Total pages in book: 105
Estimated words: 102166 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 511(@200wpm)___ 409(@250wpm)___ 341(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 102166 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 511(@200wpm)___ 409(@250wpm)___ 341(@300wpm)
“Would it be so horrible for your true love to be Finn?”
“Of—”
“Barnacles! Mother is calling me. I have to hide this shellphone before she comes in. But call me back, okay?”
Iris wiped a tear off her cheek. “Absolutely.”
“Love you bigger than the ocean,” Shelly said. The call dropped before Iris could offer her little sister the same sentiment.
Iris took a few moments to collect herself before she made her way back up to the penthouse. She wasn’t sure if the call had healed or hurt. On the one hand, hearing from her sister felt like getting a part of herself back. On the other, it was just a reminder of everything she was losing by continuing to be on the surface. Her sisters, sure, and her mother. More than that, though, the familiar sights, sounds, the vastness of the ocean, her tail.
The surface wasn’t all bad. There was a lot of freedom on land. In the city, there were no royal duties, no endless, soul-sucking meetings, no speeches she needed to prepare, nothing to study. Her time, for the first time in her life, was her own to do what she pleased with.
Whether her little sister understood it or not, what pleased her the most could only be found between the pages of books. So she collected her beloved tote and more of the money her mother had sent her to the surface with—enough money, Monty claimed, to live comfortably for months—ready to head out.
She’d barely managed to locate her shoes, though, before there was a knock at the door.
Expecting Willow, she pulled the door open without looking out the peephole like Finn had instructed her to do, while giving her a speech about personal safety in big cities.
But it wasn’t Willow at the door.
It wasn’t anyone she knew.
Whoever this stranger was, he was almost shockingly tall and on the lean side without looking too gaunt.
He had a classically, almost darkly, handsome face with a strong, wide jaw, a straight nose, and a stern brow over deep eyes that conjured up images of the bruised sky after a storm.
His black hair was styled back away from his face, and his gray suit was quite a bit tighter than the ones Finn wore.
And speaking of that, Henry would never allow Finn to don a tie that featured a bunch of black and gray hearts on a white background.
There was an energy about him that screamed paranormal, but she couldn’t quite place it. His energy felt almost dark and bright at the same time.
A warning pulsed low in her gut—predator energy, maybe. But layered over it was a kind of seductive charm she’d only ever seen used by sirens back home. The kind that made you want to follow, want to please. Even to your own death.
She wasn’t sure whether to slam the door or invite him in.
“I’m not interested,” she told him with a firm nod.
She’d been hit on too many times to count since coming to the surface. She found a firm refusal was usually the most effective way to handle the situation.
“As absolutely breathtaking as you are, Iris,” the man said, his gaze sweeping over her in a way that reminded her a bit of Henry, just less judgmental, “you’re not my type.”
“Who are you?” she asked, narrowing her eyes at him, not ready to let go of her aggressive outward demeanor until she knew she was safe. “My boyfriend is on his way home,” she added, remembering one of Monty’s podcasts saying men respected you more as a possession of other men than as an individual.
“He is not,” the man said. “He is at his office with his campaign managers and about half a dozen PR interns, everyone giving him a spit-shine so bright that even the terrible lighting at the debate could catch.”
So he not only knew her but also knew Finn and Henry.
“Did Henry send you?”
“Interesting you would ask that instead of Finn. But no. Your mother sent me.”
“My mother? But you’re not merfolk.”
“Alas, the queen has many connections to all sorts of people. Both human and paranormals alike.”
That was fair. Iris attended many meetings in her life, but there were others that she and her sisters had been locked out of that were held away from the palace. While Iris had always assumed those meetings involved other sea creatures, it did make sense that the queen would need to meet on land with other high-ranking officials as well.
“I would say Her Majesty sends her warm regards, but …”
“But she probably sent you with a stern warning about my behavior.”
“Precisely. But she also sent me with all this money for you,” he said, pulling an envelope out of his breast pocket and handing it to her. “So you can’t be too mad. You can use it to buy more …” he scanned the room “… teeth?”