Siren's Call by Devyn Quinn Page B

learn to wield, including the ability to shift. At this point in her life, Tessa still hadn’t grasped the full scope of a Mer’s abilities. Neither had her sisters. Their mother had passed away just as she’d begun to pass on her knowledge to her three daughters. Tessa was barely fifteen years old when the automobile accident claimed both her parents.
    Tessa followed the narrow beach to the water’s edge. She didn’t stop to test the temperature of the water, stepping straightaway into the chilly depth. Wet sand oozed up between her toes and she sank a little. She walked until the sandy bottom fell away beneath her feet, suddenly plunging into an endless depth.
    Sighing with contentment, she treaded water for a few minutes. Her legs were bothering her, a restless sensation that wouldn’t settle down. Her body felt crawly, like thousands of tiny insects skittered beneath the surface of her skin. The only remedy was a swim, where she could shift into her true form. Once in the water, she could swim herself into exhaustion. After that, she’d be able to rest.
    Taking a deep breath, Tessa dived. As the water rippled around her naked flesh, she shifted. Beneath the surface, her lungs filtered water like air. Her vision adjusted perfectly to the shadowy depths. Her movements driven by incredible flexibility and strength, she swam with strong, sure stokes.
    Spotting a school of blue-tinted bass, Tessa darted through the pack. Offended by the disturbance, the fish scattered in a dozen different directions.
    Drifting lazily in their wake, Tessa laughed. She could almost imagine them shaking their fins in anger. She wondered what they might be thinking, seeing a half-human, half-sea creature swimming among them. Contrary to popular belief, mermaids could not communicate with sea life, not even the more intelligent species. Just as people couldn’t understand a cat’s meow or a dog’s bark, she had no earthly clue what the chirps and whistles of a dolphin might mean.
    It was a silly part of the legend that annoyed her. Mermaids might be able to live on land and sea, but their main components were designed to mesh with those of oxygen breathing Homo sapiens. After all, there were no mer men . Mer females still needed human males to impregnate them.
    A tremor unexpectedly shook her that had nothing to do with the fish she’d disturbed, but had everything to do with Kenneth Randall. His presence had sparked something inside her, a hunger she’d almost forgotten existed. Though she tried to deny it—had fought against it—the Mer were a highly sensual species. The desire to mate came as naturally as breathing. Having gone without physical relations for several years, a man’s touch, however causal, was guaranteed to set her on fire.
    It was my choice to live alone , she reluctantly reminded herself. My choice to stay here and not move to Port Rock . But in choosing the solitary island over the populated mainland, she’d mostly cut herself off from the outside world.
    From all human contact.
    Coming to a dead halt, Tessa closed her eyes and allowed herself to sink. She refused to breathe, doing her best to ignore the arousal Kenneth Randall had inadvertently piqued. She was attracted to him. No doubt there. His appeal had definitely set her body to simmering.
    Three years had passed since she’d been dumped by Jake Massey. Surely that was long enough to get her emotional equilibrium back. Just because she’d gotten kicked to the curb didn’t mean all men were pigs. It just meant she hadn’t chosen the right man.
    Tessa winced, drawing an involuntary breath. Good grief, she’d really dodged a bullet there. Thank the goddess they hadn’t gone through with the mating ceremony. Once a mermaid linked with her human Breema , her breed-mate, the ties binding them could never be undone. It would have destroyed her to be married to a man who couldn’t keep his dick in his pants.
    Jake had broken off their engagement the night