The Marked Ones (24 page)

Tristan walked along the sand beside Ivyanne as the confessions poured out of her like a damn had burst, shaking his head in dismay as she recounted every word-every kiss- every feeling she had ever exchanged with Lincoln Grey. Sometimes her voice would strain past the tears, and sometimes her eyes would begin leaking-but the whole time, she kept her chin up and her words concise.

‘So there you have it,’ Ivyanne finally managed, after a twenty minute monologue that had sent his brain spinning in all sorts of different directions. ‘Now you know what a liar I am, and why I
am the way I am.’

‘Ivyanne....’ Tristan exhaled heavily. They had been walking along the right hand side of the beach, until they reached the bluff. When it was clear that Ivyanne was only halfway through with her story, they had continued up the scraggy incline, to the look-out, then back down the other side. Now, they were facing the main beach for the town of Seaview. The roofs of houses dotted the lush hillside, and two dozen boats were moored at a small private jetty at the other end of the bay. He could see that halfway down the beach, a group of surfers, most likely locals, were building a bonfire of their own. Surfboards jutted out of the sand.

But everything around hims seemed blurred, like he was in a nightmare set in a watercolor. Knowing how strong Ivyanne’s ties were to her human made his heart shrivel in pre-emptive surrender.

‘That is a
lot to take in,’ he said honestly. ‘If your mother knew all, why didn’t she warn me what I was going up against?’

Ivyanne looked out at the water. ‘Well I guess she respected my privacy in that aspect- if nothing else. Or maybe she was afraid you’d say no to going up against a human rival.’

‘Well, at least Marcus knows that you’re onto him...’

‘You think?’ Ivyanne smiled, tugging on Tristan’s to drag him along. ‘I’m tempted to start randomly kicking bushes, in case he or Ardhi are lurking in one, spying on us.’

Tristan allowed himself to be pulled a long for a few more feet, before gently tugging back his hand. He continued to move forward, but crossed his arms across his chest. A gesture which wasn’t lost on Ivyanne.

‘You’re mad at me, aren’t you?’ she asked, staring at him from the side.

‘A little,’ he admitted. ‘I mean, how angry did you get at me last night over Adele? About my past and all that, when your past is the real issue?’

‘I was jealous,’ Ivyanne said quickly. ‘That’s no excuse, but it’s my reason. And as far Lincoln...I wasn’t lying when I said I knew we couldn’t be together. I mean all I really wanted was for him to benefit from what I could do for him-and then
forget me so I can forget him. But he just won’t let go.’

Tristan stared glumly down at his crossed arms, feeling hopeless. He was shocked by how crushed he was to know she’d coveted the human for years. ‘I would have stayed away if I’d known you were
that into someone else.’ He eventually said. ‘Whether you intended to be with him or not just change the fact that I walked onto a battlefield that someone had already won. I’m not mad-I just feel like I’ve been cheated.’

‘I didn’t think I could tell
anybody!’ Ivyanne exclaimed. ‘I really didn’t. So I was just hoping that I could, you know, get over it. Fall in love with someone else...’

‘Well, sorry if I failed you there.’ Tristan said bitterly. ‘Guess I’m not the Romeo everyone hypes me up to be, huh?’

Ivyanne took hold of his shirt and stopped walking, dragging him back. ‘Tristan, don’t.’ She said, her eyes a shade of Jade in the pinkish light. ‘I won’t have another man’s bruised ego on my head!’

Tristan allowed her to wrestle him to face her, but gazed broodingly past her shoulder, to the horizon. He said nothing-the lump in his throat prevented him from it.

‘Tristan! Come on...’ she wheedled. ‘Look at me.’

But he couldn’t bear to, so he shook his head slightly.

‘Tristan! You thick-headed....argh!’ Ivyanne’s voice rose an octave as she stamped her foot, send a shower of loose rocks down the embankment. ‘Can’t you tell when a girl is opening her heart to you?’

Tristan’s heart skipped a beat. He allowed himself to peek at her, gauging the earnestness in her eyes for authenticity. And when he saw the gleam of affection within their depths, part of him melted.

‘Keep talking.’ He whispered, taking her in his arms. ‘You officially have my attention.’

