by Amy Marie
The view, on the other hand, was anything but simple.
Caspian managed to create an abode on the precipice of the cliff that peered out over the ocean unobstructed. The rich scent of seawater soothed the ache in her soul and made her yearn to return to the water. Give up the legs and weak body for her tail and scales. The water was fraught with danger, but nothing near as perilous as that to be found on the land.
Aria stood at one of two windows on the west side of the house, gazing out at the darkened waters that rolled beneath a silver sheen from the moon. The waves were gentle, an illusion that concealed the turmoil that boiled underneath.
“It’s safe to remove your cloak, Aria.”
Caspian’s voice, lacking all insult and sarcasm, snapped her out of the ocean’s trance. She hesitated before pushing the hood back to reveal what she knew to be a sallow face caught somewhere between human and mermaid. She didn’t understand why this change was so incomplete when the last time she came to land she looked as human as the next woman.
If she were honest, now she looked like a sea monster with stringy red hair and a gray-blue tint to her skin
Slowly, she turned from the window and hugged herself. Caspian placed a dish piled high with shellfish and greens and chunks of cooked red meat on the small dining table. A fork and knife flanked the dish, and a shimmering glass filled with something red caught the candlelight.
He arched a brow and motioned for her to sit. “There is no one here to hide from.”
Aria frowned, slipping quietly onto the chair. Her mouth watered and her stomach rumbled loudly as the scents of seasoned food filled her lungs. She picked up a shrimp, looked it over, and shoved it, tail and all, into her mouth.
A moan escaped her lips as the succulent sweetness of the crustacean conquered her taste buds. “Oh, wow.” She picked another one off the plate and devoured it faster than the first. “Mm. Delicious.”
Caspian chuckled and shook his head. “I’ve learned a few things about the kitchen since coming here.”
Another shrimp became victim to her ravenous hunger. She pointed to the plate, shamelessly asking with a full mouth, “You cooked this?”
“I did.”
Aria rolled her eyes to the ceiling, moans of delight fleeing her throat. “Amazing.”
“Glad I can appease your appetite, one way or another.” He braced his arms on the back of the chair across from her. “What are you hiding beneath the cloak, Aria?” She paused, a chunk of chilled roast meat between her fingers, and looked up at him. His fingers were steepled, his eyes sharp. “Besides the cursed bracelet.”
As she swallowed the food in her mouth, a bitter taste welled up in the back of her throat. “Nothing.”
“Then why haven’t you shed the cloak?”
“Does it bother you that much?” She began to unfasten the hooks down the front of the cloak. When she reached her belly, exposing a long slash of bare skin, Caspian threw up a hand to stop her.
“You’ve had nothing other than that flimsy piece of material? No clothing?” He pushed off the chair and groaned. His disgust made her close the cloak twice as fast as she had opened it. It wasn’t like he’d never seen her skin before. “For gods’ sake, why didn’t you say something earlier?”
“We weren’t on the best of speaking terms back at your office, if you’ll recall.”
Caspian snorted a laugh, crossing the short distance to a door. “And who’s at fault for that, princess? It hasn’t escaped my notice that you’re here not to make nice with me, but to do a sea demon’s bidding.”
He disappeared into the darkened room, leaving Aria staring at the fabulous feast before her while her appetite failed.
“I’ll run a bath for you when you’re through eating,” he called to her. “And be sure to eat, princess. Your appearance depends on nurturing your human form, if you’ve forgotten. I have my man gathering a few items of clothing for you from a local seamstress. If you’re going to traipse around this godsforsaken village like a fool, then you might as well dress and look the part. Though”—he popped his head from the room—“I’d highly discourage reckless wandering. Yours is a face hard to forget and the king will surely hear of your return from scavengers seeking hefty coin in reward.”
With a deep sigh, Aria picked through the rest of the dish of food while she listened to water run in the adjacent room. She wondered when Caspian had sent his manservant to arrange clothing for her. A soft yellow glow slid into the main room from the half-open door. Fragrant scents she wasn’t familiar with soon wafted into the main room, scents that calmed her enough to finish the plate of food and follow the sound of running water.
Caspian looked up from his perch on the edge of a copper tub, untidy locks of jet-black hair hanging over his forehead. The sleeves of his button-down shirt were rolled up past his elbows, showing off well-toned forearms. He’d always had a toned and muscled torso. Most mermen did, but his appeal had definitely grown over time. His shirt hung open over his chest, and her gaze drifted to the well-formed curves of his pecs before lifting to the gold medallion that hung around his neck. A single jewel, one she couldn’t quite discern, glinted in the artificial light.
“Test the temperature. Let me know if you wish for cooler or warmer.”
Aria stepped up to the side of the tub and dragged her fingers across the surface. The water was lukewarm, comfortable considering the ocean’s water was usually cool. Even so, her flesh erupted into tiny bumps, which Caspian must have noticed on the small sliver of skin where she’d pulled up the cloak’s sleeve. With a nod to himself, he twisted the faucet toward a red line. Steam began to rise from the water pouring into the tub.
“Caspian.” The soft tone of her voice brought his attention to her, a faint crease between his brows. She mustered a small smile. “Thank you. For your kindness.”
