Chase opened one eye and looked at the beautiful little sprite staring back at him so intently. Her incredible eyes wide. Good Gods, but she was lovely, and the thought that she could be one of them hit him hard for some reason. He glanced down and realized that she…or someone had bandaged him up and wondered just what in the flying fuck her deal was.
“Where is my necklace,” he ground out, although his voice held no conviction in it whatsoever. He knew it was weak and no more than a pitiful hoarse whisper, and he realized that he was parched. It freaking felt as if he had been chewing on sandpaper.
He watched as she reached over beside her and pulled a bottle of water from the bag sitting there and almost allowed himself a moan of gratitude.
Almost.
She moved a bit closer to where he lay and held the bottle out to him, much like you would hold out a piece of meat to a stray dog, not knowing if it was rabid or not.
Chase took her offering and tried to move into a sitting position, but his ribs screamed in protest. Ignoring them, he clenched his jaw and struggled through the pain, acutely aware of her eyes on him every pain filled second.
When he had stationed himself into something somewhat resembling an upright position, he twisted off the cap and downed the water, thinking that nothing had ever tasted so blasted good.
“Easy,” he heard her instruct him softly. Not a demand, simply a warning to be careful.
He finished the bottle and set it aside, glancing down at his leg before looking back up at her, catching her gaze. “Did you do that?” He asked, motioning to the make-shift splint.
“Yes.”
“Why?”
He couldn’t help but notice that her entire body stiffened as her full lips turned down into a frown. “What do you mean…why?” She huffed; the exasperation clear in her voice. “I wasn’t about to let you suffer and die.”
“I figured that your friends wanted me dead.”
He was finding it extremely difficult to talk, his ribs were screaming out in protest with every word, but he wasn’t about to let up. He wanted answers.
She stood and began to move about the cave, her movements quick and jerky, albeit still as graceful as sin, like those of a dancer, and he knew that he had hit a nerve. She was irritated as hell, yet still exquisitely beautiful. Her thick, golden hair hung down in a glossy braid, and her heart-shaped face, which held those striking aqua eyes, was pure perfection.
Christ. Her eyes were the color of the sea on a vibrant morning.
Chase watched as she grabbed another bag and began taking out what looked to be food items.
“I thought I made it perfectly clear to you,” she pushed out, more than just a bit irritably as she sat back down beside the fire. “They are not my friends.”
“Well, then, would you mind telling me just who in the hell you are then? And, whether or not you have any knowledge whatsoever of those bastards who jumped, or where they went. Jesus, I’d even settle for what direction they headed at this point. Give me something.”
“My name’s Marissa,” she informed him, and he couldn’t help but think that the name fit her to perfection. Soft and smooth, it was musical and rolled off the tongue like warm honey. “And I know of the men who attacked you. I just don’t know them personally.”
Feeling that he was at least getting somewhere, he pushed himself up a little further, resting against the large boulder at his back. “Who are they?” He asked, a little more harshly than he had intended, but by God, he wanted blood. “I sensed they were mermen,” he offered, his disgust rising like bile. “Filthy bottom feeders.”
Marissa did her very best to hide the gasp of surprise that sprang to her lips at his obvious ignorance and hatred of her kind, biting back the angry retort that she so wanted to unleash on his arrogant ass.
Good grief! Just where in the hell did Mr. High and Mighty get off with his puffed-up, superior attitude! If it wasn’t for this filthy “bottom feeder,” he’d be rotting at the bottom of the sea, being picked at by the crabs!
She knew in that moment, and without a doubt in her mind, that he was indeed a dragon shifter. Bear shifters weren’t usually that entitled.
Or blatantly egocentric.
“Did you also happen to sense that I’m also a bottom feeder,” she snarled at him, her face flushing with heat as her temper simmered. “You have really got some damn nerve.”
“I didn’t mean you specifically,” he offered half-heartedly. “But, if I am to be brutally honest, I really didn’t think much of merpeople as a whole before tonight. Perhaps I am judging a bit prematurely since I also haven’t dealt with many of you before now either, but you have to agree that my introduction to your kind has been nothing to write home about.”
“Well, gee whiz,” she hissed, unable to hide her contempt. “That’s so awfully magnanimous of you. Damn puffed-up dragon.” She finished under her breath, and swore she saw a small smile lift the corners of his battered mouth.
Ass-hat.
Marissa swallowed back her fury and hastily slapped together a sandwich for him, shoving it in his direction with another bottle of water before making one for herself. It wasn’t fancy, but it was something.
Not that the overinflated jerk deserved it.
Chase took her offering with a silent nod, forcing himself to take a bite. He wasn’t the least bit hungry, but he knew enough to know that if he wanted to heal, he needed to eat and build up his strength. Not to mention, he didn’t want to offend his hostess. Although, he seemed to have done a pretty fine job of that already. He sure as hell wasn’t about to add fuel to the already burning fires until he got the answers he sought. He wasn’t an imbecile.
“Thank you,” he mumbled between bites before cracking open, and downing, his second bottle of water. For some reason, he was still parched. “I apologize if I came across as rude,” he offered, this time with a bit more sincerity.
