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  "You be good, you little minx.” But he was grinning. “Let's try to get this over with, and do it without anyone getting dunked."

  "Okay, fine, I will be on my best behavior."

  She tried not to laugh at his expression.

  Hand in hand, Chris and Trinity walked up the beach to greet the news crew and Karla. The woman had a smug look of satisfaction on her face, and Trinity wanted to slap her. But she kept her hand in Chris's and smiled brightly.

  What a pair they must make, she thought. Her in his oversized shirt and he in a pair of shorts that had seen better days. When he pulled them to a stop just to the back of the house, she looked up to see Karla and the crew walking toward them. Trinity pulled her hand from Chris and placed it around his waist, taking her place beside him.

  "What brings you out, Karla?” Chris kept his voice friendly. “You know you have brought these folks onto private land?"

  "Save it, Chris. You know why we are here.” Her eyes moved to Trinity. “I know what I saw last night."

  "You saw me holding my future wife."

  "Future wife? You must be joking.” Her voice grew harder. “You would marry a fish? Oh, Chris, I really expected better of you."

  "Excuse me, but did you just say fish?” He quirked a brow. “Just what were you drinking last night? I was with Trinity and I wasn't fishing."

  Trinity let her hand fall to his backside and she gave him a little pinch, then a pat.

  "I know what I saw!"

  Chris sighed and gave Trinity a look that clearly said he had no idea how to handle the woman.

  A member of the news crew stepped forward. “Look, let me just get to the issue at hand.” He folded his arms across his chest. “My name is Scott Durby and I run the local Your Area News."

  "What has that to do with us?” Chris took the same stance, folding his arms across his chest and looking the man up and down. “Let me warn you, it had better be good. This is private land, and I am very good at lawsuits."

  "No need for threats, Mr. O'Neil. I am well aware of who you are.” He was starting to look very unsure of himself. “The fact is that Ms. Morgan claims you are not only swimming with mermaids but you are having an affair with one."

  "A mermaid? An affair?"

  "I know it sounds far fetched, but please realize this is what I do."

  "Oh, I know what you do all right. This would make a juicy tidbit for your paper. But I must point out a few things to you that should be painfully obvious.” He pointed at Trinity. “I ask you, does this woman look like a mermaid?"

  "Well, no."

  "Secondly, an affair would mean I was cheating on another. I have no relationship with Karla Morgan, not now, not ever.” His eyes looked to Karla. “This is her underhanded way of getting back at me for rejecting her."

  "We need to prove her story false, or I will have to run with it."

  "What do you want me to do? Throw Trinity in the water and see if she changes into a mermaid?"

  "Well, that would be one solution."

  Chris was getting very angry, Trinity could feel it. There was really only one solution, and if taking a swim would end this, she was all for it. She didn't tell them her intentions; she just turned and walked back toward the water.

  Trinity dove into the water with Chris's shirt still covering her body. It felt different, yet the same, as she moved in the water as a human and not a mermaid. Still, she had no regrets and her smile was in place as she came to the surface and slowly walked back up onto the sandy beach. Chris was waiting for her, as were Karla and the news crew.

  "Satisfied?” Chris growled.

  "Well, uh, yes."

  Chris turned and noticed Trinity's body clearly outlined under the wet shirt she wore.

  "Get your eyes back in your head or your story will be about the local lawyer kicking your ass clear back to the city."

  He pulled Trinity behind him, and she pressed her wet breasts to his back. Her arms came around his middle and Karla looked ready to blow up.

  "All of you get off my property. But let me tell you now that if I see one photo of Trinity in your tabloid, I will sue you for all you have.” He looked at Karla. “You as well, Karla. This is the last of our partnership."

  "But..."

  "Let it go and get out of here now."

  "I know what I saw."

  "Goodbye, Karla."

  Chris and Trinity walked into the house, watching from the windows as the news crew seemed to be in a heated argument with Karla. She wasn't winning by the looks of it.

  Trinity breathed a sigh of relief when they were all finally gone. The hardest part was over, and the best was yet to come.

