Authors: Cindy Spencer Pape
SeaChange (31 page)
She eyed the wine, then nodded. “I will ask. If she chooses
to stay, she will forfeit her chance at Valhalla forever, though. It must be
her decision.”
She closed her eyes and laid her hands on each of Heidi’s
temples. Moments later, she opened her eyes and tipped her chin toward
Dionysus. “I release her soul into your hands. She is no longer
Valkyrie—perhaps you will make her one of your children now. We are done here,
Olympian.” She spun on her heel and vanished into the darkness. A heartbeat
later, the amphorae vanished as well.
Dionysus handed Jake a goblet he hadn’t been holding moments
before. “She has chosen to remain with you, at the cost of an eternity in
Valhalla. Be sure you treasure her appropriately.”
“Every day of my life,” Jake swore. The gash in her throat
was gone, but she still lay lifeless. He used one shaking fingertip to touch
Heidi’s lips with the enchanted wine.
Heidi’s eyes flickered just as Jake felt her heartbeat along
their bond. She came awake slowly, her lips curving in a smile as she finally
opened her eyes and saw Jake leaning over her. “Wow. That was really something,
wasn’t it?” Her words were a low rasp, probably no one but him could hear her.
Jake knew he was crying, and he didn’t give a flying fuck.
All he could do was sit beside her on the altar, gather her in his arms, hold
her against him and shake while the tears coursed down his cheeks.
No one else moved an inch until his breakdown had passed.
Finally Heidi wiped his cheek with her hand and kissed it. She turned her head
to see Dionysus and sighed. “Thank you.”
“You remember your conversation with the Valkyrie?” he asked
her.
Heidi nodded. “If it wasn’t a dream, then I do.”
“It was no dream,” the god assured her. “You willingly chose
to give up a chance at Valhalla?”
“No contest if it meant being with Jake,” she said,
tightening her grip on his shoulder. His heart sang at her reassurance.
“You possessed some of the Valkyrie’s psychic abilities,
which will now be lost to you. It was suggested that I compensate you for
giving up your heritage by providing you a new one,” the god continued. “Do you
wish to become a mermaid, so you will have a long life with your chosen mate?”
Heidi couldn’t believe what she was being offered. A chance
to live with Jake for not just a human lifetime, but for many? Damn, that was
almost worth dying for. She didn’t have to hesitate a moment. “Of course.”
Dionysus waved his hand over a golden goblet and handed it
to her. “Then drink, child.”
Heidi did. As the spiced wine trickled down her throat, she
felt the tingle of magic coursing through her veins. The world was brighter,
clearer, sharper. And Jake still held her tight.
When she’d drained the goblet, she handed it back to
Dionysus.
“It is done,” he said solemnly. “Good night, Heidi of the
merfolk. May you and your mate enjoy a long, fruitful union.”
And then he was gone.
Movement and sound from the people around them started to
register. Myrrine’s happy words, Leta’s joyous shriek as she launched herself
into Heidi’s arms.
“I can’t believe it,” the young mermaid cried. “We get to
keep you for years and years and
years
!”
One by one, they hugged her—Brad, Marcos, Myrrine and so
many others who filed into the room after Dionysus vanished. Jake just stood
beside her, never once taking his hand from her arm.
Shortly afterward, exhausted, they walked back down to the
beach, intending to take one of the inflatable boats out to the
Folly
so
they could go to bed. The others were all spending the night on shore, unified
in their desire to give Jake and Heidi some much-needed time alone.
“We could swim instead,” Jake told her. It wasn’t that far, he
could easily swim it in human form. “Want to try out your flippers?”
Heidi squealed and threw her arms around his neck. “Of
course!” She couldn’t wait to begin her life as a mermaid.
As they waded into the waves, Jake sent her images over
their link, guiding her to the mental state that would allow her
transformation. He stood beside her in the shallows as she stripped off her
filthy shorts, tank top and underwear, throwing them into one of the firepits
set up on the beach. She’d never wear any of those garments again. Then
following his mental instructions, she stepped deep enough to draw her feet up
beneath her and willed her body to
change
.
