Cassandra Pierce - Diamonds in the Sand [The Aquans 2] (Siren Publishing LoveXtreme Special Edition) by Cassandra Pierce

helpfully. Maura thought she detected the hint of a British accent.
    “She’s lovely,” Irissa said to her son, not caring that Maura could hear. “I’m pleased, Ejan. This should work out very well.”
    “No, Mother, it’s nothing like that,” Ejan stammered. Beside him, Tagin smothered his laughter. “Septimus invited her. To help with his research.”
    Irissa’s indulgent smile never dimmed. “Yes, of course. I see.”
    Maura raised her brows. Irissa must be aware that Tagin and Ejan were involved with one another. Was she hoping her son would change his sexual preference? Surely she realized that wasn’t very likely to happen.
    Still, their issues weren’t Maura’s business. She was here to find out if Septimus had come by. To her relief, Ejan was already explaining their mission to his mother.
    “I’m afraid Septimus hasn’t called on me for quite some time now,” Irissa said with a touch of regret. “A shame, because he was always so entertaining for the guests. He could tell stories about this island that kept everyone spellbound. He was very good for business, in fact.”
    Maura perked up, intrigued. “What kind of stories?”
    “Incredible tales of the sea,” Elliot said, sweeping his arm over his head. “Wild theories about people who could breathe underwater and lived in cities made of coral. When their civilization fell, he said, they waded ashore and learned to live among humans.” He paused to laugh. “I told him he should write his stories down—he could make a fortune. Then he insisted he would never betray the sea people like that. Said they deserved to live in peace after all they’d been through. Has quite an imagination, doesn’t he?”
    “He certainly does,” Irissa said, raising a silver brow. Ejan and Tagin merely looked at one another and shrugged. “But then, my cocktails are known to be a bit strong. Speaking of that, let me get you one, Maura. Ejan, dear, be a gentleman and find her a place to sit down. She looks exhausted.”
    “It’s the heat,” Tagin said. “She’s not used to it.”
    “Come on, Maura.” Ejan held out his hand and led her toward a circle of chairs arranged around a koi pond. Each chair had a bamboo torch beside it, and many of the chairs were occupied by guests. Somehow, Ejan found her an empty one. “Stay here. I’ll fix you something nice and cold.”
    “Thank you,” Maura said, sinking down in relief. Now that she thought about it, this really had been a long, draining day. She’d probably crammed more adventure into the last forty-eight hours than she had experienced in all her thirty-one years on earth. For the moment, she gave herself permission to just lean back and enjoy the music and the buzz of conversation around her.
    Eventually, Elliot appeared, carrying a tall blue drink with a tiny paper umbrella and plenty of ice. He left her to sip it in blissful solitude and quickly returned to Irissa, who was in the middle of an animated conversation with her son and Tagin. Were they arguing about her? She hoped Tagin wasn’t angry over Irissa’s suggestion that something was going on between her and Ejan. Not that Ejan wasn’t as gorgeous as the rest of his friends—and so was Tagin, for that matter—but Maura respected their relationship to one another too much to entertain such a possibility. Aside from all of that, where did Daq fit into the equation? Did he even want to fit in?
    “Whoa,” she said aloud, pulling the drink from her lips and looking down into its frosty blue depths. Irissa wasn’t kidding about her drinks being strong. A few swallows and already Maura’s mind had tilted sideways.
    Well, she decided, why not? She didn’t plan to steer Ejan’s boat. When she glanced back at Ejan and Tagin, she saw that neither of them had taken any refreshment. So they were safe enough on that score, at least. The two men were still involved in a spirited conversation with Irissa. Elliot had disappeared.
    Soon the three of