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My mind spun in a whirl of uncertainty. I’d bonded with Fin. Flirting with Nemo might hurt Fin. Or vice versa. I didn’t want that. If only I could have them both. Sea god! Why was I attracted to them both? Damn it. They were both my type. Fin the quiet, respectful, well-mannered rebel. Nemo, the sweet and fun, hulking giant who reminded me of the sexy Sharkriders. Fighting how I felt was useless, and I knew it.
“Sea to princess,” said Nemo, shuffling around to wave in my face.
That was a saying we used when someone drifted off into watery space.
“Oops, sorry.” I repeated the motion he’d taught me. Sparks glimmered and fizzled but didn’t catch fire. It took me a few more attempts before the sparks caught on the twigs, and they turned red hot and smoked.
“Great job, Princess.” Nemo’s coaxing voice turned me into a puddle.
“Nyssa,” I corrected him.
He smiled as if he’d called me by my title on purpose—possibly to get my attention—and crept around me to blow on the kindling and add more twigs to the orange glow. They quickly caught alight with flames.
I stared into the bright, flickering mass of hazy light, hypnotized by it.
Fin threw a few small branches onto the fire, and they blackened, smoke curling from them. Next, he laid two flat stones inside the fire. I wondered what he was going to use those for.
Nemo dragged the basket over to me. “Hungry?”
Uh. Yeah. For him… I meant, for both him and the food. Sea god. These two were turning me into a bumbling mess.
My eyes widened at the bountiful supply of oysters, mussels, crabs, and salmon. Sweet Poseidon. My favorites. I couldn’t decide which one I wanted first. Every part of me was excited to try the fire-roasted fish, but it might be a while until the fire really got going. My stomach growled like a wild bear, as if it hadn’t been fed for a week. Back at the palace, I ate well and at regular intervals—dining on all sorts of treats: fish, clams, oysters, shellfish, crab, sea grasses, and more. But on land, I never knew when my next meal would be or if I’d even get one, so the smell of the roasting seafood gave me comfort.
I couldn’t stop thinking of Gill, even though I was still pissed at him for leaving. Was he dining tonight? Was he starving? Was he feeling the effects of the dehydration again? A part of me felt terrible for eating such delicacies, knowing Gill might be going hungry.
“Princess,” Nemo said with a laugh in his throat. “Hurry up. I’m starving.”
“Oh, excuse me.”
I selected two oysters and then let him take his pick. A giant like him needed the sustenance more than I did.
He grabbed a fish and bit a chunk out of it. Unlike humans, we merfolk didn’t use knives or forks. Hands were good enough—even for royals.
My goodness, the oysters were fresh—slimy and salty. Just the way I liked them.“These are delicious. Thank you for catching them.”
Fin whacked Nemo on the back three times.“Yes, thank you, Nemes.” He laid two salmon on each of the flat stones.
Fish oil and juice dribbled down Nemo’s chin as he grinned.
Poseidon. That made him even sexier and raw. I had to call on all my restraint not to shuffle over to him and lick those juices off his chin. Humans might think merfolk disgusting for our barbaric eating practices, but in the water, the juices always washed away. We didn’t need napkins and all that useless finery humans relied on.
“You eat like a sparrow fish, Princess.” Nemo shoved the basket at me. “I don’t want your royal ass to get bony.”
We had a good laugh at that one.
My ass sure wasn’t going to shrink from not eating for a few nights. I grabbed one of the branches from the pile and poked Nemo with it.
“Watch it, or I’ll spank that royal ass.” A deep, hearty laugh flew past his lips.
My knees weakened, both at the sound and the promise in his words.
“Careful, soldier,” Fin warned in a lighthearted tone. “She might feed you to her sharks.”
The way he sucked another oyster down made me burn down below. I imagined him pouring them on my stomach and licking them off me.
“Yes, I might,” I said, giving him a seductive glance as I devoured a mussel.
He cocked an eyebrow, as if accepting my challenge.
