Promises (Book One of The Syrenka Series)

Chapter Four

FOUR

I sat on the back of the dock dangling my tail in the water while Kain took a shower. Phone in hand, I'd sent about ten messages to Brendan telling him I arrived safely, the water was amazing, and I missed him more than anything. He had to work, so I didn't expect a response right away, but I was still disappointed. I needed to hear from him. 

I'd been lost in thought when Kain stepped through the doors with one towel wrapped around his waist while he used another to dry out his hair. He was too busy shuffling his hands around his head to notice me staring. I'd always tried to keep my mind away from him when it involved my hormones. But sitting here, staring up at him in such a private moment, I suddenly had butterflies in my stomach.  

And they were the kind that I've only ever had for Brendan. 

He stopped moving and caught my eye. "Sorry, I wanted to tell you the shower was free."  

We looked at each other a few moments too long before he broke the eye contact and pointed to my tail. "I guess you're not ready to come inside yet," he grinned. 

"I've often wondered why I couldn't just live in the ocean permanently. And this," I said gesturing toward the calm waters in front of us, "this makes it very tempting. I could get used to living here." 

He sat down beside me and passed along his damp hair towel. Nudity wasn't something we were unfamiliar with, and my long hair covered up most of my upper body, but I still appreciated the gesture. I wrapped it around my chest and wondering if it bothered him more than me. 

"You know we don't have to stay in Massachusetts all of the time. We'll be able to go to college somewhere or travel around for a while. Maybe we could come back to Florida." 

He referred to our life post-wedding and I felt nauseous. I planned to run away with Brendan so I couldn't possibly sit here and discuss our future together. That would be wrong on so many levels. So I just made a non committal noise, shrugged my shoulders, and left it alone. Kain seemed to take the hint and dropped the subject. However, his silence only made me feel worse. 

"So do you have any idea what we have to do the next few days?" I asked. 

"They really didn't tell you anything did they?" 

I gave him a look and he held up his hands in surrender.  

"Okay, okay. I think tomorrow is the meet and greet stuff, followed by some training activities. The ball is Saturday night and I'm not sure about Sunday. They're supposed to give us some free time before dinner tomorrow, and I signed us up for a trip to the reef. Granted, we'll be going at dusk so we aren't seen, but still, I think it will be cool." 

He was always on top of things and it made me wonder what kind of leader I could possibly be in comparison to him. We'd never be equals. I wasn't good enough for that. Even though Kain was only a few months older than me, he definitely had it more together than I did. 

"Sounds good," I said and I meant it. "Are you going to know any of the other syrenkas here?" This was our first Cotillion, but I'd never asked about his personal friendships before. 

"There's one guy, Vance Donnelly. We met at a gathering a couple of years ago. He's nice. You'll like him." 

"He's a Donnelly?" I asked. 

"Yes, but not from the Florida group. His uncle is the clan master, which puts Vance back about third in line." 

I nodded in understanding. "And speaking of, how are you doing with all of this. Knowing that you're next up for leadership? Doesn't it freak you out?"