No. Fuck no. “You think that’s why you’re all sick?”
“I don’t know. But if it heals us and keeps us alive longer, would it be so strange that there’s a reverse effect once we cease to take it?”
Liv hung her head. So they were addicted in a sense. And if the island fed off of them—their…energy…or life force…or whatever corny New Age word she was supposed to call it, then there was no way to break this cycle.
Great. It’s like email spam. No matter what they did, the crap just kept on coming.
That led her back to her biggest question yet: what did the island really want? If she was weakening and starving, then why wasn’t Crazy Dirt forcing her hand and simply demanding the men give her what she wanted: their allegiance and for them to let her back in. Or re-bond or whatever-the-mer-hell they called it.
Liv started pulling her hand away, and he caught it. “Where did you get the water, Liv?” he said, sounding very displeased.
She looked away. “I think you know the answer to that.”
“Then let me ask another way: What did you trade for it?”
“Nothing,” she lied—yes, right to his face. What else could she tell him? That she’d be dead soon, like the elders in that pool? “The island is probably going to be overrun by crazy treasure hunters soon. I guess she found the strength to make some water for you.”
“You’re lying. I can see it in your eyes,” Roen growled.
“Roen, you have to trust me; I’m doing what I have to.”
He gave her a look, slipped his hand behind her neck and pulled her to his mouth. His lips were warm and soft, but his short beard was rough and deliciously masculine.
She sighed with ecstasy. There was so much emotion in his kiss that it went straight to her heart and made it swell.
She quickly pulled away from him before she completely lost all control of her emotions. She was just so damned grateful to see him again—breathing, smiling, alive.
“Roen, how did you survive? Shane said you’d drowned at sea.” She’d assumed it happened during this thing they called the “Great Swim” a two-thousand-mile race in the ocean. The winner would get control of the island. The loser would be executed if they’d not died already. But Shane never completed the race because he’d decided to take Liv on “vacay” and expected Roen to die—the man was not a great swimmer. So ironic, given he was a merman.
“I nearly drowned, but a maid came to my rescue. She told me how to break the connection with the island, and when I figured out that I could help the men with this information, I turned around. She carried me most of the way and then got injured fighting off a shark to protect me.”
Wow. “She didn’t try to eat you?” Not only did the maids devour almost anything, but Roen looked especially delicious. Even now, her body felt all hot and tingly for him. Those thick muscular arms. The way his strong neck sloped down into broad, powerful shoulders. If I were a maid, I’d totally want to gobble him up.
“No,” he replied. “And when I was told you’d been thrown to the maids, I assumed she was you. That you’d been bitten by one of them or by one of the men and transformed somehow.”
So strange. “What happened to her?”
“We had you—I mean her—in the tank downstairs after she’d been injured by that shark. But she escaped and attacked me—took a huge bite out of my shoulder—and Lyle killed her.”
“That’s why you thought I was dead.” Lyle had said she was a ghost.
“Then who was she?” Liv asked.
“I don’t know, but she said she loved me. Those were her final words.”
Liv covered her mouth. Unless Roen had another mate on the side, that only left one other woman in the world that would protect him and say she loved him.
“Was she your mother?” Liv asked.
“I watched my mother die in the hospital. At least, that’s what I remember. I remember them putting her casket in the ground, too.”
So many things in this world of theirs wasn’t what it seemed. That included the fact that Roen had also believed his brother had died. Turned out, he was here on this island all along.
“But if it was her,” Roen said, his voice filled with deep regret, “Lyle saved my life. She was too hungry to control herself. He had no choice but to do what he did. Even though I know he won’t see it that way.”
She covered Roen’s hand with hers. “I’m so sorry, Roen.”
“Not as sorry as I am for believing that the island would really let you leave.” He looked at her expectantly. She knew what he wanted, but she didn’t want to talk about it.
“I’m here with you now. That’s all that matters.”