Her eyes met his and held with a subtle confidence that he couldn’t help but admire, and that full, pouty mouth of hers softened just the tiniest bit as she seemed to study him, almost as if she were sizing him up.
“Apology accepted,” she replied finally, although he couldn’t help but notice that her words were still a bit clipped and somewhat flat.
He wasn’t about to try and fool himself into believing that she was being completely honest. He knew that he had offended her.
Her eyes narrowed, and she leaned forward. “So, was I right?” She asked.
“About?”
“Dragon shifter?”
He swallowed the last bite of his sandwich and grinned in spite of himself, not wanting to admit that it had done his body a world of good to eat something. He was feeling stronger by the minute.
“Right on the nose,” he chuckled, and saw what could only be described as excited curiosity flare up in her eyes.
“Wicked,” she breathed, so quietly that he barely heard her, and this time he couldn’t help himself, he choked out a laugh, then instantly winced at the pain it caused. “You should really rest,” she said, standing and heading toward the back of the cavern, and he found himself wondering how far back it went.
This sure as hell wasn’t anything near a five-star resort, and a part of him was curious as to why she chose to bring him here. Was it merely convenience? Or was there some other, darker reason?
What exactly, was the story behind this fascinating little mermaid’s need to hide out? He watched as she flitted about the cavern, so graceful that it was almost magical, and he discovered himself thinking that he wanted to know more about her.
He was about to question her, when he realized that his exhaustion was getting the better of him and he felt himself drifting off. His body begging for relief.
Marissa watched as the dragon shifter’s body relaxed with the sleep 0vertaking him. Taking the opportunity to try and get a bit of rest herself, she grabbed another blanket and eased herself down against one of the walls, far enough away that she felt safe en
ough to close her eyes, yet close enough to hear him if he moved.
It seemed as if he was warming up to her a bit. The fact that he was taking food from her was a huge step, but she knew that he was still wary of her, and a part of her understood why.
She couldn’t say that she blamed him. Not really. She couldn’t say for certain how trusting she would be if the situation were reversed.
Marissa pulled the blanket up to her chin and sighed, closing her eyes, she began to drift off to sleep, wondering how she was going to prove to the dragon shifter that not all of her people were scum. She knew that it wasn’t going to be easy, and really had no idea why it even mattered, but to her, it did. She didn’t want him hating her kind solely because of a few rotten oysters.
Chapter Three
Chase opened his eyes slowly, giving himself time to adjust, and immediately sought out the beautiful little water sprite. He found her leaning against the wall opposite of where he sat, fast asleep.
Even in the semi-darkness of the cave, he could see the beauty of her features, and he was thankful that dragon shifters had such good vision. He was thoroughly enjoying the view.
He was feeling stronger by the moment, and allowing himself to sleep had definitely helped. His leg was still throbbing like a bitch, but from what he could tell, it had been broken clean through and that was going to take a bit longer. At least his ribs weren’t screaming out in agony with each breath he took now.
Progress.
He needed to heal as quickly as possible and find those good for nothing bastards. Hopefully, with enough time, she would be willing to give him the help that he sought. It would be nice to have inside assistance.
He just had to remember to tread lightly. He knew that he could be quick-tempered and snappy, but it was the dragon way, and it was going to take him time to learn to rein it in.
If there was one thing that was one hundred percent for sure, it was that Chase Bastaine was a formidable leader, and did not like letting someone else take that position, and it usually caused him to come across as cold. He promised himself that he would go easy with this one.
Chase watched in fascination as the creature in question made a sound in her sleep that was almost a sigh before she shifted, her eyes fluttering as she woke.
And it was enchanting.
No matter how many times he told himself to look away, he just couldn’t seem to tear his eyes from the captivating sight playing out before him as she stretched her arms above her head, the blanket she had wrapped so carefully around her falling to her waist as her chest heaved out to the point of distraction. It wasn’t done intentionally, but it was a wonder to watch. It was honest and easy, and he shivered.
He may be battered and bruised, but he was damn well still a man!
Marissa noticed instantly the way he was watching her as she stretched, and grew flushed. She reasoned that it was due solely because of the intensity of his gaze. Who wouldn’t feel completely exposed with someone staring at them like that!
“How are you feeling?” she croaked out, trying to ignore the feeling of self-consciousness that was washing over her and spreading through her entire body. She only truly felt comfortable in the water, and his eyes on her so intently was disconcerting. It was throwing her off her game. Not that she really had any game to speak of.
She stood and moved over to her bag, desperate to appear unfazed. She took out two bottles of water and handed him one which he accepted with a grateful nod. His eyes caught hers, and it was as if all the oxygen was suddenly sucked out of the cave and she fought to catch the breath that had hitched in her throat.
She busied herself with trying to stoke the nearly non-existent fire back to life before trying to throw together something that loosely resembled breakfast.
All the while she was painfully aware of his gaze following her every move.
“I seem to find myself in need of your assistance,” she heard him say and stopped cold. She turned from her task and looked over at him with surprise.
