Chapter 18
Iris
“What, exactly, is a town hall?” Iris asked, still only half-awake after staying up until almost sun-up reading the Caprica Coraline novel Selene had handed to her as they parted ways at her shop.
It had been a giant mistake.
She really needed to be avoiding romance. Especially ones that got spicy.
She’d lain there afterward, pulse pounding, desire thrumming, just trying to talk herself out of walking into the living room and climbing on top of Finn.
“It’s a meeting with various constituents,” Henry explained as she dropped down on one of the island stools, leaning forward to rest her head on her arm.
“In this case, it will likely be heads of various paranormal interest groups. It gives everyone a chance to ask Finn about his stances on certain subjects. Or request he focus on problems they and their communities are facing. I imagine there is something similar in your kingdom.”
Iris’s memory flashed back to endless meetings sitting in the throne room, listening to her mother and the advisers work through issues various merfolk were facing.
“Something like that,” she agreed. “Why do I need to be there?”
She knew she was being surly. She had a book hangover and hadn’t had a cup of …
A mug dropped down in front of her face, making her head angle up to see Finn giving her another of his tight, fake smiles.
“Look like you needed that.”
“Thank you,” she said, perking up from just the scent of it.
“The short of it is … Finn’s opposing candidate’s wife goes everywhere he goes.”
Oh, Selene would have a field day with that.
“And Finn has mostly been alone. If you two are engaged, you need to be seen there supporting your fiancé.”
“But we’re not officially engaged.”
“You are.”
“I don’t have a ring.”
“Oh,” Henry said. He frowned at her empty finger. “Right.”
“I have a ring,” Finn said.
“You do?” Henry asked. “Since when?”
“When you came up with this idea, I got my family’s jewelry out of the safety deposit box. When I met you, I knew which ring it had to be.”
There was something soft in his gaze that had Iris’s heart fluttering.
“Can I see it?”
“Come on,” Henry said. “Get the mermaid her shiny thing.”
“Hey,” Finn snapped before Iris could say anything.
“It’s a fact that mermaids enjoy shiny things. It’s like saying that the fae are repelled by iron.”
“I don’t care. It comes off as condescending,” Finn said. “I’ll get the ring,” he told Iris.
Despite her desire to really dislike the man, she felt her lips tipping up at his swiftness at jumping to her defense.
“I genuinely meant no offense,” Henry said. He put a hand to his heart. It was a practiced move. It was prob-ably a practiced apology. Still, he wasn’t a man to apologize often, so she wasn’t going to be ungracious.
“Okay. Thanks.”
Finn was back in a moment, like he’d been keeping the ring close, looking for a chance to give it to her.
There was a dainty cream-colored leather ring box in his hand as he walked toward her. He set it down next to her coffee, allowing her the pleasure of opening it up.
Henry wasn’t exactly wrong. She loved shiny things. And she really loved gifts. Gifts of shiny things? Best of both worlds.
She reached for the box as her heartbeat skittered around in her chest.
She flipped the lid and found what had to be the most perfect ring.
It was a rectangular emerald-cut aquamarine stone on a platinum band.
“We might need to get it sized,” Finn warned as she pulled it out and slid it on her finger.
“No, it’s perfect.” She wiggled her finger, watching the way the light blue stone caught the light, casting sea glass shadows across her knuckles.
A flicker of homesickness pulsed through her so fast, so sharp, it made her breath catch.
The color was the ocean. The setting was not.
The contradiction felt heavy on her hand—like a gift, and a chain, all at once.
“This made you think of me?” she asked, uncomfortable with how strong she had to blink to keep the moisture from gathering in her eyes.
“Is it not right?” Finn asked, looking genuinely concerned. “I have a whole box of—”
“No, this is mine,” she said, covering it with her other hand as if he was going to reach over and snatch it off her finger. The move made Finn’s lips curve up. “I like this one,” she added.
“Good. I’m glad.”
“Good, that’s handled. Back to the event.
Yes, you need to be at the town hall like a doting spouse.
Or, in this case, future spouse. You will just be standing with Finn, smile on your face.
Don’t let the media catch you frowning. Especially when Finn is talking to different groups.
They will spin it that you have some sort of bias. ”
“The job is … arm candy?” Selene had taught her that phrase. She hated it.
“Pretty much. We’re hoping no one asks you anything directly.”
“Triton forbid I have an opinion or personality.”
“We’ve seen what happens when you go rogue.”
“All right. All right,” Finn said. He held his hands up. “Can we not go there today?”
“What packaging are you putting me in?” she asked.
Henry didn’t bite the bait. She saw his mouth part to do just that, but a glance toward Finn’s uncharacteristically hard face had him closing it again.
“Arden will be dropping off an outfit later. It’s not a formal event.”
“Do I have to wear heels?”
“In the interest of not having a meme of you falling on your face, we’re going with flats until you get more practice in the heels.”
“Really looking forward to that.”
Iris reached for her mug, getting momentarily distracted by the way her new ring shimmered in the light.
“After the town hall, you will have media training,” Henry said.
It was hit after hit, and she hadn’t even finished her coffee yet.
“Fine.”
“You all right?” Finn asked.
“Tired,” she admitted.
“Saw your light on at three.”
“I was reading.”
“The books I gave you?” Henry asked, surprised and hopeful.
“By the tides, no. It was a Caprica Coraline book.”
“The mermaid?” Finn asked.
“You know her?” Iris asked, head snapping up. Was she pleasantly surprised? Absolutely. Was she happy about that? Debatable.
“I do. She’s incredibly prolific.”
“Finn here has been brushing up on his mermaid customs. Her name came up.”
“You have?” Iris asked. She wasn’t sure if she was meant to be flattered by that. Because it was likely some ploy to know how to manipulate her better.
