Mermaid Dreams

by Rinelle Grey

  He wanted to rush in there and tell her, but he made himself wait. She was just waking up, and he didn’t know her well enough to rush in on her in bed. Instead, he did the next best thing, he got up and started to prepare breakfast.

  By the time Cari emerged, her pink hair rumpled from sleep, he had a selection of fresh fruit, toast, and cereal all set out on the table. His effort was well worth it when he saw Cari’s smile.

  “Hungry?” he asked her.

  She just nodded, biting her lip, and sat down opposite him.

  For a while, neither of them said anything. Cari was too busy eating, and Rowan was too busy trying to pretend he wasn’t staring at her. When she looked up at him, and her eyes met his, he mechanically lifted a piece of toast to his mouth. But he couldn’t even have said what was on it.

  He could have watched her all day. But she was looking at him a little strangely, so he cleared his throat. “Um… so I was thinking, maybe we need a break from trying to figure out how to turn you back into a mermaid.”

  Cari frowned. “But we need to figure it out. My family is going to be worried about me. They have no idea where I am. And if even half the legends about mermaids are true, then my people need to know about them.”

  For a minute, Rowan’s idea seemed selfish and stupid. Of course her family would be worried. He would be if one of his siblings was missing. How could he even think about suggesting something just for fun at this stage?

  But as he stared at the worry lines around her eyes and the creases on her forehead, he knew his reasoning was sound. It was what Cari needed.

  “I know,” he said gently. “But I think your worry about them and about getting home is stopping you from shifting. I think you need to do something relaxing for a few hours, and then maybe it will be easier for you.

  The frown didn’t lift from Cari’s face. “You think I can’t turn my legs back into a tail because I’m too worried? I’ll relax then. But we don’t have time to stop trying.”

  “Why?” Rowan countered. “Is there somewhere you urgently need to be? Look, I know you’re worried, but you can’t force yourself to relax. It doesn’t work like that. Besides, don’t you want to have a chance to learn a little bit about the human world before you return to being a mermaid? This might be your only chance.”

  Yes, he was being a little unfair, dangling that one in front of her. He was pretty sure she wouldn’t be able to resist it, just like the little mermaid in the story hadn’t been able to.

  And he could tell he was right from the slight lessening of the tension in her face. “I have been learning about your world,” Cari insisted, but her protest was weaker. “What else is there to know?”

  “Lots,” Rowan said promptly, taking advantage of her momentary hesitation. “For example, the only human clothes you’ve tried on are those shorts. You haven’t even seen a dress or a hat. And the only human books and movies you’ve looked at are ones about mermaids. Not to mention the fact you haven’t seen a real human town.”

  He’d won. He could see it by the way her eyes grew rounder with each new suggestion. By the time he’d finished, she was almost smiling. “What do you have in mind?”

  “We’re on a boat.” Rowan waved his hands around. “We can go wherever we like. Obviously we don’t want to go too far, but I thought we could sail across to the mainland and buy some more clothes, walk through the streets a little, maybe see a movie?”

  Cari was nodding even before he finished. “I think you’re right. I do need a break.”

  Rowan smiled and not just because he was looking forward to spending a day with Cari, showing her all the sights, but also because he really did think this would help.

  Sometimes the answer to a problem came to you when you weren’t even thinking about it.

  Chapter 14

  Cari stepped off the boat and onto the dock, trying not to stare too much. The buildings here were much taller than the ones back on the island. They towered above her, almost blocking out the sun. Not that she minded that right now. The burn on her shoulders had eased a little, but it still smarted occasionally. And the strange things Rowan had given her to put on her feet, thongs he called them, were almost as strange as the fact that she had feet.

  But she wasn’t paying much attention to that right now.

  People bustled past, all of them in a hurry. Just a little way ahead, big objects whizzed past faster than anything Cari had ever seen before. For a moment, she felt a little nervous. This was so unfamiliar it was almost a little scary.

