“Nick?”
He glanced over his shoulder. The woeful
look on Aidan’s face tore at his heart a little. “I’m sorry,” the merman said,
apple-green eyes wide and remorseful. “Please don’t be mad at me. It’s just—you
were there, and you felt so good, and I couldn’t help it. I’m sorry.”
I’m the one who
climbed into bed with you, and
you’re
apologizing?
“You didn’t do anything wrong,” Nick said, trying to
sound reassuring. “Just let me grab a shower and we’ll eat, okay?”
“Okay.” The answer was hesitant, but at
least Aidan didn’t look quite so guilty now. “Thank you.”
“No problem.” Nick escaped into the
bathroom. As an afterthought he clicked the lock on the door. Shucking out of
his boxers and t-shirt, he climbed into the shower and turned the water to warm.
He looked down at his rigid cock, his
balls aching slightly.
Need to do
something about that.
Grabbing the bottle of conditioner, he squirted a
dollop into his palm then leaned his other forearm against the damp tile as he
started a fast, tugging stroke. In the privacy of his own mind, he could think
of anything he wanted, ethics
be
damned. And if he
wanted to think about Aidan crowding up behind him, that perfect cock pressing
hard and warm into his crease as the merman reached around and wrapped a
slightly webbed hand around his shaft, oh God, that was just fine, yeah—
His orgasm rose quickly. He grunted as
he came, splatters of creamy semen hitting the white tile and clinging there.
Once his breathing slowed, he wiped the evidence away before reaching for the
shampoo.
What the hell am
I going to do?
****
Aidan waited until he heard water
running, then laboriously got to his feet. His thigh ached badly, the entire
area of the puncture throbbing in time with his heart, but he could walk on it.
The pain also effectively deflated his
erection. Which was probably for the best, he thought grimly, considering how
Nick had bolted from the room like he was being chased by a great white.
Dammit, I wasn’t trying to push.
He hobbled to the bedroom door. The room
beyond held what he recognized as a sofa and some padded chairs arranged around
a low table. Across from them was a higher, blocky piece of furniture that held
a very thin television.
Must be the
common room—no, they call it a living room.
The bedroom itself exited onto a short
hallway. There was a pleasant smell of something cooking at the other end.
Hanging onto the wall, he limped towards it.
A small, furred animal dashed out,
making a loud yapping noise. Aidan flinched as it stopped just short of his
ankles, shying back but still making that annoying noise.
“Norma? Come back here, you silly
beast,” a voice called. “Nick’s still sleeping.”
The owner of the voice turned the
corner. Aidan clutched the wall harder, overcome with shame as he came face to
face with Lord Aphros, son of Lord Poseidon and one of the Twin Guardians of
the Waters.
“M-my lord,” he said, grimacing as he
tried to bow. “I’m so sorry about last night—”
“What in the world?” The sea lord was at
his side, grabbing his arm and throwing it around his own shoulders. “Does Nick
know you’re out of bed?” Aphros demanded. “Are you supposed to be walking?”
“Nick’s in the bathing room,” Aidan
admitted, stunned as Lord Aphros half-carried him into a sunny room lined with
counters and cabinets. He was deposited at a table with four chairs. “He
n-never said I couldn’t walk.”
The sea lord gave him a probing look,
but didn’t say anything more. The furred animal trotted into the room, coming
to him. Aidan jerked as its cold nose brushed against his calf. “Um, that’s a
dog, right?”
“Yes, a terrier. Her name is Norma, and
she belongs to Nick. Make a loose fist and let her smell it.”
Confused, Aidan obeyed. The dog sniffed
at his knuckles, then licked them with a very pink tongue. “Is she supposed to
do that?”
“Yes. It means she likes you.
Probably because you smell like Nick.”
Lord Aphros returned
to what Aidan recognized as a stove, grabbing a spoon and stirring at a
shallow, long-handled pan. “I’m making Spanish omelets this morning. Would you
like to try one?”
Aidan tried to wrap his mind around the
idea of a Lord of the Sea doing something as prosaic as preparing food for
others. “What is it?”
