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Her gaze landed on Sid instead.
He stared at her intently, one eyebrow raised, and the sight of him made Jayna’s heart race. Her mouth pulled into a smile, and Sid’s lips crept up in response. He was there!
Jayna turned back to the interviewer, whose name she hadn’t learned. In her best Dr. Tierney voice, she quoted a line from Aurora 293. “I’m sorry, Madam, but the nature of our relationship is none of your business.” And without another word, she stood and marched across the sand towards Sid.
She took him by the arm and led him away from the party and towards the edge of the water. Behind her, she heard Kalani’s raised voice. “No, I really think you should stay here and let them be.”
She fought the urge to turn around, and instead walked with Sid along the shoreline. The warm tropical waves gently lapped at their feet, and the lights and noise of the party seemed a world away.
She had to talk to him. She had to let him know what she felt.
But first, she had to figure out what her feelings were.
After another minute of walking Jayna let go of Sid’s arm, but as she lowered her hand down to her side her fingers somehow became intertwined with his, and her heart raced even faster. Yet her feelings warred inside of her, and Jayna’s mind begged her to let go of his hand and run back into the crowd. As the noise of the party faded and the cool ocean breeze surrounded them, Jayna’s heart won out.
“I wasn’t expecting to see you yet,” she said, her voice barely a whisper above the sound of waves gently crashing into the nearby reef.
Sid stopped and turned towards her, moonlight showing only kindness on his face. “Sorry if I surprised you,” he said. “I didn’t mean to cut short your night out with the mermaids. It’s just…” A strand of her hair broke free in the wind, and Sid reached up to tuck it behind her ear. His touch sent tingles clear through her body. “I couldn’t wait to see you again.”
“I’ve been looking forward to seeing you, too,” she said. “And I’m glad you showed up when you did. That was getting awkward.”
“Yeah, I’m really sorry about that.” He placed his hand on her back, and they resumed their walk along the beach.
She wrapped her arm around his waist and pulled him gently to her. “No need to apologize. I’m the one who agreed to an interview with a random streamer without checking her out first. That’s not your fault.”
“True. But I should have known she would try something like this and kept her away from you. Or at least warned you about her.”
Concerned, Jayna stopped walking and faced him. “You know her? The Mondialist streamer?”
Sid shook his head. “I’ve never heard of Mondialist, but the woman who interviewed you is named Crystal Haddon-Steen.”
Jayna immediately recognized the name, and the odd interview made a lot more sense. “She’s the one who posts all of those nasty things about you.”
Sid nodded grimly. “I should have realized she’d try something like this. But pretending to be a streamer so she could interview you? That’s a new low, even for her.”
Jayna looked in the direction of the party, but she couldn’t see the lighted canopy. “Do you want me to go back and punch her out? I can do it, you know.”
Sid laughed. “I would love that. But don’t. It wouldn’t do either of us any good. I think the way you handled her was perfect.”
“Thanks. I guess it wasn’t that bad, not when compared to some of the awkward interviews Mermaid Aaramere has done.”
Sid chuckled. “I bet.” He paused for a moment and then said, “I was curious to find out if you are in love with me, though.”
Jayna felt her face flush. “Oh, um…”
Sid gently pressed his finger to her lips, and a tingle ran down her spine at his touch. “But I don’t think it’s fair for me to ask you how you feel without first sharing my feelings with you.”
He took a half-step towards her, and their faces were excruciatingly close. Jayna’s heart pounded in her chest. When he spoke, his voice was soft, and she felt his breath on her face. “When I’m around you, I am better than my best self, and when I’m not with you I can’t think of anything else but being with you again. I realize we met less than a week ago, but I feel like I’ve known you my whole life.”
Jayna held her breath. She felt the same way about him—like they were lifelong friends and not a couple of near strangers. She stared into his eyes, her pulse thundering in her ears nearly blocking out the sound of waves crashing behind her.
What should she say? This was all so sudden. Yet it all felt so right. Did she dare risk letting this man into her life the way she wanted to? Could she even keep him out if she tried?
Sid’s brow furrowed. “Are you going to say something?”
In that moment, she knew there was only one thing she could do. “No,” she said. Then she placed her hands on either side of his face, raised up on her toes, and pressed her lips to his.
He responded without hesitation, wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her close. With her body pressed firmly against him, she felt the last of her resistance disappear, swept away by the ocean breeze as it gently swirled around them.
