Chapter 43
43
W ater hit my lungs. The gills on my neck re-opened as I threw myself through the door back into the ocean beyond the castle.
I emerged to find bodies of the slain sea serpents on the ocean floor, blood still drifting on the sea currents. I swam past the carnage. A pair of sea blue eyes greeted me as the merman who had offered me my deal drifted in front of me.
“ Did you get it ?”
I nodded and reached into the pocket of my bodysuit and withdrew the pearl, still glowing that unnerving green.
“ You did well ,” his voice echoed in my mind, and he reached out and touched my neck. My gills closed up, and suddenly I was choking on sea water.
My panicked eyes met his, and he grinned, those razor-sharp teeth smiling at me.
“ Good luck .”
As I was gagging on the rush of sea water, a strong current ripped me away from the sea floor. I writhed in its grasp, my body struggling without oxygen.
As my lungs burned and the pressure intensified, the current tossed me above water. I spluttered, coughing and hacking as I bobbed above the ocean?—
—but then slipped under again, my panic overtaking me.
I struggled, kicking against the current, but it was no use.
As I fell below the waves once more, I tried to make my limbs cooperate and tried to force myself to the surface.
But then strong arms were around me, bringing me above water.
“Breathe, Saffron,” Callum said, and I took a coughing breath. He slung me over his shoulder, his muscles rippling as I felt him swimming to shore beneath me.
Callum was alive.
I was alive.
The dual truths shot through me.
“Rachelle… Tristen…?” I asked in between coughs.
“Last time I saw them they were alive,” he said, and the panic that had flooded through me in that throne room dissipated.
Callum reached the shallows and he paused, gently bringing me to his bare chest and cradling me in his arms as he carried me to the shore. His body was so warm. I clutched him closer.
He placed me on the sandy shore, tilting me to my side. I coughed out what felt like an endless stream of sea water, and felt him brush back my wet hair from my face as he kneeled beside me on the sand.
“You made it through the fourth trial,” he said. “You’re almost there, Saffron.”
“So close,” I said, my throat raw from the sea water.
“C’mon Saffron, we gotta get you warmed up.”
It was then that I realized I was shaking as the cool air made my wet bodysuit grow even colder. Callum didn’t let me protest as he pulled me into his arms again, carrying me away from the shore and deeper into the treeline. I nestled my face against his warm chest, breathing in the scent of him mixed with seawater.
“You’re alive,” I whispered, the image of King West stabbing him through the heart still flashing in my mind.
“You think some men with tails could kill me?”
I glared up at him. “There were giant sea serpents, too.”
He raised an eyebrow. “Do I look like fish food to you?”
I laughed, and his face softened as he pulled me closer to him. “Where are we?”
“We’re on the west side of the island, at the tip of Dragon’s Tail across from Siren’s Rest, from what I can gather. The rock formations look similar to the ones I used to see on the map of the island,” Callum said, his tone wary.
“Meaning…?”
“We’ve got a long walk back to Saltspire Palace—but we can’t get going if you freeze to death.”
“I’m not going to freeze to death,” I muttered, but I was already feeling much warmer in his arms.
“You’re right. Because I’m not going to let you,” he said, approaching a small clearing that was hidden by the dense foliage of palm trees and rough underbrush. He set me down on some of the palm fronds. “We’re going to make camp here tonight. I’ll build a fire.”
“I’ll help,” I said, but Callum’s strong hand held me down.
“No. You need to rest. But first… you should take off your wet clothes first.”
I looked down at the bodysuit, and started to unclasp it, then paused. “I’m wearing leggings underneath this, but I don’t have a shirt…”
Callum was already removing his white shirt. “I’ll get this dry for you by morning.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes. Let me get a fire going so you’ll be warm.”
I just nodded, my head suddenly swimming with all of the exertion. As Callum disappeared beyond the palm fronds, I removed the bodysuit, wearing just the cotton leggings and band around my breasts as the night chill teased my wet flesh.
Even with the cold, I somehow slipped into sleep.
I awoke to a crackling fire and the smell of smoked meats that had my mouth watering. As I blinked the sleep away, scrubbing my face with my hand to try and get my bearings, I realized that Callum had covered me with his now-dry cloak, and I was resting on a mat of braided palm fronds. His tunic shirt was folded underneath my head like a pillow, and smelled of his leather and citrus scent.
