The time had finally come.
“Everything is going to be okay,” she reassured him. Clementine’s sensual, almost raspy voice was slightly muffled by the walls of the submersible she was gradually lowering herself into. “Remember, I have an immediate psychic range of twenty-five miles. I’ll be able to sense anyone coming long before they come anywhere near us.”
His fingers curled against the plexiglass half-dome. Every one of his muscles, from head to tail, were tense with the desire to pluck her out of that odd little seat. He’d gone to great lengths to make their cove safe for her and their young. She was comfortable and fed and happy with him. Instinct balked at the idea of needlessly exposing her to the danger of the water when she was still unclaimed.
But when he peered anxiously through the clear half-dome, he knew that he had no choice. Clementine practically vibrated with excitement as she settled into her seat. Her fingers danced over the controls and her eyes, the same multi-hued green-brown color as the sea on a bright day, glittered like he’d never seen.
Emory held his breath, fighting the tight squeeze of emotion that so often assaulted him when he beheld his mate.
He could deny her nothing. He didn’t want to. If he could have, he would have thrown open the entire world for her to explore. So long as he got to be by her side, he didn’t care where they were or what they did.
But he was also her mate, and that meant he had to balance their desires with their other needs, like safety, a full belly, and the comfort of their pups when they came.
So while it pained him to deny her a trip to the ocean market, he knew that sating her curiosity was not worth the possibility of a skirmish breaking out over her. He couldn’t risk taking her there yet. When she was claimed and bred, he would be more than happy to show her off to the pod and other loners like him, many of whom had written him off as defective decades ago.
In the meantime, he compromised. A trip to his cove was not ideal, certainly, but there hadn’t been an intruder in his territory since the day she saw the strange fin cutting through the surf. That continued to bother him, but there was nothing to be done about it. Hunting in the water was not the same as on land. Traces didn’t linger nearly as long. By the time she mentioned it, any sign of the stranger had long since washed away with the currents around the island.
There hadn’t been any trace of them since. Theoretically, a quick trip around the island was the safest outing he could possibly come up with. It was also something hewantedto share with her, even if it nearly killed him to do so.
Rapping his knuckles on the plexiglass, he prompted, “Your promise, my mate.”
Clementine scrunched her nose at him, but he now knew the difference between her expressions of playfulness and genuine annoyance.Thatlook was teasing, quite unlike the time she woke up in the morning and discovered he’d butchered a seal carcass on the kitchen floor.
“If you tell me to go, I crank it up to full speed and go home,” she dutifully repeated back to him. “If I’m approached by merfolk, I should use my flares first and ask questions later.”
“And?”
“If anyone touches me or the submersible, I should turn their brain to pudding.”
“You are a merman’s mate now,” he reminded her. “You must be bloodthirsty to protect yourself, our cove, and our pups. Yes?”
Clementine nodded, but he knew her heart wasn’t in it. Though it frustrated him, particularly when he’d worked himself to exhaustion to keep her safe, he knew better than to blame her for it. She was a gentle soul unused to the harsh realities of ocean life. If she didn’t take his warnings seriously, it was only because she had led a relatively unthreatened life. That was not to say she didn’t have her burdens, but he was grateful she didn’t have the experiences he did.
It was better for her not to know the fear of violent death, and it washisjob to keep her ignorant of the horrors that could so easily drown her.
That didn’t mean he couldn’t lecture her, though.
And now I have completed my transformation into my father,he thought with a sigh. Oh, how his siblings would laugh if they could see him pulling his hair out about something as innocent as a quick swim to the cove.
* * *
His family’s cove was located on the opposite side of the island from the one he now shared with Clementine. Though the main island itself was small, his mate never would have been able to access it or even see it from the ground.
The cove side of the island was primarily composed of ragged cliff-face. A small part of that crumbling stone was connected to a tiny spit of land via the Great Arch, a soaring stone marvel that was arguably the most impressive feature of the Farallones. At the base of the arch, hidden amongst the craggy, weatherbeaten stone and often dangerously high surf, was his home.
It was the only cove on the island, which would have made his territory even more coveted if not for the fact that navigating the deadly currents, sharp rocks, and often shockingly swift weather changes made it undesirable to anyone but the toughest of merfolk.
While conditions outside could be deadly, they were also a natural defense, making it a fantastic place to raise young and guard a vulnerable human mate. If Clementine hadn’t brought her own cove, Emory would have insisted they live there. As it stood, however, he was more than satisfied with the luxurious home they shared. Even if he wasn’t allowed to bring his kills into the kitchen.
It had been so long since he last watched his father navigate the treacherous waters around the cove that he’d forgotten just how dangerous they could be to a land dweller. Even Clementine’s advanced vehicle struggled against the violent waves from below. He kept pace with her, steering her around sharp rocks, tricky eddies, and traps he’d laid when he returned to the island.
It wasn’t a long trip, but they were both relieved when he finally guided her toward the shelter of the cove, where a low shelf of smooth rock had once served as his father’s personal dock.
Hauling himself out onto the shelf, he watched as the submersible ran through its surface docking procedure. Two claw-like mechanical arms extended from the front of the vehicle to grip the rock. Once steady, it slowly drew itself up the slope on previously hidden rubber wheels. Locked in place and pulled almost completely out of the water, the roof hatch released with a low hiss.
Clementine popped out of the hatch. She looked a little pale, but otherwise no worse for wear as she climbed down the attached ladder to land with a small splash on the rock.
“Whoa,” she breathed, turning in a circle to take in the soaring roof, churning waves, and the circular opening of the cove. “It’s soloud!”
