My sweat had dried on my skin, my back coated in sand.
It had been days since Cormac’s declaration. That we were mates. Days since I had lain down with the Mer-King and welcomed him into my body. For the first time, and every time after that.
The storm I had been expecting had not yet come. The dark clouds beyond the lagoon, invisible from the pristine beach, did not advance.
The hunger inside me had eased, a mite, though my stomach gnawed with it. A dull ache that refused to leave, but proved easier to forget when Cormac’s body pressed mine into the sand.
“Daydreaming, Princess?” Cormac rolled over, resting his head on his hand, his elbow extended to hold the weight. His emerald eyes glittered, the way they always did before he teased me.
The barbs had grown softer, which left me vaguely uncomfortable. As if our relationship had changed when I hadn’t paid attention.
Sensing my deep thoughts, Cormac’s attention sharpened. “Something wrong?”
“I’m forgetting something,” I told him, gnawing my bottom lip.
“Maybe you just need help?” Cormac suggested, his lips pulling into a crooked smile. “Though it’s hard to remember something forgotten. The very nature of being forgotten, I’m afraid.”
“Ha.” I rolled my eyes. “So witty.”
“I try.”
“Doyouremember?” I asked. “The Lake? The War? How we died?”
Cormac smacked his lips thoughtfully, as his own memories hovered on the tip of his tongue. He squinted, his eyes searching the horizon. “I was a Mer.” He said. “But I don’t have a tail anymore.”
I snapped my fingers. “Exactly! A Mer!” I exclaimed. “I wasn’t a Mer. I had scales, though.”
“Undine.” He reminded me.
I repeated the word thoughtfully.
“Don’t worry, Princess.” Cormac waved a hand dismissively. “This lagoon is paradise. No hunger. No thirst. No sleep. Just you, and me, and as much time in the Tuatha Dé Danann as we desire.”
My cheeks turned pink as I thought of desire and the feel of Cormac’s body.
Sensing the conversation turning amorous when I sought answers, I stood up, clapping my hands on my cheeks. “I’m going to swim,” I told Cormac. Even a few steps from the Mermade my stomach churn with hunger and my throat burn—as if my body had become more substantial without his touch.
Cormac lifted a brow. “Do you want company?”
“I’m going to catch a fish.” I declared.
“A fish? There aren’t any fish out there, “ Cormac frowned.
“How do you know that? We haven’t gone in the water.” I replied, hands on my hips.
“Yes, we have.” His frown deepened.
My words died on my tongue. My memories were fading with every step forward.
Unnerved, I turned to the water and dived into the turquoise waves. I closed my eyes, feeling the cool press of the sea on every inch of my skin. My scales rose up to greet me, redder than the last time I had seen them.
Redder? I stopped myself.
My memory was playing tricks on me.
I broke the surface, turning back to the sand. Cormac stood at the shore, the waves lapping at his feet. He caught my gaze and waved. Mourning on his face, the expression harrowing, though he blinked it away.
We maintained eye contact. I waved, shooting him a smile.