24.

Ivyanne placed her hands tentatively on Tristan’s waist, and with that tiny gesture, he felt the spark between them burn his skin.

‘Tristan, I like you. A
lot.’ She tugged him gently closer. ‘I’m telling you all of this because I trust you. Am I in love with Lincoln? Yes. By human terms, he’s the love of my life-’

‘Maybe you
shouldn’t keep talking,’ Tristan muttered, feeling that lump rise again.

But Ivyanne smiled. ‘By
human terms, I said. But I’m not human, am I?’ Her skin and hair glowed russet from the rosy sunset. ‘I’m not ready to marry. I have to get over him first, otherwise I’ll always feel like I’m acting.’ She took another deep breath. ‘But I resigned to Lincoln this afternoon. Tonight, I’ll say it again to Chase, so I know it’ll be taken seriously and then, I’m out of here.’ She swallowed. ‘And I’m never coming back.’

Tristan felt hope tugging at his heart. ‘But how will that make a difference?’ he asked softly. ‘You’ve had over a
decade to forget him.’

‘Yes, but I have at least twenty five more decades to fall for someone else. As far as my life span goes, I’m an
infant. I’ve spent the past twelve years sulking, but that’s done with now. Before I had no choice in who I married, so I stopped choosing to do anything. Now, I want to be happy.’ She smiled tentatively. ‘Besides I’m not being pulled away this time-I’m leaving because I know it’ll never be.’ She touched his cheek. ‘I know that I can love somebody else, if I give him a chance....’

‘
Me?’ Tristan whispered, unable to believe his ears.

‘If you’ll wait for me.’ She bit her lip and then released to smile impishly, touching one of his curls gingerly. ‘Yeah I think so.’

Tristan stared at her, confused. ‘When you say wait... do you mean: Hide my head until you can look at it without picturing another guy?’

Ivyanne chuckled. ‘Of all the things I’d want from you, hiding that pretty head is the
last.’ She flashed him a brilliant smile. ‘You can do whatever it is you were doing before I came along. We’ll still have our freedom-but with a promise on the horizon.’

‘So… would we be en
gaged?’

‘No. Definitely not.’ Ivyanne shuddered. ‘I’m not making anything official until the wedding date is set. Being on the mainland has cured me of a few things, but not the belief that whoever slides a ring onto my finger and goes away is probably never going to come back.’

‘What if you stop falling for me?’ They were walking again. Tristan realized that he was sub-consciously leading her towards the marina. ‘I mean, it’s possible.’

‘It’s possible that
you might fall for someone else.’ Ivyanne said simply. ‘Don’t all lovers take that risk?’

Tristan wet his lips. ‘What kind of timeline have you got in mind?’

Ivyanne shrugged. ‘Maybe I’ll need ten years, or maybe I’ll be fine in two. Keep your little prince charming act up and I might be okay in three weeks-’ She smiled. ‘But when we’re looking at a possible three hundred year life span, don’t you think the worst case scenario is kind of child’s’ play?’

Tristan thought it over. They passed the group of surfers, who were in the process of spraying the un-lit bonfire with something, and he noticed both himself and Ivyanne getting appreciative looks. Her proposition made a lot of sense. And yet-she wanted to retain some distance. How could he bear to grant her that now that he knew what life was like when it revolved around her? How was he going to sleep at night knowing that everything wonderful in his life was postponed?

‘Your silence isn’t very encouraging,’ Ivyanne suddenly piped up as they approached the docked boats. ‘I really thought you’d like the idea.’

‘It’s growing on me,’ Tristan took her hand, and began to lead her to the first jetty, wondering if she could hear his heartbeat accelerate as his thoughts became plans. ‘But there is a flaw in it.’

‘Which is....?’ Ivyanne’s brow furrowed as she looked around. ‘Tristan, I think this is trespassing.’

‘Nah,’ Tristan said, leading her towards the furthermost mooring. ‘Anyway, like I was saying.... the problem I have,
naturally, is on the sexual front.’

Ivyanne’s face turned red. ‘I assumed as much.’

He nodded. ‘Can you blame me? We’ve been hanging out for a week and I’m already losing my mind. If you think I can wait ten years for you, then you have lost yours.’

