Seduced by the Sea Lord

Chapter 11

They motored out to the unnamed atoll where Lucy had found him.

Torun considered his problems.

Lucy did not trust in him. She was keeping a secret. Every time he brought up her future as queen mother of his young fry beneath the sea, she froze.

Could she be afraid of the water? She said no. But perhaps the council had been right.

Humans can never become queens. That era is over. They cannot give up the air. They are weak and fear the ocean.

Curse it, she had chosen his Sea Opal. She said she would like to join him as his queen. When they touched, her soul brightened. When she spoke of diving freely beneath the waves, her soul brightened. When she planned to stand up to his council, her soul brightened. She was born to be his queen.

And yet she froze and said she could not.

He had thought this mission would be simple. He would come to the surface, claim a bride, and prove her worth to the council at the Life Tree. He had not imagined it would take him so long to find his Lucy, that she would resist, or that days would pass on the surface.

He must melt her resistance and drown her in the pleasure of their connection. Her light should shine like the sun. She would have nothing more to fear.

They reached the old atoll as the sun disappeared and the sky turned pale. Lucy set the anchor and called an expedition meeting to plan out exploratory dives.

"Tomorrow, Gracie and I will start searching." She pointed at their current location on the sea map. "We'll do three dives depending on what we discover and how everyone feels."

"There is no need to search," Torun said yet again. "I will show you where to go."

Lucy patted his hand. "I know, but if I'm systematic, we won't miss anything."

"You will not miss anything. Once you drink the elixir, you will feel a Sea Opal's presence. It will resonate in your soul."

The interns stirred.

She did not answer.

Impatience gnawed at him, like waiting at the mouth of a trench, knowing a tasty sea bream floated on the other side. The goal was almost in sight.

Cash grimaced. "Are you sure this is where your husband found the Sea Opal?"

"I found it," Lucy snapped. "And Blake is my ex-husband. Why, do you have a problem?"

"From the surveying equipment we've been dragging behind us, there's nothing to separate this hunk of ocean floor from the rest."

"You must have missed something. Gracie and I will collect rock samples in the morning. Right, Gracie?"

Gracie stared at the map. Her earbuds buzzed with music.

Lucy turned to Torun. "How close are we to your city?"

"Ten songs," he reminded her.

"Right, songs. How far is that in nautical miles? Ten miles? A hundred?"

He shrugged. "Perhaps farther."

"Then why did I find a Sea Opal here before?"

"Currents," Torun said. "Many warriors once swam these waters. And luck."

"Luck is about right," Cash muttered.

Lucy threw up her hands. "Forget everything. I'm done. Expedition canceled."

"Great. Wake me when we hit Cozumel." Cash ambled to the railing and bent over the side.

Gracie went to the railing beside him and stroked his back.