  Then Rowan’s hand slipped into hers, and his voice near her ear said, “I know it’s all new, but try not to ask too many questions or people might wonder. I promise, I’ll explain everything.”

  His presence, more than his words, comforted her. She reached out a hand for the dragon’s tooth around her neck, and that helped even more. She might not know anything about anything here, but Rowan did, and he would keep her safe. He had the heart of a dragon, his stepfather had said, and she could well believe it. Rowan would protect her. She could enjoy the new experience without fear.

  “Okay,” she said back, her voice low. “Except what are those fast things?” She pointed ahead.

  Rowan gave a grin. “Those are cars,” he said, his voice low. “Want to ride in one? It’s the quickest way to get to town.”

  Cari tried not to stare. The idea of getting into one of the things that moved so fast was a little nerve racking. But Rowan seemed unafraid. So Cari took a deep breath and nodded.

  Rowan walked forwards, towards the speeding objects, and it was all Cari could do to hang onto his hand and not shrink back. But the objects he moved towards were stopped. They were less scary when they weren’t moving so fast, so Cari managed not to freak out.

  Rowan leaned down and spoke to a person inside the car. “To the shopping centre please.” Then he opened the door and gestured for Cari to get in.

  There was a seat along the back, kind of like his couch, so Cari climbed in, moving over so there was room for Rowan too. He climbed in behind her and pulled at something on the wall behind him, bringing it across his body, then sliding it into a little box with a click. He waved to Cari, and she interpreted it as she should do the same.

  She didn’t move with the same style and precision as Rowan, but she managed to get the tether across her body before the car started moving. And she was glad she did. The movement didn’t seem quite so fast when she was inside, but she couldn’t predict which way it was going to turn, and the other cars whooshed past them at high speed.

  Cari couldn’t help reaching out for Rowan’s hand, holding it tightly.

  He didn’t seem to mind. He squeezed her hand back and smiled whenever she looked over.

  After a while, Cari grew accustomed enough to the movement to be distracted by the sights outside.

  There were buildings, cars, and people everywhere. So many of them, all rushing somewhere. Cari couldn’t help noticing there were just as many males as females and plenty of young humans of all shapes and sizes. Clearly the humans didn’t have the same breeding issues the mermaids had.

  She nearly let herself get distracted, wondering again if there might be a solution to the mermaids’ problem here, but then she caught herself. This was her one chance to experience the human world, and she wasn’t going to spend it wondering and worrying. She could think about all that later.

  Rowan had said she needed to relax, and as she felt herself getting immersed in the bustle and excitement around her, Cari knew he was right.

  They pulled up in front of a large building, not as tall as some, but it stretched quite far on either side, and it was covered in many colourful images. Cari couldn’t help staring as Rowan reached out and handed something to the man in front. Cari didn’t even listen to what he was saying because she was too busy staring.

  Many cars were parked in rows, most of them not moving. The people who walked here had colourful bags, sometimes many of them at once, and the smaller
vehicles they pushed were full of more bags.

  Rowan climbed out of the car and waved for Cari to follow. She paused briefly to turn to the man and say, “Thank you,” before following Rowan.

  He took her hand again, and Cari was glad of the connection. She was a little afraid of getting lost. If she were separated from Rowan here, she might never find him again. That thought was a little daunting.

  Rowan though, didn’t seem at all worried. He squeezed her hand and gave her a smile, then leaned in close and said softly, “These are the shops. You can buy all sorts of things here. I thought we’d start by buying you some new clothes. Walking around in a bikini top isn’t really proper, although in a seaside town like this no one will pay much attention.”

  A lot of the words he used, like shops and buy, were unfamiliar, but Cari would have to ask later. For now, she just nodded and focused on soaking up the sights and sounds as she followed Rowan.

