Kadir was fighting with Soren.

Elyssa felt it, even though she couldn’t hear the reason. They swam together into a hallway and disappeared.

Hopefully, it wasn’t about her again. She rubbed her bare arms, striving for the calm that she felt when he had kissed her.

There was no reason for her to feel this nervous. The warriors were overwhelmingly kind. As soon as they started coming up to talk to her, the distance melted away. They were like any eager college grads wanting to learn all about adult life.

How silly that she had been so afraid of speaking to them. Some hung back shyly, but others were more overt with their offerings and their smiles.

The orange pepper-tattooed warrior named Gailen, who’d accidentally served her a giant mouthful of horseradish, seemed close to college recruit age and was just as eager to understand everything. “Why do you describe these like foods you eat on the surface?”

“Well, this fruit really does taste like a cran-cherry. I’m trying to fix it in my brain so I can describe it to everyone.”

They stared at her.

Had she said something wrong?

“Who is ‘everyone’?” Gailen asked. He was enthusiastic and puppyish — and also a hard-bodied, ripped warrior. He reminded her of teen Chris O’Donnell, Elyssa’s earliest crush. A gentleman, and trustworthy, like he would carry your book bag while making your heart pound.

“Aya. She’s my cousin. And my parents, of course. They’ll want to know.”

Everyone’s brows raised. She had said something truly shocking.

“And it’ll have to go in my reports,” she continued, babbling now. “There’s so much interest.”

“Your people are interested in us?” Faier asked, scratching at his deeply scarred left arm.

“Fascinated,” she said. “Three months ago everything was normal. And then, boom, mermen have been living in the oceans for thousands of years and we never knew. When I was growing up, there were mermaid crazes, and we used to dress up in mermaid costumes, or me and my cousin Aya took mermaid swimming lessons, where we pretended we were mermaids and we wore swim tails. But it was all mythical make-believe. And now, when we find out it’s all real…”

Food floated in the water before her, mermen warriors flexed their iridescent tattoos, and dinner was in the courtyard of a gigantic, living castle.

“It’s a dream come true.”

The mermen seemed to exhale, even though no one was actually breathing.

“Not everyone feels that way.” The skeptical healer, Balim, lifted a superior chin. He was a bit like Benedict Cumberbatch showing off as Sherlock Holmes. “The water is different from the air. This dream of uniting them is rare.”

“Maybe not everybody in the world wants to become a mermaid. But there was a whole pageant full of people.” She pointed at timberwolf-grey Lotar, who was standing apart from the group. “You saw.”

He said nothing, neither acknowledging or denying. Ever the lone wolf.

Ciran grimaced. “What Balim says is also true. Not every woman wished to be there.”

Some people just had to be precise all the time, even when they missed the point.

“Okay, but there were tons who did wish to be at the pageant, like my cousin Aya, and there were tons more who weren’t allowed to compete, like me.”

“Compete?” Gailen turned to scholar Ciran. “What is this ‘pageant’?”

“Women walk in a line across a large stage. They turn and smile. Then, they change clothes and walk in a new line.”

“I want to see it.”

“At first, it is interesting. Then, it is very boring.”

“Ah!” Gailen’s eyes widened with sudden realization. “Many were assembled for this pageant and were not chosen? That means brides are still awaiting us. Let us go now and claim them.”

A fever of excitement swept through the feast. Warriors packed away their food and prepared to leave immediately.

Where was Kadir?

Ciran gripped Gailen’s forearm to prevent the warrior from swimming straight for the door. “You forget. We have no mating jewels for offering.”

He considered the problem for a moment. “I will offer my horseradish.”

“A bride will not accept your claim for horseradish.”

“A modern bride will. Queen Elyssa has just said they do not need an offering if you can convince them with resonance.” Gailen turned to Elyssa. “Right?”

Everyone stared at her.

Well…She didn’t like how everyone was always talking about “purchasing” brides with offerings. Even though it was a bit ironic because Kadir had given Van Cartier Cosmetics a large bag of the precious gems. That wasn’t for her, though. That was for the ocean platform and infrastructure to support her experience, like an astronaut that had to pay for their own rocket fuel to launch into space. She would have done it for free, and she wasn’t the only one.

“For most people, the important thing is your feelings,” she said. “But—”

“Then we will offer feelings.” Gailen dropped his horseradish. “Come, Ciran. You never tried to claim a bride, did you?”