‘It might not be that long-’ she began to protest.

‘But it could be,’ he pointed out. ‘You’re a complex young lady. I’m not going to risk my mental health on your ability to make a concrete decision any time in the near future.’

‘Mental health?’ Ivyanne scoffed. ‘Why are mermen so
dramatic?’

‘Evolution.’ Tristan shot back. ‘Our testosterone tells us to call the shots but, as mer, we are at the mercy of you females when it comes to breeding.’ He elbowed her. ‘Whereas
you girls are wired to nest, hunt and gather independent of us if need be! It’s the one thing about our race that is so unnatural so yes, our excess energy has to be channelled somewhere while we wait to be needed! And I guess it goes straight to the heart.’

‘Very concise, Mr Loveridge.’ Ivyanne said with an approving smile. ‘So how do you propose to level the playing field between us and stop you from carrying on like a chick?’

‘By showing you this boat.’ Tristan stopped at the end of the dock, motioning out to the sleek white yacht bobbing in the peach-tinted water. ‘Nice huh?’

‘It’s okay,’ Ivyanne said, with a shrug. More than likely, she was comparing it unfavorably to the grandiose fleet of sailboats her own family kept docked all over the world. ‘It’s motorized though, yeah? Guzzles the gas?’

‘Well this isn’t a sailing kind of coastline.’ He smiled at her. ‘Want to see inside?’

Ivyanne furrowed her brow. ‘Isn’t going for a walk on a private dock enough rule breaking for today?’ she asked.

But Tristan laughed. ‘It’s not breaking and entering Ivyanne. I pay a lot of money to keep it here.’

She jerked her face around to face him. ‘It’s
yours?’

‘Sure is.’ He said with pride. ‘I got it last week so I’d have somewhere to squat if you got me kicked out of the resort. Now I’ll have a portable hotel room every time I come up the coast. Which sounds likely now, if you mean what you say.’ He took her hand, wondering if she could feel his throbbing pulse through the spot where their wrists touched. ‘Come on. I’ll show you round.’

Ivyanne allowed him to pull her along, staring around at the open deck area in awe. It was all pale timber panelling and sleek white couches. ‘It’s really nice,’ she admitted, glancing above to the flybridge. ‘I like all of the solar panels on top. Did you do that?’

He nodded as he led her below deck. ‘It’s how I’ve been killing time, you know, whenever you lost the plot at me this week.’

‘I figured you were off swimming.’

‘That too.’ He ran his hand along the railing of the stairs. His heart pounded harder with every step. ‘Come on down.’

‘Oh wow.’ Ivyanne said from behind him. She trailed her hand along the gleaming timber dining table nestled against the sofa. ‘This is perfect. Elegant, but understated. Our yacht is so showy. I hate the way people look at us when we pull in to harbors!’

Tristan smiled, moved by her no-frills modesty. The Court family was worth billions of dollars-anyone would think that Ivyanne would be too spoiled to function. But the fact was that his yacht was worth a hell of a lot more than Ivyanne probably realized. The couches were Italian weather, the fittings top of the line-and on the open water, it
flew. ‘Well then, you’ll love the main bedroom,’ he remarked, pulling her through the kitchenette and lounge area. ‘It’s simple and beautiful-kind of like you.’

‘
Bedroom?’ Ivyanne came to a sudden halt, like he’d known she would, her fingers sliding out of his. Standing there in a short skirt and a floral bodice with her curls parted in two loose, wavy ponytails, she was the picture of innocence. ‘Hang on-’

‘I
plan to!’ Tristan turned and took both of her hands, pulling her along as he walked backwards, towards the master suite, heart beating rapidly now that he had in his domain. ‘For a long time.’ He raised an eyebrow. ‘Is giving you a tour of my bedroom in the meantime so much to ask?’

‘You’re not talking about giving me a tour of your room, and we
both know that,’ Ivyanne said bluntly, digging her sandals into the plush carpeting. ‘I wasn’t born yesterday.’

‘
Well,’ Tristan smiled devilishly at her, more than willing to follow her lead and lay the cards out on the table. ‘If you’re that clued on, there’s no reason to be cryptic, is there?’ In one swift motion, her jerked her up against him, flattening his hand across the small of her back so she could feel his stiffness against her. ‘You know what I need-what we both need, to seal this deal.’