“No. It’s not, Liv. Where is he?” Roen growled.
Liv looked away. She didn’t want to relive the moment.
“Did Shane…touch you?” he asked.
She shook her head solemnly. “No.”
He sighed with relief then turned his attention down a predictable merman path: revenge. “Where the fuck is he, Liv?”
“Please, can’t we talk about this later? You have no idea what I’ve been through and how much I need to be with you—nothing else.”
He took a deep breath, frowning.
Stubborn merman.
“He’s not a threat anymore. And I’ll tell you everything, but right now, I just…” Her words faded, and she pinched the bridge of her nose, fighting back the tears. Their hours were numbered yet again, and she didn’t want to waste them crying or feeling sorry for herself. She didn’t want to think about how she’d traded her life for one more day with Roen.
Of course, I would sell my fucking soul for just one last kiss from this man.
“It’s all right, Liv. We’ll find a way through this.” He pulled her to him and held her, stroking the back of her head with his good arm.
“I love you, Roen.” She kissed his lips and lay down with him, pressing her ear to his chest. The sound of his heart was so strong now, like music to her ears.
Exhausted, and going into her third day without sleep, she drifted off.
~~~
A few hours later, Liv awoke with a gasp from a horrible nightmare. She’d been standing on a cliff overlooking the ocean. The mermen stood behind her as if waiting for something to happen, their eyes vacant of emotion. What are they looking at?
Liv followed their gazes and spotted a life raft with a man and a woman aboard. Liv squinted, trying to see their faces. It was Roen and…herself. Then she watched in terror as the raft sank and they were torn apart by sharks in the water, the entire ocean turning blood red.
But when Liv snapped awake, she found immediate comfort. Roen purred like a kitten sleeping at her side.
She leaned over and kissed his soft lips. “God, I love you, Roen.”
He stopped purring and then smiled with his eyes shut. “You woke me from the best dream I’ve ever had.”
“Really? Was I in it?”
He opened his eyes. “Yes. And you were naked, doing very indecent things to my cock.”
That sounded like just the thing to erase the terrifying images of the dream she’d just had.
She glanced down at his groin, noticing a little extra bulkiness beneath the covers. “Well, I could make your dreams a reality.” She peeled down the blanket, exposing his bare muscled chest. God, he was so beautiful. Like a god.
When she completely removed the covers, she reached for that strip of suede around his waist.
He gripped her hand. “Liv, what are you doing?”
She smiled at him. “A deal is a deal, Roen.” The last time they’d been together, they’d agreed they were going to have sex.
“But what if—”
“Fuck what if.” She yanked her hand away and stripped him naked and then stood. She pulled off her dirty T-shirt and unhooked her bra, allowing him to drink her in. She didn’t want to rush because this moment needed to last forever, but her body told her to hurry the hell up. She could feel the seconds
passing, and she wanted to spend as many of them as she could with this beautiful man inside her.
She slid down her shorts and panties and then stood over him. His long, thick cock stood straight up, waiting for her.
She grinned and raised a brow. “You really are feeling better.”
“I’m a merman. And you’re a beautiful woman. Whom I happen to love. I could be taking my last breath and I’d still get hard for you.”
She laughed and swooned all at the same time as she sank to her knees and gripped him in her hand, unable to believe they were finally together.
“Roen, I love you. Don’t ever forget that.” She positioned his pulsing shaft at her entrance and then looked down at his beautiful face. The only thing she wanted was to stare into the depths of those hazel and green eyes as she felt him slide deep inside.
“Liv! Are you in there?” screamed a woman. A pounding on the door jolted her from the euphoric bliss.
Fucking hell, Amelia. Just one more minute. “Yes?” She swallowed her dread.
“The plane is here,” Amelia yelled.
“What plane?” Roen whispered.
“Food and other supplies,” Liv groaned. And a doctor. And maid-chow. She still hadn’t told him about the approaching boat.
Roen threw back his head. “This isn’t happening.”
