The Billion Dollar Pact. Sheri WhiteFeather

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СКАЧАТЬ they are, and you’ll live in the water, becoming one of them.”

      She sighed, a bit dreamily. “Wouldn’t it be cool if they were real, if you could really be transformed?”

      “I went to Louisiana once with my parents, and when we visited the bayou, where my dad’s ancestors were originally from, I kept wondering if the mermaids were there, watching us from below the water.”

      “I’ll bet they were.”

      “I would’ve had to fall into the water to know for sure.”

      She moved closer to him. “I’m glad that you didn’t or you wouldn’t be here with me now.”

      He moved closer, as well. “Then I’m glad, too.”

      In the next bout of silence, they gazed at each other as if they were the only two people on the island. At the moment, that was how it felt.

      They finished their food, taking their final bites and putting their plates aside. For dessert, the guests would be making their own s’mores, and Jake was looking forward to watching Carol lick the chocolate and marshmallow off her lips.

      “I think we should give her a name,” she said.

      “What?” He didn’t have a clue what she was talking about. He was still thinking about her lips.

      “The mermaid,” she told him. “The one we made. She needs an identity before she gets washed away. Just to make her seem more real.”

      “Then you can choose one.”

      “It should probably be a French name since this area has so many French influences.” She turned her attention to the sea. “Do you know how to say ocean in French?”

      “It’s océan.” He pronounced it o-say-AHN. To the best of his knowledge, that was right. He wasn’t an expert on the language, but he’d dated a French actress for a few whirlwind months. “I think that’s actually a woman’s name, too.”

      “Then it’s perfect. She’ll be Océan.”

      He smiled. “It definitely works.”

      “Yes, it does. When she’s washed into the sea, she’ll be dissolving into her name.”

      “What’s the origin of your name?” This woman who was fueling his fantasies, he thought. His temporary lover.

      “It’s a song or a hymn.”

      “Oh, of course. That makes sense.” He analyzed his own name. “Jacob means supplanter because, in the Bible, Jacob was born holding his twin brother’s heel.”

      “I’ve never heard of that word.”

      “A supplanter takes the place of someone or something else.”

      “Really? Hmm. Who are you taking over for?”

      “How about the kinds of guys you normally date?” He touched her cheek, skimming his finger across her skin.

      Her breathing grew quiet. “That’s a clever analogy. With how different you are from them.”

      He thought about how she sewed pieces of material together to document her life. “Are you going to make a quilt to mark this weekend?”

      Her lashes fluttered. “Do you think I should?”

      He nodded. “You can use fabrics with beachy things on them. An island, a mermaid, a sandcastle.”

      “What should I use to represent us?” she asked.

      He trailed his hand down, following the line of her collarbone. “You could steal the sheets off my bed and cut them into little squares.”

      “Jake.” She admonished him, but she shivered from his touch, too. “I’ll figure something else out.”

      “Does that mean you’re going to make the quilt?”

      “I don’t know.” She seemed to be considering the idea, contemplating the design. “Maybe.”

      “You could give it to me as a gift.”

      “Really? You’d want it?”

      “Sure.” He toyed with the mesh on her cover-up, poking at the holes. “It can be a part of our secret after we get home. Something for us to remember being together.”

      She leaned toward him. “Wouldn’t it be better for us to try to forget?”

      In lieu of a response, he kissed her. For now, he didn’t want to forget. She reacted favorably, her lips warm and pliable against his. After they separated, they sat back to watch the fire.

      Jake glanced over and saw that the ingredients for the s’mores were being passed around. “Are you ready for dessert?”

      She nodded, and soon they were engaged in making the sticky treats. He took the liberty of watching her eat hers, just as he’d wanted to do.

      “Everyone is supposed to go crabbing later,” he said. “If they want to,” he added. No one had to do anything that didn’t appeal to them.

      “Tonight?” She didn’t just lick the goo from her lips. She licked it from her fingers, too. “I thought we’d be doing that tomorrow morning on a boat.”

      “No. This is a nighttime activity. They’re giant land crabs, so we’ll be searching for them, going into the brush, along the inland trails, armed with flashlights. But we have to be quick and quiet, so we’ll be splitting into separate groups once everyone gets the gist of it. So, do you want to join in?”

      She nodded. “I’ll give it a try. But it sounds sort of scary, being out there in the dark.”

      “I promise I’ll protect you.” He watched while she made herself another s’more. “We’ll have to put on some warmer clothes. They’ll be giving us gloves and buckets and whatever else we’ll need. The caretakers of the house are going to be our guides.”

      “That’s good.” She focused on her task, placing her marshmallows just so. “But I’m going to stay close to you, for sure.”

      “That’s not a problem.” He wanted to keep her as close as possible. “I don’t know how many we’ll catch, but the island is supposed to be filled with them this time of year. The chef is going to incorporate our catch into the breakfast menu.”

      “I wish tomorrow wasn’t our last day.”

      “Me, too.” They would be flying out, just before sunset, and going back to their regular lives. But for now, they were still here, immersed in the romance that had become their affair.

       Eight

      This was it, Carol thought as she stood on her veranda, breathing in the tropical air. Soon, she and Jake would СКАЧАТЬ