WHEN SHE OPENED HER EYES AGAIN...
the look of pain and despair on Roen’s face broke the camel’s back. This is ridiculous. She couldn’t take him lying alone every night when she loved him so much it hurt.
And now that horrifying, ominous feeling in her gut told her something bad was coming. Something that would separate them permanently.
God, she wanted to tell him, but how the hell would that help anyone? By making him paranoid or triggering a self-fulfilling prophecy?
Surprisingly, all her earlier apprehensions about being with him vanished, and she completely understood what he’d been trying to say earlier. There wasn’t going to be a tomorrow or later. This was it for them. How, she didn’t know. But God help her, she couldn’t bear the thought of never knowing, or worse, deprive him of that memory if she were the one who didn’t survive.
“This is torture, Liv. And I really can’t handle it right now—I’ve got to go.” Roen headed for the door.
Liv sucked back her heavy thoughts. “I changed my mind. I want to sleep with you,” she blurted out.
MERMADMEN
Book 2, The Mermen Trilogy
Mimi Jean Pamfiloff
Mimi Boutique Imprint
OTHER WORKS BY MIMI JEAN PAMFILOFF:
FATE BOOK (New Adult Suspense/Humor)
FATE BOOK TWO (New Adult Suspense/Humor)
HAPPY PANTS CAFÉ SERIES (Prequel) (Romantic Comedy)
THE KING TRILOGY (Dark Fantasy)
King’s (Book 1)
King for a Day (Book 2)
King of Me (Book 3)
THE ACCIDENTALLY YOURS SERIES (Paranormal Romance/Humor)
Accidentally in Love with…a God?
Accidentally Married to…a Vampire?
Sun God Seeks…Surrogate?
Accidentally…Evil? (a Novella)
Vampires Need Not…Apply?
Accidentally…Cimil? (a Novella)
Accidentally…Over? (Series Finale)
COMING SOON
IMMORTAL MATCHMAKERS, INC. (Book 1) (Paranormal Romance/Humor)
MERCILESS (Book 3, the Mermen Trilogy)
MACK (Book 4, the King Series) (Dark Fantasy)
THE HAPPY PANTS CAFÉ SERIES (Book 1) (Romantic Comedy)
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The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of a copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by fines and federal imprisonment.
Copyright © 2015 by Mimi Jean Pamfiloff
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the writer, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, media, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of these trademarks are not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners.
ISBN-10:0990304884
ISBN-13:978-0-9903048-8-3
Cover Design by EarthlyCharms.com
Editing: Latoya C. Smith and Pauline Nolet
Formatting by WriteIntoPrint.com
Dedicated to Dalitza Morales.
Because you are completely mad.
(In a good way.)
Contents
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
CHAPTER ELEVEN
CHAPTER TWELVE
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
CHAPTER NINETEEN
NOTE FROM AUTHOR
Acknowledgments
MerCiless COMING November 2015
MACK. COMING SPRING 2016
IMMORTAL MATCHMAKERS, INC. COMING AUGUST 2015
KING TRILOGY AUDIOBOOK
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
MerMadmen
“There are only two mistakes one can make along the road to truth; not going all the way, and not starting.”
—Buddha
CHAPTER ONE
With a terrified gasp, twenty-nine-year-old Liv Stratton’s eyes flew open. Oh God, where the hell am I? She slowly sat up, her eyes searching the dark room for an answer. A large black rectangle sat on the wall ahead—a television. Off to the left, a dark hallway faded into blackness. To the right, drawn curtains covered an entire wall. Nothing, not even the cool air wafting over her bare breasts, seemed familiar.
Wait. Bare? She glanced at the sheet covering her naked body from the waist down. Oh, crap. Did I go home with someone? But that wasn’t like her at all. She didn’t do the drunk “hookup thing.”
She shoved her hands into her tangled long hair. Think, think, think. What’s the last thing you remember? But it was all a blank.
Hugging the sheet to her body, she sprang from the king-sized bed and whipped back the velvety white drapes. In the distance, beyond a patch of dark rolling hills sprinkled with lights, she spotted dozens of shimmering skyscrapers clustered around one tall structure shaped like the queen on a chessboard.
The Space Needle? She’d lived in Seattle the last few years, while doing her PhD in sociology at Washington State, so she knew the building well. But how did I get—
Her mind began filling in the blanks with images of her parents’ anniversary party at their favorite restaurant in Wrangell, Alaska—her hometown. But how did I get here?
