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Annabelle says through the closed door, “Go to hell.” Then she hiccups.
“I most likely will. But until then, open the damn door.” I hold my fist up to knock on the door, but it opens.
Her eyes are ringed with red. She’s got Kai’s robe on. With the back of her hand, she wipes away the tears.
Castor’s off the bed now too, but he’s keeping his distance.
“Annabelle.” My tone drops deep. I’ve just had the best sex of my life. And from the gasps coming from her lips, I thought she had to.
“Nico, Holter.” She crosses her arms over her chest, pushing her breasts up in the robe. “Excuse me.” She tries to slip between Holter to the closet. Holter grabs her shoulders, but she shrugs him off. “I need clothes and a shower.”
“You should come back to bed.”
“It’s barely dinner time. I need to make myself known. That’s what all of this is about, right? I’m the guinea pig for becoming a real mermaid.”
Holter turns his head, and I’ve got no idea... Oh. “Annabelle. You’re a real mermaid. I’m sure you’ll be able to shift into a fluke soon enough.”
Her stare is like a shark before it attacks. Instead, she lowers her head. “Let me get some clean clothes. I’m supposed to be showing all of Veiled City how they, too, can change a human into an agreeable, real mermaid.”
I glance at Holter, but he’s staring at Annabelle.
“Move, Nico.” He pushes me out of the way.
She reaches into the closet, pulls out a green tunic. It’s the only green tunic in the whole closet. Everything else is Glyden gold and blue.
“If you’re going to show them how much of a great mermaid you are, you need to wear Glyden colors.” Castor says.
“I like the green.” She holds the tunic out.
“It is lovely,” Holter adds.
What the hell? “No.” I pull out a dark blue and gold one. It’s dark enough to almost be black.
I hold it out to her, arm extended, and she takes both, then goes across the hall into the mermaid dressing room. The door clicks and locks.
“What in the hell is wrong with her?”
“You.” Castor says from the bed, looking at the ceiling. “And possibly me. And most definitely Holter. But I’m not sure why.”
“What did I do?” Holter shakes his head and slips into the bathroom. The shower turns on.
It’s a pod bathroom in the grand dame duchess’s home. Which has been the home of the Duchess of Glyden and the Drakos family for years. If Kai doesn’t become a duchess before Ophelia passes, who knows what will happen to this apartment? I don’t fucking care. I barge into the bathroom after Castor.
I stare at Castor, then turn the shower on and fight through the bottles of body wash for something that doesn’t smell like hibiscus. I blast the three shower heads around me. This is my third shower today. And I’m wasting time.
“What do you want from me?” Castor glares at me.
Holter adjusts his water. He’s the one who put distance between us. Future king, he said. While Castor was about to put his cock in Annabelle’s mouth.
“What I want is for you to remember your place,” I snarl.
“I’m not her mate,” Castor says.
“Exactly, you’re not. But you’re leading her on.” I’ve scrubbed enough. I turn the water to cold. It’s splashing him, and I don’t care. I cock my head toward Holter.
“I’m not her mate either,” he says.
He’s not. But if things were different, I know he’d change that in a second. If I could see into the future, I would bet she’ll take him into whatever pod she has once she’s a grand dame. It’ll be a long wait.
