Chapter 11

She didn’t know what had come over her. She wasn’t known to be terribly impulsive, but hearing his words, knowing he could relate, had made her very sore heart come alive.

And it didn’t hurt that he had the best lips ever. Like, bar none, the best lips she’d ever locked with.

They were firm in all the right places, soft, gentle, forceful. They were everything, and as he dipped his tongue into her mouth, she saw stars. Literally saw stars; they made her heart crash against her ribs

And as her hands crept upward and around his strong neck and her fingers threaded through his soft, thick hair, as his thick arms encompassed her, she almost stopped breathing. Her stomach plunged to her toes, her knees went soft and buttery, her eyes nearly rolled to the back of her head.

Until she heard, “Excuse me, but can you please put Big Fish’s tonsils back where they belong and fucking join us in the living room?” Nina stuck her face between theirs and planted a hand on each of their cheeks, pulling their lips apart.

Esther hopped back like she’d been burned, her cheeks going bright red when she realized what she’d done. But he’d been so sweet and understanding, and he’d related to her, and she’d lost her fool mind.

Taking another step backward, she almost stumbled on a pile of papers, but Tucker grabbed her. Her head was reeling from that kiss—that luscious, hot, mind-melding kiss—but she managed to find some focus with Nina leering down at her. “Did you find something?”

She grinned then shook her head, her charcoal eyes peering into Esther’s. “No. Not a GD thing so far, but Whiny and Cranky are here and they want to know where you want them to start. So quit looking for each other’s lungs by way of your tongues and get your asses out there.” With those words, she cackled and turned, weaving her way back out of the bedroom.

She looked up at Tuck, his eyes darker, his lips still flushed from her kiss, and she wanted to do it again. But she had to remember she was only hysterical bonding. “I’m sorry.”

He used his thumb to rub the outer corner of her lips and smiled his delectable smile. “I’m not.”

“You should be.”

“Why would I be sorry a beautiful woman kissed me?”

He thought she was beautiful?

Stop that right now, Esther!

“Because it was wrong of me to kiss you. The circumstances are all wrong.”

He grabbed her fingers in a loose hold and kissed each tip. “Well, I admit, it’s not exactly ambiance central here, but I’m okay if you’re okay.”

She frowned at the shivers he evoked along her skin. “I’m not okay. What I just did was called hysterical bonding.”

He paused, but only momentarily before he resumed kissing her fingertips as he looked at her over her hand with a facetious smile. “Say again?”

She sighed, hoping it didn’t sound breathy, but to note, she wasn’t pulling her fingers from his lips like he was Satan eating her flesh off, either. “It’s called hysterical bonding. When a couple is in a stressful situation, they sometimes turn to one another for comfort.”

“I don’t feel hysterical,” he assured her with confidence.

She pulled her hand away from his lips, due to the distraction, and inhaled. “You are, you just don’t know it,” she insisted.

“Nope. I’m quite un-hysterical, actually.”

She twisted a strand of stray hair around her finger. “Is that even a word?”

He shrugged and smiled. “I have no idea, I just know I don’t feel at all hysterical. Good, yes. I feel quite good, actually. But not at all hysterical.”

“Well, here’s something to chew on while you’re not hysterical. Sometimes you don’t recognize hysterical bonding when it’s happening. It’s usually reserved for married couples—and a spouse who cheats. But what I just did was definitely a branch off the tree of hysterical bonding.”

Tucker moved in a bit closer, making her cheeks flush hot again. “Do you feel hysterical?”

“I feel stupid.”

“Because?”

“Because I just face planted you with my lips, Tucker. I don’t do things like that.”

He mocked a serious face. “And why did you do that? Face plant me with your lips.”

“Because you were being so nice and…” And you’re super sexy. Duh, Fish-man!

