Oshen's Kiss

The princess abandoned him one week before the coronation ceremony. Without a mate, he could not be king of Nepturia. Oshen walked, shamed, from the council building, his eyes blind to the beauty of his underwater city.

Built eons ago when his ancestors crash-landed on Earth, his people remained hidden beneath the deep waters of the ocean. Finding a true mate was crucial to their existence, especially for the males of their kind. Without the healing bond that came from joining with a true mate, the males usually withered away and died.

Oshen already felt weak with grief. How could Seafoam abandon him? And for a surface human? He groaned as he heard the counselor's emotionless voice relay that his princess had fallen for a surfer she'd rescued.

He needed to woo her back. If she hadn't completed the mating ritual with this human, he might still have a chance.

As for being king, it was decided that his younger brother would be the new king. Surge had a mate, and they even had children.

Oshen walked through the city streets, paved with mother of pearl, until he came upon one of the many portals that used to exit the city.

"Do you have the serum, sir?"

Oshen raised his hand and unfurled his fingers. The syringe glowed with a greenish blue serum that would enable him to transform from his humanoid form to a half-man half fish creature. The metamorphosis was necessary since they didn't have the resources available to build underwater crafts that would help them navigate to the surface.

He took one last look at his underwater home. The metal beams that created a sturdy web to hold the thick glass reflected the crystalline blue of the deep water. His ancestors had used the scraps of the fallen spaceship to build their city, giving everything a pearlescent silver glow.

The citizens of Nepturia bustled about in their daily routines. No one seemed to notice the prince standing by the gate with tears in his eyes. No one seemed to care. Why should they? Seafoam had abandoned him, deeming him a worthless male.

With a deep breath, he stepped into the airlock. The guard closed the hatch behind him, peering through the porthole in the hatch. More eyes peered at him as he plunged the syringe into his chest and pushed the plunger.

At first, he felt nothing, but fear. Then a burning sensation began in his legs. Stripping off his robes with a hiss, he bent and began rubbing at his skin. Then his scalp began to burn as well as the sides of his neck. Gasping, he fell to the ground. He body felt as if it were on fire, and then, to make matters worse he heard the sound of water rushing in. the guard had opened the pressure locks. The cold ocean filled the chamber, making him choke as the water quickly covered his head. Oshen turned beseeching eyes to the guards. Why were they trying to drown him? He hadn't changed fully yet. Water filled his lungs and he felt himself dying. Before the cold grip of death wrapped fully around him, he saw the aquamarine eyes of his brother, prince Surge, watching him through the porthole.

*******

Pearl knew she'd already had too much to drink. She didn't care. Life was cruel. Too cruel. Here she was, at Brent's party, her boyfriend for the past fifteen years, watching him kiss and laugh with...the most beautiful girl she'd ever seen. She'd rescued him during the Big Kahuna surfing contest and he'd been smitten with her ever since. Pearl no longer existed for him. Her mother, the scheming woman that she was, insisted they assist the party. After all, mother and Brent's father were still quite the item.

Pearl stumbled out of the sixty-foot yacht's dance room and made her way to the aft of the ship. She stared down at the water until her vision grew bleary. Wiping angrily at her tears, she tossed her crystal goblet over the edge of the railing. The almost full moon turned the water silvery and a school of dolphins followed alongside the ship. Pearl smiled, choking back a sob. She always did love dolphins. How ironic that they should show up now.

She walked closer to where they were, mesmerized. One of them looked strange. She narrowed her eyes and leaned over the railing a bit more, certain she was seeing a human head bobbing up and down in the water, a glimpse of silver hair.

The world seemed to tilt for a moment as the water rushed up at her...or was she rushing toward the water? Cold and black wrapped her in a chokehold. She realized she'd fallen in...and she couldn't swim.

Pearl tried to scream, but water poured into her mouth, making her gurgle. Her arms thrashed in the rolling sea and slowly she felt herself fade. It was all for the best. She was nothing but an embarrassment for her family. Shy and quiet, the only reason Brent had probably noticed her was because her family was filthy rich...more than his.