“For me to do so before the king is not tradition.”

“Now the king has a bride, so you can.”

“But, all at once like this, it is also not tradition.”

“Atlantis has no traditions. It is a new city. We can make them ourselves now.”

Swept up by Gailen and the rest of the warriors, Ciran was carried by the mass toward the door.

Uh oh.

“Wait,” Elyssa said, paddling after them. “Let’s, uh, talk about it some more.”

“There are no rules,” Gailen shouted. “Not in Atlantis.”

The whole mass of warriors kicked toward the exit.

“There are rules. There are rules!” Adviser Creo kicked in front of their path, blocking the exit. He raised his arms and shouted. “Warriors! Wait. This is madness.”

“It is not mad. We want brides,” Gailen said simply. He was reasonable and heart-meltingly enthusiastic. “They want us.”

“If you all leave, who will complete the duties to make this castle into an All-Council recognized city?”

“We can draw lots and claim our brides in turns.”

“Then where will you store them? There is only one castle!”

“Bride Elyssa is here now. The Life Tree will grow more castles soon.”

The warriors began negotiating who would go to claim their brides and how many would stay behind for the next turn.

Kadir’s city was dissolving around him — all because of her! — and he wasn’t even here to stop them. Oh, no, wait! Kadir flew from the hallway with Soren, cast a glance at her, and swam to the warriors massed and debating. He kicked forward to stand beside Adviser Creo.

Kadir held up his hands. “Before we claim these brides, we must uphold our agreement. The humans must know we act with honor. We will excavate the old city, uncover the Sea Opals, and then seek the next bride.”

There were darker rumbles of disagreement. Someone muttered that they should never have agreed to the Van Cartier Cosmetics demands, and another muttered at how convenient it was that Kadir did not push for more brides now that he had his own.

Gailen stood indecisively.

Adviser Creo huffed and focused on him. “Take proper care of the bride you have before you go to solicit any more. Excavating the old city while bride Elyssa adjusts to our ways is the safest way to proceed.”

Galen’s jaw shifted in disagreement but he did not argue.

Someone hidden within the mass shouted, “Getting brides now will convince more warriors to join us and then excavating the old city will be easy!”

The hidden speaker exploded their anger. The warriors surged to the exit. Kadir and Adviser Creo braced. Two mermen could not stop the tide.

Soren’s voice cracked. “Who damns their bride to death in the open ocean?”

The warriors slowed and turned.

Soren bellowed, alone, in the middle of the courtyard. “Who abandons this city on a selfish quest?”

Gailen twitched and faced Soren. “It is not selfish. Claiming a bride is why we—”

“You plan to carry brides across the open ocean. None will guard against predators which took all five of us to face.” Soren’s scarred visage was a testament to just how lucky they had been. “Even if your brides survive the crossing, you will return to what? A barren patch of seafloor littered with the wreck of this city and the skeletons of the warriors you left behind.”

Gailen’s jaw flexed.

“Wait until you can protect the bride you so desperately desire. Until that day comes, you are not worthy to offer yourself as a husband.”

He flinched. The other warriors agitated with new anger at Soren’s rough insults.

“Your passion is admirable.” Kadir’s rumble silenced the warriors and soothed Gailen’s frown. “You are all worthy of claiming brides. And now we know that it is possible to claim brides without Sea Opals. In future, we will find these brides. Now, we must prove Atlantis is a city founded upon honor.”

They murmured in agreement.

Soren swam over them to the doorway. “Change patrols.”

The rest of the warriors obeyed. Gailen, still flinching, chased after Soren. “Are we so unworthy? If you could have a bride, you would—”

“I will never have a bride.” Soren swam out. His voice echoed back. “Patrols, with me. Now!”

Three warriors separated from the crowd and swam after Soren. The others shifted somberly. No one was leaving to claim brides tonight.

Gailen glared at the absent mer. His shoulder slumped. He scratched his nose.

Ciran squeezed his shoulder. “Soren is a dedicated warrior.”

“He is no warrior,” Gailen grumbled. “He is a monster risen from the blacknight sea.”

“Gailen.” Iyen snapped. “Stow the food.”

He obeyed without complaint, and many of the other warriors helped him, chatting in a lowered voice. Apparently going on patrol after having crossed the ocean without rest proved that Soren was a beast.

