Page 5

five

ARIA

I was too shocked to scream.

By the time I was ready to react, Triton was holding me in his arms at the surface of an entirely new body of water while I sucked in deep breaths of air.

My gaze jerked around the space.

We definitely weren’t in his bedroom anymore.

The space we’d entered was massive.

Triton treaded water for both of us in a deep pond that was clearly underground, even though we were breathing air at the moment.

There were large fish swimming all around us.

The huge cave wasn’t dark, but it wasn’t bright, either.

Bushes and trees surrounded the outskirts of the pond we were in, and teal, glowing moss spread over the roof of the cave, making it feel like a darkly tropical oasis.

A thick column of water seemed to float lazily above us, stretching from the pond up to the roof.

The whole place smelled like saltwater and nature, so somehow, the water was coming from the sea.

I could hear a waterfall nearby, and when I looked in that direction, my eyes widened.

The other side of the pond opened into a large but shallow fall.

The king must’ve been swimming against the pull of it for both of us, because I couldn’t feel it at all.

“This is where I actually sleep,” Triton explained.

“My room in the castle is rarely used. I control the water, so no one comes into the grotto unless I let them. And I don’t let them. Even Rayna and Wesson have never been here.”

“Who’s Wesson?”

“Rayna’s mate.”

I pushed the king’s arms away lightly, though the effort seemed futile.

They didn’t budge.

“You can let go of me. I can swim to the side on my own.”

“We’re not swimming to the side.” He slung me over his shoulder so I was riding piggy-back.

I wrapped my arms around his neck and my legs around his abdomen, and he kicked us across the pond.

Toward the waterfall.

“Tell me you’re not going to—” I started, but didn’t have time to finish.

Because he had already dove off the stone edge of the waterfall, and we were falling rapidly toward a larger lake.

I braced myself for impact, but the landing was smooth.

Even though I could breathe underwater the day before, holding my breath when we were submerged still felt natural.

Triton had us back to the surface a moment later, and I panted as I caught my breath.

“You have got to stop doing that.”

“Going underwater?” He sounded amused.

“Dragging me underwater after jumping off of things or into things.”

“Noted.” The amusement that lingered in his voice told me he had no intention of following my command.

I took in the building we were headed to while he carried me over.

It was also much larger than his room in the castle—and building wasn’t entirely accurate.

The structure was basically a large, wooden canopy built on top of a huge wooden platform that seemed to be floating on the water.

Lounge chairs and couches were spread over the platform, and I noticed a bed tucked away in the far corner, like an afterthought.

More plants grew from pots around the room, seeming unbothered by the fact that there was no sunlight.

But the best part of the space?

Books lined every single wall, packed into shelves without decorations to distract from the true masterpieces.

There were even stacks of them on the ground in some places, because Triton had apparently run out of shelves.

“You read?” I asked him, surprise lining my voice as he sat me on the ledge of the platform.

The water came up insanely close to the top of the wood, but for some reason, it didn’t splash up there even when I kicked my feet a little.

Triton placed his hands on the ledge and lifted himself easily out of the water.

I tried not to drool at his abs, or the way they flexed, but failed entirely.

Damn his muscles.

And his stupid skirt.

And his obnoxiously gorgeous face, which was now smirking at me after catching me checking him out yet again.

I stood up, forcing my attention away from the king as I took in the books.

“Yes, I read. A king has far too much free time, and far too few friends to spend it with.” When I looked back, I found his gaze on the shelves, scanning them like he was making sure everything was still there.

“Doesn’t the saltwater hurt the books?” I asked.

“Not in my world. The magic here softens its effect.”

Magic.

I swear, it could explain everything.

“What kind of books are they?” I asked, gravitating toward the shelf.

He stopped me a few inches away with a hand on my hip again.

“Shift, and I’ll tell you.”

I gestured toward the books.

“I’ve finally found something we have in common, and you want me to shift? Come on, Triton.”

His lips twitched.

“We have the same color scales. That’s another thing in common. Shift first, then you can read.”

I sighed dramatically.

“Fine.”

