AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Chapter 12
My stomach scrunched as I changed back into a human and climbed up the shore.
Fin was there to greet me with a gorgeous smile. “How was the water?”
I rubbed my arms and stared at the ground as I collected my clothes. “I’ll meet you at the cave.”
He grabbed my arm with one hand and pushed my chin with the other so our eyes met. “Whatever is wrong?”
His heat chased away the cold settling in my stomach.
“Nothing.” Right now, I just needed some time to process my emotions. I couldn’t do that with Fin near. Being right next to him clouded my head further. The smell of him… Poseidon… That fresh seaweed bloom…it made my mind swirl with thoughts of kissing Fin, too. And after what had just happened with Nemo, I wasn’t sure I wanted to kiss another merman ever again. If I avoided those kinds of situations, I would save myself the shame.
“Where’s Nemo?” Fin splashed beside me in the water.
“Gone hunting for food,” I yelled to be heard over the rising wind blowing along the shore.
“I’ll go with you.” He kept pace with me.
In all honesty, I just wanted to be alone. But perhaps that wasn’t a good idea, given the circumstances with Faraall and the pirates. So I let Fin accompany me. He didn’t say a word, which I appreciated, but the silence also annoyed me a little because my mind tortured me, going over and over what had happened with Nemo.
“Why do I always do stupid things in front of mermen?” I blurted out, and then I cringed, wanting to take back the question. I sighed. “I wish I could be normal around them.”
Fin laughed, but not in a way that made me feel silly. “You think the mud incident was embarrassing?” Wind whipped at his gorgeous blonde locks.
“And Blade’s crotch,” I muttered, kicking the sand.
A roguish grin stretched across Fin’s face. “When I first went to kiss a girl, I head-butted her.”
“Done that,” I replied.
“When I met her family,” continued Fin, gazing out over the sea, “I asked if her sister was pregnant. Turned out, she was just voluptuous.”
Now that made me laugh. Fortunately, I hadn’t done that.
Fin picked up a shell and tossed it into the water. “On a date with a different mermaid, I spilled garlic prawns on her hair.”
My stomach ached from laughing so hard. Yep, I’d done something similar. It felt so good to know I wasn’t alone.
“It happens.” He shrugged. “Don’t torment yourself about it. Just laugh.”
At that moment, I wanted to hug him. Instead, I touched his arm, getting that familiar zap, and a flood of warmth moved through me. “Thank you for making me feel less like a dopey dory.”
“You’re welcome.”
We walked for several hundred feet in silence. For once, I relished the lack of chatter. What Fin had done had calmed my angst, allowing me to enjoy the moment with him.
He glanced at me, his blue eyes restrained. “Nyssa, may I ask you something?”
“Ask away,” I said.
“You remind me of me when I was younger,” he said. “A little rebellious. Wanting to follow your own path. But what would you do if you weren’t a princess?”
“No one’s ever asked me that,” I said, drawing a starfish in the sand with my toe. “Teach art or dance at the Academy.” That wasn’t going to happen since I wasn’t very good at either of those things. But I could still dream.
“You dance?” Fin’s wicked grin returned. “I better get out the way of your whirlwind.”
“Ha ha.” I elbowed him.“I have to. I’m a princess.”