Tucker made a big to-do about giving her words thought before he said, “So, do you kiss everyone who’s nice to you the way you kissed me? I mean, there was tongue and everything, Esther. That’s almost like we’re engaged or something. Now, I’d like to think you reserve that for a really good kiss, but how would I know? We hardly know each other.”

She giggled, fighting a snort. “What kind of question is that?”

“I’d say an honest one, considering your alleged hysteria.”

Esther waved a finger at him. “I’m telling you, Tucker Pearson, that’s what this was. In the meantime, look up hysterical bonding. You’ll see it applies. And now, I’m going to take myself and my out-of-control lips back into the living room and pretend we weren’t just caught making out in my uncle’s bathroom.”

“Okay, but I’m telling you. I don’t feel at all hysterical.” And then he dropped a quick kiss on her lips before she could turn and fight her way out of the bedroom before she did something stupider, like ask him to marry her.

As she made her way back to the voices in the living room, she found Wanda and Marty had joined them and they were all still sifting.

Putting her hands on her hips, she looked at the sprawling mess and said, “I think this is a waste of time, guys. I don’t think the answer lies here. I think it lies with Tecton and/or the coroner. Maybe the people my uncle worked with. I guess I was so caught up in my own life, I didn’t think to dig deeper and wonder how this all went down. My uncle’s attorney called and said he’d taken his life, and I… I don’t know what I thought, but I was careless, and I feel like an ass that I didn’t consider looking into this. But now I want to know what the hell’s going on, and they’ll have to tell me because I’m my uncle’s only living relative.”

Marty smiled up at her from her place on the floor, her eyes less hazy since last night, her hair up in a messy bun, her leggings and boots as fashionable as the woman herself. “I’d lean toward you’re right, honey, but I’m afraid to abandon this and find out later we missed something. So, grab a seat, Little Mermaid.” She patted the space next to her.

And that’s what they did, for almost ten hours straight—sifted through useless paper after useless, empty paper while Wanda intermittently napped on the crisp burgundy leather armchair they’d found pushed against the wall under a stack of more papers, and Darnell went and grabbed sandwiches for their lunch.

“Okay,” Esther said, rising to stretch out her legs, cramped and tired. “I’m calling this. There’s nothing here. You’re tired. I’m tired. We’re all tired, and we’ve been cooped up in this veritable paper factory all day long. I can’t thank you all enough for the help you’ve given me, but you guys need to go home and sleep…see your families…do whatever paranormal people do.” Then something occurred to her. “Wait. Nina, how are you awake when it’s well before midnight? How were you even awake last night? Oh my God! Am I keeping you from vampire sleep, or whatever you need? How rude and selfish of me—”

Nina popped up from the floor, stopping her tangent. “First, I sleep normal hours just like you, Tina The Tuna. I’ve learned to tolerate daylight because of these two fucking nuts. They leave for the discount mall at eight sharp in the morning, and they drag my ass with them. There is no sleep with these two. Second, no one goes anywhere until we find out the truth about your uncle and someone teaches you how to be a mermaid. I like Big Fish, don’t get me wrong. He’s nice enough. Cute accent, blah, blah, blah. But I gotta tell ya, I’m not a fan of his fucking family right now. I mean, fuck—his own father thinks he had some shit to do with this? Uncool. If that’s the kind of welcome you’re going to get from them, I’ll bite you myself so you can join my clan just to keep you from that bunch of misguided morons.”

Esther threw her head back and laughed, throwing her arms around Nina’s neck. “You’re the best thing that’s happened to me in forever, you know that?”

As Nina pried herself loose from Esther’s grip, Wanda woke up, rubbing her eyes. “I’m dreaming, right? Did someone just say Nina was the best thing that ever happened to them? That has to be a dream,” she said groggily, covering her mouth to hide a yawn.

“Nay!” Nina crowed, holding her hand out to Wanda to help her up. “In fact, this is not a dream, Sleeping Beauty. Esther just has the good damn sense to know I’m the nicest one out of all of you. I’m honest and I get to the fucking point. Some people still value that shit. Now, c’mon, Drooler. Let’s get you back to the cottage so Arch can fill your endlessly empty fucking tank.”