  Though Trinity couldn't blame Karla for wanting Chris, it still worried her that the woman wouldn't just go away.

  "She won't just give up, Chris. She wants you."

  "It would be foolish for her to continue to try.” He unbuttoned the shirt she wore and let it fall to the floor. “We had best get you out of these wet clothes."

  "I am sure it's my health that concerns you."

  "Of course it is. I can't have you getting sick on me."

  "I guess I could find a dry shirt."

  "Oh, trust me, honey, you won't need a shirt.” He lifted her into his arms. “I plan on taking you shopping later. I already have a few items set to be delivered."

  "What will I do in the meantime?"

  "Me."

  Trinity laughed and wrapped her arms around him. Though he hadn't said it yet, she could see the love growing in his eyes.

  She had taken a chance and found the one thing she needed most in her life. On waves of enchantment, she was carried away to a private beach, and a love of a lifetime.

  The End

  [Back to Table of Contents]

  Anna Fallon

  Plenty More Fish In The Sea

  by

  Anna Fallon

  Mermaid Marina can't find love. After another reckless adventure, she meets sexy merman Ceph. But will their parents’ past stop them from having a future?

  www.annaf.net/

  Also by Anna at Midnight Showcase:

  Egyptian Realms: Never Say Die

  Jaded Beasts 1: The Rat of Fury

  Jaded Beasts 3: Snakes & Ladders

  Spellfire Season’ s 2—A Fairy Merry Christmas

  A Spellfire Evening's—Nastie Business.

  [Back to Table of Contents]

  Plenty More Fish In The Sea

  by

  Anna Fallon

  "If you say it, I swear I'll fillet you."

  "Oh, such violence from a sweet young thing."

  "I am not a sweet young thing. I am a mature female, ready to breed at any given moment. And I would've been breeding if that slimy eel hadn't swum off with that red-tailed sea cucumber."

  "Sea cucumbers don't have tails, and you better not let your parents hear you talk that way."

  "You know what I mean. And what do my parents know? I fully matured five hundred tides ago, and all they want to do is hide me under a shell like some sun-baked moron.” Marina swished her tail in annoyance at her best friend's apparent humor over her losing her one true love.

  "I'll have you know that hiding under a shell has its merits. Some of my friends are hermit crabs. Besides, eels are not slimy, it's a common misconception."

  Marina screwed up her face and stuck her tongue out at Shock. Seeing as he was an electric eel, she probably shouldn't have referenced slimy eels.

  "Oh, yes. That face will certainly convince your parents about how mature you are."

  "Why are you always on their side? You are supposed to be my friend, but you never support me. I'm heartbroken here.” Marina sulked.

  "Marina, being a good friend doesn't mean I just agree with everything you want to do. I care for you, just like your parents do, and I don't want to see you make a silly mistake. Besides, that Moby is just a rogue fish."

  "He's not a fish ... He's a mammal.” She weakly defended the young m
erman who just ran off with an older, more experienced mermaid.

  "That is a matter of opinion. The right merman for you will come when the time is right. Moby isn't the only choice. Why don't you just concentrate on your studies and forget males. Your father would be so much happier, and, as I always say, there are plenty more fish in the sea..."

  "Argh! I told you not to say that!” Marina picked up a sea snail shell and threw it at Shock. After a short blue buzz, the shell dropped to the sea bed, and a snail popped its head out.

  "Ouch ... what did I do?” it asked.

  "Sorry, an accident.” Shock apologized to the snail and swam over to Marina. “Don't do that. You know how dangerous it can be."

  "Sorry. I forgot."

  "See, missy, this is half your problem. You are far too impulsive, and that leads to reckless behavior. You not only endanger your life, you completely disregard the safety of others. You need to think before you act, Marina. Then your parents might take you seriously.” Shock waved his body back and forth in front of her.

  "It's not like your zap can kill anything. You are too young."

  "That's not the point. It will be one day soon, and when do you take care, after you have barbequed some innocent sea dweller?” Shock's squirming became more agitated.