Oh, but it was. And she couldn’t justify going at it with Roen when that plane had medical supplies and Dr. Fuller on board. Liv needed to talk to her.
“I’ll be right there,” Liv replied to Amelia and then looked at Roen. “I’ll be right back. You rest.”
He blinked at her. “Like foke I will, woman. I’m not leaving your side. Never again.”
His words melted her heart. “I’ll be fine, I promise. I’m just going to help the women unload the supplies.”
“I said no.” He reached for his suede wrap, nearly falling on his face.
“Roen, you’re still weak. Stay. Here. I’ll be back in thirty minutes. With food.” She gave him a “don’t fuck with me” look. “Trust me. You’re going to need your strength. Yes, I’m talking about for sex.” She dressed quickly as she spoke. “Oh, and by the way, Phil said there is a boat full of fortune hunters or tourists or something who are close. They’ll probably find this place the moment daylight hits—the island isn’t camouflaged anymore. Any suggestions on how to keep them away?” It was about five in the morning, so they only had a few minutes left until sunrise.
Roen looked at her. “Not sure. I’ll have to think about it. When did you talk to Phil?”
“I don’t know—yesterday sometime—and by the way? You’re taking back your company. I don’t want your money or your empire. And what were you thinking signing over your assets to a mermaid?” Because in Roen’s mind, she was that maid in the tank when he’d done this.
“I thought you had a better chance of surviving than me. I still do.” He paused for a moment, thinking. “So what else did Phil say?”
“He asked me to sign a very big check to influence the Russians.”
His interest seemed to pique. “Phil did it, then?”
“That’s what it sounded like. Yet another reason for you to take back your stuff—this is the last place on earth I want to own.” What she really wanted to add was that she would die here. Soon. There was no point in her owning anything.
That particular thought started leading her brain down a bumpy road full of sadness—how her family would react, what would happen to Roen…
Don’t, Liv. You’ve been to this rodeo before. There’s no time or room for sulking. Just doing. And doing meant knocking down the closest hurdles. One at a time. For the moment, she’d staved off Roen’s death. Now they suspected that the men couldn’t survive without the water, so it was fortunate that Dr. Fuller had just landed. She knew quite a bit about the sacred water, so she might be able to come up with a solution. Because you won’t be here. But she’d tell Dr. Fuller to start working on it. They had a lab, several scientists—mermen, of course—and a Harvard doctor on the island, all of whom probably knew more than anyone but were too weak to work. At a minimum, Dr. Fuller could coordinate.
“That’s a discussion for another day.” Roen began to get up, wincing as he moved.
“Dammit, merman. You will stay here. You will rest. You will do as you are told,” she barked.
Roen blinked at her, seemingly shocked. Not that she wasn’t normally an opinionated and moderately stubborn sort of woman, but she was no Miss Bossy Britches either. Well, today I fucking am.
“Fine,” he grumbled, “but don’t go anywhere near that ocean and those maids, you understand? And when you get back, we’re going to have a long talk about everything—including what happened to Shane, how we’re going to deal with this island, and how we’re going to build a life together. Is that clear?”
Her heartstrings wound tightly together. He had no clue how much it pained her that they wouldn’t get the chance to really be together.
He added, “And then we’re going to foke. Hard. I don’t care if a goddamned hurricane is on our heads, it’s happening.”
You bet your sweet manly ass it is. “I need a flashlight.”
He jerked his head toward the walk-in closet. “In the dresser—bottom drawer.”
She gave him a warm smile and then bolted inside the closet. She grabbed the flashlight and headed out of the room, resisting the urge to just stay there with him and kiss his soft lips for another ten minutes.
She hurried downstairs and out the front door. As she hiked along the dark trail, she started berating herself. You’re being naïve, Liv. You’ve already given up. You’re just assuming there’s no way out. It wasn’t like her one little bit. She was a fighter. She was…
She approached the long dirt runway where the plane sat idle, the lights on the wings blinking away. The stairwell was extended, but there was no one going in or coming out.
