AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Chapter 16
The gentle rocking of the horse I rode shook me awake. I brushed hair from my face and sat up straighter. Our trip through the Darkwoods forest had been uneventful, and throughout the afternoon, I kept drifting off. The previous night, Nemo and I had made love all night long and had barely gotten any sleep.
Gill and Fin kept glancing at us, smirking, seeming to understand what had happened but saying nothing. Nemo was in an extra good mood, singing practically the whole ride through the Darkwoods until his voice turned hoarse.
By the time we arrived at our destination, night had descended, and everything was still and silent. Moonlight crept through the blanket of trees. Dried leaves crunched under the horses’ hooves. Mist crawled along the ground. A little critter scrambled along a log in hunt of its meal. Trees began to thin out along the edges of a clearing.
Fin’s horse led the way, followed by Gill, and they left Nemo and me to trail alongside each other.
Laughter and shouts floated on the still night air.
“We’re nearly there,” Fin announced.
Several hundred feet farther into the forest, the glow of firelight stretched through the trees. In a few moments, we reached a well-trod path leading to a town. Instantly, I knew which building housed the tavern—a two-story building in the center of the town, from which came the sounds of raucous voices and clinking glasses. Smoke curled out of its chimney. Even from half a league away, the smell of beer, wine, and horse urine tainted my nostrils.
“If I know Blade,” said Gill, “then thieves, mercenaries, thugs, and murderers will frequent this establishment. Just looking a patron in the eye might get you stabbed.”
A cold chill slinked down my spine. At Shark Bait bar, the customers were rough and often got into tussles. But no one ever got murdered. A thick glue plugged my throat, making it hard to swallow. What kind of scoundrels frequented this Haven tavern?
“Stay close, Princess.” Fin claimed my hand with his and squeezed tight.
I stumbled backward, seizing Nemo’s arm, my stomach exploding with nerves that seared me. “Perhaps it might be best if we stayed outside.” Out of all of them, Nemo made me feel the safest and most protected.
“Don’t back down now, Princess.” Gill’s deep voice descended into a lower octave. “We’ve come all this way.”
Thanks a million for throwing me in the shark pit.
The glue in my throat expanded, and I struggled to breathe.Poseidon, give me strength. Let me and my mermen leave this place alive and unharmed.
“No one will touch you when you’re with us.” Gill wrapped an arm around my waist and pressed me close to his side.
Something had changed between us during our conversation the day before. He now regarded me with respect. This morning, he had lifted me onto my horse and given me a faltering smile.
But even with his confident assurances, I wasn’t wholly convinced. Should anyone recognize my silver scales, we might be in deep trouble. A sea princess and four fit mersoldiers would fetch a fair price from the collector.
“This’ll be fun,” Nemo said, cracking his knuckles, flaring the dread scratching beneath my breastbone.
Fun? Was he mad with seasickness? There was nothing fun about the prospect of entering this venue when one wrong move could cause us to be killed or recaptured and sold into slavery.
A woman screamed inside, and something smashed.
I flinched and jumped backward. Trembles took hold of me. My knees buckled, and I almost lost my balance.Shellfish. Hold it together, Nyssa. Otherwise, you’ll never leave this place.
Gill ran the backs of his fingers along my arm. “Showing weakness in this place is like leading a moth to a flame. Pretend you’re my whore.” He grabbed my breast and ass and squeezed, making me swoon for a split moment. “If anyone asks, you suck my cock all night long and fuck me until I’m spent.”
Part of me was disgusted by his filthy words. Only Faraall had ever spoken to me in such a manner. The words were degrading and below me. Yet that deep, dark part of me ached for Gill to speak to me that way again. She wanted to scream his name as he claimed me. Whisper dirty words into his ear. My mind fogged over with filthy sexual thoughts. All of it had me burning below.Sea god. What was Gill doing to me?
What were theyalldoing to me? My world felt as if it was spinning, and I couldn’t control it. Having sex with two mersoldiers in a matter of days wasn’t like me at all. We’d just ridden through the Darkwoods as if my relationship with them was natural. Sure, Fin seemed fine with the way things were between us, and Nemo had jealousy issues to deal with but had agreed to go along with the status quo, but what would they think if I threw Gill into the mix, too? Only one thing seemed certain: my attraction toward them was as unstoppable as the tide.
My thoughts flew back to Gill’s suggestion. “I’m not acting like some cheap floozy!” I told him.
“No one will dare try anything with you with a vicious face like that.” He gave me that crooked, gorgeous smile that instantly convinced me to follow him anywhere.
Fin snickered behind us.
I flushed with heat. Gill was worldly and street-wise compared to me and my somewhat sheltered and naïve palace life. If anyone was the merman to help me understand the ways of Haven, to not fall victim to it, it was him. And if a little roleplay saved my skin—and those of my companions—I was totally up for it.
“No, you don’t,” said Nemo, trying to snatch me from Gill’s grasp. “I’m with the princess.”