  "Bet you wish you had arms to wave around right now, huh?” she asked, lifting her arms up and down and shaking her finger at Shock, finally planting her hands on her hips. She loved to tease him when he became passionate about something.

  "Yes I do. Don't change the subject. Now, life would be so much easier for you if you just listened to those older..."

  "I'm two-thousand and fifty-tides old. I know what I am doing. I'm sick of everyone making my decisions for me."

  "Well, your parents are fifty-thousand tides old, and I'm sure they have learned a thing or two by now,” Shock argued.

  "You might be too scared to live your life, always wanting to do the right thing, but I want to really live. I want to feel love. I want to live happily ever after. Can't you just lighten up a little, Shock?” Marina gave him her most pleading look.

  "I am not scared to live my life...” Shock replied, looking defiant.

  "Yes, you are. You are a scaredy-catfish."

  "I am not!"

  "Prove it.” Marina knew she had Shock right where she wanted him now.

  "All right, I will ... how?"

  "Let's go down into the dark waters."

  "Marina ... that is just downright dangerous."

  "I knew you'd be too scared to do it."

  "I'm not scared ... just careful,” Shock defended.

  "Fraidy-catfish.” Marina taunted and swam off. “I'll go on my own then.” She knew he would follow; he always did.

  * * * *

  "Do you know who that is...?” Ceph asked his father as he peeked around the large rock at a mermaid he had never seen before. His father took a long look and shook his head.

  "Nope, no idea ... There must be plenty of merfolk in Green Waters you haven't met yet."

  But Ceph knew his father too well, and that tone meant, ‘I know, but I'm not telling you.'

  "Dad ... I know every single mermaid in Green Waters, and she isn't one of them. If you don't tell me, I'm going to ask her myself."

  "No ... don't. I don't know who she is. I only know who she belongs to, and that is enough."

  "Oh, she has a mate. I can see why."

  "I don't mean a mate. I mean her father. See the double fins at the end of her tail. Only one man can pass that on. Trust me, you do not want to go there. Her father has been a rival of my kingdom since I was a youth."

  "Really? Why?” Ceph was now very curious and completely taken by the blue-green tailed female.

  "Because he is a stubborn idiot. They are different from us. That is all."

  "But we are all merfolk. Did he kill someone or something?” Ceph hadn't taken his eyes off her. None of the females he knew captured his interest this way.

  "Ceph ... forget you saw her. There are plenty more fish in the sea,” his father stated.

  "Maybe, but not with her looks, and that is the finest tail I've ever seen."

  "Son, she is out of bounds. We can't get along with them. Not ever."

  Ceph knew there was more his father wasn't telling him. “Why not, Dad ... what is so terrible about being friends? You better tell me, or I'll go ask Mom.” His father turned positively pale.

  "Please, son, don't mention one word of this to your mother. I'll be out in the cold current if you do."

  "Better start talking then."

  "Back when I was your age, three thousand tides, no maybe two thousand and fifty, I fell in love with a young merwoman."

  "Mom?"

  "No, not your mother. This was before I met her. No, Ripple was as gorgeous as they come and the sweetest girl you could ever meet. I was smitten, completely. But I'm afraid to say the feeling wasn't mutual. Oh, she liked me well enough. But love? No...” His dad had a wistful look on his face.

  "I see. And...?"

  "And she paired up with my best friend at the time, Sandy. I got jealous and did some stupid stuff, and Sandy cracked his shells over it and declared he'd never to speak to me again. Then I met your mother and realized what I felt for Ripple was surface stuff. But Sandy saw me wishing Ripple a happy life and giving her a hug and told your mother I only married her on the rebound. He almost wrecked my marriage. I moved out from Coral City to start a new colony as far away from Sandy and Ripple as I could. Luckily, there were a few others starting out, and before long, we had the huge colony that we now call Green Waters. I vowed to your mother that Ripple's name would never come up again. That mermaid over there, she is a daughter of Sandy and Ripple. I can tell by the ruffled tailfins."

