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Second book in the Rowan Series. Our adventure continues! Add this to your library to get updates after the first book ends. This book is unedited.
We traveled south in the dark untill we came to a high set of cliffs. A rocky area without sandy beaches. The water lapped aggressively against the rocks trying to pull them down into the sea, spitting out foam in the form of indignation when they failed.
"Hold your breath." Roka warned, before dragging me under the dark water. I didn't have to hold my breath long. When we breached it was inside a cave. The sounds of my breathing were much louder in here than they had been outside.
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"Where is this?" I asked.
"Were still a fair distance from the sea palace." He answered. We bobbed up and down with the water. The cave smelt damp and the walls were cold.
"There is the issue of my not being able to breath under water." I reminded him.
"And how lucky is it, that I have the solution." He grinned. "You will be safe from your chasers and experience new things. Isn't it fun?"
"I want to go back to the Orcs." I argued.
"That smelly bunch again? You wont be able to return for some time yet." He said disapprovingly. Roka was right. There were still a full two weeks of time until the moon changed.
"But if you really want to go back to that dangerous place, I'll bring you back later." He said twirling us around in the cave.
"How do I know you wont keep me under the sea?" I accused.
"You act as if I'm some schemer." He said pretending to be pitiful.
He and I were clinging together in this cold dark space. I might have tried to climb out if I didn't need his body for warmth. Every time he spoke I felt the vibration of his words through my arms that were wrapped around his neck. I felt his his hair cling to my skin. His swirling tattoos glowed faintly over the surface of his skin in a faint blue color. Not unlike the waves that rolled over the sea.
"Sirenaidea are not the same as dragons or even humans. We come together and we part with the season. We enjoy each other but do not own one another." He explained. "There are no nets to bind you to me or any one place."
Although I couldn't see the features of his face I knew where it was because of the gem on his forehead held that same faint glow. I felt his breath on my forehead each time he spoke.
"That seems like a cold way to live." I expressed. "No bond, no family."
"Do you not enjoy the freedom you have after leaving the mountian?" He asked. "To go where you want, when you want?"
"Its just a very different lifestyle from how I was raised. Finding a bond, building a big family, that was what was expected of me. How we were meant to find happiness." I explained.
"You found a bond, and had a family. Was it happiness?" He asked.
It was a difficult question to answer. There were times I felt happy enough to float on the breeze and other times where it hurt so much I thought the pain would stop my heart.
"Different isn't wrong, it just is." Roka interrupted my thoughts. His tail fins swishes back and forth languidly. Keeping us upright and our heads above the water.
"Then after this season I wont see you anymore?" I asked.
"Would you like to see me again?" He asked I could hear the grin in his voice.
Maybe I had already grown a little fond of him. We had only known each other a short time but It would be a lie to say that I hadn't enjoyed his company. For weeks, he was my nightly conversation partner. An unexpected friendship.
"I think so." I agreed.
"Then you will." He squeezed me.
"Don't Sirenaidea get jealous? What if you love another, only for them not to come back when the time comes around again?" I asked.
"With this face. Of course they would come back." He said proudly.
"It must be nice to feel so confident." I said with envy.
"And what about you?" He asked.
"What about me?" I asked.
"Isn't it nice to be the one this face pursues?" He asked.
Maybe I should be mad that this man who persistently called after me only wanted to be with me for a little while, but it didn't. If anything it made being next to him easier. I didn't need to worry about loving him or being hurt by feelings I developed for him.
"What will you say then. Will you try to come visit the sea palace with me? I promise to feed you well." He urged.
I thought about the implications of saying yes but in the end I made up my mind.
"You really want me to go with you?" I asked.
"Absolutely." He agreed.
"And it would only be for a short while?" I repeated.
"Of course." He agreed.
I had already left Cerastes I didn't need to feel guilty about moving on when he already had. This wasn't a bond. Only a friendship with more touching involved.
"I'm willing... to try." I said non-commitally.
"Sincerely?" He asked.
"Yes." Agreed.
"Then we start tomorrow." He said enthusiastically.
"Tomorrow? What if I change my mind by then?" I mused.
"Hmmm this place is no good. Your not a stong swimmer and I may drowned you if the waters not shallow."
