No one knows what will happen when mystical creatures are locked into battle. Hunters have theories based on abilities and baseline strength, but at the end of the day, it is anyone's guess. For instance, I once saw a leprechaun bring down a fae. Granted, the fae was drunk, but it was still impressive. — Excerpt from Hunter Jon Vos's diary.

***

I open my door to Zale, who is holding a coffee out to me. His worried gaze scans over me for any signs of the illness I feigned the night before.

"Are you feeling better?"

I nod, "Yep. Thanks for the coffee."

That whole morning, I debated about pretending to be sick again. But I wasn't someone who ran away from a commitment. I can stay beside Zale for one more day. He doesn't owe me anything. This is just an agreement.

Zale glances me over for a moment, pressing his lips together. He nods; whatever he wishes to say seems to be pushed aside.

"I'm glad to hear it," he smiles, offering me his hand.

I force a smile in return, taking his offered hand before allowing him to lead me to the beach. The whole way, I can't help but berate myself as my heart again quickens its pace. My body wants to lean closer to him. I want to blame his powers, but part of me knows that isn't it. The realization shakes me.

"I think I'm going to go into the water for a bit," I say, throwing my bag down as the attendant sets up our casabella.

"Cool, I'll join you once—"

I ignore him as I throw off my cover-up and hurry to the water. The water curls around my toes as I take the first few steps. Waves crash against my legs as I take a few more steps. A few steps later, the water comes to my ribs, and I begin to swim.

"Paige!" Zale yells.

I look over my shoulder to see him reaching towards me as he runs for the water. A second later, sharp nails dig into my left calf and drag me under the water. My scream leaves in a series of bubbles as whatever has my leg drags me across the coral and further into the ocean.

On instinct, I kick against whatever holds me until they release my leg. My lungs and left leg burn as I swim for the surface. A change in the water causes me to turn to my left in time to see Ondine swimming for me.

I throw my silver power into the current, causing her to spiral away from me. Again, I kick for the surface. Precious air fills my lungs as I reach the top. My eyes burn from the salt water as I see the hotel towering over a speck of beach. I must be about a mile out now.

"Calm," I whisper to myself.

Bubbles race towards me, and I brace myself for the attack before I feel Ondine pull me below the water's surface again. She continues to drag me below the water until the sparkling becomes dull. I try to use my powers, but it deflects off a blue shield around her.

This is how I'm going to die. Underwater with nothing to—seaweed brushes against my ankles, and I pause. The plant melts into my essence, and I feel my body relax. I can feel the plant easing my panic as it tries to teach me how to live here. I feel my skin tingle as it adjusts, absorbing nutrients and carbon dioxide from the water.

Ondine's laughter echoes like a melody across the seafloor as she hovers above me. My eyes adjust to the darkness as I ask the plants around me for help. Their essences buzz in delight at being helpful.

I smile at Ondine, immediately causing her laughter to become a scowl. She lunges towards me, and I raise my arm. The seaweed wraps around the end of her tail, trapping her in place. Ondine cuts herself loose with a swipe of her nails, but I send more seaweed to entangle her arms and fin.

Her scream causes me to cover my ears. I can't wait to see if she can get loose. Instead, I push off the sea floor and race towards the surface.

A flash of blue scales brings my attention to the left. I raise my shield in time to feel two strong arms encircle my waist. Gold pushes at my silver, and I turn to see swirling blue eyes assessing me.

Zale. He came for me. The soft blue tint of his skin fades to his two legs, which are covered in shifting blue scales. He opens his mouth, and a beautiful baritone sings. My heart warms at the concern conveyed in the language I cannot speak.

"The seaweed helped me," I say, but only a few bubbles leave my mouth.

Apparently, it was enough for him because he beams. His finned hand moves up and caresses my cheek. The other pulls me tighter to him, my skin feeling the bumps of his scales. I know it isn't logical. But, sometimes, logical things don't need to happen after you fight for your life. So, under the ocean, I let a merman-fae with swirling blue eyes kiss me while I exist like seaweed.

Zale's lips are soft against mine. A whisper of some emotion building between us. Then his tongue brushes against my lips, and I open. The whisper becomes a current. I can feel his golden powers brush against me as he keeps the water at bay. Heat pools into my belly at the promise of something more.

Another scream sounds below us. Zale breaks away from me. His eyes hold mine for a moment before screaming into the ocean. We hover in the sea momentarily before a seal comes barreling towards us.

The seal swims around us playfully. Zale rolls his eyes and motions for me to go with it. I shake my head. He smiles and kisses me on the forehead before pushing me away. The seal motions for me to hold on to it. I wrap my arms around its neck, and then it is off.

My eyes squeeze shut as the water rushes past us. We break the water to the sound of crashing waves. The seal slowly moves us up to a small sandy beach surrounded by rocks. It patiently waits as I fight against the waves to crawl onto the beach.

"Thank you," I gasp against the sand.

I turn back to see the seal's skin shimmer away to reveal a slim woman with black hair in a green bathing suit. Her large dark brown eyes glitter with humor as she assesses me.

"No, thank you!" She gasps.

Her voice. The hair. She's the woman from last night.

