Calix seemed stunned. For the first few moments after my lips landed on his, he did not move. I wasn’t even sure he breathed. He was like a marble statue beneath me as my mouth brushed over his.
I pulled back. “Calix?”
My guard’s eyes widened, and he drew in a sharp breath. He whispered my name, and it was as though life itself went back into him. His hand left mine, landing on my hip as he pulled me tight against him. His mouth crashed against mine, tasting of salt as he kissed me.
Every single doubt I’d ever had about his feelings toward me vanished into thin air. This kiss was passionate in a way that I hadn’t known this silent male was capable of being. Groaning, I pressed my breasts against Calix, trying to ease the fire coming to life within me. My entire body, from my tingling lips to the very tip of my tail, felt alive from this kiss.
His hand splayed on my bare back, and I moaned, writhing against him. His hands moved over me with the skill of a male who knew what he wanted, and I melted in his hands. Our mouths moved in time with each other, our kisses deep and filled with desire, speaking the words we had yet to say.
An untold amount of time went by until he pulled away from me.
“What does this mean?” he asked, his voice raspy.
I blinked. Did he need me to spell it out for him? I wasn’t going to marry anyone else. I didn’t want anyone else.
He continued to stare at me, his brows furrowed.
Placing my hand on his chest above his heart, I waited until his eyes met mine. “It means I want you, Calix. My father be damned, I want you to be mine. Today. Tomorrow. Every day.”
My words seemed to unlock something within him. He growled, taking my hand in his and pulling me towards him. His hands cupped the top of my tail as he moved swiftly, drawing me with him.
“Where are we going?” I asked.
“Somewhere private,” he said. Then, as if those two words had taken everything out of him, his lips met mine in a storm of want.
Before I knew it, we were outside his bedroom.
This was moving fast…
But I wasn’t upset about that at all. We had known each other for years, and even if I hadn’t had my father’s timeline weighing on me, I knew Calix was the male I wanted.
Why didn’t I do this before?
My questions disappeared as he reached around me, pulling the door open. A rush of cold water flooded towards me, the change in temperature serving to accentuate the heat coursing through my body.
Calix kissed me again, his mouth moving with an urgency that echoed within me. My heart pounded as we kissed, and when his hand slipped beneath the band around my breasts, I moaned. His fingers moved with deft precision, and I pressed myself against him. His tongue swept into my mouth, and he tasted me as we moved towards the bed.
When the coral mattress was beneath me, he lifted his lips from mine long enough to ask, “Is this…”
“Yes,” I said, pulling his mouth back to mine. “I want you. All of you.”
He groaned against me. “Nontia have mercy on me, Mareena. I want you too.”
Our mouths met mine with the force of desires long since tamped down. Something within me turned, and there was an unlocking in my soul as we kissed. Our hands explored each other, touching in ways we never had before.
Our passion tasted of salt and light and the future. It was romantic and intense and filled with everything we had yet to say. Something within me sparked and grew, a connection that I had long since believed was never possible for a female like me. The heat of Calix’s body against the cool water all around us only intensified the warmth already running through me.
My heart raced as we kissed, and I knew I would never be the same again. Our hands ran over each other, touching in new, intimate ways that left me breathless.
With every passing moment, with every touch of his fingers against my skin, I was more secure in my decision. Calix was the one for me. I didn’t care that he was my guard and I was a princess. I didn’t care that he wasn’t the lord my father probably wanted me to marry.
After returning from the theater earlier, I had come to a conclusion: I loved Calix.
I wasn’t sure when it happened or how, but I loved him with every fiber of my being. When I saw him swim up the steps to the townhouse, I couldn’t wait for him to come inside. I had to tell him. I wasn’t going to marry anyone else. He was the only one I wanted, and if he didn’t want me, I would leave. I wouldn’t marry someone just because they would allow me to get my throne.
No.
I would have him, or I wouldn’t have anyone at all.
Calix pulled his lips away from me, resting his forehead against me. “Mareena…”
Hearing my name on his lips was incredible. It was one word, but it carried so much weight. I looked up at this male who held my heart and moved away from him. Not much—just enough so that I could speak without wanting to dive back into those kisses that were stealing my heart. My tail hung over the side of the bed, my fins dancing with his as I reached over and took his hand in mine.
He watched me, his eyes wide.
“Calix, I want you,” I whispered. I knew I would have to be the one to say this. He wouldn’t. Despite everything he thought of himself, he was far too much of a gentleman for that. “All of you. I want you to be mine in every way. I want to take you back to the palace with me.” Biting my lip, I studied him. “I love you, Calix. I want to show you off to the world.”
A long moment passed, and his eyes swept over me. Today they were filled with wonder and darkness and… love. They softened, and a small smile graced his lips.
“Mareena, I have been in love with you for so long I can’t even remember what life was like without you. There is nothing I want more than to be yours.” His voice deepened, and he drew me towards him. Accentuating each of his words with a kiss, he rumbled, “I will be your willing servant. Your husband. Your everything if you allow me the honor of loving you for all eternity.”
My heart skipped a beat at his words, and I grinned. “I don’t think I’ve ever heard you say so much at once.”
He pulled back a touch, laughing. “You make me want to talk, Mareena. You make me want to do everything.”
He put his hand on my chest, and then something entirely unexpected happened. The magic within me hummed, bursting forth unbidden from within me. A flash of purple and coral light filled the space between us. I gasped as a feeling I had never felt before ran through me. It was one of rightness. Of love. Of being cared for. One of complete and utter knowing.
I looked down at my arm, watching in wonder as coral and violet ribbons escaped our palms. They wound themselves around our arms, diving into our skin. The briefest flash of pain was followed by a bead of blood that appeared on my forearm. Staring at Calix, the two of us moved in unison, pressing our arms together.
The moment they touched, a flash of white light filled the space. When it disappeared, matching coral and violet swirls marked our arms.
Raising my wide eyes, I met Calix’s gaze.
“You’re mine,” he breathed, his voice deep and filled with awe. He paused. “If you’ll have me, of course.”
What kind of question was that? Of course, I would have him.
The corners of my mouth twisted up, and right then and there, I knew that nothing my father could do would ever break us apart. This was more than love. This was a mating. A bond gifted by the gods themselves. Not even my father could go against Nontia’s wishes.
Calix was mine, and I was his.
“I’m yours,” I whispered. Reaching over, I pressed my lips against his. Together, we spoke the words that would bind us for eternity. From now until the end of our days, everyone would know we belonged to each other.
There was just one thing left to do.
With all the gentleness in the world—something I hadn’t known a mermale of his size could possess, Calix lay me down on the bed. His hands ran over me, his every touch igniting a fire within me.
Our tails entwined, and for a long time, nothing else mattered.
No one would tear us apart now. Not even my father.
He was mine, and I was his.
Forever.
The End