All the clubs along this beach had umbrellas, but The Aegean had white, decadent structures, while the rest were thatched. The wide parasols shaded luxurious daybeds, and behind them rose a tasteful ivory structure designed to echo the island’s iconic windmills. Between two sleek bars, an indoor pool glittered under mood lighting. Quieter than Aqua Inferno, The Aegean seemed tailored to a wealthier, more refined crowd.
“After you.” Finn unhooked a turquoise rope from one of the daybeds and gestured for me to sit.
I bit my lip, hesitating. “Shouldn’t we ask first? Places like this usually have a minimum spend.”
Finn’s brows pulled together, and he gave me an exasperated look that saidI am a Mer prince, and I own this place.
“Right.” A grin tugged at the corners of my mouth.
I slipped into the daybed, settling back against its cushions and taking in the dark ocean stretching and sighing before me, and above it, the twinkling stars. Finn left to get us drinks, and for the first time on this trip, I let myself absorb the beauty around me—the midnight waves, the silver sickle of the moon in the sky.
He returned with a bottle of rosé and two glasses. Kicking off his boots and rolling up his jeans, he dropped onto the sunbed beside me. He pulled his knees up, wedged the bottle between them, and handed me a glass.
“To wine,” he said, smirking as he poured our drinks.
I giggled, clinking my glass against his.
“She used to love this place.” Finn sighed, gazing out at the sea as he sipped.
“Your mother?”
He nodded.
“It’s beautiful,” I breathed, taking in the salty air and swilling my drink.
“I should come here more often.” Finn leaned back. “But my father keeps me busy.”
My stomach knotted at the mention of the king, but I pushed the thought away. I’d chosen to trust him. I turned onto my side and studied him. Lying there with the ocean breeze stirring his dark hair, he looked more at ease than I’d ever seen him before.
“So you never wanted to be...” I hesitated, picking my words with care—Finn always tensed when his past came up. “You never wanted to be...” I trailed off again. I didn’t really know what I was trying to say. A mercenary, perhaps?
Finn tilted his head, eyes meeting mine. “With the animals?”
I exhaled a relieved breath. “Yes.”
“When I was younger, I’d sneak off to that ocean gladeand heal them—dolphins, turtles, whatever I could find. I used to have this strange gift, a way of connecting with them that other Mer didn’t. They were my friends.” He let out a hard laugh. “Then my father found out, and as you saw, he killed them all. After that, my gift went away, but it seems it’s back now.” He looked to the moon and back to me, the silver flecks in his irises alight under its pale glow.
We were silent for a moment as we both sipped our wine, and everything I had witnessed in Finn’s visions wove its way into my thoughts. The kind boy he’d once been with his animals, and then Finn, a little bit older, seeing the body of his lifeless mother. I pictured the purple-haired Abalone in human form walking along this same beach many years ago when she was still alive. Perhaps my grandmother had come here with her.
“A-and you knew my grandmother?” My chin quivered as I turned back to Finn.
“Yes. Not well, but I knew her. Only in seal form. She left the Neptunus Kingdom right before my mother’s death.”
“It must’ve been hard, seeing your mother like that,” I murmured, the vision from the cave lingering in my mind. “Just hearing about my father—someone I never even knew—was painful. I can’t imagine what you went through.” I reached over and ran my hand along his forearm.
“My father always blamed me for her death. If I hadn’t been so soft, I could have protected her. He made me into the warrior I am, but I guess it was too late.” He sucked his teeth and smiled grimly.
“Finn . . .”
He turned to me, dark eyes searching my face, as the wind played with his ebony hair and tugged at his T-shirt.
“Your mother’s death wasn’t your fault.” I slid my hand from his arm to his cheek.
Lines marred his forehead as he blew out a harsh breath. “My fatherwas right about one thing. There is no room for emotions in a world so dark.”
The sadness in his gaze cleaved my heart in two. “Don’t say stuff like that...There is always light. Just look at the moon and the stars above us.”
“It becomes hard to see beauty when I’ve spent a lifetime watching pollution spread like rot through my people, once vibrant reefs wither and die, and oil spills clog the lungs of sealife.”
