Page 36 of Dark Embers

I stormed out of her cabin before she could say another word.

I didn’t know how, but I had to find a cure to this illness. That’s what it was. It made me physically sick to be away from Arya, and yet I couldn’t be with her. So, I had to do whatever it took to break this damned bond.

Chapter 13

Arya

Anticipation tightened my core as I ventured across the lawn to the secret entrance to the lake. I felt almost naughty to be doing this, sneaking around with a boy just for the thrill of it. But there was also an immense freedom in that, too. No emotional bullshit, no expectations. Just having fun together.

After all the crap with Tobias, I was greatly in need of that. And after dealing with Letti for the past hour, I had even more pent-up frustration to vent. I could think of no better way to spend the rest of my day, and I was beyond excited to learn more about my mermaid’s sexuality.

Kendall was leaning against the wall beside the hidden door as I approached, his eyes lighting with a heat that warmed my center and sent a flush up my neck.

“Hey there, beautiful,” he said in a tone that made the heat creep over my cheeks.

“Hey, yourself,” I said, biting my lip as my eagerness for this encounter built to a fever pitch.

He kicked himself off the wall and took a step forward. “How did your session go?”

I scoffed. “Ugh, I’d rather not talk about Letti.”

He chuckled, licking his lips as he came closer like I was a tasty morsel he couldn’t wait to devour. And I wanted to be devoured.

“Well, should we go on our little adventure?” He held out his hand.

I took it. “Absolutely.”

He turned toward the door, swiped the keycard with his free hand, and held open the door for me to go ahead of him.

This time, when we reached the faintly glowing pool, I didn’t hesitate to strip down to nothing. In fact, I made a show of it, loving the way his eyes burned into me with each item of clothing I discarded.

I stood naked in front of him, every inch of my exposed skin tingling with anticipation, and he continued to stare at me with that hungry gaze.

“Are you going to take your clothes off or just keep staring at me?” I teased.

“I haven’t decided yet,” he replied as his eyes raked down my body.

My inherent modesty finally got the better of me, and I turned my body slightly to hide it, laughing and slapping my hand playfully against his firm chest.

“Okay,” he relented with a snicker.

Then it was my turn to watch as he pulled his shirt up over his head, admiring the way the muscles of his abs and pecs rolled and flexed with the movement. He rolled his shirt into a loose ball and threw it aside, proceeding to unzip his fly and pull down his pants.

I tried to appreciate the dip of the defined V above his hip and the sinews of his athletic thighs, but the pre-emptive thicknessof his cock had my full attention, the sight of it popping out over the hem of his pants making my heart skip.

He glanced at me as he stepped out of them, the devilish smirk on his face telling me he enjoyed my reaction to his body.

Before abandoning his pants, he dug something out of the front pocket and extended his hand to me, opening it to reveal a familiar vial in his palm.

“Thanks,” I said as I took it. “I’d almost forgotten about this part.”

I hated that I still needed salt water to transform, but I appreciated that he not only didn’t judge me for it but also accommodated that need. His consideration meant a lot to me.

I perched down on the edge of the pool and spilled the small amount of salt water onto my legs, willing the transformation to hasten. The more often I transformed, the less it seemed to hurt. It was still incredibly uncomfortable, and I hated the fusing of my leg bones the most, but it was easier to tolerate now than the first time, that was for sure.

As soon as I felt the shift spread up my torso, I slipped into the lake, submerging just in time for my gills to split along my neck. I took in a breath, savoring the cool feel of the water in my throat. As irritating as the transformation part was, it was always worth it for the feeling of being in my natural form.

Kendall dropped in shortly after me, sending bubbles flitting up all around him.

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