Page 146 of The Nymph Prince

“I can hear you in the water,” I stated and then touched my throat. “And I can speak, too. This is strange.”

“Stranger than having a tail now?”

I looked down at myself and was at a loss for words. My tail was different hues of red and my forearm fins were red with gold streaks. I moved my tail and cocked my head at it. The moment was incredible.

“Can we go home now?” Troy asked, swimming up to us. His light-brown hair fanned around his face, and his violet tail swished slowly below him. His wounds were mostly healed, as well. Eva and I’d taken good care of him and my nymph.

Lorcan smiled and offered me his hand. “Shall we?”

Sliding my hand into his, I nodded.

Together, we swam farther out to sea before diving for the depths. Unlike the other times we’d made the journey, Lorcan seemed to take his time. We weren’t in any rush. I could breathe underwater. There wasn’t a war looming over our heads.

King James had met with Lorcan before we started the trek home. He had fumed when he realized that I—or rather the old me—had been the prophesized dark king. Just as he’d been on the verge of calling Lorcan a traitor, the nymph had managed to calm him.

Lorcan was a wonderful liar and had feigned ignorance and shock. He’d even shed a tear or two, explaining how he felt betrayed. King James had taken the opportunity to pull Lorcan in for a hug—which had nearly made me kill him on the spot.

The truce with the humans remained.

Lorcan said he knew King James would eventually break it. But we let ourselves enjoy the victory for now.

I no longer had a dark destiny that would tear me from Lorcan. While some of the dark mages had escaped, they weren’t a threat anymore. Their numbers had been demolished and without Haman to build them back up, they would more than likely spend the rest of their days in hiding.

Coming to terms with being in another man’s body would take more time, but Lorcan was helping me through it. The past few days with him, as we’d traveled the terrain with the army, he’d been nothing but supportive.

We didn’t have to worry anymore. Lorcan and I could justbe.Be in the moment. Be in love.

And I’d never been so excited for the future.

***

After speaking with Lorcan and Eva—who’d decided to return to Avalontis instead of going home—we all agreed it was best not to tell anyone else the truth about me. Troy, Malik, and Reif knew, of course, and Seth. Theron hadn’t had many friends outside of a few in his fighting unit, so it was better to keep everyone in the dark.

Lorcan especially didn’t want King Triton to know. Ezra had said disturbing things about the sea king. Lorcan didn’t believe that Triton would ever kill his own children, but Ezra’s words had created a seed of doubt in the nymph’s mind. He’d played the part of dutiful son well after our return to Avalontis, informing the king of our victory and that the dark mages were no longer a threat.

“And your mage?” King Triton had asked.

“As I said. We lost many good men,” Lorcan had answered, dropping his watery gaze to the throne room floor. Such a clever nymph.

The threat on Lorcan’s life had diminished with the defeat of the mages, but the guards were still on high alert. Just in case. We hadn’t been able to recover Ezra’s body after the battle. Reif had stabbed him in front of the temple, and yet, his body hadn’t been there. He could’ve crawled away and died of his wounds elsewhere. However, if hehadindeed survived, we needed to remain vigilant.

“What causes your brow to wrinkle like that?” Lorcan poked the area between my eyes.

We were in the Great Hall, having just eaten our fill of a grand feast.

Although our losses in battle had been minimal, we’d still lost many good warriors. Their bodies hadn’t been brought back with us. Before we’d started the march home, we had gathered them and given them a sea burial. The feast was a celebration of life and a way to honor the men and women who’d given their lives for Avalontis. After the meal, there was drinking.

Lots and lots of drinking.

“Lost in my thoughts,” I answered before studying the contents of my goblet. “I need somethin’ much stronger than this.”

He laughed. “I do believe I can help with that.”

I arched a brow.

“Are you ready to taste ambrosia?” Lorcan asked, playfully moving his goblet from side to side. He’d downed several goblets so far; so many that I’d lost count. His cheeks were flushed and his movements were sluggish. I was impressed that he was still sitting straight. “As I said before, you haven’t lived until you’ve tried it.”

I hadn’t been allowed to try it. Non-merfolk reacted badly to the ambrosia and oftentimes became ill. But now that I was technically one of them, I was finally allowed to have it.