"I will never forget seeing Ondine trapped in seaweed," the woman's head falls back in a laugh. "Damn. She really messed with the wrong land dweller this time." I shrug my shoulders, continuing to steady my breathing as my body transitioned back to being on land. The woman assesses me as she sits down on the sand. "How did you do that?"

"I'm part nymph. So, I just let my magic talk with the seaweed. It helped me not drown at the bottom of the ocean," I smile.

The woman pumps her hands in the air. "Bloody amazing!"

"Uhm," I start. "Who are you?"

The dark-haired woman starts as if just realizing her mistake. She holds out her hand with a sheepish smile. "Sorry, I'm Sienna."

"Paige," I respond, shaking her hand.

"Oh," Sienna chuckles. "I know all about you. Zale hasn't shut up about you for the past few days." I look at her in surprise. "Why are you so surprised?"

"Well, I figured he has plenty of women—"

Sienna clicks her tongue while holding up a hand. "Hold it there, missy. Zale isn't like that. I've known that man for decades. So, believe me when I say he doesn't usually bother with land dwellers. Or ocean dwellers, to be honest."

I raise an eyebrow in surprise. "So you and Zale aren't a thing?"

Sienna's eyes widen before she breaks into another round of laughter. "Oh my gosh! Me and him!" She falls on her side in the sand. "Dear gods, I didn't know I needed this laugh." I watch as she eases her breathing before sitting back up. "No, never. Zale isn't my type, too male."

"Ah," I nod. "I see."

"Yep," Sienna nods.

We sit in silence for a few moments, watching the waves.

"So," I start. "Are you just going to sit here with me?"

"Yep," she nods. "I'm going to wait here until Zale is done with Ondine."

"What is he going to do?" My eyebrows furrow together.

"Well, bring her to the council for attacking a land dweller, for one. Then, use that to force her to return the pearl to the ocean so that this can all be done."

I sit up straighter. "Pearl?"

Sienna looks at me in surprise. "I thought he told you last night about this. The pearl is a sign of courting for ocean dwellers. Ondine has refused to return it, which is one of the many crazy reasons she wouldn't leave him alone."

"He didn't," I whisper. "But, he gave me a pearl."

Sienna's eyes widen as she presses her lips together. "Forget I said anything."

"But, he gave me a pearl."

"Woah! Did you see that whale jump?" Sienna screams, pointing towards the ocean.

The pearl. He wants to court me. I mean, he kissed me like he wanted to do many things with me.

I bring my knees towards my face and bury my burning cheeks into them, trying to hide my smile. Zale wants to be with me. The certainty of it causes my stomach to clench and my heart to race.

A splash causes me to look up, and Sienna mutters, "Thank the gods." Zale surfaces from the water and walks towards us. His swirling blue eyes lock onto mine, and he releases a relieved smile.

"Is it done?" Sienna asks, rising to her feet.

Zale nods with a smile. "She returned the pearl to the ocean to avoid two decades in the pit."

Sienna laughs. "Oh, I wish I could have seen her face."

Zale pulls her into a hug. "Thank you for your help."

"Anytime," Sienna responds. She pulls away to look between the two of us. "Okay, then. Well, it was nice to finally meet you, Paige. Hopefully, I'll see you around. Bye!"

"Me too. Thank you again!" I rise to my feet and wave, but Sienna has already shimmered into her seal form and disappeared below the water. "Well, she disappears quickly."

Zale shakes his head with a laugh. "She's probably going to find out more about the story or spread the story about how you trapped Ondine in seaweed."

Zale scans over my body and lands on my left leg. I wince slightly at the concern, crossing Zale's face at the dried blood. Not that I'm afraid of him. But I never expected someone to care this much about me.

"I'm okay," I whisper. "There are just some scratches on my leg and back that will heal."

His swirling blue eyes narrow. In five strides, Zale brings me into a tight hug. "Thank the gods for that." My arms stiffen as my sides as the cuts from the coral react to his touch. "Shit, did I hurt you?"

"No, it's okay. Just a little sore," I respond before easing my arms around Zale. "Are you okay?"

He nods into my shoulder. "I'm happy that it's done."

"Me too," I whisper. "Sienna told me what the pearl means." Zale stiffens. "Why didn't you tell me? Ask me?"

"I didn't want you to say no," he whispers. "You haven't hid your opinion about me. Thinking that I enjoy—"

"Sorry," I cut in. "I know you don't use your powers like that."

Zale pulls back. "So, is it okay to court you? Do you want to see me again once we leave here?"

I feel my lips pull up at the side. "Yes," I whisper. "I would like to see you again. No contracts, just us dating."

"Do I still pay for everything?" He quips, raising an eyebrow.

I smirk, watching my fingers run along his arm. "Maybe, but then again, if we're dating," I pause, meeting his eyes. "I would like to be equals."

"You did do a good job of saving yourself back there. Pretty damn impressive, hunter." One of his hands shifts from my back to my dampened hair. "I like this idea."

I smile at him. "Me too."

Zale's eyes hold mine for a moment before he leans toward me. Our lips touch, and for the second time today, I'm not afraid of this moment or the future.

Word Count: 2,096

Total Word Count: 20,450