Just total darkness claimed her, she had the strangest sensation of strong arms encircling her waist, aquamarine eyes staring deeply into her own brown ones. It was a mermaid! Pearl coughed up water, her hand clutching at the decidedly masculine shoulders that hunched protectively over her. A merboy!

*****

The dream continued when she opened her eyes. Millions of glittering stars peppered the night sky over the tropical forest that surrounded them. He carried her a while then set her down on a bed of fallen palm leaves. His hair was long, down to his knees, wavy and the color of moonlight. The warm salty air played with the silver tresses, making them cascade over one sinewy shoulder when he bent to lay her on the ground.

His hand caressed her cheek. "I didn't know surf-human were so beautiful." Wonder filled his melodic voice.

"Am I dead? Are you an angel?" he certainly looked like an angel!

He only smiled and shook his head. "Why are you all alone? Where is your mate that he allowed you to fall into the water?"

"Mate?" Pearl grimaced. He sure talked strange, then she felt herself blush. Did he know Brent? Didn't he know the a-hole dumped her? "You mean my boyfriend? He's seeing someone else now. Her name is Seafoam," Pearl spat. "What a ridiculous name."

Her ethereal savior gasped. His eyes traveled over her. "Can it be? What is your name?"

"Pearl," she said in a decidedly slurred voice. Geez, she was still tipsy and having a conversation with an imaginary, gorgeous, angel/merboy.

"Pearl. What a lovely name."

Pearl giggled at his peculiar way of talking.

He smiled, his impossibly blue eyes twinkling. "I'm Oshen."

"Ocean?"

"Yes." He bit his lip, his finger tracing the roundness of her cheek. "Can I kiss you?"

Pearl's brows drew up. He had the most beautiful face, almost too pretty to be a boy. Her eyes focused on his lush lips, slightly parted to reveal a hint of teeth, straight and bright. The moonlight caressed the sinews of his lithe body and it was then that she realized he was unclothed. Shadows hid his masculinity, but not the longing in his eyes.

"Wow, I'm really drunk."

The pretty being before her pouted in confusion. Before he could utter another word, Pearl threw her arms around his neck and slanted her mouth over his. The scent of ocean, sunshine, and wind filled her nostrils. His satiny skin was cool against the raging inferno that suddenly blossomed in her body. Pearl's fingers explored the contours of his biceps, and shoulders, until they found themselves lost in the wealth of platinum blond hair that cascaded down his back.

He shivered in her arms as she kissed him. Never in her life had she been this aggressive with a guy, but she was tired of always being so damn shy. This was her fantasy and she was going to take full advantage of it before the alcohol wore out and he faded to nothing.

"Thank you," he whispered fervently between nibbles. "I was so hungry for a little affection."

Pearl let her lips stray to the column of his neck, realizing that the scent of ocean breeze and sunshine came from him. "Oh, baby, I'll give you allot more than just affection." She let her hand slide down to his bottom and gave him a squeeze, thinking—oh, yum!

Oshen pulled back, his eyes and mouth round. "Y-you would mate me? Really?" she didn't know if it was a trick of the moon, but his eyes seemed to shimmer with tears. "I'll make you so happy. Thank you! The Divine One has certainly been kind to me today. I thought I was surely going to die."

"What a silly boy," she whispered kissing him again.

Pearl pulled off her soaked clothes and pulled Oshen over her. She could not get enough of his kisses...wanted more, but he would not...do anything beyond caress her and return her kisses.

"Aren't you going to make love to me?" Pearl searched his eyes.

He smiled and sat up. "I will if you catch me."

Pearl watched, shocked, as he scampered away toward the water, his laughter taunting her.

"Hey! This is my fantasy. I don't want to chase you. Come back here!"

When she cleared the foliage, she gasped, seeing clearly in the light of the moon. Dimples decorated his cheeks, his smile a beguiling slash across his enchanting face. His body was a work of art, the ocean breeze sweeping his hair in ribbons of silver around him.

"You're not real," she whispered. "You're too beautiful to be real."

Again he laughed. "Come catch me. If you catch me, I'm all yours...forever."

Pearl smiled and began to run. She chased him along the edge of the foaming water, feeling so free. The warm wind caressed her naked body and her soul sang a song of liberation.