“I didn’t even have to suggest it,” Henry said, moving out of the kitchen at the sound of a knock at the door.
Iris glanced at her fiancé, trying to read something real beneath all the political polish.
“There’s my gorgeous little mermaid mannequin,” Arden greeted, breezing into the room in a pair of black slacks and a tight button-up black shirt patterned with little red hearts. He held a garment bag draped over one arm and a leather bag in his hand.
“Ugh,” she grumbled.
“Oh, you love playing dress-up, and you know it.” Arden reached up to pull the sunglasses off his face, folding them, then slipping the arm into the neck of his shirt. “Wow. You look like hell. And I know hell.”
“Gee, thanks. I really needed a pep talk today.”
“You look fine,” Finn assured her.
Fine.
What a leg-quivering compliment.
“Can you do something about … all that?” Henry asked, waving toward Iris as a whole.
“Charming as ever, Hens,” Arden said, shooting the other man an eye roll.
“Well, can you?”
“I’m still in the room,” Iris grumbled.
“She needs nothing to be absolutely stunning. But I will have her done up and dressed for the town hall.”
“On time,” Henry insisted.
To that, Arden snorted.
“As much as I can control Iris being on time, sure.”
“Good. Come on, Finn. We have to go over talking points.”
Finn moved to follow his campaign manager but paused. “Don’t slap a ton of makeup on her,” he said. His gaze cut to Iris. “She doesn’t need it.”
“Oh, baby,” Arden said after tugging her into the bathroom. “I am about to combust from that secondhand longing.”
“What are you talking about?” she asked. She watched as Arden hung up a garment bag on the back of the door, then pulled about half a dozen items out of his bag, spreading them across the counter.
“That look, my sweet sea goddess. That look.”
“What look?”
“The one your fiancé shot in your direction before walking away.”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about. What is all of that?” she asked, waving.
“Wait,” Arden said, mouth falling open. His hand shot out, grabbing hers. “Is this the ring? The ring?”
“Oh, yeah. Finn just gave it to me.”
“Oh, Iris,” he said. He pulled it up for a closer look. “It’s stunning.”
“Yeah. I really love the stone.”
“Of course you do. Kudos to Finn for being a great jewelry shopper. That’s an important trait for a husband.”
Was it, though?
Sure, she liked pretty and shiny.
But she wanted more than superficial things. She wanted someone to ask her about her feelings, to inquire about her hopes and dreams, to give her their own depths and vulnerability.
And that man would never be Finn.
So as Arden spent the next few hours slathering things on her face and hair as he took her from grudgingly awake to (in his words) an ‘ethereal sea stunning,’ she tried to think of ways she might make Henry and Finn second-guess her as a political wife at the town hall, without being offensive to anyone or making a complete fool of herself.
She wanted to talk to Selene about it. But by the time Arden thrust the garment bag at her, they only had five minutes left before Henry started nagging.
Alone, she slipped into the light-pink pencil dress that hugged her figure but had a modest neck and hemline.
The fabric slid over her hips like a second skin, soft and smooth and nothing like seaweed wraps or the scratch of coral-polished shells. Too soft. Too easy. Too … human.
Though, she had to admit, Arden definitely knew how to dress her.
As she turned in the mirror, she had the strangest, most stomach-dropping thought.
She was starting to like playing dress-up more than she liked forever sporting her tail and shells.
The thought was so shocking, she walked out of the bathroom on stiff legs, her spine ramrod straight, feeling like her very mind was betraying her nature.
The dress was simply something she wore.
Her tail was part of who she was. How could she possibly think for even a moment that she preferred window dressing to her true form?
“Arden does good work,” Henry said with a nod.
It was high praise from him, but Iris was too stunned by her own mind to react.
“Hey, are you all right?” Finn asked, reaching out toward her arm. Like he thought she might need support.
She did.
But she yanked her arm away.
She wasn’t upset with him this time. She was mad at herself. For becoming so land-oriented. It had been so easy to slip into this new world, this altered version of herself. There were things on the surface that felt like pieces she’d been missing all her life.
The books came into mind first. After a lifetime of reading the same stories, the world had opened up to her. There were endless stories within countless books. There were places she could only visit between the pages of books she would never be able to read under the water.
It was more than the books, though. It was the fascin-ation that came with exposure to other cultures, other people.
She hadn’t been ignorant of the surface.
But it had existed as an abstract, almost like bedtime stories instead of reality.
But almost as soon as she’d surfaced, she could see how narrow her own world had been.
Always the same faces, the same sights, the same language and customs. While the land was bursting with people and experiences she never could have even imagined.
They were strange and wonderful things. Reality television.
Soap operas. Taco Tuesdays. Next-day delivery.
Fuzzy socks. Escalators. Balloons. Tiny dogs in sweaters.
The scent of rain. The sparkle of magic in the air after a spell.
The way humans argued passionately about pizza toppings.
Intricate designs on long plastic nails. Glitter eyeshadow. Hot pretzels.
Without realizing it, without meaning to, she’d come to love thousands of little things she could only find on the surface.
She was terrified she was beginning to prefer it to her home, the place she loved so much, the thing that sang in her very veins.
It was terrible of her to think after just a few weeks on land that she could possibly choose it over her home, her ocean, her people.
How could she abandon herself like that?
She had to go back, to fall in love with all the things that had made her never want to step foot on the surface world in the first place.
And to do that, she had to get out of this engagement once and for all.
“Fine. Let’s go.”
She needed to get this event over with so she could get back to her original plan.
To get herself out of this marriage.
To get back to the ocean.
Before she became someone she didn’t even recognize anymore.
Nothing else mattered.