"Yeah, because Ethan's a little pussy." Jeremiah adds with a smirk.
I roll my eyes but give him a cheesy grin. "That's an insult to all of us who have a pussy."
They laugh. "My bad, my inner feminist apologizes. He's a whiny motherfucker then." Jeremiah rectifies.That comment even makes Sebastian chuckle as we watch them walk away. What could they have gotten me as a present? I'm intrigued, but kind of terrified.
My dark Prince answers the question, I never voiced out loud.You're going to love it, it's your birthright, there is a reason your magic has been contained.
I almost stomp my foot in frustration.Stop reading my mind, Bash, and what do you mean?
He smirks at the nickname I've just given him then says nothing which pisses me off.I turn to him.
I'm tired of all this talking in riddles shit. You need to explain. Now.
He shrugs.No. You'll find out soon enough.
"No, that's not good enough." I'm done with being the last to know everything.Sebastian stares at me so long that it gets uncomfortable for him. I can't back down, or I'll always have to when it comes to whatever being bound to him means.
He reaches for me, so I lean into his palm. The chemistry between us is explosive! I'm left with confusion by the rush of emotions toward him that slam in me all at once. "They are waiting for you, but I promise from this moment forward to never hold anything back again, and tonight we’ll talk."
I nod as Sebastian walks with me toward the edge of the water, my stomach turns nervously. The merfolk don't think I'm ready to lead. They're not wrong, but it hits different when somebody agrees with you.
"Don't be nervous, Bells. Prove them wrong." His tone is demanding.
My eyes meet his earnestly. "Sebastian, I know it doesn't matter what anyone else thinks about me. The problem is that we're in agreement."
He grabs my hand and places it over his heart. Our bound tattoos are back in full view on our wrists. "Arabella, if you thought you were good enough, then I'd be worried. Everything you need has already been placed inside of you."
Sebastian takes a rock out of his pocket and throws it into the water. The stone skips across three times, before it sinks below the service. Almost instantly, a whirlpool begins to form. "Will there be lots of them or just a few?"
He shrugs. "Not sure, the Beckett sisters will definitely be here. They are the noisiest of the bunch and won't be able to resist."
I back away from the edge as droplets of water from the whirlpool splashes ten feet into the air as it churns violently. Melodious laughter fizzles through the air. The sound makes me smile and reminds me of a chord of music I've heard before. The different octaves blend perfectly. Three rays of light shoot out of the water then quickly dive back into the ice blue depths, but they weren't quick enough. My eyes didn't miss the pastel-colored mermaid tails as they descended.
As the water stills, three mermaids shyly pop their heads out of the water. All have similar facial features, but that's where the resemblance ends. One mermaid has long wavy hair, auburn on the top, with golden brown on the bottom. Her sister in the middle has short pink hair cut in a stylish long bob. Lastly, the eldest sister is a tad more beautiful than her counterparts, she swims closer to where we stand. She has blue plaited hair, and her golden bronze skin glimmers in the sun.Her voice is commanding and direct. "Come here, child."
I do, without a second's hesitation. The mermaids brazenly look me over from head to toe. "Child, we have come to the conclusion that you're too inexperienced. What say you?"
These mermaids don't waste any time on subtlety, and I won't lie to them. "I'm not."
The three mermaid’s gasp. I don't know what they expected my answer to be, but it wasn't that. The pink haired beauty speaks next. "Why do you go forth on your journey then?"
I shrug. "It's what's expected, and the very reason for my existence. I won't back down just because of my inexperience, nor will you ever see me dishonor my family name. My parents not only died to protect it, but they did so while believing in me. Fighting against my birthright would be selfish, when so many lives are at stake."
"We don't think it's fair that you don't have to compete in the Trials. Do you?" The eldest asks.
"That thought has crossed my mind, it doesn't sit well with me. I plan on speaking to the King about that tomorrow, so that I can." I answer honestly, and in my peripheral vision it doesn't escape my notice that Sebastian is looking at me like hell will freeze over before that happens.I ignore him, it could be the change in position of the sun or just my eyes playing tricks on me, but they have given me an unspoken truce. Respect is written all over their beautiful faces. Drawing close to each other they converse together for a minute. With how animated their facial expressions get and how wild their hand gestures are the conversation must be intense. However, I can't hear a sound, not even a hushed whisper. Damn it.
My knees buckle as we stand there awkwardly, waiting on them to finish. My bruised ego has already taken a hit, what will they say next? The sisters go back under the water and quicklyrise above the surface. My mind turns to mush as my mouth drops open.Gone is the deep golden tan of their skin and in its place is an iridescent pastel pink. Becoming more comfortable in their presence, I sit on the bank of the lake. As they move closer to me, more of their top half rises above the surface. For the first time I realize they are topless. "Can I ask you what your names are?"
The sister with Auburn hair answers first. "I'm Alisa Beckett, the middle child. This is our baby sister Francesca. And our older sister, Sophie, has the blue hair. She is very bossy." Alisa ends her sentence with a wink, making me chuckle.
Sophie slings her long wet blue hair into her sister's face, causing everyone to laugh. "Why do you always have to say I'm the oldest! It's rude to call someone old!"
"See, I told you. Bossy!" Alisa whispers conspiratorially.
"You're only turning 45 next week, Sophie. No biggie. At least Dad lets you go on dates. I have to wait until I'm 25, and Josh Carlisle will have a girlfriend by then, it's rough being this young." Francesca twirls a piece of her pink hair around her finger.The way she loses her train of thought after saying his name, Josh must be hot. I bite back a laugh when Sebastian growls inside my mind. Serves him right for listening to my thoughts.
Man, I want to live underwater if it will make me look like Sophie at 45. "If it's any consolation, Sophie, you look amazing."