  Inside there were lanes everywhere with doors and rooms on both sides. All were filled with colour. Cari recognised some things, like the racks of clothes and plates and cups. But many things were unfamiliar. She wanted to point to all of them and ask what they were, but no one else was doing that, so she kept quiet and just stared.

  Rowan tugged her into one of the stores, one with racks of clothes. But they weren’t like any clothes Cari had ever seen before. They were bright and floaty, like colourful coral and anemones. Cari couldn’t help putting out her hands to feel them, and they were far softer than she imagined.

  “Try some on,” Rowan encouraged.

  Cari stared at him. “I can?”

  “Sure.”

  Cari stared, wondering where to start. She looked around the shop, overwhelmed by choice. In her adult life, she’d had only a handful of different outfits that had been scavenged from shipwrecks and clothes lost overboard. None of them had looked like this.

  Everything looked different on land. Cari had never realised how much the water overlaid everything she saw. None of the colours under the water were as bright as the clothes in this shop.

  And yet, when her hand stopped and rested on a dress, it wasn’t one of the colourful ones. This one was pure white, as pale as the clouds she’d first seen when she came to the surface.

  Rowan smiled and nodded. “Let’s start with that one. Um…” He flicked through the clothes for a minute, then pulled out one in the middle of the rack. “I’m going to guess you’re about the same size as Mora, so give this one a try.”

  “Size?” Cari knew she wasn’t supposed to ask too many questions, but it was hard not to. Besides, no one was close enough to hear them.

  “Yeah, people are all different sizes,” Rowan said. “So clothes are too.”

  Of course. Cari nodded and took the dress, enjoying the softness in her hands. “Where do I try it on?”

  Rowan waved her to some curtains at the back. “Back there. I’ll wait here.”

  Cari stared at him for a moment. This time, she wasn’t afraid he’d disappear. She knew him well enough to know that wasn’t going to happen. No, what was bothering her was the fact that she didn’t quite get how all of this worked. She was worried she’d make a mistake and make it obvious she wasn’t as human as the rest of them.

  The trouble was, asking Rowan to come with her was probably just as obvious.

  Rowan must have seen the indecision on her face, because he said, “I’ll be right outside.”

  Cari nodded, his words reassuring her a little. She could do this. How hard could it be?

  But when she got inside the little curtained room and stared at the dress, she realised she didn’t even know how to get it off the black thing it was hanging on. It didn’t just slide off, it appeared to be attached in some way.

  The human world was so complex, far more so than she’d imagined when she’d hid in the water and watched Rowan on the shore and longed to be close to him. She loved being with Rowan, but she couldn’t help longing for the simplicity of her own world, the world she knew.

  That thought almost made her laugh. When she’d been in Laquaria, was it really only yesterday, she’d thought anything must be better than the restrictions there. It was strange how quickly her mind changed.

  “Are you all right in there?” Rowan asked softly from the other side of the curtain.

  “Not really,” Cari admitted.

  The curtain moved aside, and Rowan slipped in, and suddenly everything felt better. Cari handed Rowan the dress and said, her voice low, “I can’t even figure out how to get it off.”

  Rowan didn’t even try to explain, he just did something, and suddenly the dress was free. “You can try it on over the other stuff,” he told her quickly.

  That seemed far simpler than taking it all off, so Cari nodded. She was relieved that Rowan held the fabric in a way that made it easy for her to slip it over her head.

  “Have a look.” Rowan waved behind her, and Cari turned around and caught sight of her reflection in the mirror.

  She couldn’t help smiling.

  Maybe it was Rowan’s closeness in the small room, or maybe it was the beautiful new dress, the white fabric seeming to brighten the room, but the human world didn’t seem quite so scary anymore.

  In fact, maybe it could even be fun.

  Chapter 15

  It was awkward and more than a little squishy, but Rowan couldn’t think of anywhere he’d rather be than squeezed into the changing room with Cari as she tried on her first proper dress. The simple white dress fell to her knees, and though it was bulked out around the shorts she wore, it fitted pretty well.

