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She could understand him! And those were the first words she heard, just like she would have if they were two people meeting on land. Like they didn’t already have a massive amount of history between the two of them.
Slowly turning in his arms, knowing her eyes were wider than they had ever been before, she licked her lips and watched his mouth. “Say something else.”
“You understand me?”
Words eluded her. Instead, she just nodded, her gaze still on his mouth.
“I don’t know what to say now,” he said with a slight chuckle. “Your strange creature gave me a small piece of metal to affix on the side of my head. It was not a comfortable experience.”
“I didn’t even notice it hurting.” Probably because she had been shocked to hear his voice.
And oh, what a voice it was.
Everything in her suddenly fired, hot and wild. The depth of his voice was like watching molten caramel pour. It was deep and luxurious, flowing over her senses with specific words chosen slowly and with intent. She could listen to that melodic voice speak for hours on end. He could read her the dictionary and she would still be thinking how wonderful it was that he was speaking to her.
Looping her arms around his neck, she drew slightly closer to watch him speak. “Again.”
“You have heard me speak before,” he replied with amusement. Then suddenly they were moving. Drifting away from the submarine and through the kelp that brushed against her sides. Then his fingers brushed against her sides as well.
He stroked her body like he’d never touched her before. His fingers questing as he relearned the shape of her, draping her across him as he preferred while they floated and meandered through his world.
But now, they could speak. Suddenly, all of this felt very different. She could feel the heat of a blush burning her cheeks, and lying her head against his chest felt like maybe she was doing something wrong.
Shouldn’t they... talk? Shouldn’t they be learning about each other?
“I can feel you thinking,” he said, his voice a low chuckle filled with humor. “You can speak about these worries now.”
“I don’t really know you,” she whispered. “And you don’t know me. What if this changes everything all of a sudden?”
“You think you don’t know me?” Imber let them float down onto the soft gold sand. He sat up, his tail bracing her spine as he held her trapped against him. “After all the time we have spent together, you truly believe that I do not know your soul as well as my own?”
“Pretty words. But what if we have conjured up an image of the other person, not that we actually know each other?” That anxiety started creeping in again. Maybe she should tell him what she’d overheard.
Maybe she should let him know what her people were building underneath the sea, and how it would affect him directly. He needed to know the truth, because her people could be starting a war between all of them and he wouldn’t be able to stop it.
Long claws dug into the back of her hair, drawing her close to him until their foreheads touched. “Breathe, my wave song. And listen to my words. Yes?”
She nodded against him.
“Our souls were called to each other long before you even saw me. You came to this place because the sea drew you here, knowing that the two of us needed each other. You are here after fate guided your hand. You understand that?”
“I don’t believe in gods or fate.”
“I believe in both enough for the two of us.” And then this strange creature kissed her forehead, his lips lingering against her skin that was so much warmer than his. “This place, when we are together, it is a haven from the rest of the world. There are no responsibilities, no expectations. It is just you and I, wave song. The world doesn’t exist here.”
All the anxiety fled from her body yet again. Because he was right. The world didn’t exist here.
It was just the two of them, and that made her happier than anything else. She was tainting this hidden place they hadcreated between the two of them. If she wanted to let go of her stress, then all she had to do was let go of it.
Sighing, she eventually nodded and repeated, “The world doesn’t exist here.”
“No, it does not.”
His hands moved from her hand, and then something heavy fell around her neck. Surprised, she looked down to see a string of lovely pearls woven together with emerald grass. She was almost scared to touch it, only feathering her fingers over it lightly. “What is this?”
“A gift.”
“You always bring me gifts,” she whispered, before looking up at him with wide eyes. “I never bring you anything in return.”