Oshen tried to dodge her hands, but his long hair was his undoing. Her fingers wrapped in the silky strands and he surrendered wrapping his arms around her.

They dropped to the sand, savoring each other's lips as if tasting the sweetest fruit.

"I'm all yours, Pearl."

"Mmmm. Take me," she groaned, arching into him.

He seemed hesitant, making her frown.

"Is there something wrong?" Would just be her luck for her fantasy lover to dump her too.

"I've...never..." Good Lord! The man was a virgin?

Pearl sat up, astonished. She'd dreamed up a virgin hunk! "Are you kidding me?"

Oshen blushed. "Where I'm from, men aren't allowed to couple until they've found their true-mate."

"You mean you've never done it before?"

"No. Once I mate, it's for life. I can never love another."

Pearl snorted. "Too bad Brent didn't feel the same way."

Oshen eyes became guarded and his voice very vulnerable when he asked, "who's Brent?"

Pearl wrapped her arms around his neck. "No one important now," she whispered.

Pearl guided him, watching his jewel-like eyes widen in wonder. They rode the tide of passion, the waves crashing against their entwined bodies. Once inside her, he was like a tempest, surging against her over and over, drowning her with his ardor. Never had she been loved this way before. There was so much emotion in his eyes; his words of adoration feeding the emptiness within her, until her very soul burst into a hundred points of light, blinding her with a euphoria that left her gasping for breath.

*******

The early morning sun was burning through her eyelids. Pearl tried to move, but found herself pinned beneath something very heavy. When she tried to open her eyes to the blazing rays of the sun, she also found her face covered with something silky and white. She brushed it away from her face, discovering that the ocean breeze was blowing whatever it was over her body as well...her very naked body.

Pearl gave a little shriek and jumped to her feet. The beautiful man from the night before rubbed his eyes and sat up.

"Ohm god! You're frickin real?" She clapped her hand over her mouth, her eyes bulging out even more as she recalled all she did with him. "Holy-crap! Please tell me we used a condom last night!"

Oshen blinked, confused. "I-I don't understand. Is there something wrong?"

Pearl felt anger wash over her. How could she be so stupid! "I was drunk. How could you take advantage of me like that?"

Oshen's jaw dropped and he remained gaping at her like a fish out of water.

Pearl, rubbed her hands over her face in frustration, then turned to find her clothes. She had to get out of there as soon as possible. Brent dumped her and now she'd just had sex with some random guy. An inhumanly beautiful random guy.

As she stalked back into the dense foliage, she heard him scrambling to his feet. "Pearl...have I done something wrong? Pearl?"

She spun around, using the leaf of a banana tree to cover herself a bit. "Listen, Romeo, the gig is up."

"Are you hungry? Is that it? I'll fetch you some food. I'm very good at..."

"Go away!"

Oshen reared back as if slapped. His eyes filled with tears, making her wonder if he was...sane.

She turned and walked a few steps more finding her clothes. Her hands trembled as she jerked on her still humid skirt. The silk blouse was ruined and full of sand and her shoes were nowhere to be seen.

"Pearl, you're my mate. I can never..."

"Look, buddy...I'll admit, you're darn cute and all, but you're going to have to think of a better way to get rich quick."

She'd already let Brent make a fool of her, she wasn't about to make another stupid mistake. Worse than letting some stranger have unprotected sex with you?

As she walked away, Pearl decided the man certainly deserved an Oscar. His heart wrenching sobs filled her ears, making her grit her teeth and dig her fingernails into the palms of her hands.

Her own eyes watered. She should be the one crying. No one would ever truly love her. She was too tall, skinny, with mousy brown hair and plain dark eyes. How stupid she had been the night before believing everything he whispered into her ear. She supposed his virginity was nothing but a farce as well. "I'm so stupid!"

Horrors couldn't get any worse. As soon as she walked into her mother's beach house, she was greeted to the sight of Seafoam sitting at the wet bar by the pool, admiring a gleaming diamond engagement ring on her finger. Pearl felt bile rise in her throat when the pretty girl smiled in cruel amusement at her disheveled appearance. Strange, but the girl's hair was the same silvery shade as Oshen's, and her eyes the same shade of aquamarine.