“Eggs, onion,
potatoes, olive oil and a bit of salt.
Fairly basic,
but tasty.
Have you ever had human food before?”
“Potatoes, yes.
I like French
fries.”
The sea lord grinned at that. “Yes, that
is a species-crossing treat, isn’t it? But can you eat eggs?”
Aidan hesitated. “I’ll eat anything you
give me, lord,” he said respectfully.
“A very formal answer, but not the one I
wanted.
Hmm.”
Lord Aphros opened a cabinet and pulled
out a plate, then paused. When he turned around, the plate was piled high with
glistening slabs of fish in shades of white, orange, and red. A dab of some
greenish stuff sat to the side, as well as a tiny bowl of brown liquid.
“Humans call this sashimi,” Lord Aphros
said, putting the food in front of him. “I added the wasabi and soy sauce in
case you wanted to try it. They add a piquant flavor to the fish.”
Dubious, Aidan picked up a piece of tuna
and dredged it through the soy sauce, then took a bite. His eyes widened. “Gahz,
‘is is grea’!” he mumbled happily through the mouthful.
“The wasabi adds heat, if you like that
sort of thing,” Lord Aphros said, going back to the stove.
Aidan did, and carefully brushed a piece
of mackerel across the green blob before dipping it in the sauce and taking a
bite. The green stuff added the perfect burn to the light flavor of the fish.
“I wish I’d tried this before,” he said, chewing happily. “I would’ve eaten on
land more often.”
“It’s Japanese cuisine.
Look for sushi restaurants and you’ll find a
large variety of it,” the sea lord said, dishing something fluffy and yellow
out of the pan onto waiting plates. “Do you go on land very often?”
The bite stuck in his throat, and he
forced it down. It was pointless lying to a god. “I go on land sometimes. I
know mers aren’t supposed to mix with humans unless it’s an emergency. But I
had a good reason.”
“Mm.”
Lord Aphros
picked up a mug and sipped from it. “Which is?”
“I’ve been searching for someone.” Aidan
frowned, trying to remember everything Liam had told him. “I think you call
them
agapetos
?”
The sea lord choked a bit, blue eyes
going wide. “You have an
agapetos
?”
“Two, yes.
My first mate, Liam,
had to petition the Oracle of the Waters to prove that we were supposed to be
together.” Aidan scowled, thinking of his near-mother and her many attempts to
separate him from Liam. “The Oracle confirmed our union, but said that there
was a third mate waiting for us. He would be a human male, holding a staff with
a snake wrapped around it and looking out to sea. Together, the three of us
were destined to be
agapetos
.” He took
a deep breath, meeting the sea lord’s gaze. “Ever since then, I’ve been going
on shore trying to find him. I know I broke the rules doing this, and I take
full responsibility for my actions. Especially now that…” He trailed off,
pressing his lips into a bloodless line.
Lord Aphros nodded slowly. “You think
you’ve found him.”
“I don’t think so, lord
—
I
know
.
The moment Nick touched
me,
I could feel my soul
singing.” He slumped in the chair. “But now that I’ve met him, I don’t know
what to do. He says he can’t share a bed with me.”
“Ah.” Lord Aphros dropped into an empty
seat, reddish eyebrows creeping up towards his curly hair. “I believe there are
rules against human physicians having sex with their patients.”
Aidan’s mouth dropped open in horror. “He
said he couldn’t sleep with me, but I thought it just meant sleep in the same
bed. He can’t have sex with me?” His voice rose along with his alarm. “How can
Liam and I be with him if he can only have sex with Liam?”
Lord Aphros sighed.
“Do
calm down, Aidan.
I take it your leg is healing well?”
He flexed his thigh, wincing. “Yes, but
what does that have to do with it?”
“Once it’s healed, you will no longer be
Nick’s patient. After that, sex between the two of you is permitted according
to his rules. All you have to do is
wait
and let
nature take its course.”
“Oh.” Aidan flushed, embarrassed by his
panicked response. For his
chuisle
,
he could be
wait
as long as necessary. “I can do
that.”