Was Kadir very angry? He spoke with Adviser Creo and looked tense and busy, as expected of a king.

Elyssa tried to help the cleanup effort. The warriors darted easily around her, plucking dishes just out of reach and collecting stray food before her fingers could close around it. She finally wrested a small serving dagger away from Faier, who let her have it with a friendly smile. Then, she had to be shown where to stow it — a pocket growing into the castle wall — and one of the more muscular warriors, Nilun, had to wedge it in.

“Is it okay? The cabinet seems kind of full already,” she murmured.

“Cabinets deepen as the castle ages,” Faier told her. “The castle is young and undeveloped.”

Oh. A house that grew storage as it got older? “Magical.”

He smiled.

A merman whose name she couldn’t remember — Pelan? — made an exasperated noise as he shoved closed the last cabinet closed, cleaned his daggers, and affixed them to his bulging black-and-red-striped biceps and calves. “Another huddle on the seafloor trying not to become crab cake. You know what I miss most about Sireno? A good, long sleep.”

“Sleeping in the open ocean is an adventure,” another grinned. Zoan? Peach tattoos scrolled across his tanned chest. “Here, we are near a Life Tree. It is a luxury, believe me.”

“And yet, every time I close my eyes, on the back of my neck I feel teeth.”

“That is Nilun, giving you a goodnight kiss.” Peachy-keen Zoan threw his arm around Pelan and pretended to gnaw on his neck.

Pelan shoved the teaser away and gripped his bristling daggers. “If that is what you think is a kiss, I hope you will receive a bride last.”

“Straighten your lines,” their hot-headed friend, Nilun, snapped. “Obey your orders with honor.”

“You say that Nilun, but you huddle like a water bug.” Zoan demonstrated, rolling into a ball.

Nilun reddened. “That is the strongest form for defense! You will value it if you are awakened by vent feeders.”

Faier grimaced at Elyssa as though silently apologizing for the warriors’ roughness. Obviously, they were the Three Amigos; a known trio of troublemakers. He kicked on his functioning left leg and shooed them. “We sleep in shifts. There is no biting. Go now.”

They began to swim to the exit.

Why were they swimming out in the ocean when they had a whole castle? Elyssa paddled to Kadir.

He was ordering Lotar and Iyen. “Rest for two shifts. Forget the excavation for now. I need your strength for the coronation. A goblin shark attack is likely.”

They nodded and kicked to the rest of the mermen filing to the exit.

Kadir turned to Elyssa.

She paddled — about ten more minutes it felt like — to reach his side. “Where is everyone going?”

“They are leaving the castle to our use.”

“Why?”

His arms, which had been open to embrace her, moved closed. He held out his forearm for her to grab onto and steady herself. “It is custom.”

“But isn’t it dangerous out there?”

He hardened. “You will be protected in my city.”

“For them,” she clarified. “Didn’t you just say there were goblin sharks and attackers?”

“We are warriors. We can endure any hardship.”

Of course they could. “This is their city. We have a castle here. They should use it.”

A muscle in his jaw tightened.

Don’t tell her she was insulting his warriors’ endurance. “I’m just asking if it isn’t better for them to sleep inside the castle. How can anyone rest if they’re afraid of vent feeders?”

One brow rose. “Vent feeders?”

“Or whatever. If I’m wrong, please tell me.” She gripped his forearm.

His hand clenched tight into a fist.

She wanted to stroke him so that he released his fist, pulled her into his arms, and accepted her apology for nearly fomenting a rebellion and now turning his warriors out of their own home. “I just don’t want my presence to cause any more disruption.”

“Very well.” His other palm rested on top of hers. The hardness eased. It was replaced by something she didn’t expect. Sadness. And resignation. “I will call them back.”

He turned to the exit, the long tunnel that led through the wall to the outside.

She tightened her grip.

He glanced back. His sadness eased. He captured her hand and flew with her to call the mermen back. Across the clear, bright seas, the marble cocooning the Life Tree glowed like a brilliant moon, bathing them all in effervescent moonlight and tinkling beauty. It eased her heart and cast a kinder glow on the surprised faces of the mermen recalled to the castle entrance.

“You will sleep inside the castle this night,” Kadir informed them, his hand entwined with Elyssa’s.