As everyone began to work their way to the front door, Esther held back, taking one last look at her uncle’s apartment, knowing someone was coming to empty this all out tomorrow, and closed her eyes.

I’m sorry, Grandpa. I’m sorry I didn’t force my way in here. I’m sorry I didn’t think to look closer at the circumstances surrounding his death. I’m sorry.

She scoured every last inch of his apartment with her eyes, memorizing the plain beige walls, the tiny kitchen with its brown Formica countertops barely visible, the towering piles papers, and inhaled, wiping her tears.

Tucker leaned down near her ear. “You ready now?” he asked, taking her hand.

And she let him, her nod one of determination. “Let’s go catch a killer.”

* * * *

“Esther, it’s so amazing to see you again,” Jessica, Tucker’s beautiful sister, said with a warm hug. “Are you ready to be a mermaid?”

Esther peered around, still unable to tell Tucker she didn’t know how to swim. But in for a penny, in for a pound, right? That’s what she kept telling herself as she, Marty, Nina, and Tucker gathered around the lake these mermaids owned, shivering.

They’d decided nothing else could be done until the morning, so what better time to teach Esther how to be a mermaid than tonight?

It was a chilly midnight, filled with a light mist of fog rolling in across the manmade lake, constructed just for this purpose. And even with the fog, it was like something right out of a Disney movie. Nothing deterred from the magnificence of the scene before her. Not even her terror.

Mermaids, their sparkling tails in all colors of the rainbow, appeared before her eyes, surfacing to slap the water, only to dive back under again and disappear into the glittering depths. Enormous rocks, grouped together and fashioned to resemble cliffs, housed women of all shapes and sizes, soaking up the moon’s rays as they sprawled out along the craggy surfaces, their hair flowing out in satiny ribbons behind them. Men, too, their chests bare, their signature wristbands glowing in the dark, sat with them, resting and enjoying the evening.

The moon, full and high, glowed bright in the sky, giving their skin an almost ethereal tint. The water swished in hushed pools, dipping in small circles as another mermaid surfaced and dove back under. Seeing their graceful glides, watching them frolic with such ease, Esther couldn’t help but smile.

The lights from the houses, set farther away from the lake on a hilltop, cast dots of light on the horizon, making her wonder what these people in Tucker’s pod were like.

And Esther?

Well, she was terrified, as Marty held her hand and Jessica peered at her with gentle eyes. “Please don’t be frightened, Esther. I’ll teach you everything I know. You’ll be glorious. I promise you. I just need you to trust that I’ll be close, and so will Tucker, and if you become afraid, we’ll help you.”

Chester popped up behind Jessica, his wide chest and boyish good looks even better looking under the moonlight. “I’ll help, too,” he said with a wide smile.

Marty tucked Esther’s hair behind her ear. “This is just a trial run, sweetie. We can bail anytime you want. You don’t have to learn everything in one night, right, girls? It took me a long time to learn to be a werewolf. Ask Nina.”

Nina nodded, her eyes glittering in the dark. “Holy fuck, if that ain’t the truth. There was more whine than a damn vineyard while she learned how to be a werewolf. But I think I got your number, Esther, and I’m pretty sure you’re a badass bitch. Now, go do mermaid things like a good girl, so Auntie Nina can go back to the cottage and watch Stranger Things and poke holes in their bullshit theories about the paranormal.”

Nina shooed her with a hand, but Esther gripped Marty’s hand tighter, digging her heels into the sand.

Tucker came to stand in front of her, his warm hands cupping her face as he looked down at her, his eyes soft. “I’ll be there the whole way, Esther. I won’t let you out of my sight. But you need to know how to do this. The urge will call you, and when it does, you’ll need to know how to handle your tail and fins. I can teach you. We can teach you. Most importantly, Jessica can teach you. Our tails are designed differently as males and females; she can teach you how to navigate.”