I reluctantly joined him back on the ledge of the platform, and he held the small bundle of green silk out toward me.

“You brought that?”

“Yes. I assumed you wouldn’t be comfortable shifting in front of me without it yet.”

My mind went back to the way he’d walked me across the beach entirely naked, and I quickly took the fabric.

“You assumed correctly.”

His lips curved.

“I’ll give you a minute.”

“If you peek, I’ll have to kill you,” I warned, feigning seriousness.

If he was my husband and we had to seal the bond soon—which were both true as far as I could tell—there wasn’t much of a point to privacy.

“Of course.” He strode behind me, and I glanced over my shoulder to find him studying his bookshelf up close.

I’d seen how the odd clothing fit Rayna, so it wasn’t difficult to swap it for my current underwear.

The sea silk molded itself to my body and was smooth against my skin.

I could feel the tiniest undercurrent of energy running through the fabric, reinforcing Triton’s explanation of how it worked.

“What do you do with the scraps of sea silk left over after a project?” I asked.

“It’s fairly easy to rejoin it with an unused portion. Like clothing that no longer fits children, it’s simply repurposed.”

“Does it last forever?”

“It does.”

“Then I can see why it’s worth so much.”

Especially in a world where everyone, as far as I could tell, was immortal.

I smoothed my hands over the skirt.

Like the shirt, it had molded to my figure.

It was soft and comfortable, without being loose or oversized.

The light green silk probably looked horrible with my blue hair and pale skin, but like I said, there were bigger problems.

“Alright, how do I shift?” I checked, looking out at the lake in front of me.

There were so many fish, in so many colors, and none of them hesitated to swim close to the surface.

It was insane to see.

Triton walked back to my side and took a seat on the ledge.

When he gestured for me to join him, I sat too.

“The first time will be much easier if I use my magic to force it. It basically requires you to move the magic from here.” He gestured to the center of his chest.

“To here.” He gestured to his thighs.

“And because I don’t know how to access the magic, it’s easier if you to do it for me.”

“Exactly.”

“But when you use your magic on me, it’s…” I trailed off.

“Sensual,” the king supplied.

“Right.” My answer was grudging.

“It’s sensual.”

“You’re welcome to try for as long as you want without my power.”

Closing my eyes, I tried to search for the magic in my chest.

I had no idea what I was looking for.

Electricity, maybe?

Heat?

Energy?

I spent all of two minutes trying to find it before I was forced to admit that I still felt human.

If I had magic, I didn’t know how to locate it.

“Alright. I’ll ignore the sensuality.” I held a hand out toward the king, but he didn’t take it.

Triton set his hand on my bare thigh instead.

My throat swelled.

“Brace yourself. I’ve never used my magic on you to this extent,” he warned.

I nodded, and an electric pulse rolled through my thigh.

Sucking in a breath, I forced my body to stiffen as another pulse began—and lingered.

It felt like the electricity was rolling beneath my skin, heating me from within.

Slowly, the electricity spread through the rest of my leg, and up to my core.

I squeezed my eyes shut tightly, gripping the wooden ledge of the platform for dear life as need made my body tremble.

Triton’s magic warmed my other leg as it continued to climb its way up my body, making my nipples tighten and tingle.

Finally, it met something hot in the center of my chest, and stopped spreading.

“You started there on purpose,” I choked out, my eyes still closed.

“Focus on the feeling within you, Sweetheart.”

“I’m going to need you to be more specific.”

“In your chest. What do you feel?”

“Heat.”

He rumbled in approval.

“Good. Pay attention to the way it feels when I force you through a shift. Ready?”

“Do it.”

The electricity in my chest pulsed, hard.

I gasped as the tingle in my skin grew painful, my nipples tight and my core throbbing fiercely.

The heat in my chest rolled through my abdomen and down to my legs.

I felt it change, just slightly, before the sensations in my legs were altered.

My eyes flew open, and I gaped down at my tail.

It was smaller than Triton’s, but still huge.

And covered in blue scales, yes, but unlike his they were a variety of shades of blue.

Like my hair.