  He hadn’t been too certain about the white. He’d expected her to choose something more colourful, but the plain colour showed off her pink hair to perfection.

  Not that it really mattered what she wore. She was stunningly beautiful, no matter what. And Rowan wasn’t the only one who noticed. He was grateful Cari seemed to be oblivious to the stares they were getting.

  Maybe it had been a mistake to bring her to the mainland, but as Rowan looked at the smile on her face as she stared at her reflection in the mirror, he couldn’t find it in him to regret it. “I think that one’s a keeper,” he told her.

  Cari nodded. “Can we try more?”

  Rowan gave a grin. “Of course.”

  He half expected Cari to try on every dress in the store, and he resigned himself to this taking a while. At least there were fewer people to stare in here. But she only picked out two more dresses, these as colourful as he’d expected the first time.

  “Is that all you want?” Rowan asked, staring around the store. He’d come shopping with Mora a few times. Their parents had never liked her coming to the mainland alone, half afraid she’d stand out too much and have problems. Mora always tried on far more clothes, even though she hadn’t bought much.

  But Cari nodded, so Rowan took the dresses and walked up to the counter. “We’ll take these,” he said, handing them to the woman.

  She smiled at both of them, and asked how their day had been, and Rowan replied with the usual pleasantries as he handed over his credit card. Cari didn’t say much, but he could see her eyes observing every movement, and he was glad she held her obvious questions.

  Once they’d left the store though, bag of clothes in hand, she asked quietly, “What were you doing there?”

  Rowan glanced around, noting the few stares, and used it as an excuse to brush her off with, “I’ll explain later. There are a few more things we need to get first.”

  Briefly, he wished he’d brought Mora with him or Zara. If Cari was going to wear the dresses in public or on the boat without him being the one staring too much, she was going to need underwear, and he really wasn’t the right person to help her with that.

  He was the only one though, so he ushered her into a department store, grateful that they’d guessed her size closely enough and found the underwear section. He wasn’t even going to attempt to get her to try these on, he just showed her the appropria
te aisle and waited for her to pick out some colours she liked and took them up the counter.

  That would have to do for clothes shopping today. If they found a way to get Cari home, she wouldn’t need any more human clothes anyway. Rowan found the bathrooms and handed Cari the packages. “Do you think you can manage all this?” he asked, his voice low.

  But Cari just nodded, her eyes bright. Rowan hoped she could, because there was no way he was going in there to help her. Not only was it impossible, he wasn’t sure he was really up for explaining underwear to her.

  She was gone quite a while. He was just beginning to wonder if everything was all right when she emerged.

  Rowan sucked in a breath when he saw her. He’d known the white dress was pretty, even over the bulky shorts and with the bright orange bikini top showing through, but now it was stunning.

  No, it wasn’t stunning. Cari was. The white dress might accentuate her pink hair and her slim figure, but she was the one he was staring at, not the dress. The big grin on her face as she swayed from side to side, the way her eyelashes fluttered when she looked at him, showed she knew it.

  “You look gorgeous,” Rowan said honestly. “Everyone is going to be jealous of me.”

  Cari’s return smile warmed his heart.

  For a moment he wished he could just take her home to have her to himself. Oh, he wasn’t going to try anything. He just didn’t want to have to deal with all the other people around. But there was more he wanted to show her.

  “Thanks.” She slipped her hand into his, warm and trusting, and said, “What are we going to do now?” There was an air of expectation in her words, and Rowan wanted to come up with something to really amaze her.

  But the town wasn’t that big, and his options were limited. “I was thinking doughnuts and movie,” he suggested.

  “Doughnuts?” Cari asked, her head tilted to one side.

  Luckily everything was new and exciting to her. So Rowan took her to the doughnut store, and they ordered hot cinnamon doughnuts and watched them being made. Cari stared with wide eyes that grew rounder when she took her first bite. “These are delicious,” she said, her mouth full.