The hair on the back of her neck stood straight up. Something is wrong. Cautiously, she approached the stairs and was about to climb when she heard a woman scream, and it was a voice she recognized.
“Dana?”
Liv bolted up into the plane.
CHAPTER TEN
Liv wondered if perhaps she’d never survived that storm all those months ago and went down with the fishing boat, somehow landing in hell, where she was being forced to live through one impossible nightmare after another.
Yes, this is definitely hell.
Liv stood in the front of the jet, her back to the open doorway.
To the right, Dana lay cowering in the front seat, blood trickling down her forehead from a small cut. She held an unconscious man wrapped partially in a blanket in her arms. His face was covered with those giant charcoal black splotches, and his arms hung limp to his sides. In the row behind Dana, Dr. Fuller sat shaking like a leaf.
Okay. How the hell did Dana get on this plane? Liv didn’t know if she wanted to weep with joy because Dana was alive and sitting just a few feet away, or scream hysterically because, obviously, Dana was on the fucking plane.
With two strange men pointing guns at everyone.
Where the hell did they come from?
Liv’s sat phone buzzed in her pocket, reminding her she hadn’t spoken with Phil again. Phil, who’d been trying to warn her of…
Well, of this, obviously. But these were not tourists. And fuckingshithell. Hadn’t Phil said something about there being one hundred of them?
Okay. Stay calm. Pretend you knew they were coming, put them on their guard.
“You must be some of the assholes from that ship. We’ve been expecting you,” Liv said to the guy standing in the cockpit to her left, pointing an automatic weapon at one of the pilot’s heads.
The middle-aged bald man—husky, sweaty, and dirty—flashed his yellow teeth, giving her a vicious smile. Toward the back galley, another man—wiry frame, dark skin, and even darker eyes—held a gun.
Her mind quickly went to work, trying to pu
ll a solution together. These men had gotten past one of the beaches, which meant the maids were either too weak to fight or they had been no match for guns. Second, they had mermen on this island. Two hundred weak mermen. Most weren’t fit to stand, let alone fight. Not without food, more water, and more time. Third, they had about sixty ex-mermaids who were fiercely protective of their men, but they were weak, too. No one had eaten. No one had been sleeping. Their only weapons were knives and machetes.
Dammit. They had only one good option: get these intruders to leave.
“I know why you’re here,” she said. “But you’ve come at a bad time. There’s an illness going around on the island.” She looked at the man in Dana’s arms—likely Roen’s other pilot, Ed or Eddie or something—to prove her point.
“He ain’t come from the island,” the bald guy said.
“He was here a couple of days ago. That’s how he caught it,” Liv argued, hoping to convince the man that staying was not a good choice.
“Guess it’s a nice thing you’ve got that special water here on the island.”
Liv laughed. “You don’t really believe that crap, do you?”
The man scowled at her. “I seen it in my dreams. I seen it. The island told me to come and take it.”
Liv blinked at him. It was just like with Dr. Fuller. Just like with you. Just like with Roen. The island wanted all of this to happen. She’d lured these men here. But why?
“Don’t you look at me like that,” he growled. “I know this place is special. I know that water is worth a lot of money. It’s mine now. The island said so.”
Fuck. What the hell was happening?
“Okay,” Liv said. “You can have it. But I’m the only one who knows where the water is now.”
He pointed his weapon at Liv. “Then you best be tellin’ me, lady.”
Liv raised her hands in the air a little higher. “I will. For a price,” she added. “Let me get the food and medicine off the plane and to all of the sick people.”
“You’ll take me to that water or you will fucking die.”
Liv smiled at him, letting him know that she wasn’t afraid. If anything, he should know she was a woman of different cloth. One who didn’t back down from bullies and wasn’t afraid to die. He had no choice but to negotiate with her.