Chapter 27
Keri
I frown at the email from my mother and read the few short lines she sent yet again. I just barely refrain from rolling my eyes at her response. I don’t know why I even bothered asking her to look into the situation when I have Adiele helping me. Yet, my friend insisted.
What sort of answer is “the sea will provide, look to the west and the cup of life?”
Of course, what I need is from the sea. That is given. The nonsense regarding the cup of life is a clear alchemical terminology once again referring to water, as is the westward direction. So, look to water to solve a water species dilemma... no kidding, ma. Overall, this is just useless to me.
And once more, divination in my life mocks me.
Sitting back in my chair, I delete the email as Adiele glances up from the book she’s been squinting at for the last hour.
“Anything useful?”
I shake my head and repeat what the email said as I rub my temples with two fingers. “I don’t know why I expected or hoped for anything different. I should be grateful that she made the effort after basically refusing to acknowledge me as her daughter ever since I refused to go along with yet another idea to attempt crack open my non-existent divination abilities after I made the decision to move on, but I don’t. All I feel is disappointment.”
Adiele rests her elbows on the open book and nods sympathetically. “No doubt she is upset that you won’t be the resident diviner for the coven-town Katherine and Adeon have decided to build around the Durmont coven house.”
I look up at her in surprise. “Where do you even hear this stuff? You aren’t even a Durmont but are better informed than I am. I didn’t even know that this was happening.”
A secretive smile curls her lips though she shrugs nonchalantly. “You know me. I do love gossip, and everyone comes to the Emporium.”
I laugh despite myself. “Trust you to use your job to fuel your true passion.”
She smirks back at me, her eyes dancing with sly amusement. “Hey, we both know that divination itself is simply information gathering. I don’t know a diviner alive who doesn’t enjoy a good bit spilled tea. Your cousin Jillian passed through a few days ago brimming over with excitement.”
“Jillian is excited over a town being erected?” I echoed, my eyebrows rising. I love my cousin dearly but that doesn’t sound like her. “I didn’t think she got excited over anything except the next social event that would help her locate her perfect man
Adiele snorts merrily at my comment but doesn’t refute it. “Actually, I think her exact words were along the lines of ‘maybe with a central town for people to move into that will improve the dating pool.’”
“Of course,” I chuckle. “I guess I will have to visit but if mother’s hope is to have me out there, I would have had to disappoint her regardless of my divination ability. Even if we work out a replacement for his supplement, Ro would be uncomfortable being that far inland away from the sea.”
“Ro would, huh?” Adiele observes, her brows winging up to her bangs. “I didn’t know that you were that serious about him.”
I blush and turn toward the stack of books to pick up the first one sitting at the top of the pile. “I don’t know if I am or not. Things are a little new between us.”
“Things...” my friend repeats, her grin growing wider. She hastily glances around to affirm that we are alone and leans in closer over the table. “What sort of things, Keri? Has something ‘popped up’ that you didn’t tell me about?”
“Oh gods... shhhh,” I hiss as my cheeks burn even hotter. “Nothing ‘popped up.’ It was actually all very sweet. I told you how we found Gryn, right? Well, technically he found me first at the beach house and then we tracked him down at the docks... but anyway, it was just afterward. Ro came over and things just kind of... happened.”
“Oh no. Don’t tell me that he seduced you with his song because if he pulled that shit again with you, I will track him down and show him how talented I am at removing fins and descaling a fish with a pocketknife.”
Ouch.
I throw my hands up in protest and laugh. “No need to threaten violence, Adiele. Geez. It just happened for both of us, the singing didn’t start until were in the middle of things and at that point, I don’t think he could have stopped it if he wanted to. But getting to that point was all us... and, well, I like him. A lot. And he likes me. He said he prefers me to everyone else.”
Adiele gives me a long, skeptical look but suddenly laughs. “Oh honey, of course he likes you. You’re mate compatible with him which makes you his ideal mate. Ro has been head-over-heels for you since you met. I just wanted to make sure you weren’t getting forced into anything you didn’t decide for yourself that you want.”
I stiffen and stare at her in shock. “I’m what?”
Her smile slips and suddenly she goes pale as she slaps a hand over her mouth. “Oh fuck! I thought you knew. Especially if you two got busy. I thought maybe that whole lovey dovey stuff you were just talking about was because he confessed.”
“But you knew?”
“Of course! I had him in my shop days before even taking him over to the library and saw the way he interacts with women. He is always polite but distant. Yet when he met you that all changed. Hell, he was following you every day and loitering around my shop whenever you came to visit as if he couldn’t bear to have you out of sight. I would have to be completely blind not to notice.”
“I didn’t realize,” I murmur, my eyes falling to the book in front of me. I run my fingertips over the cover to distract myself from the way my heart plummets at her words. “I know he insisted on being assigned to me for the study, but I thought that it was because I was female, and he felt safer that way.”
That doesn’t make me feel any better, either.
Adiele covers my hand with hers in a comforting gesture. “I’m not surprised that you didn’t notice. Outside of being a little paranoid about his species despite your obvious fascination, I don’t think it would have even occurred to you to pay attention to the way he interacts with you compared to everyone else. Or you simply would have written it off as Ro being more comfortable with you since starting the study.” She hesitates, her mouth twisting in a grimace. “About the study... Ro didn’t hear about the study until you mentioned it. I had brought him there solely so we could find out more about the supplement but when you said that he just went along with it.”
“But... but why?” I ask, unable to wrap my mind around it. I know I’m gaping at her like she just grew a second head, but I just don’t get it.
The whole study was a sham? No, not the study itself because he did cooperate with me fully with every single thing the council requested. But I always assumed that we were working together because it was mutually beneficial on an interspecies level. Never in a million years would I have suspected that he was there for any other reason.
She smiles and squeezes my hand. “Probably because once he recognized who you are to him, his desire for the supplement instantly became secondary to his need to be closer to you. Especially after the way you reacted to his song,” she adds, and I grimace in embarrassment.
Okay, she has me there.
But why didn’t he tell me before now? Did he change his mind and decide not to mate me after all. We’ve been having sex whenever we can sneak away and find someplace private. It makes it a little difficult since he has to return to the water by sundown every day, but it’s not like we aren’t enjoying our intimacy. Maybe it’s not enough. I didn’t make him any promises and he didn’t make me any either. He could just be waiting for me to work out the formula for his replacement supplement so that he can strike out further inland to discover his options. I don’t want to think that he would use me that way, but I’m struck with an uncomfortable uncertainty that threatens to drown me.
“Don’t overthink this,” Adiele gently cautions. “Knowing you, you probably are busy cooking up all the worst case scenarios. You just said that things have moved forward in a positive direction for you guys. You like him, and obviously he must like you. Why not see where it takes you?”
Sucking in a deep breath, I nod. She’s right. I should trust Ro at least a little and see where this thing between us goes. He should at least have the chance to properly ask me to be his mate. Either way, whatever this is won’t have the chance to grow if we can’t figure out how to join our worlds. I need to find the core ingredient that I need. Mom hasn’t been of much help, which leaves one person that I know I can count on. Giving Adiele a shaky smile, I pull out my phone. I open my email app and notice the curious glance she gives it.
“What are you doing?”
“Emailing Aunt Katherine,” I reply.