Her skin tingled as she felt her leg muscles stretch and
reform. Though a golden haze blocked the pain she should have felt, she could
sense what happened to her body as it changed. Her knees and feet fused
together and her spine lengthened into the powerful arched back and dorsal fin
of a dolphin. She drew in deep, deep breaths to fill the air sacs that she knew
were tucked beneath her rib cage. Finally, when it was complete, she swished
her tail and laughed with joy. “This is wonderful!”
“Isn’t it? Tomorrow night, we can shift together.” His words
were a little sad, and she wished desperately he didn’t have twenty more years
to go on his spell.
“Unless…”
“What?” He swam beside her, his strong strokes keeping up
with her exploratory movements.
“Your uncle is dead. Maybe the spell died with him.” Heidi
swore Myrrine had mentioned something like that, several weeks ago now. It had
been nagging in the back of her head for the last several minutes.
He grabbed her face in both hands and kissed her hard. A
moment later, she watched as Jake shifted into his native form. His happy cry
filled the starry night.
“I love you, my brilliant, beautiful, mermaid,” he said,
then kissed her again, harder this time. “You are the most wonderful mate a
merman could ever hope to have.”
“Love you back,” she said, her hands trailing down to his
waist, where his skin changed from human to dolphin. She reveled in the
different textures.
“You wanna do it out here in the waves?” His hand found her
nipple, hard as the stones on the beach. “Or should we put this on hold until
we’re back on the boat?”
“Another time,” she said. “We’ve got all the time in the
world to play in the water. Tonight I want you all to myself, curled up under
the covers and shutting the whole world outside.”
“Of course.” He took her hand in his and they swam together
toward the boat. By the time they were there, Heidi thought she had the hang of
swimming with flukes. She held onto the ladder on the side of the
Folly’s
hull and followed Jake’s mental instructions for changing back. Soon, she had
two legs again and climbed up the ladder, with Jake close behind. They crammed
together in the small shower, washing each other clean of seawater and sand.
Jake even dried Heidi’s long hair before they tumbled together between the
crisp cotton sheets.
“I love you,” he said again as he leaned on his arms above
her and slid inside her wet, welcoming sheath.
Heidi canted her hips up to take him deeper. “I will love
you for the rest of my life. Whether that’s one year or hundreds. Even another
day with you was worth the trade.”
“I would have followed you,” he swore, moving in and out of
her at a slow, steady pace. “Wonder what Odin would have thought of a merman
pounding on the gates of Valhalla?”
Heidi looked up at him, her eyes damp with tears. “Wherever
we go,” she vowed, “we go together.”
Jake kissed her deeply, sealing the vow.
Author of over thirty popular books and novellas in
paranormal, historical, and contemporary romance, Cindy Spencer Pape is an avid
reader of romance, fantasy, mystery, and even more romance. According to The
Romance Studio, her plots are “full of twist and turns that keep the reader
poised at the edge of their seat.” Joyfully Reviewed said, “colorful characters
and plot building surprises kept me spellbound,” and Romantic Times Magazine
says her “characters are appealing, and passionate sex leads to a satisfying
romance.
Cindy firmly believes in happily-ever-after. Married for
more than twenty years to her own, sometimes-kilted hero, she lives in southern
Michigan with him and two teenage sons, along with an ever-changing menagerie
of pets. Cindy has been, among other things, a banker, a teacher, and an
elected politician, but mostly an environmental educator, though now she is
lucky enough to write full-time. Her degrees in zoology and animal behavior
almost help her comprehend the three male humans who share her household.
Cindy welcomes comments from readers. You can find her website
and email addresses on her
author
bio page
at
www.ellorascave.com
.
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Cindy Spencer Pape
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Ellora’s Cave Publishing
Sea Change
ISBN 9781419993381
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Sea Change Copyright © 2014 Cindy Spencer Pape
Cover design by Allyse Leodra
Cover photography by Shutterstock
Electronic book publication November 2014
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