When Ivyanne’s mouth fell open in surprise, Tristan used that as in, pressing his aching lips against hers and claiming the mouth of his future bride. His unofficial, hot-blooded, sexy as hell future bride.

⁓

Ivyanne turned her face from the kiss, even though the pressure of his mouth on hers instantly gratified the craving that had been laying dormant, yet still simmering, since she’d broken off their exploits the night before.

‘No! You know I can’t.’ Her eyes flitted around the room, but the only way out was the way she’d come in, and Tristan was blocking it, his muscular frame seeming even more imposing in the pale, sea shell like space. The room glowed from soft down lighting and a few shafts of light coming in from the porthole windows, making him seem more golden and angelic than usual. ‘What if I get pregnant?’

Tristan smiled at her, his fingers fluttering down the buttons of his shirt, undoing each swiftly, revealing a growing panel of bronzed skin that Ivyanne couldn’t look away from. ‘I’ve got something to safeguard against that.’ His shirt opened and he shrugged out of it, the cuffs of the black silk snagged on his bulging biceps. He flexed and pulled it loose, an action which made countless muscles ripple, before discarding it to the floor.

Ivyanne felt like she was going to black out, so swiftly was the blood, anxiety and lust racing to her head at the sight of his spectacular and bare upper body. ‘You carry protection?’ She gasped. ‘But mermen-’

‘
Don’t all want to be fathers to kids they can’t be there for.’ He whispered, taking a predatory step towards her as his hands went to his steel belt buckle and began to work it. ‘I always use one. And if you don’t want your body sealing your fate with me, then the solution is right here....’ He rubbed his pocket, directing her gaze towards the solid bulge that was definitive under the worn denim of his jeans.

Ivyanne’s breath was stolen from her at the blatant hint of his arousal. Now there was
nothing angelic about the coaxing gleam in his toffee- colored eyes. His belt buckle opened and he shoved his jeans down his thighs, stepping free of them as he continued to advance towards her. Now he wore only snug, black briefs and a dazzling smile.

‘What are you thinking?’ Tristan asked, his voice husky.

Of how beautiful you are. She answered silently. The unfathomable peaks and valleys of his chiseled body had robbed her of speech. Only when he stepped forward again, reminding her that he intended to crush her with that body, did she find her voice.

‘That I should
run.’ She confessed, stepping back. ‘That I’m scared. I mean, I understand why we might do this,’ she turned to the wall, so his beauty wouldn’t continue to infect her senses, and gripped the acrylic of the porthole window. ‘But the princess is supposed to be a virgin bride Tristan.’

Hot, hard arms slid around her in a serpine fashion-one glancing gently across the front of her breasts before pulling down the zippered front of her bodice, while the other snaked over her hip and down her stomach and flicked open the button of her shorts. The double assault was executed so swiftly that Ivyanne froze instead of deflecting.

‘As long as you’re a virgin until you meet your future husband then what difference does it make?’

‘It
could.’ Ivyanne pointed out, catching the hand on her fly and stilling it. ‘If I’d done this with Roan, or Nigara when engaged- I wouldn’t still have a virginity to give you!’

Tristan growled and spun her to face him, slamming her up against the wall. ‘Can you not bring up my brothers’ name right now?’ he asked sharply. ‘This is different and you know it. Death
won’t be coming between us.’ His hands went to her shoulders and pulled the thin straps of her bodice down her arms, to the floor. ‘You’ve agreed to marry me. This body will be mine, and I’m going to do what I damn well like with it. Starting now.’ His hand found the bow of the bikini nestled between her breasts and tore it open, exposing her. Before Ivyanne could protest, he cupped the weight of her left breast and  brought his perfectly formed lips down on her nipple, sucking it into his mouth, groaning in delight.

Ivyanne cried out, her back arching of it’s own accord, welcoming the hot, wet debasement. When he moved to the second, and tugged lightly on it with his teeth before circling it with his tongue, Ivyanne quivered.

‘This isn’t fair!’ She exclaimed as the pleasure shot through her. ‘You’re manipulating me.’