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PROLOGUE
Dear readers,
Never in my wildest imagination could I have envisioned that you would have embraced the love story about a sea serpent queen and a lonely fisherman the way you have. Writing this story was something I’d wanted to do for a long time, but lack of courage to follow my heart has always been my greatest fault. As a resident of Port Serenity, Alaska, I finally felt it was my duty to give this story within me life-space to breathe. I wanted to give Sealena a voice in a way she’s never really had, exploring her wants, desires, struggles.
This trilogy is a love story that surpasses all time and space. It speaks to the agony of a love that shouldn’t be, it offers hope and inspiration in our darkest moments, and it shows that love is all that truly matters.
Thank you for the fan mail. I’ve read each and every last letter, email and social media comment, and I cherish the support and encouragement. Your passion for these stories is my motivation and inspiration to continue writing Sealena’s love adventure.
I’ve kept my identity a secret for a lot of reasons, and I’ll just say that, for now, that path serves me and my life. I’m not hiding behind a pen name out of fear or guilt or embarrassment, but out of respect for the true star—Sealena, the Serpent Queen who courageously guards the waters and shoreline along this rugged, majestic Alaskan coast. She is the protagonist of her own story and I want to let her shine.
Know I appreciate every one of you, dear readers, and this community of Sealena fans continues to grow every day because of your praise and support of this series.
Keep believing that dreams do come true and lasting love is always just a serendipitous moment away.
XO
Y.C. Salwert
CHAPTER ONE
SHEWOULDN’TBEstanding there, practically naked, in front of half of Port Serenity if it hadn’t been for that damn tail.
But Carly Walters’s worst nightmare was indeed happening. Standing center stage in the Serpent Queen pub, under the bright, blinding spotlight, she stared out into the shocked, horrified, slightly amused expressions of people she’d known her entire life.
Wearing only her Little Miss Sunshine days of the week underwear and a shiny gold sports bra.
Her Sealena costume had been ripped from her body when the serpent-like tail had snagged on a raised wooden floorboard as she’d proudly walked across the stage when her contestant number was announced. Lucky number thirteen, her ass.
How she’d even allowed herself to be talked into participating in this silly yearly tradition, she’d never know. Tequila shots had definitely been involved. And a bet—at least she had fifty dollars coming to her. Small consolation for the mortification she was currently enduring.
The town’s annual Sealena costume contest was held every year at the end of June in a closed event at the local pub named in the Serpent Queen’s honor, open to locals only. A catered, open-bar kickoff party to the official start of tourist season—a way to pre-thank the community for the hard work they were about to endure for the next two months when the small Alaskan coastal town saw a huge influx of tourists. The town’s generations-old claim on the mythical sea creature made it a hot-spot destination for those in search of the elusive, the unknown. Families flocked to town hoping to spot Sealena for themselves and the local businesses had thrived in providing that opportunity.
Thank goodness this event was closed to the broader public, otherwise Port Serenity would be newsworthy for a different type of sighting.
Onstage, her fellow competitors sent her sympathetic looks as Carly struggled to tug the trapped fabric toward her. “Come on,” she muttered.
“Spotlight off, please,” Dex Wakefield called out to the stage technician from his position behind the bar.
Immediately, the light went out, providing more privacy, and Carly sent her cousin’s fiancé a grateful look as she continued to try to pull the tail free. From far back in the crowd, she could see her friend Rachel approach the stage.Ifshe could actually call Rachel a friend. She was pretty sure Rachel had been the one to suggest Carly participate in the event. At thirty-four years old, she really had to stop giving in to peer pressure.
She motioned for Rachel to hurry up, but her friend was held up by the thick crowd gathered around the stage.
“Hey, hold still. I got you,” a male voice said from the front row.
Carly turned toward the man as he climbed onto the stage, one hand shielding his eyes to give her privacy. She appreciated the gesture, but it also blocked her view of his face. She squinted in the dim neon lighting, taking in the designer jeans, expensive leather shoes and light gray Henley that hugged the man’s muscular frame—a muscular frame she didn’t recognize and one she surely would have noticed if she’d seen it around town before.
The event was locals only. New man in town?
If so, he would be the first one in forever. Things didn’t change much in Port Serenity. People didn’t change much. It was both a blessing and a curse at times. Especially times such as this, when anonymity might make this mishap less mortifying, but the familiarity of the crowd made it a safe zone.
Next to her, the stranger bent and quickly detached the ten-foot tail from the splintered plank of wood and offered the fabric to her without looking.
Grateful, she wrapped the costume around her exposed body. “Thank you...?”
“Is it safe to look?”
“Yes,” she said, glancing down to make sure. Not that it mattered. It was too late now anyway.
