Page 21 of Fionn (Starlight Mermen #1 | Starlight Alien Mail Order Brides #7)
Fionn
T he meeting was too formal for my taste. Elise shifted in her seat, clearly just as uncomfortable as me.
Captain Maggnus was opposite us, flanked by the first and second officer. He was a huge male, not the smartest, but he carried himself with a natural authority. Pam was joining via holocall, while my brothers and Paul, the resort manager, were seated to my right.
We'd already talked to the IA earlier in the day to finalise Elise's compensation claim.
The Tidebound was now officially hers, as was an intergalactic bank account with more credits than she could spend in a lifetime.
She'd mentioned something about donating to a charity that helped children from unprivileged backgrounds learn to swim.
I would support her no matter what she decided to do with the credits.
"Kelon paid our salaries for the journey, but not for the prolonged stay here," the captain continued his argument. "We've now been here for six Peritan sunpasses. If you want us to stay for much longer, you will have to pay us."
Pam cleared her throat. "You are free to leave at any time, but I will not send female matches to Finfolkaheem.
All first encounters have to happen here or elsewhere on Earth, under controlled circumstances.
We've learned our lesson with Kelon. From now on, there will be more of an agency presence at these dating events. "
I knew the captain and almost the entire crew - save two who had made comments along Kelon's line of thinking - were waiting to find matches in the agency's database. It was pure greed that he wanted to be paid while also getting the opportunity to find a mate.
"I can pay you," Elise sighed. I thought she'd bowed to Maggnus' pressure, but then she added, "As long as you are prepared to transport anyone who is part of the dating agency or who is a potential match to the island and back."
Captain Maggnus frowned. I bet he'd imagined an easy life for himself, lying by the beach and exploring the local ocean all day while on full pay, rather than having to do actual work. But then he inclined his head.
"That will change of course when I have found my own mate."
Elise smiled. "Of course. Same goes for anyone in your crew. They can all get a long holiday when Pam finds a match for them. And if there are any happy couples by the end of this process, you and your crew can decide whether you want to continue to work for me or settle somewhere else."
"What if we want to return to Finfolkaheem?" Po'shran, the second mate, asked.
Elise exchanged a look with me. "Fionn and I plan a trip there some time in the future. I want to see your planet before we decide where to settle. Anyone who wants to come with us can. But first, I need the Tidebound to fly me home. There is a place I want to show to Fionn."
We'd waited for nightfall. I was dressed head to webbed toe in bulky black clothes and had covered my head with a cap that threw shadows on my face. Even so, anyone who came close would see that I wasn't human, but it would do for this short excursion.
Elise had brought me to a large, square building at the edge of her city.
The Tidebound was parked in a special part of the airport that the Hot Tatties agency had chartered when they'd first encountered an alien species.
One of Pam's employees had driven us here in a four-wheeled vehicle with blacked out windows to make sure I didn't cause a riot.
I'd had my face plastered to the window, trying to take in as much of Elise's world as possible.
It was so different here compared to the tropical island.
Grey buildings, narrow streets, flickering lights, noise drifting to us from all directions, and a smell difficult to describe.
And so, so many humans. I'd thought it impossible to find a quiet spot where I wouldn't be discovered, but Elise had chosen well.
"Ready?" she asked, her hand already on the door handle.
"I'm very intrigued."
She'd not told me where she was taking me, just that this was a place that held great importance to her. I would have followed her to the end of the world.
We stepped out of the car and I instantly sought Elise's side.
Not because she needed protection, but because I couldn't bear to be away from her.
She took my hand and together we walked up a flight of stone steps.
Elise had the keys to the large glass doors.
As soon as she opened them, a strange smell made me sneeze.
"Chlorine," she laughed. "During the day when these doors are open, you can smell it from all around here."
I followed her through the dark building, along a corridor and through rows of tiny rooms that seemed too small to spend time in until we came to another set of glass doors. The hall beyond was dark, but I could still make out the pool of water in its centre.
I scented the air, searching for the smell of the sea beneath the sting of the chlorine, but there was no salt, no kelp.
"Freshwater," I muttered.
"Yes. Welcome to my pool. This is where I spent most of my adult life - and childhood, to be honest. It's an Olympic size pool, which is why a lot of athletes come here to train. I was lucky that my parents' home wasn't far so I could come here any time I liked."
I wasn't too sure about swimming in this pool.
On the Tidebound, we had a pool to train in and keep our muscles from wasting in the weightlessness of space, but it had been recreated in the spirit of the ocean.
Saltwater that was constantly filtered, artificial waves, kelp and seaweed growing at the bottom, even a small school of fish to filter the water.
This was as far removed from that pool as possible.
Yet this place was where Elise had found her passion.
I loved it just because of that. If she hadn't been a swimmer, would we ever have met?
"Would you like to swim a few lengths?" Elise asked.
No, I didn't want to enter this water - but for her, of course I would.
"I would love to."
Still holding my hand, she led me into the dark hall. Only the emergency lights were on, glimmering high above us.
Elise peeled off her clothes until she was down to a sleek swimsuit that hugged her curves. She looked over her shoulder at me, a mischievous spark in her grey eyes.
“Coming in?”
I wanted to say no. This wasn’t my element, not truly. The chlorine stung my nose, the stillness felt unnatural without the pull of tide or current. But this was her place, her sacred ground. For Elise, I would swim in fire if she asked.
She dove gracefully into the pool, her body cutting through the surface with barely a splash. Even without the sea, she moved like she was born for water. My chest ached with pride as I watched her glide away, her form as fluid as any finfolk’s.
I stripped down and followed her in. The water clung differently to my skin, too thin, too clean, but the moment Elise surfaced, laughing, I forgot everything else. She swam back to me, wrapping her arms around my neck.
“Not so bad, is it?” she teased.
I caught her waist, tugging her close until our bodies pressed together beneath the surface. “If you’re here, it’s perfect.”
She kissed me, or maybe I kissed her. Suddenly, I didn't care about the chlorine or the missing waves. I was with Elise which meant I was home.
We swam a few lengths together, playful, splashing, racing until she was breathless with laughter and I let her win.
When she clambered out, I followed, dripping, and we collapsed side by side on the tiles.
She leaned against me, wrapped in the towel she’d pulled from a hook, her head resting on my shoulder.
“This place used to mean everything to me,” she said softly. “It was where I belonged. But after I failed to qualify for the Olympics, I couldn’t bear to come back. I thought I’d lost myself here.”
I turned her chin gently, so she met my eyes. “You didn’t lose yourself. You found the path that led you to me. To us.”
Her lips curved in a small, tremulous smile. “Maybe you’re right.”
“I am,” I murmured, brushing a kiss across her damp hair. “One day, I’ll take you to Finfolkaheem. Just like you show me your home now, I will show you mine. My favourite caves, the Archives I used to guard, the clutch-school I went to. But no matter where we go, Elise... You’re my home.”
She pressed closer, her arm curling around my waist. “And you’re mine.”
The lights hummed above us, casting the pool in deep shadows. For once, I didn’t feel like an outcast or a reject. I was no longer the male deemed unworthy of a mate. I was hers. And that was all I would ever need.
Read on for a little taster of what is to come in Cerban , the second book in the series!
Want to know more about Ma'vel and Jonet, the couple whose union was described in the Archives? Read the prequel to the series, Ma'vel , set in 17th century Scotland, for free!
skyemackinnon. com/ mavel
The Hot Tatties Dating Agency has many clients... meet some hunky alien Highlanders in the Starlight Highlanders and honourable Norsemen in the Starlight Vikings !
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