This is Book 1 of the Arcelia Series.* Book 2 is in the works!
*Can be read as a stand-alone
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Malik Jackson needed help. After being exiled from the ocean, he washed up on the beach covered in injuries and missi...
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~ ~ Xander ~ ~
I felt Malik's guilt mixed with his joy for the rest of the day and I knew we'd be having a long talk tonight. His soul felt like water stained with black ink.
When dinnertime rolled around, I went in search of my soulmate around the mansion so we could eat together. I followed his addicting scent of vanilla and ocean breeze all the way to the basement. Malik swam happily in the tank with his father. It looked like he was having fun, so I sat down in front of the glass and patiently watched.
I used the moment to admire how natural and beautiful he looked in the water. The command he had over his tail and the water around him never ceased to amaze me. It didn't take long for Malik to notice me. When he did, I felt his joy and affection, still tainted with guilt, unfortunately.
I'll make sure we get rid of that black ink.
"Xander!" Malik's head surfaced at the top of the large tank, his arms holding him up. Leon swam up and perched beside him, held up by his left arm.
"Hi, honey," I grinned at him, grabbing two towels and taking them up the steps to reach the mermen. I watched as Malik swam over, twirling in the water a couple more times before he reluctantly climbed out to dry himself off.
After he dried off and got dressed, we shared a long hug, and then started our journey to the kitchen. The three of us ate together, Malik telling me about his day and Leon casually chiming in every once in a while. After dinner, I stopped Connor in the hallway to ask him to show Leon to his guest bedroom. Before they left, Malik spoke up.
"Connor," he sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck, which I found to be absolutely adorable. "I just wanted to apologize. I didn't know what you two were up to, but I was so quick to judge you, and it was unfair of me. You were doing something really good for me, so thank you." He finally looked up to meet Connor's smiling eyes.
"Hey, no hard feelings," he chuckled. "I'm only sorry about how it went down. Anyway, all that matters now is that Leon is home, and you know the truth."
"Agreed," Malik smiled back at him and then gave his father a parting hug before we started our trek back to our room.
"Feel better?" I asked him as I closed the big wooden doors behind us.
He took a moment to respond, taking a deep breath first. "Yeah. I think I do. No more guilt, everything happened the way it was supposed to." Malik sat down on the bed and met my eyes as I followed him over. "Seriously, thank you. You went out of your way and even risked this relationship to make me happy, I can't express my gratitude enough."
"You don't have to thank me," I chuckled, sitting down on the bed next to him. "I wanted to do something for you, especially during a time like this. I had the connections and the power to do something, so I did," I shrugged like it was no big deal, but I knew that in Malik's head, it was far more than that.
