Page 7 of Tempting Triton (Mated Myths #2)

Triton

A sharp pain in my chest wakes me abruptly.

A quick scan of my room reveals that my mate is gone.

A headache throbs behind my eyes, and I rub at the spot where she hit me.

The broken coral lies on the floor beside me, its glow snuffed out when she removed it from the wall.

My fingers come away sticky with the deep crimson of blood on my fingers.

A hiss escapes my bared teeth at the sight.

A sharp pain tugs at my chest again, the pain so intense, it can only be from a broken heart.

I did not even get to tell her my name. But the moment we shared as I shared my essence with her again—the way she clutched at me and the feel of her tongue against mine—it took me by surprise.

I am eager to do whatever that was again.

I groan, wiping my hand over my face as I contemplate what to do.

Do I stay here and hope that she returns when she realizes the mate bond will not let her get far, or go after her?

I cannot tell if she wants me or not. She would not have hurt me and left if she did, but the way her body responded to mine would say otherwise, as well as the scent of her arousal that floated towards me as our tongues danced.

A bitter sadness sinks in my stomach. It has been so lonely here.

My kin left long ago to migrate to warmer seas for the cold season, but I was just a pup, and it is custom for us to stay behind, to grow into strong Mer and be ready to join them when they return.

They left Ichó to care for me, but then the barrier came up, and the way home to Aeolia was lost to them.

To have found my mate now, when I have long lost my own family, is a Fates’ blessing.

Surely, they mean for me to have a companion.

It is with this thought that I make up my mind and decide that I must follow her.

I must bring her back and show her that the Fates want us to be together.

The pain in my head eases with every moment I wait; however, the pain in my heart only intensifies.

I will bring her back to me and show her that I can give her the love she requires, and perhaps over time, she will learn to love me back as well.

With a swish of my strong, thick tail, I do not waste another moment, darting out a window instead of going through the door.

I sniff, scenting my mate in the water, and trace it right back to where I first found her.

With each strong swish of my tail, the pain in my heart lessens.

It must know I am getting closer to my mate, the pull of the mate bond anchoring us together.

I swim over the once-floating metal tombs, now depressed into the sand at the bottom of the sea.

The doors are open and gaping, the insides dark and ominous.

The mate bond tugs me ever forward, not allowing me to stop and explore what sunken treasures lie here.

The water shallows, white sand glistening beneath me.

Specks of it sway in the tide, casting light beneath the water as the sun reflects off them.

I scent for my mate. Sea daffodils wisp around the salty brine of the sea, thick in the water like oil as I draw nearer.

I see her legs first, half-submerged in the water, her upper body sprawled across the dampened sand as the tide laps her face and retreats again.

Terror rips through my body as I drag myself up beside her on the shore, ignoring the burning of no oxygen, and tug her body onto my lap.

She has to be fine; I would have felt it if she had left the realm of the living to join Hades in the underworld.

Pain twangs in my chest, reminding me of the ache that has since subsided, but her chest rises and falls with ragged breaths.

I brush the loosened golden strands from her face and lean over her, placing my lips against her soft, pink ones, just briefly.

She takes a sharp inhale, eyes springing open as she gasps for air before quickly passing out again.

Three thin lines slice open on both sides of her throat just beneath her small, rounded ears.

I hold her tightly against my skin, cradled like a pup, aching to be as close to her as possible as I shimmy our way back into deeper water.

I will take her back to my home and care for her until she wakes up, and maybe this time, she will listen to me before lashing out with her violent limbs.

Ichó approaches from the direction of my home as we pass back over the darkened metal tombs beneath us, bumping his nose against my mate and clicking at me in question.

“She is my mate, Ichó.”

With a flick of his tail, he darts away, unimpressed with my new female.

Grumpy old cetacean . We near the castle, the pink coral bright against the blue of the water.

Ichó has disappeared somewhere to sulk, but he should be pleased.

Now he has two people to care for instead of just me.

I take the entrance and swim up to the one bright spot inside this long-abandoned castle.

I deposit my mate on my bed and lie beside her, waiting for her to wake up and hoping it will not be long.

At least my essence should last longer this time, as it should each time I share it with her. Only her.