  "Ruffled tailfins ... yeah, cute aren't they?” Ceph sighed a little and watched her teasing an electric eel from behind a rock. They looked like friends. Turning back to his father, he said, “So, basically, over a misunderstanding between hot-headed young males and petty jealousy that happened over forty-seven thousand tides ago, I can't go make friends.” Ceph really thought all that stuff should be put in the past.

  "It's not that simple, Ceph."

  Ceph patted his dad on the back, “Sure it is, Dad. I'll just pop over and introduce myself."

  "Ceph, I forbid you to do that."

  "Dad, I'm three thousand tides of age and too old to be forbidden anything. Besides, you always taught me to follow my heart and stand up for what I believe,” Ceph pointed out.

  "Now I am wondering why I did that ... I told your mother all that confidence building would backfire on us one day.” He shook his head and looked dejected.

  Ceph gave his dad a hug and a few small pats on the back again before releasing him and saying, “It'll be fine, Dad. You better go start tickling Mom's fins and get her in a good mood. You'll thank me for this one day ... you'll see.” Giving his dad a wink, he swam off in the direction of the ruffle-tailed beauty.

  * * * *

  "Here it is. Deep Sea Drop. Are you ready, Shock?” Marina could hardly contain her excitement.

  "Not really. Are you sure you really want to do this? I mean, what good will it do?” Shock looked over the precipice nervously.

  "Well, for one, it'll shake some of the fuddy duddy outta your gills. And it'll give me something to think about other than my broken heart."

  "If nothing else, I'll be happy about that. I am so sick of hearing about Moby and how he did you wrong. Did you ever think maybe he was never really interested in you anyway?"

  "Yes, Shock, I have. In fact, that's all I can think about. What's wrong with me? None of the males seem interested. I must look like a blowfish.” No males her age showed any interest in her other than playing sand-sports or racing.

  "When you beat them at everything, of course they aren't going to get sweet on you. Males do have their pride, you know."

  "I can't help it if I have a natural talent for sports and stuff.” Ma
rina didn't see why that should make a difference. They all crowded her and loved to pick her for teams when they were kids. Now they picked all the girls who giggled and fanned themselves ... Blech!

  "Let's go then. Maybe there'll be a mystery merman waiting for me to come along and change his life down there.” Marina secretly wished that were true, but she really only said it to pester Shock who swore he would never have an interest in the females of his species.

  "Oh, brother...” He swam down ahead of her.

  Marina smiled. “Or maybe a sexy eel might take pity on you and zap some love into your bones."

  "Take pity on me? Nice to know you think I'm a charity case."

  "Lighten up, Shock. It was a joke.” Marina kept swimming down and swirling around, not the slightest bit worried about anything.

  * * * *

  "How much further? I'm cold, and what is the point of swimming in the dark anyway? I can't see a thing,” Shock said.

  "I suppose you are right. This isn't half as exiting as I thought it would be. It just seems so ... blank. We haven't even met anyone interesting,” Marina lamented.

  "We can be thankful for small mercies. I don't want to become food for one of those giant squid."

  "You know, Shock, you are right."

  "I am? I mean, yes, I am. Right about what?” Shock asked. He stopped swimming suddenly. Marina ran into the back of him, and blue electricity lit up the water as she received a little zap.

  "Ouch!"

  "Sorry. More warning next time. Now, what am I right about?” he pressed.

  Marina rubbed her arm. “You are right about the fact that I need to change so others will treat me differently."

  "How you decided that by coming down here I don't know, but I am thankful."

  "I only brought you here to make you do something you were scared of. And see, there is no reason to be scared.” Marina twirled around, although she realized Shock could not see her.

  "True enough. Okay, so if you will think a little before you rush into things, I will try not to be such a wet sea lettuce about everything."

  "Deal. Let's head up."

  "At last..."

  Marina heard a swishing noise and halted. Her heart hammered; something didn't feel right. “Shock, did you hear that?"