Chapter 11

BO

The water was colder than I hoped it to be. The sun had been shining so brightly all week that I'd expected it to have reflected in the warmth of the sea. But that didn't seem to be the case.

I looked up at the boat to see Neptune readying to jump off. My heart leapt to my throat at the height, and even though it was impossible for him not to be a confident swimmer, it was still very high.

He dove off, transforming into a dolphin mid-air so he could enter the water nose first.

I gasped at the sight, not having expected him to do that. Maybe he was just trying to show off, but I didn't think so. I wouldn't be surprised to learn that was how he entered the water every day. I could just ask him, he was being very forthcoming when it came to answering my questions, even when they seemed to be rather probing.

A loud splash filled the air as Neptune jumped out of the water, coming closer to me. Despite knowing it was him, I was still a little nervous when he appeared in front of me and bumped his nose against my shoulder.

I let out an amused laugh and reached out to touch his head. After we'd closed the deal for Mei to come and perform on the cruise, I'd looked into activities and swimming with dolphins had definitely been one I was looking forward to, but this wasn't how I'd expected that to happen.

Neptune squeaked.

"I don't understand dolphin," I reminded him.

He pulled away and swam a little further away.

Ah, he wanted to swim. I nodded and stopped treading water, starting to swim through it instead. There was no keeping up with him, which wasn't a huge surprise, I didn't think I'd be able to if he was in human form either. But it was still fun, and I was getting my wish to swim with a dolphin.

He swam around me, though I wasn't sure if it was just so we could keep a good pace, or so that he could keep other creatures away from me. It didn't matter too much, I liked the company.

My hand touched something slimy as I brought it down into the water and I started to struggle, getting more tangled as a result. A bolt of panic travelled through me and I did everything I could to avoid making it worse.

"Hey, hold still," Neptune said. I hadn't even realised he'd transformed back into his human form.

He leaned in and deftly untangled the seaweed I'd become caught on.

I pulled my hand back, grateful to no longer be stuck on it.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

I nodded, treading water and trying not to let myself be too shaken by the incident. There was seaweed in the sea, that shouldn't be too much of a surprise.

"You wouldn't believe the number of times I've gotten myself trapped in stuff," he said. From his tone, I had to guess that he was telling me so that I felt better about the fact I'd gotten stuck barely five minutes into the swim, but I also believed him.

"How do you get out if you're on your own?"

"Years of practice," he responded. "And knowing what I'm doing, so it's not a huge deal."

"You must think I'm an idiot." I looked down at the water, not wanting him to see my face and guess how ashamed of the situation I was.

"No, I definitely don't," he assured me. He held out his arm. "You can use me to stay afloat if you need to."

"Are you sure?" I didn't want to cause him any problems with his own buoyancy, but after last night, I was tempted by any and all reasons to touch him.

He nodded.

I reached out and took hold of his arm, instantly feeling a bit better. "I thought I was a good swimmer."

"Everyone does until they're in the sea," he responded. "The first time I went swimming by myself, I nearly drowned."

"What? But you're a sea god."

"I wasn't then, I was just a teenager looking to prove himself. I wasn't even immortal yet."

I frowned. "Ah, right, before Saturn turned you."

He beamed, seeming pleased that I'd remembered the story he'd told me. "Yes."

"Sometimes it's hard to forget that gods don't just spring into being from nothing. Unless there's something you're not telling me?"

He chuckled. "Nope, I'm an open book. There are no spontaneously occurring gods that I know about. It doesn't mean there aren't any though."

"Always hedging your bets," I teased.

"I learned a long time ago that it was better to assume something was possible rather than that it was impossible."

"The fact that gods don't just happen makes some of the stories more disappointing," I admitted, thinking about some of the more outrageous tales of gods being born from the heads or blood of other gods.

"Hopefully, it makes us seem much more approachable."

"Even when you're in dolphin form. Thank you for that, by the way."

A genuine smile spread over his face. "You said you wanted to swim with dolphins. I know you missed the original trip because I flustered you, and I wanted to make it up to you."

"You're beautiful," I said. "As a dolphin, I mean. As a human you're ruggedly handsome."

He chuckled. "Beautiful would be acceptable then too. I remember Rome, everyone wanted to be beautiful. And naked."

"You're naked now," I pointed out.

"There's nothing more freeing than swimming naked. You should try it."

I looked up at the ship. "Maybe I can just enjoy you being naked for now."

He chuckled. "And how do you intend to do that?"

"We're probably too deep to make out," I mused. As much as I wanted to, there was no way I could manage to make out with Neptune and keep myself afloat. And I was rather attached to living.

"I'm a sea god, don't underestimate what I can do."

"Cause storms and sink ships?" I teased even though I knew that wasn't going to be the case from what he'd said before.

"That's beyond me," he responded. "I can only influence small patches of water. But it's enough to stop us from sinking."

He must have used some of his magic, as I felt a sense of weightlessness around us that wasn't there before.

"Ooh. That's cool."

"It can be useful," he agreed.

I wrapped my arms around his neck and kissed him, letting the magic support us as we floated in the sea. He returned the kiss immediately, the tension and desire for me evident through the way his lips moved against mine. It was a shame we were in the sea and it wasn't a good place to do several of the things rushing through my head.

We broke apart, and he reached out to brush some hair out of my face. It stuck to my cheek thanks to the damp from the sea, but it was kind of freeing to be like this.

"I was thinking we could have dinner tonight," Neptune said.

"Like a date?"

"Exactly like a date."

"I'd love that...oh."

"Oh?" he responded.

"I can't tonight, I'm working. It's Mei's performance, I need to be with her to make sure everything goes how it's supposed to, and..."

"You don't have to explain," he said softly. "I understand that you're here to work."

"But maybe afterwards I could come back to your suite again?" I asked, moving my fingers over his chest.

"I would like that very much," he responded, leaning in and capturing my lips with his.

I sink into his touch, enjoying the way his hand skimmed over the skin of my back while the sea did its thing around me.

As much as I was looking forward to tonight, there was a large part of me that was already sad that it was going to have to end and that I had to head back to my old life that definitely didn't have a handsome sea god in it.