Pearl watched as the smile faded, the girls nostrils flaring a bit. For some reason, Pearl wasn't privy to, Seafoam jumped to her feet and snarled.

"Why do you smell like my Oshen?"

"Your ocean?" Pearl put her hands on her hips and frowned. "For your information, this is my beach house and my island!"

"That doesn't give you the right to mate my Oshen," Seafoam seethed. She pulled the ring from her finger and tossed it.

The million-dollar ring clinked off into the bushes somewhere, leaving pearl gaping. Had the girl gone insane? Then the name registered in Pearl's brain.

"Oshen? You mean the boy from the beach?" Good Lord! Had they been in cahoots to extort money from her and Brent?

Seafoam approached Pearl, her fists clenched. "You've ruined him! I certainly don't want him now!" The girl's eyes darted around. "Where is he?"

"I left him on the beach. I want both you and him off this island immediately!"

Seafoam gasped, shocked. "But you mated him."

"I'm calling security."

When Pearl turned to storm off and call the guards she had stationed around her home, Seafoam gripped her arm and spun her around.

"You don't know what you've done. The males of my world thrive on affection. If you mate one of them, they imprint on you...forever. They only bond with one mate. If you abandon him now, he'll die."

Pearl stared at her in disbelief. "You're mad!"

Seafoam released her arm, gave her a withering stare, then headed toward the edge of the property. Beyond the pool was a cliff that dropped thirty feet into the ocean. Pearl's eyes widened when she saw Seafoam stop at the very edge. The beautiful blonde girl turned and giving her one last dirty look over her shoulder. The tropical breeze blew her long, white, wavy hair around her. She reminded Pearl so much...of Oshen. They didn't really look human. They were too perfect.

Pearl screamed when the girl dropped over the edge. She ran to look, but all she saw was the surging tide and a glimpse of a...fishtail, flipping up then disappearing in the foamy water.

Once more she felt as if the sea was about to rush up to her. Strong arms wrapped around her waist and pulled her away from the dangerous cliffs-edge.

"Pearl! What are you doing?"

Pearl blinked up into Brent's green eyes. A lock of his tawny hair feathered across his forehead. "Oh-my-God! I've got to find him," she exclaimed, remembering his heart broken sobs.

"Who...what are you talking about?"

Pearl broke free from Brent and ran back to where she had abandoned Oshen. She searched and searched, but he was nowhere. The only thing she found were his footprints leading into the water and the marks of droplets of tears speckled around them.

"Oshen! Oshen! Please don't die! I'll love you...please..." She dropped to her knees, her sobs choking her. "What have I done? He's dead and it's all my fault. I killed a sweet, innocent boy!"

Hands caressed her hair. "Don't cry. Please don't cry. I'm sorry. Look, I brought you a gift."

Pearl couldn't believe Brent was trying to schmooze his way back into her life after...

The scent of ocean breeze and sunshine. Pearl gasped, looking back. Aquamarine eyes blazed into hers. His nose was still pink and his eyes filled with fearful hope. Pearl launched herself into his arms. They fell back into the sand as she covered his face with kisses. Oshen shivered with delight, holding Pearl tightly.

"I didn't know, Oshen. I'm sorry." She frowned looking into his eyes. "W-what are you?"

He explained to her how his kind had traveled across the stars many eons ago, and how they'd built an entire city under the sea. An asteroid hit their planet and they were one of many colonies that had spread out through the universe in search of a new home.

Pearl caressed his skin, covered with sand from their tumble. As he spoke, she let her eyes travel over him. In the light of day he was even more breath taking...and very human looking, although much more angelic in features.

"I brought you a gift," he said tentatively. He showed her a clam, which when he opened it had an enormous black pearl nestled within. "I'll make you a necklace with it. Or a ring. Whatever you prefer. Please don't leave me. I'll die without you."

Pearl shivered at the thought and hugged him. "I didn't realize what I was getting myself into last night." He stiffened in her embrace. She closed her eyes and buried her face in his neck, kissing his cool skin. "But I promise you, I'll never let you go."

He exhaled loudly. "Thank you for saving me with your love, Pearl. I'm yours...forever."

She drowned in his eyes as his head lowered, and once more, she savored Oshen's kiss with the sea lapping up against them.