A rap at the front door shattered the moment, a moment that started to brew with intensity over the course of seconds.
Caspian stood up and brushed his wet hands on his pants. He didn’t spare her a glance before leaving the room to answer the door. With her throat tight and her mind turbulent, she shed the cloak and stepped into the tub. The temperature stung her sensitive skin as she sank into the water, soaking in the sweet-smelling oils and herbs that danced over the surface. Tiny buds, leafy stems, and petals of flowers she didn’t recognize. Nothing from the sea.
When she lowered her shackled wrist into the water, her skin prickled and burned with a revived burst of pain.
A muffled shriek squeezed through her lips. She scrambled to climb out of the tub.
A strong hand pushed down on her shoulder, keeping her in the water.
“It’ll pass. Her magic doesn’t like mine, but it’s also draining you of more life each day. Deal with the pain until my spells counter hers.”
Caspian’s soothing assurance helped her settle deeper into the water as she breathed through the scalding pain that radiated up her arm. His fingers loosened on her shoulder before releasing her completely. Instinctively, she curled her legs up and hugged her arms over her breasts, pointedly aware of her human nakedness in Caspian’s presence.
“I might be a bastard, princess, but I’m not a pervert. Your body is safe from my eyes.”
His steady footsteps receded from the room, his words stinging her just as potently as the cursed bracelet. She didn’t understand why because the reasons that did come to mind were absurd.
Maybe they aren’t. Maybe they’re the most logical reasons.
As the water soaked into her skin and the pain began to subside, she closed her eyes and settled her head against the edge of the tub. For a long while, she listened to Caspian move about the small house and imagined what he was doing. Cleaning? Arranging sleep areas? How many beds were in this abode? It was small, far smaller than she expected to house the Forgotten Prince. She’d expected a lavish place full of priceless decor that spoke of the money and reputation he was said to have amassed in Alamari. Lavish
would have fit this new personality of his, too.
Instead, his humble living quarters matched the tastes of the humble merman she’d considered her best friend once upon a time. A prince hiding as a simpleton of the sea whose heart beat with empathy.
She often wondered how he would have been as a true prince. A king.
Whatever spells Caspian had spun into the water worked on the bracelet, and her body.
For the first time since her return to this hellish place, she closed her eyes and let dreams sweep her away.
Chapter 4
Waves lapped against the rocky cliffside, the white foamy crests left between the jagged boulders emitting an everlasting scent of salt. The soothing sound of the water smacking the rocks was a lullaby to him, an ancient song he yearned to experience, not simply hear. Every evening, when he visited this small haven, his secret little hideaway, his skin tingled with the familiar transformation of tiny scales, only to stop before the moonlight could flash off their iridescent surface.
Tonight was no different, but the weight of the past sat heavy on his shoulders. He thumbed the medallion around his neck, feeling the power resting in the unseen engravings he had locked between two circles soldered together. A protection spell, one that helped him keep his human form while warding away curious mortals who might catch onto his…gifts.
Magic in Alamari wasn’t looked upon with a smile or joy. In fact, it held a place in the ranks with merfolk.
Unless you counted the bastard magician-wannabe the king employed. A sly manipulator who knew the power of illusions.
Caspian sat on the edge of the cliffside opening, his booted feet dangling over the sheer drop to the rocks and swirling waters below. Dima wanted him to return, and chose to use Aria as her pawn. Smart demon. No matter how much time stretched between them, never could he cast Aria aside. Sure, he adopted a bluntness and taunting edge with her, but it didn’t change the very real fact that he could never hurt her. Never turn his back on her, not when she needed him most.
Dima wasn’t a demon to be challenged. She was a demon to be feared. She was a mermaid whose head the villagers might rightfully seek for some reward. He had escaped her once, but as always, the past had a humorless way of catching up with him.
Only now, he’d grown into his magic, his power. He knew his own capabilities.
“What are you planning, monster?” he whispered to the rippling waves with the shimmering surface and eternal wonder.
His thoughts were disrupted by the nearly imperceptible scrape of rock from the tunnel at his back. Allowing his aquatic sight to subsume the restrictions of his human vision, he tipped his head down and sideways, scanning the tunnel from the corner of his eye.
The scent hit him first.
The heat struck his blood next.
Casting his highly sensitive vision aside, he turned back to the ocean view. Unfortunately, not only did the hard, uneven surface beneath his ass make for an uncomfortable seat, but now the way his cock rose added to the tension burning over his skin.
“Always inquisitive,” he said quietly, letting the ocean breeze carry his voice. “I see you found my secret pathway.”
“It wasn’t hard.”
Caspian nodded once. No, it wasn’t hard, unless he cast an illusion spell over the trap door. Which, this evening, he hadn’t. He didn’t think Aria would care to explore. Sadly, his subconscious must have hoped otherwise, because he would have spelled the damn door if he really wanted to be left alone. Just like his subconscious didn’t want to leave her to the rats in this evil village after their encounter at his office. He would’ve left the tracking spell uncast, not twined it through her hair. He wouldn’t have left shortly after she stormed out, following her at a distance to ensure her safety.
