Page 12 of Bride of the Sea King

He lowered my fingers to the hem of the skirt, and I brushed them over the fabric. When I tugged lightly, my eyebrows raised.

It was crazy soft and stretchy, so how had it hidden his erection?

“It comes from sentient underwater plants. When their life cycles end, some of their magic lingers in the fabric. It connectswith our consciousness lightly and reacts to our subconscious desires. So when we want it to stretch, it stretches. When we don’t, it doesn’t.”

“Damn.” I couldn’t say it wasn’t impressive.

Triton gave me a small grin. “Our silk is worth a lot of money outside the ocean. Only someone who can breathe underwater can find it. We sell it to many of the other kingdoms.”

“So you’re rich.”

“Yes. Most beings in our world are, though. Since the war, there’s a lot of money in Alterrae, and not a lot of people to spend it on.”

My forehead creased. “Why not?”

“Here.” He stepped past me, maintaining his hold on my hand as he led me out of the closet and back into the room.

The furniture and decor matched the style of everything else in the castle, and I had to admit it was beautiful. There was a gigantic bed with luxurious-looking sheets in the center of the space. Off to a corner, there was a large pool. On the wall near the closet, there was a door that I could see opened into a human-looking bathroom.

Triton led me to the bed and sat me down on the edge of the mattress. He remained standing, and I eyed his skirt.

He should’ve been hideous in it, but even the silk getup couldn’t conceal his sex appeal.

The color of it brought my attention to the lone scales scattered across his body, but that didn’t dull my attraction to him either.

“Sweetheart,” the king said, and my gaze snapped upward.

He’d totally caught me checking him out again.

Fantastic.

“Hmm? I’m just tired,” I said. “I spent almost 24 hours shivering on the beach, without food.”

His forehead creased. “That wasn’t intentional. No one told me humans ate so frequently. My people only need one meal every second or third day.”

My eyebrows shot upward.

“Regardless, the attraction you feel is normal. Our bond is incomplete, and the magic will push us to finish it,” he said.

“How do we seal it?” I asked.

“Sex.”

Oh.

Wow.

“What if we don’t?” I countered.

“The magic gets stronger.” He studied me for a moment. “It’s best not to leave it incomplete for long, but I think getting some sleep may help you come to terms with the changes faster.”

I nodded.

I was crazy attracted to the guy, but that didn’t mean I was ready to jump in bed with him and make our bond complete or whatever.

“If the bond isn’t sealed, can it still be broken?” I asked.

“Only through death. An unfinished bond can be twisted, but not broken. And twisted bonds are not something we will ever experience.”

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