Despite the disappearance of my lower half, and my quick, panicked breaths, I was still just as horny as I had been.

My stomach ached.

My entire body did.

He had said that the bond’s magic would push us to seal it…

guess I was officially becoming acquainted with that.

“What the hell did you do to me?” I breathed.

“I made you shift, like we?—”

“Not that.” Now that I could feel the magic, I knew instinctively how to use it to shift back.

I did exactly that, and rolled to my side, clutching my middle.

“What?” The king’s gaze was dark as he leaned over me, his hands on my sides.

I needed them somewhere else.

Somewhere lower.

I fought the urge desperately, but it wasn’t fading.

“What are you feeling?” he demanded.

“The bond, I think.”

Understanding dawned in his eyes, and the darkness there morphed to heat.

“You need me.”

“No,” I moaned.

“Satisfy it yourself, then.”

The words made my hips arch.

“Turn around,” I gritted out.

“Sweetheart.” He nearly growled the word.

“If you’re touching yourself in our home, to the feeling of our combined magic, I sure as fuck am not going to miss it.”

A groan escaped me.

“Screw you.”

“I wish you would.”

Another wave of pain and tension clenched my middle.

I couldn’t wait any longer, and shoved my hand into my skirt.

The fabric stretched easily for me, and I couldn’t suppress a loud sound of pleasure as I dragged my fingers over my slick, swollen clit.

“How does that feel?” Triton asked.

“So good.” The breath escaped before I could stop it.

I didn’t want to stop it.

I wanted to let him touch me.

My hips arched roughly as I rolled my fingers around my clit again.

“How wet are you?” His words were lower.

Grittier.

“So wet.”

“Let me see.”

He was insane.

Fucking insane.

I was too, because I pulled my hand away from my core and held it up for him.

His eyes were locked with mine as he lowered his lips to my fingers and sucked the slickness off my skin.

“ Evve tah , Aria,” he said again, heat dripping from the words.

“ You’re perfect.”

My hips jerked.

Triton wasn’t releasing that hand, so I slipped the other one into my skirt and gasped out a curse as I touched myself again.

“Let me taste you, Sweetheart.”

“No,” I whispered.

I was so, so close to my release.

I had never felt this hot or this needy before.

I circled my clit again, and again.

I arched.

Bucked.

Swore.

But I couldn’t climax.

“I can make you come. Let me,” the king growled.

“Fine.” I pulled my hand from his grip and yanked his head toward my center.

Triton had my skirt up to my waist in a heartbeat and parted my legs wider.

His gaze was molten as he took me in.

“Arre vah.”

“What does that m—ohh fuck.” I gasped as he dragged his tongue over my clit.

Then, I dug my fingers into his hair.

He circled my clit once, slowly.

Then again, faster.

I shattered with a cry, but he didn’t pause.

The man played my body like an instrument, taking me back to the height of my pleasure before getting me off again on his mouth.

After I came the second time, I finally had the self-control to push his head away.

He let me stop him, his gaze dark in a way that made my toes curl.

I wasn’t supposed to be attracted to the man.

Letting him make me come on his mouth was so much more intense than that.

Then again, there was no getting around the fact that we were going to have to seal the bond.

“That was…” I trailed off, not sure how to finish the sentence.

Incredible.

Intense.

Surreal.

Unintentional.

Insane.

I felt deliciously sated, in a way I never had before.

There was still a whisper of magic inside me, telling me that I needed to screw the king, but it was quiet enough that I could ignore it for the moment.

“Thanks,” I finally finished.

His eyes narrowed.

“Don’t thank me for kissing you, wife.”

The title made me suck in a breath.

How had I forgotten how complicated things were between us?

I couldn’t let anything sexual happen again.

Not until I had wrapped my mind around everything that was going on and figured out exactly what I was going to do about the situation.

Forcing myself to release his hair, I stood up on shaky legs and pushed my skirt back into place.

“I’m going to check out the books now.”

Triton remained where he was.

He watched me like a predator would its prey while I stumbled across the room, trying to ignore the slick, throbbing mess between my thighs.

Somehow, I needed to wrap my head around everything .