Closing his eyes, he silently begged for a small measure of strength against the only weakness he’d ever suffered.
The scent of her freshly bathed skin and the heat of her presence curled around his back, embracing him in her dangerous presence as she came to a stop behind him. He’d learned his lesson. He wasn’t about to make the same mistake twice.
“May I sit?” Aria asked.
Caspian shifted over a few inches. He motioned with a flick of his wrist to invite her to seat herself on the ledge beside him. “I gather you have more covering your body now?”
“Your clothing options were generous. Thank you.”
The opening wasn’t wide, forcing them in close proximity. He stole a shaded glance as she sat, noting the deep blue gossamer skirt of the dress she’d chosen. There wasn’t much material to hide the shapely curve of her legs, and the bodice certainly did its job overly well when it came to tracing her narrow waist and full breasts.
As his inspection reached the silver-studded neckline, he turned his attention back to the waters. No need to sprinkle tinder onto the slow-burning fire of his desire.
“How did you find this place? Conveniently beneath your house.”
He chuckled. “I found this place first, and built on top of it. Worked some magic to make the pathway. A nice little spot.”
Aria leaned forward. “You’ve found a gem on the side of the cliff that can’t be seen from the village.” She pointed to the light-dotted coast about a mile away. “And surely no one there can see you.”
“I’ve cast this opening in a concealment spell. Even if someone used a telescope, they’d see nothing but a jagged cliff. Last thing I care to deal with is some explorer moseying into my home.”
“Do you miss it?” A forlorn sigh sounded from his left. “The ocean and the worlds beneath?”
Caspian braced his hands on his knees and tilted his head toward her.
He expected Aria to have healed some after the meal and bath. He hadn’t expected the magic to work so potently.
The woman sitting beside him was as stunning in human form as she was in her siren’s skin. Her creamy pale skin glowed with a healthy sheen, no longer a cross between a corpse and a fish. Her eyes, even from the side, caught the light of the moon and shimmered a radiant green. Shimmered, like the lucky strands of her fiery red hair plaited in a simple braid over her shoulder.
The unexpected sight struck him deep in the chest, robbing him of his next breath. He dug his fingers into his knees in a poor attempt to ground himself. Aria had always been a beauty. She was a demigod, after all. But her beauty was something beyond natural. Beyond divine.
The awe and pain he felt was so strikingly raw she might as well have dug her claws through his sternum and ripped his heart out all over again. It was a stark reminder of why the prince of Alamari fell for her all those years ago when she made the deal with the eight-legged whelp of a witch and a human wizard. Aria didn’t need her voice to woo the human. Then again, the princeling needed little to be wooed aside from a pretty face, lush breasts, and a place to warm his cock. Caspian could never bring himself to ask whether Aria had given herself to the beast beneath the crown. The jealousy that roused whenever he thought of the two of them together had been crippling, sickening. He could handle her with another merman, someone who would respect her and treat her like the princess she was.
That person was never Prince Jethro. King Jethro, now.
Her profile glowed like an ethereal being come to grace his cavern. It took him longer than he cared to admit to regain his composure and control of the conversation.
“Why did you come here, Aria? What have you engaged in with Dima?”
Aria lowered her head, her fingers tangling in her lap, that blasted bracelet a blistering reminder that, again, she wasn’t here for him, but to use him. “Would you believe me if I told you I wanted to come here before Dima came to my mother’s kingdom?” Hesitation resonated in her every move until she finally looked up at him with saddened eyes. “That I wanted to reconcile?”
He thought about that for a moment before shaking his head. “No. I wouldn’t.”
“Why?”
“Because, princess, ten years is a long time
to decide to reconcile differences. It’s an awfully long time to hold a grudge. I let the past go many years ago.”
“That’s why you remain here? In Alamari, of all places?” She flung a hand to the cliffside and beyond. “That castle perched up on the top of the hill there isn’t a constant reminder of why our friendship ended? Your dealings with the very king who threatened our people, our race, isn’t a thorn in your side? Evidence of the evil that lurks above the surface of the water?” She shook her head. “I don’t understand how you could let something go years ago, yet insist on remaining in the dark heart that is the very root of all our troubles. Many might consider you a traitor.”
“Pity.” He drew out the word and forced a tight smile. “There is more to my decision to stay in Alamari than you obviously are aware of. Jumping to conclusions is never a safe tactic, don’t you agree?”
An endearing flush brushed over her cheeks. Her luminescent gaze widened, those lush pink lips parting on a soft gasp. Caspian quirked a brow in question before shrugging.
“Must I remind you that I tried to warn you of Jethro’s intentions? That he was seeking you for nothing more than your beauty and would have had you executed the moment you were of no use to him, as he had with his previous mistresses? Did I not try to warn you of what I saw him engage in, the ruthless torture of animals, humans, and creatures alike? Did I not warn you that should your true identity become known, you would be in peril?” He straightened his back and rolled his shoulders. “You insisted I was a jealous imbecile. That I knew nothing. That I couldn’t know what true love was because I didn’t have the mind to care about settling down. I knew nothing because I was a foolish boy prince who thought playing a simpleton was my answer to the problems I didn’t want to face.