“Good.” Lord Aphros hesitated. “There
might also be another issue. Nick’s lover—”
“Lover?”
Aidan’s stomach
rolled over in sick despair. “He’s already mated?”
“No, nothing so
permanent.
But his last lover apparently injured him, both physically and emotionally. He
may be hesitant to let you touch him because of that.”
A white-hot rage roared through Aidan at
the thought of someone harming Nick. “Where is he?” he snarled, leaning across
the table. “I’ll kill the bastard. I’ll tear him limb from fucking limb.”
Aphros raised a hand. “Peace, mer. He’s
far away, in the middle of the continent.
Although I approve
of your protectiveness.”
Aidan sat back, fists still clenched. “How
did he hurt Nick?”
“It’s not my story to tell, and frankly
I don’t know all the details. You’ll have to ask Nick about it.” Lord Aphros
paused. “
Which leads me to yet another potential issue.
Human culture currently has this odd bias against having more than one mate. As
that is the case, I would suggest you not mention Liam until you’ve gotten to
know Nick better and can sound him out about his feelings on the subject.”
Aidan frowned at that. “But the three of
us are
agapetos
, lord. He needs to
know about Liam.”
“If he is indeed your third, then they
will be drawn together once they meet. Until then, tread softly with Nick. He’s
only human, after all.” The sea lord looked rueful. “And he’s had enough shocks
in the last few days as it is.”
Aidan winced.
Oh. Yes, suddenly finding out that mers and gods are real would do
that.
“I’ll be careful, lord,” he promised.
“Good.” Lord Apros leaned back in his
chair and beamed. “And seeing as you’ll be here for at least a few days, allow
me to extend the rights of hospitality to you. Call me Aphros.”
Aidan’s jaw dropped. For a mere ranger
of the Bright Water grotto to call a sea lord by his given name was unheard of.
But Aphros’s brilliant smile was
convincing.
“Yes, lo—uh.
Aphros.
Thank you.”
Before either of them could say anything
else there was the slam of a door and Nick stormed into the kitchen, a damp towel
wrapped around his waist. “Aidan, what the hell?” he barked. “I told you I’d
bring you breakfast!”
Aidan’s mouth went dry at the astounding
sight of Nick half naked, droplets of water pearling on firm, smooth skin. More
drops were caught in the light dusting of hair on his chest, and the mer
automatically followed the dark trail down to where it disappeared behind the
white terrycloth.
Then he noticed the small white square
taped to the inner curve of Nick’s right pec. “What happened to your chest?”
Nick touched the gauze square, yanking
his fingers away like it burned. “It’s nothing. Dammit, you’re not supposed to
be walking on that leg.” He glared at the sea lord. “Did you help him in here?”
“Of course I did,” Aphros said smoothly.
“I assure
you,
he didn’t put much strain on his leg.
Would you like some breakfast?”
“No, I want my patient to stay in bed
until I can help him up.”
“I’m fine,” Aidan said, pushing back
from the table and raising his right leg. “See?”
Nick flushed. “You’re … not wearing
anything,” he said, strangled.
Aidan glanced down at himself. “Well,
yeah. I don’t have any of my clothes here,” he said reasonably.
“The mers don’t have body taboos,”
Aphros said, bringing one of the prepared plates to the table. Gently, he
pushed Nick into a chair next to Aidan. “But if it makes you feel better, I’ll
get him some shorts after breakfast. Sit and eat.”
“I—uh, okay, thank you.” Nick absently picked
up his silverware, still fixing a beady glare on Aidan. “How does your leg
feel? Is it hurting anywhere?”
Aidan used his best innocent smile. ““It
aches a little, but I think it’s healing cleanly. I probably shouldn’t wear
anything on my leg until it’s healed, though.” He could hear Aphros snort at
the counter, but ignored it. “If any other humans come by, I’ll just go into
the water. I should do that anyway, to stretch out the muscles. You can come
with me, if you like.
Just to keep an eye on me.”