“Miss Stratton,” said a deep, velvety smooth voice behind her.
Liv yelped.
In the darkene
d doorway across the room stood the large, menacing silhouette of a man she thought she’d never see again. He was a man of unspeakable beauty, dangerous as hell, and he’d once saved her life. But that didn’t mean he was there to do it again. The last time they’d met, he’d made it clear what he thought of her: not much.
“Roen, what am I doing here?”
Wearing what looked to be a white dress shirt and dark slacks, he began unbuttoning his cuffs and rolling up his sleeves, like a man preparing for a little dirty work.
Liv would’ve stepped back, but back meant into the window.
“Why do you think you’re here?” he asked, his voice exaggeratedly slow yet overtly menacing.
Given your tone? Can’t be good.
Liv cleared her throat. “Did you really bring me here to play guessing games?”
“You speak bravely for someone so frightened.”
“Who said I’m frightened?” she responded.
“I can see it on your face.”
So he can see in the dark now. It wasn’t a surprise given so much about Roen had changed. Once upon a time he’d been just a man. A billionaire who owned one of the world’s largest shipping companies. Even then, however, his cutthroat tactics and icy heart had been as infamous as his looks—Sexiest Man of the Year. Regrettably, he’d only become more strikingly handsome. His caramel brown hair alone, with streaks of gold and chestnut, qualified him for the category of unspeakably beautiful. And those eyes. Lord, those eyes. A vibrant green with gold rings around the pupils. Every time he looked at her, his raw sexual energy left her feeling defenseless. At least, that’s what she remembered thinking the last time she’d seen him with the lights on.
Liv tightened her grip on the sheet around her body. “Fine. I’m terrified, but can you blame me? I have no idea how I got here, and the last time we spoke, you told me to crawl back to my pathetic life. I also believe your hand was raised to slap me.”
“How could I forget?” he said in an amused, sadistic tone. “You didn’t flinch.”
“Guess I’m not so weak after all, am I?” That had been what he’d called her: “weak,” a trait he clearly loathed.
Roen laughed and crossed his thick arms over his chest. No doubt about it, the man’s size was menacing—broad shoulders, hard muscles covering every inch, and six-six-ish in height. Yeah, he definitely looked like he’d grown an inch since she’d last seen him. Of course, grown men didn’t usually get taller, but according to Roen, he and his men weren’t exactly human. Then there was that water they drank to make them stronger. It dripped from the walls inside the giant cavern on the island they called home. The water, however, wasn’t simply water; it was so much more. Just like that crazy island wasn’t an island.
“I never would’ve hit you.” He shoved his hands into his pockets as if holstering his weapons. “Nor did I mean those words. I was upset that day and had every right to be.”
Maybe he did. She had broken a pretty big promise not to speak to anyone about his new home or its people, but all that was in the past now, and Liv desperately wanted to move on with her life. Or, more accurately stated, move on from him. Exactly like he’d asked.
If only my heart would let me.
“Let’s cut the crap. Tell me why I’m here,” she demanded.
Roen gestured toward the bed. “Why don’t you sit down?”
Liv didn’t budge.
“I insist,” he said in a stern tone.
She wished he’d flip on the lights so she could see his expression more clearly. It might clue her in on what he intended to do to her. In his new world, the laws regarding a woman’s place, purpose, and rights were fairly clear. And they were barbaric.
Liv shook her head no.
“Liiiv,” he growled.
“Uh-uh.” She shook a finger at him. “You don’t get to tell me what to do. We are not on your island. And even if we were, I’d still tell you to pound sand. So whatever you have planned—whatever goddamned reason you brought me here, you can expect nothing but a fight from me.”
Despite being all the way across the room, she felt the tension and heat radiating from his body. It made her skin tingle with the awareness of how much she missed his rough hands on her body. No one’s touch compared to Roen’s. No man compared to Roen.
Don’t, Liv. Don’t open your heart to him again. It didn’t end well last time.
“I’m not here to hurt you, Liv. I’m here to warn you.”
“You brought me all the way to Seattle, stripped me down naked, and put me in your bed, to warn me?” She didn’t believe that for a moment.
“You can’t go back to the island, Liv. I can’t protect you this time.”
“What the hell are you talking about?” She’d barely escaped with her life from that hellhole, and Roen knew it.
“Fucking listen to me, woman,” Roen yelled, his voice a booming roar that bounced off the walls, hitting her from every direction. “They are coming for you. Don’t let them take you back!”
