“Depends…” His grin returns, dimples and all. “Will you kiss me?”
There are moments in life when things spin so badly out of control that it doesn’t feel like they’ll ever straighten out again.
Like now.
“What are you talking about?” I whisper. “Why would I kiss you?”
“Why not?” He gazes at me from under lowered lashes. “You’re still looking at me. You like what you see.”
“I don’t,” I lie. “And I’m not looking at you.”
“You’re not?”
“No! And I can’t touch you or kiss you. I’ll get stuck with Fae-shot and become sick.” I wipe my sweaty palms on my gown. “It happened to a friend of mine.”
“You and your friends go around kissing Fae men a lot?”
“No! That’s not what I meant. But my point stands.”
“You’ll get sick only if I send bad magic through you intentionally,” he says quietly. “I don’t have such an intention.”
“Oh.” I blink at him. “But still. I can’t… just kiss you.”
“What are you afraid of? That’ I’ll drag you into the lake and ravish you? Think that’s what I do with human women?”
“Don’t you? You spoke of other women who lied to you, and I don’t exactly see many mermaids in the lake. Am I to believe you don’t have urges?”
“Urges.” He laughs. “That’s a word for it. Well, the women who passed by were human, but it was long ago and didn’t even approach the water.”
“Right. I’m supposed to believe that.”
He frowns. “I’m not lying. But fine, don’t kiss me, then. Go.”
“And my pendant?”
“No kiss, no pendant. I’m holding onto it.”
“You can’t do that… I need it.”
“Then kiss me. Simple as that.”
“Are you saying that kissing you would help you? It sounds like a lame line from a peasant boy in the marketplace.”
He gazes at me steadily, his expression not changing, except for a muscle leaping in his jaw.
I sigh. “If I kiss you, will you shift back to human form?”
“Faeform.” He huffs. “Or did you think you had a monopoly on this bipedal shape?”
“You’re being difficult,” I mutter.
“I’m a Fae king cursed to live in a stinky pond in your thrice-damned world!” he roars, and I stumble back a step.
“No need to get upset.”
“Maab, holy fuck, you are annoying.”
“Me? What about you? Why should I believe you’re a king?”