Page 9 of Dry as a Fish
I realized I had been just staring at Delphion the whole time and finally looked over at the plate in front of me. He had cooked salmon, asparagus, and what looked like boiled and peeled potatoes. I didn’t think we were near an ocean but I wasn’t going to worry about where or how a merman got fish. I picked up the fork and it cut through one of the potatoes like it was made out of butter. I lifted a forkful to my mouth and took a small bite.
"What excellent boiled potatoes," I said.
Delphion laughed. "It is an exemplary vegetable."
I paused and looked back over at him. "You like Pride and Prejudice?"
"I prefer the five-hour version, but the shorter movie is nice too," he said. "I have to admit I haven't read the book."
"If you could identify one of the main reasons Elizabeth falls in love with Darcy, what would it be?" I asked, spearing a chunk of the salmon. When I put it in my mouth, it melted there, cooked to absolute perfection so that the dill and cream were soaked through.
"It's because when she sets her boundaries, he respects them," Delphion said, a subtle sadness to his voice, an overtone of something deeper beneath the surface. "He writes her aletter, but it isn't the this is why you should fall in love with me kind of slap back, but instead he addresses her criticisms of him, both founded and unfounded, and doesn't attempt to pursue her romantically afterwards. He only reinitiates his romantic intentions when she has given the clear go-ahead, and even then lets her know that he will avoid her and never mention it again if she turns him away. She falls in love with him because he offers his love through his actions, proving that he will take her desires and needs into his utmost consideration."
I realized I had stopped chewing and swallowed the bite in my mouth as I stared at him.
I could feel it in my chest, like the thrumming strings on a cello, humming in the background of my existence. I'd never met a man before who understood the complexity of that story, of what was actually being communicated in the back and forth between a woman dependent on marriage for her survival and a man who wanted to be loved for more than his wealth. To hear it understood by a man with black scales framing the edges of his face, with a bandage on his neck from where I'd scratched the shit out of his gills, from a monster who promised to take me back to the home I fled from when I had no power to make him keep that promise... it was more terrifying than feeling warm fingers close around my ankle as I stood in the sand.
He was the exact kind of man I could fall in love with.
The heat between my legs let me know that he was the first man I was utterly certain I wanted to get into bed with, but he wasn't a man, was he?
A single note echoed across the strings strung across my heart.
I set my fork down.
"Take me home now," I said, hearing the small crack in my own voice. I needed to go home. "Please."
Chapter
Five
DELPHON
Ifailed.
I found my heartsong and I failed to convince her to stay. I had her in my grasp, and I just told her that I understood that love couldn't be found without the willingness to let go, but I hadn't explained anything. I was supposed to feed her and take care of her needs and make sure she felt comfortable and safe so that I could tell her that the song in my heart, the only one that mattered, would only ever be for her.
I knew I could keep her here.
I could come up with excuses, give her the run around until I had time to explain. I could even sirensong her into complacency, and though my family would have some serious words for me if I did that, any of them would do it themselves if they thought my heartsong would even think of abandoning me to go back to the mundane realm.
But I couldn't do any of that.
"Okay," I said. I rose to my feet, and so did she. "I'll take you home now."
I left the half-eaten food on the table. I would clean it up when I got back. Then I would begin to put my things in order, should the worst come to pass.
"Can I visit you in the mundane?" I asked her.
"Why do you want to visit me?" she asked.
We walked out of the dining room into the living room, where my sister was standing next to the entry pool, tying a sarong around her body. Her face broke into a huge smile as she spotted Slone next to me.
"FINALLY!" she shrieked.
Orcalia flung herself across the room, her arms wide as she grabbed Sloane, sweeping her into a huge hug.
"Hold your kelpie there," Sloane laughed as she pushed my sister away from her.
