THE BILLIONAIRE'S MERMAID

Chapter One: The Woman in the Sunlight

Belle's POV:

The ocean was once my refuge. As princess of the sea, my duties were clear—to protect my kingdom, lead my people, and maintain the delicate balance between the underwater world and the humans above. But lately, even the endless blue felt like a cage.

Every day, I found myself bored. The routine was suffocating—commanding merfolk to clean the ocean, ensuring the harmony of the kingdom, resolving disputes. I longed for something more, something beyond the coral palaces and the responsibilities that weighed on my shoulders. There was a hunger inside me, a desire for freedom that the sea could no longer satisfy.

I often escaped to the surface, to a quiet cove where I could watch the sunset from the water. It was my secret, a place where no one could find me. The villa that overlooked the cove had been abandoned for years, or so I thought. It had always been empty, a perfect place for me to sit in the shallows and let the waves lull me into peace.

But that evening, something was different.

As I surfaced, expecting the usual empty view, I noticed movement on the villa's deck. I froze in place, hidden among the rocks and seaweed, watching. Laughter echoed through the air—human laughter. I crept closer, curiosity getting the better of me, until I saw her.

She was sitting with a group of friends, but she stood out. A woman dressed in a two-piece swimsuit, her golden hair catching the light of the setting sun, her smile as radiant as the sky turning pink above her. She was effortlessly beautiful, her laughter bright and carefree, and I found myself staring. I couldn't help it. There was something about her that made it impossible to look away.

I had seen humans before, but none like her. She seemed to glow with life, her presence magnetic, pulling me closer. My heart, once steady and calm, started to race. What was this feeling? It made no sense. I barely knew her, had never even spoken to her. And yet, I was entranced.

Her friends spoke, but I didn't hear them. All I could focus on was her—her laugh, her smile, the way she moved. I felt a strange longing, an inexplicable desire to be near her, to hear her voice up close, to know her.

I wanted to be her friend.

No, more than that—I wanted her to look at me the way she looked at her friends. My heart pounded in my chest, a foreign feeling rushing through me. I had a fiancé, Triton, waiting for me in the depths of the sea. We were promised to each other since childhood. He was kind, loyal, and strong—the perfect match for a mermaid princess. And yet, the thought of him felt distant now, like a vague memory I couldn't hold onto.

All I could think about was her.

I stayed hidden in the water, watching her for what felt like hours. The sun dipped below the horizon, and still, I didn't move. She didn't notice me, laughing and talking with her friends, oblivious to the mermaid staring from the shadows. It was foolish, I knew that, but I didn't care. Something about her had changed me, and I couldn't explain it.

Eventually, she and her friends went inside, leaving me alone with the sound of the waves. But even as she disappeared from view, her image stayed with me. Her laughter echoed in my mind, and my heart continued to race long after she was gone.

I couldn't stop thinking about her.

Days passed, and the memory of that evening haunted me. I went back to the cove every night, hoping to see her again, but she never returned. And as the days stretched into weeks, I realized something that terrified me.

I wanted to be human.

I didn't just want to watch her from afar—I wanted to be a part of her world. The ocean, my kingdom, my people—they no longer felt like enough. I was restless, filled with a longing I couldn't understand. How could one fleeting glimpse of a human change everything I thought I knew about myself?

I didn't care about the dangers, the impossibilities. I just wanted to find her, to see her again, to speak to her. But as the princess of the sea, I was bound by ancient laws. The sea wasn't a place where wishes like mine could come true easily. Magic could turn mermaids into humans, but the price was steep, and the risks were greater.

I had to be careful.

One stormy night, after weeks of feeling that unrelenting ache in my chest, I swam to the depths of the ocean. There, in the darkest part of the sea, lived an ancient sorceress—the sea witch. Her powers were dangerous, her magic dark and unpredictable, but I was desperate. I needed her help.

When I arrived at her lair, I felt the weight of my decision, but I was resolute. The sea witch, a towering figure with eyes that glowed like embers, greeted me with a wicked smile.

"Princess Belle," she purred, her voice a rasp that sent chills down my spine. "What brings you to my domain?"

"I... I need your magic," I said, my voice trembling slightly. "I want to become human."

Her smile widened, revealing sharp, glistening teeth. "Ah, humans. Always so fascinating, aren't they?" She circled me slowly, her black, shimmering tentacles stirring the dark water. "And why would the princess of the sea want to abandon her throne for the land?"

I hesitated, not sure how to explain the whirlwind of emotions inside me. "There's someone... a human. I saw her, and now I can't stop thinking about her."

The sea witch's laughter filled the cavern. "How amusing! The great Princess Belle, captivated by a human woman."

My cheeks flushed with embarrassment, but I didn't back down. "Can you help me or not?"

The witch's eyes gleamed with dark delight. "Oh, I can help you. But there's a catch. To become human, I will place a curse upon you."

"A curse?"

"Yes," she said, her voice silky and dangerous. "You will have legs, and you will walk among humans. But if the woman you seek does not love you in return by the next full moon, you will remain human, but cursed to lose your voice and be forgotten by everyone you once knew—human and merfolk alike."

I felt a cold knot tighten in my stomach. The stakes were higher than I had expected, but I couldn't turn back now. The memory of that woman's laugh, her smile, her radiance—I couldn't let it go.

"I accept," I said, my voice barely above a whisper.

The sea witch grinned, and with a wave of her hand, dark magic swirled around me. Pain shot through my body as my tail began to shrink, transforming into legs. My heart pounded as the water around me grew colder, and then, all at once, the transformation was complete.

I gasped for breath, collapsing onto the sandy ocean floor. My tail was gone. In its place were two legs—human legs.

The sea witch watched me struggle, her laughter echoing through the water. "Good luck, Princess. Time is ticking."

I dragged myself toward the surface, my new legs heavy and foreign beneath me. The waves carried me to shore, and when I finally reached the beach, I collapsed, exhausted but determined.

The world above was waiting for me, and so was she.