“What are you talking about?” Liv’s heart galloped inside her chest.
Roen’s head snapped up toward the ceiling, listening to something. “It’s already too late.” He looked back at her. “Fight, Liv. Kill them if you have to. But don’t let them get you on that island.”
“I don’t understa—”
Liv awoke in a pitch-black room, sweaty, panting, and tears streaming down her face. Oh fuck. What’s going on? Like her dream, only a sheet covered her naked body. Unlike her dream, this room was pitch black.
“I bet,” said a deep male voice, “you’ve got a lot of questions right now.”
A bright light flooded the room, and she sat up quickly, holding the sheet across her chest. Her eyes took more than a second to adjust, but there was no mistaking the man standing next to the closed door with his hand on the light switch.
Shane. Oh crap.
Seeing him did not fall anywhere near the “this is good” category, although his beautiful face, jet black hair, and striking green eyes might lead a woman to believe otherwise. But that was the thing about the men from the island of El Corazón; their male beauty transcended all logic and broke every rule in the universe. Men should not be so gorgeous. It wasn’t fair or natural. Not when they were equally dangerous and strong, nearly seven feet in height and ripped from head to toe.
A deadly combination. Especially if you were a woman and crossed paths with one.
Liv was about to ask where they were when she realized the cramped, stuffy room, with dark wood-paneled walls, swayed gently from side to side. Shit. This can’t be happening.
“How the hell did you get me onto a boat?” She needn’t ask where they were going. Godfuckingdammit, she already knew.
Shane flashed a cocky sinister grin and then casually plunked down in the navy blue armchair pushed into the corner only a few feet away. His enormous muscle-packed body stretched the fabric of his jeans and white T-shirt to their limits. “I’m a merman. We have our ways of getting things done.”
Liv’s mind still tripped every time one of these men said that word. Mermen weren’t real. And the ones in storybooks had tails and scales. Not these guys.
“We become especially crafty,” he added, “during the Collection. Which is exactly why you’re here.”
Oh shit. Roen once explained that the men from the island periodically went to the mainland and brought back women. The Collection. He said they came willingly—a law of theirs—but that wasn’t the full story. Hell no. These men possessed persuasive powers over the female gender, like Pied Pipers of sex, and what they did with their “guests” once they got to the island was a travesty of the gravest sort.
But you’re immune to them. No one knew why, but who cared? Once they arrived to that nightmare somewhere in the North Pacific, she’d find Roen, who now led this tribe of barbaric assholes, and tell him they’d brought her against her will.
While those thoughts sieved through Liv’s head, she remembered h
er dream—Roen telling her to fight, that he couldn’t protect her this time. But had that been real or her subconscious pushing her to wake the hell up?
Of course, it was a dream.
“Whatever you’re thinking of doing, Shane, don’t forget Roen is your leader. He’ll pluck off your legs when he finds out what you’ve done.”
“You mean, how I took you? Oh no. I’m so afraid.” He laughed and wiggled his fingers in the air for effect. “Actually, Liv, you’re the one he’s going to be angry with. Not me.”
“Why?”
He lowered his head and stared with a wolfish grin, putting her entire body into fight-or-flight mode. “Because you’re going to tell him you want to fuck me, that you wanted me all along.”
Liv’s jaw nearly unhinged. He was out of his damned merman mind. Long story short, Liv had been staying on a fishing boat last March, observing the crew as part of her dissertation on human bonding and relationships. Tragically, a violent storm sank the ship and took the crew with it. Liv had been the only survivor, but after ten days adrift on a raft in open waters and out of drinking water, she’d been sure there wouldn’t be a happy ending to her story. So when the island appeared out of nowhere along with Shane, she’d thought she’d been saved. Wrong. Shane made it clear that they—the men on the island—planned to keep her. And when she ran, he punished her for it, nearly drowning her. If Roen hadn’t shown up on the island, looking for whatever he’d been searching for that day out at sea, Liv’s life would’ve turned out drastically different. So would’ve Roen’s. He’d had to fight for leadership—become one of them—simply to free her. All that said, Roen knew Liv hated Shane. She’d never willingly be with him.
“I don’t think so, Shane. And Roen would never believe that anyway.”
“I have a feeling you can be convincing when you want. And I have another feeling that when you tell him you’re on the island of your own free will, aching to give your sweet pussy to me, he’ll believe every word.”