,s, the stones gave me some visual indications as to what my parents had gone through in giving me up. It was hard to see it happening in my mind's eye, but I'd needed to know their reasoning.
They'd stopped me potentially being stolen for my abilities and they took an oath not to tell a soul where I was. I'd then been given a
spell to stop me remembering my family and my mermaid abilities.
And that was why I never stepped into the ocean. But it was probably also why I could spend three hours in the bath!
Everything clicked into place.
Everything finally made sense. At least, up to a point. The stones wouldn't divulge anything about my betrothed. Only that they, as rivals for my affections, had won the right to ask my permission to marry me. They were worthy of being my forever prince.
They were my betrothed up until I chose one or none. And they were both damn tempting.
Still, even after all this, Arron was on my mind as well.
It felt as natural as my tail to think of them all as mine.
And I—since this all had come out only twenty-four hours ago—had somehow found my confidence, as if I'd finally found my true skin.
Everything was possible.
When the knock came at my bedroom door, I knew exactly who it'd be.
My betrothed. They'd barely left my side since the big reveal. It had been all about me, so far, with them not really giving me anything on themselves—that was all still to learn. But what I did know of them, I adored.
I looked at each in turn after I allowed them to enter the room. "As it's my first full day in the kingdom, how about a tour?" I said on a smile.
"Well, we'll start off by showing you our archives. You'll want to know your history," Dylan said, while standing next to my bed.
His hands were on his hips. Unfortunately they were both dressed today. Dylan wore trousers and a shirt. Kai was in jeans and a tee.
"I'm disappointed that you haven't got the loincloths on today."
Dylan threw back his head and laughed. Kai's lip moved slightly and I was pretty sure he was fighting a grin.
"They are work. You, are not."
Well, that was nice to hear. I couldn't help but smile again at them, simply happy to be in their company.
I was very aware I'd never had two men in my bedroom at the same time before. It was invigorating, exciting, and damn sexy. I wondered if they had any idea I was distracted beyond all reasonable doubt.
"You are one of us, Nerissa. We feel the same emotions as you do." Kai had stepped closer to me. His form was intimidating. But wow, the man set my nipples ablaze.
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