“And every night,” Elyssa said. They all turned to her. She firmed her stance. “Until another castle is grown and it’s safe.”

The warriors looked at each other, then at Kadir again. He was noble and implacable in the Life Tree’s holy light. Truly a king.

Iyen frowned with hard concern and spoke to Elyssa. His expression said he was breaking self-imposed orders. “Do not worry about us.”

“I do worry about you.” All of them had been so kind. She looked from face to face. Their cuts and bruises were an obvious reminder of the dangers. “And I’m not going to rest easy if you’re out there, risking your lives when you could be safe inside.”

He turned his worry on Kadir.

Kadir motioned Iyen to pass into the castle. “Your queen has spoken.”

Iyen lowered his head and led the warriors in. They made a silent, solemn procession of fin flicks and metal tridents. Were they insulted too? But better to be a little insulted than to be attacked and exhausted. Right?

At the back, Faier rested his old injuries beside Kadir. He looked away from Elyssa. Concern was palpable in his voice. “Where will you rest, my king?”

Huh? She made a noise.

They both looked at her.

“I thought…” Did she misunderstand? “Aren’t we supposed to sleep in the, uh, the heart chamber?”

Kadir’s eyes widened.

Faier blinked and then a deep flush crept up his cheeks. He ducked his head. “Ah. I see. Good rest.” He kicked his left leg hard and disappeared inside with the others.

Kadir turned to her with the intensity of a predator focusing on prey. The Life Tree behind him loomed like a werewolf moon. “The heart chamber…”

She instinctively paddled back until she hit the firm inside wall. “Am I wrong?”

“…has yet to grow.” He kept hold of their entwined hand. He rested his other arm on the wall above her head. “It is undeveloped.”

Oh!

Ohhh. She was wrong. There was nowhere for them to sleep. No wonder the other warriors were so worried. No wonder Kadir had looked at her like she slapped him in the face.

His lean, hard thighs pressed against hers. “Do you know what we do in the heart chamber?”

Her heart thumped. “I…I think so.”

His lips hovered over hers. His silver-flecked eyes snapped with intensity. “We join.”

Anticipation tightened her thighs. Blossoming awareness swelled her breasts and tightened her nipples. He looked like liquid silver sex and yes, she wanted him.

His nostrils flared. Was he scenting her desire? Through the water, somehow?

She licked her lips.

His gaze dropped to that motion. “Do you understand what that means?”

She tried to nod.

“Do you intend to join with me?”

Her mistake had made him doubt whether she really wanted to be with him. Now she had to reassure him. She lifted her chin to protest. “Of c—”

He pressed her into the wall and cupped her cheeks with both hands to take his full-body kiss.

She clung to his wall of masculinity. His hard biceps caged her in. His powerful thigh lanced between hers, pressing demands to her throbbing, hot cleft. The powerful thrusts of his tongue controlled her, branded her, claimed her. The undeniable length of his cock hardened into an unstoppable promise.

She had made him this desperate. What was supposed to be their wedding night had turned into a big sleepover. She needed him to know that she did desire him. Not for his position or his power or what he could offer her. Not as a king or a mer or a warrior. As a man.

But she was only clinging to him. Holding on to his flexing biceps like before. To prove it, she needed to ease his fears with action.

She slid her hands up the mountains and valleys of muscle to his broad shoulders. Then, she splayed her hands over his massive pectorals. He felt like a work of art.

His kiss slowed and his lips formed a smile against hers. He enjoyed her touch.

So, she touched more. He felt amazing. With his slow, languorous kisses taking her mouth, he left her hands free to trace the breadth of his ribs, the iron muscles of his taut abdomen, and the flat plane below. There, thrusting proudly, nested the base of his prominent cock.

She wrapped her fingers around it and squeezed. He felt warm and thick. Hers.

A tingling sound, like cymbals building and dying away again, sounded in her ears.

Kadir pulled back abruptly and looked over his shoulder.

She collapsed against the wall. Her lips throbbed from his commanding possession. Her feminine center throbbed with need for it. She flexed her empty hand, remembering the long, hard feeling of his cock in her grip, and she struggled to balance upright. He was still looking out over the open city.

“What is it?”

He turned back. A possessive smile curved his lips. He smoothed her hair and tugged her off her feet to fly into the protected castle. “Nothing that cannot wait for tomorrow.”

Their wedding.

Her coronation.