She knew that this couldn’t be an easy request for him to make. It was more than obvious that he was a strong and powerful man who did not take kindly to having to rely on the help of strangers.
Especially not from a lowly bottom feeder.
Marissa bit back her snarky reply and watched him a moment in silence. His discomfort was more than obvious, and she couldn’t help but take a small amount of pleasure from watching him squirm. He thought he was superior, and perhaps in some ways he was, but the man needed a lesson in humility and treating others with respect.
Just because he had a run-in and had been jumped by some of the worst examples of her kind, didn’t mean they were all horrible creatures. It was like with any beings that wandered the earth, there was good and there was bad, and she hated that he just assumed that they were all thieves and scum.
Ass!
When she figured that he had sweated long enough, she handed him his food and sat down opposite of where he sat, the small fire suddenly flaring up between them as if she had poured gasoline on it, and she found it strangely fitting somehow.
“And, just what is it that you need…” she trailed off, eyeing him a moment. He hadn’t even bothered to tell her his name, and here he was asking for her help. “Do you have a name, by the way?” she asked. “Or do I simply call you dragon-shifter?”
“Chase,” he offered with a half grin that nearly stopped her heart. It was smooth, and sexy, and it made him appear incredibly roguish. “Chase Bastaine, but please, call me Chase.”
“Okay, Chase. What exactly do you need from me?”
“I need you to tell me where I can find the men who attacked me,” he responded bluntly.
She could see the hatred ignite in his eyes, and she knew beyond any shadow of doubt that he was planning to kill them.
“You do realize that you are in no condition to go anywhere at the moment?” she responded, glancing down at his leg for good measure. It was obvious that he was on the mend, but he wasn’t anywhere near well enough to go traipsing about seeking revenge.
“As I’m painfully aware,” he countered softly, but there was no mocking in his words. “But as a dragon, I will heal fairly quickly. I don’t know if,” he stumbled, a hint of red coming to his cheeks as he self-edited, “if your kind is the same as mine.”
Marissa knew that he’d been about to say bottom feeders. He’d caught himself in time, and a part of her almost appreciated the gesture. He seemed to be genuinely trying not to offend her. But, he was also asking her to lead him to massacre a group of her people, and she wasn’t sure how she felt about it exactly.
Yes, they were disgusting, useless, bilge rats who cared nothing about common decency and were an ugly festering boil on the bottoms of all merpeople...but they were still her people.
Could she really just lead them to slaughter? No matter how much better their world would be if they were wiped from it?
“I’ll need some time to think about it,” she responded, feeling a pit growing deep in her gut.
He nodded stiffly, and she knew that he wasn’t used to being denied any request, but she would not betray her people rashly. She watched as he shifted a bit to sit up straighter and noticed tiny beads of perspiration form across his forehead from the effort that it was taking.
Marissa grabbed another bottle of water and the aspirin she had purchased.
“I’m fine,” he husked irritably, waving away her offering, his mouth set in a tight line of pain, and she huffed right back at him.
Stubborn fool.
“Don’t you need to go sink ships or something?” He hissed between clenched teeth, and she just wanted to spit.
“As a matter of fact, I don’t,” she snapped back, his mood swings beginning to grate on her nerves. “I’ve already reached my limit for the week!”
She knew in part his anger was because he was in pain, and most likely feeling helpless, and she had taken a bit of a holier than though attitude with n
eeding to think about helping him, when she knew damned well that she was going to.
Those men needed to be stopped.
By whatever means possible, and she knew it deep down in the recesses of her soul. They were despicable animals who put no value on life. They only valued power.
It still didn’t give him the right to speak to her that way.
“Why are you such an insufferable ass?” She asked, her eyes locking onto his with defiance as she glared.
Chase was silent for a very long moment, his stare returning hers without hesitation, and he realized that he was taking his anger and frustration out on her, and it wasn’t fair. She deserved better. She had been nothing but kind to him, and he was behaving like a boorish entitled piece of shit.
“I am being an ass,” he conceded with a sigh. “Once again, I apologize. I’m just…”
“An arrogant, pretentious jerk?” She jumped in, but he would have been hard pressed not to notice the small grin that was beginning to form at the corners of her mouth, and he had to give her props. She certainly took no prisoners.
“If you insist,” he countered, returning her grin, and it was as if the air around them had suddenly lightened. “I don’t like being out of commission. It darkens my usually winning personality.”
“Pfft. Winning personality, my tail! Have you actually met you?” She threw back at him, and he couldn’t hold back his laughter any longer.
It erupted from him and filled the cavern. Echoing off the walls.
She certainly was a feisty little thing, and no matter how horrendous he felt, he found himself enjoying sparing with her. She was not only beautiful, but she was witty and playful, and his opinion of her species was definitely on the up-swing.
“I have,” he chuckled good-naturedly. “And I’m really not that bad once you get to know me.”
She made the cutest little sound of disbelief as she rolled her lovely aqua eyes and offered him the water and bottle of aspirin again.
The Mermaid's Kiss Page 3