Callum glanced over at me from where he was rotating a spit on top of the fire, made from teepeed sticks to create a makeshift cooking area above the flames. He looked every bit a chiseled warrior, the flames dancing off the muscled planes of his bare chest. His brown-blond hair glinted in the flickering flames. His green eyes landed on mine, pools of verdant gems.
He removed the meat and placed it on a large leaf, and settled next to me as I pushed myself up.
“Eat,” he said, handing me the leaf.
“Where did you get this?” I asked, taking the leaf from him and picking up the juicy meat with my fingers. I popped a piece in my mouth and stifled a moan as I chewed. I hadn’t realized how hungry I was.
“I used to hunt back in Riverleaf,” Callum said, his eyes gleaming with amusement as he studied me. “There were some island doves I was able to catch for us tonight.”
“With what?”
“I have my ways,” he said with a grin, his ego on full display.
I finished eating, taking a swig from my waterskin. “Do you think it’s safe for me to wash off in the ocean?”
“It is if you go with me,” Callum said, and I saw the heat in his eyes.
“Then let’s go,” I said, and rose to my feet, just wearing my leggings and the band around my chest.
“I’ll race you,” he said.
“I hope you like losing,” I replied and we took off running.
We sprinted through the palm trees, my bare feet hitting sand as I ran across the moonlight-soaked shore to the sparkling ocean. I pulled off my leggings, laughing in surprise as Callum flung his pants in the breeze and I dodged them, losing precious seconds in our race.
“Cheater!” I called, and I heard him laughing as he hit the water.
“I still won,” he called.
I smiled, pausing at the shore to unwrap the last pieces of clothing from my body and standing before the water completely bare.
Callum’s eyes went wide. “I’ve definitely won.”
I brushed my hair out of my eyes, suddenly a bit shy as the ocean lapped at my toes.
“Come in,” Callum said, and rose out of the ocean to beckon me in. As he stood, I realized he was completely naked, too. I couldn’t stop my eyes as they roved over every inch of him, his wet skin shining in the moonlight as if he was covered in diamonds. His torso was wrapped with thick muscle, sharpened and honed by his years of training. The ‘v’ shape of his muscles ended in something so impressive I… blushed . Suddenly, my knees felt a bit weak.
“See something you like?” Callum asked with a very male grin.
I began wading into the water then, and then dove into the current, ignoring his outstretched hand.
“Maybe,” I said as I resurfaced.
He turned and swam after me. “Well I see some one I like. Very much.”
I let him pull me into his strong arms, and I wrapped my legs around him. The water was cool but his body heat kept me from shivering. “Do you now?” I asked.
He lifted a hand to my lips, tracing them with his thumb. “I see the woman I’ve been waiting for ever since you were taken from me.”
I tilted my head. “Waiting?”
He paused, then said, “I knew you would find your way back to me.”
I searched his green eyes, wishing I could see all of the memories we had shared together in his gaze.
As we floated in the quiet ocean, I felt my body heat at every place it touched his. His fingers clasped my chin, angling my face to his as his lips met mine.
The kiss was urgent, wanting. I felt his tongue sweep out on the seam of my lips, demanding entrance, and I parted for him, letting him claim my mouth. My right hand curled in his golden hair, pulling him toward me.
He pulled away, and I let out a soft moan, wanting his lips back on mine.
“Saffron…” Callum said, his eyes raking over me with a kind of desire that made my blood heat.
But before he could make due on that desire, a lone coyote’s cry pierced the silent night.
I clutched Callum, turning my gaze to the shore as the shadows grew longer in the moonlight. More coyotes joined the first one’s call, and even though we couldn’t see them, they sounded like they were moving closer.
“We should get back to the fire,” Callum said, holding me to him as he began to wade from the water. I must have looked disappointed because he chuckled. “To be continued,” he said.
He let me down gently by the shore, and I picked up my clothes on the beach, following him back to the camp.
“I didn’t know that there were coyotes on this part of the island,” I said.
“There are much worse,” Callum said as he pulled on the clothes he had discarded on the beach, wearing only an undershirt he must have had on underneath the tunic shirt he had gifted me. “Which is why I’ll be keeping watch while you sleep.”
“I can keep watch?—”
Callum turned to me, and I stopped as he ran the back of his hand gently down the side of my face, and then cupped my chin. “You need sleep. I can handle it.” He leaned down, kissing me in a way that stole my breath away.
He let me go, but I reached up, winding my arms around him. “I can’t lose you.”
“You won’t,” he said, his voice firm. “We will find a way to win these trials. Together.”
I leaned my forehead against his chest and sighed. I wanted nothing more than to believe him.