“Where my family works. It’s not too far off. Wanna see?” He grins. Eagar to learn more about his life, I nod and let him lead me away from the strange creatures and farther into the marsh.
The office is less of an office and more of a hub in the middle of the water surrounded by floor-to-ceiling glass windows that sparkle like crystal. It’s similar to his bedroom in the sense that the decorations make me question whether I’m lounging on a couch in a waiting room or still in the swamp. Moss hangs from the entryway as delicate string lights twinkle down by a desk that houses a list of brochures.
A castle tour through a moat.
A ride through what looks like the Everglades.
Nothing you’d see in the mortal realm—no, each guide is strictly focused on this magical place.
Eclipsica.
Gil told me during one of our chats this morning it was named for the “moth fairies” who have the largest region in the land. An eclipse is what you call a group of moths, which is the most random bug fact I’ve ever heard. I suspect it’s the first of many random tidbits I’ll learn, and I’m looking forward to them all.
It’s quiet when the two of us walk in, and with a cheeky grin, Gil slides behind the desk in the center of the room. It’s made of old wood and mimics the look of the roots of a tree.
“Where is it you’d like to go today, miss?” he asks, sliding me an assortment of papers. There are pictures of overgrown trees, lily pads, and ruins in the distance. This really is a fairytale. A fairytale where the prince has scales, financial stability, and said he loves me.
He loves me.
I bite my bottom lip and lay my hand on a pamphlet at random: a scenic view of glittering water. He nods. My thoughts are so overwhelmed with the idea of love that all I can do is point, but Gil doesn’t seem to mind.
“A very good choice. I’ll personally bring around our very best boat and—”
“Gil, that you?” A voice calls, and footsteps sound from around the corner. “I figured you’d still be off—oh!”
It’s a woman, younger than us, with white and pink scales that billow into something that looks like a dress from her torso to her hips. She bounces into the room and slides to a stop in front of us. She seems frozen for a moment, flicking her dark blue eyes up and down until they reach our joined hands. A flush of embarrassment floods my cheeks.
“Well, I’ll be damned!” she squeals, clapping her hands together. “Finn! Finn!! Get in here!”
“I’ve explained our filing system over five times today, and—” A man appears, around the same age of Gil—I think. It’s hard to tell. Gil is taller, but they both have the same scale patterns, although Finn is a deeper shade of blue instead of green. In my humble opinion, my boyfriend is the cutest of the bunch.
I’ve seen them in photos, both on Gil’s walls and in the scrapbook. I put on my best smile and hope my panic doesn’t seep through. So much for everyone being at the festival.
A sheepish “Hi” is all I can manage as the two stare into my soul.
“Marina, this is Angel and Finn, my younger siblings,” Gil says. “This is Marina. I thought y’all would be off already?”
“Not everyone can be as lax as you with their schedule,” Finn says, and for a moment, his eyes flick to me.
“Well, hang on now,” Gil begins. “Everyone takes vacation now and then, and mine have been the same week ever since I started working here.”
“Don’t mind him. He’s just salty the faerie princess he asked to come to the festival later on had plans,” Angel teases, but Finn continues to glare.
Maybe his family won’t like me as much as he thought.
Maybe they’ve resented him this whole time for looking for me.
Maybe…
“Holly doesn’t have anything to do with this,” Finn pouts. That must be the name of the person who rejected him. “But the problem with imports is those invoices you left are a mess.”
Gil straightens, the boyish charm has left and he suddenly seems … different.
Professional.
“I doubt that,” he says, and something about the confident tone makes warmth spread through me. Not cold, not exactly, but serious. I’m a little stressed with the way he and his brother argue about shipments and crates and… honestly, I have no idea.
“Imports?” I ask. “Don’t you do tours around the wetlands?”