She let go of Marty’s hand and gripped Tucker’s wrists, her next question filled with worry. “Won’t you get into trouble for being here? Maybe we should leave and you can teach me another time? You’ve already been kicked out of your pod. I don’t want you to get in more trouble because of me.”

Sure, sure, she was stalling about getting in the water. But she wasn’t lying about her worry he’d get caught. It was enough that he’d likely be questioned in her uncle’s death once she started poking around.

Jessica shed her coat and her shoes as she said, “Don’t worry, Esther. I’ll make sure no one says anything to him. He’s here with me, and they’ll just have to like it. Besides, his evacuation from the pod has to be run past a council. My father’s not the be all and end all of merpeople.” Her face looked cross under the moonlight, convincing Esther if nothing else, she was loyal to Tucker.

Shaking off her sheer terror, she tried so hard to suck it up—she didn’t have a choice but to do this. If this urge was going to call to her, she had to know how to handle it correctly.

“Okay,” she murmured, giving Tucker’s wrists one last squeeze before she, too, shed her jacket and kicked off her sneakers.

Nina drove a playful knuckle into her ribs and smiled at her. “That’s my girl. Swim, fishy, swim!”

“But wait. What about…” She circled her breasts with her hands. “The last time I turned into a mermaid, I was sort of naked. Those women out there don’t look naked.”

Jessica nodded her head and chuckled. “Those are scales covering their breasts. They’re soft, almost like satin, though. Once you’re in the water long enough, you’ll acquire them, too. But I brought you a bikini top, just in case.” She grabbed what looked like a beach bag from the sand and dug around until she pulled a hot-pink top out. “We’re about the same size, I think.”

Yeah. In what fantasy?

Esther nearly laughed out loud. They absolutely were not even close to the same size. Jessica had full, round stripper boobs and Esther had training-bra boobs, but whatever. It was nice of her to compare her so generously. She liked her now even more than she had the first time she’d met her.

Marty held up a colorful beach towel with a whale on it and winked. “Let’s get you changed, young lady.”

As she stripped down to her bikini undies and shrugged into the bikini top, she shivered, her skin withering beneath the cold night air. “If I get frostbite, Pearson, you pay the hospital bill. Go that?”

Tucker laughed, his deep chuckle husky and sexy in her ears. “Consider that a deal, Sanchez. You ready?” He’d shrugged off his jeans and shirt as though he took his clothes off in front of women every day.

And if she were honest, he should. If her body looked like his, she’d wander everywhere naked. She’d food shop naked.

God, he was sexy. He had more ridges and ripples on his body than ten bags of Ruffles potato chips. From his wide shoulders and his heavily muscled chest with a sprinkling of hair between his pecs, to his thick thighs and tapered waist, as he stood in front of her in nothing but his red boxer-briefs, she had a harder time not staring at his perfection than she did being in a bikini.

Yes, she jogged. Sure, she tried to watch what she ate, but in the end, she didn’t look like Tucker, who looked like he belonged in Perfect Body Monthly.

As Marty stood in front of her, holding up the towel, Esther leaned in and whispered, “I don’t want to say I’m intimidated here, but hello. Is it fair I should be undressing in front of Body Beautiful?”

Marty’s laughter tinkled in the chilly air and she made a face. “You have an incredible body, Esther. I’d kill to have an ass like yours. You have nothing to be intimidated about. Now, go be a mermaid. We’ll be right here when you surface.”

Said the beautiful blonde with perfect makeup and sexy curves like a mountain road. But okay. There was nothing she could do about her cellulite now.

Jessica held out her hand to Esther and gave her another reassuring smile, and as she led her to the edge of the water, and Esther violently shivered, all she could do was pray somehow her newfound mermaid-ness would negate her inability to swim.

Or she was gonna swim with the fishes, all right.

Face down.