Must Love Mermen (Sable Cove Book Two) Read online

  Must Love Mermen

  Sable Cove Book Two

  By R. E. Butler

  Copyright 2021, R. E. Butler

  Must Love Mermen (Sable Cove Book Two)

  By R. E. Butler

  This book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This book may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of the author.

  Cover by Gwen Knight

  This ebook is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination and not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or locations is coincidental.

  Disclaimer: The material in this book is for mature audiences only and contains graphic sexual content and is intended for those older than the age of 18 only.

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  Edited by Sarah Dawn Johnson

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  For the real “Joy” my bestest sisterfriend, Joyce. You’re a fairy princess in my book.

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  Special thanks to Shelley and Ann for beta reading.

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  Table of Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Coming Next from R. E. Butler

  Contact the Author

  Other Works by R. E. Butler

  Next in the Sable Cove Series

  Must Love Mermen (Sable Cove Book Two)

  By R. E. Butler

  Lonely merman hero? Check

  Fairy heroine floundering at sea? Check

  Mysterious magic? Double check

  After being exiled from his merfolk tribe two years earlier, all merman Cassian wants to do is live out his life in the quiet seaside town of Sable Cove. Taking over for the lighthouse keeper and watching the shores for trouble keep him plenty busy and helps keep his mind off how lonely he is. When a beautiful fairy’s boat drifts into the cove, Cassian knows she’s his siren—the one female on the planet meant for him.

  Nature fairy Ziarena is thankful to be rescued by the sexiest merman she’s ever met in her life, especially when she realizes he’s her true mate. When Cassian and Zia travel to her home, the danger they face is enough to bring something magical to life within Zia, but no one knows how it’s possible. Can they figure out what Zia is, or will it remain a mystery forever?

  Chapter One

  Merman Cassian lifted binoculars and stared out across Sable Cove Bay. He wasn’t looking for anything in particular, but at the same time, he was driven to watch the waters because of a witch’s vision a week earlier.

  On the night of the fall equinox, witch Delaney and her vampire mate Brody had knocked on the lighthouse door and told him about a vision she’d had. Someone was in trouble and they believed it was related to him. That his life was going to be forever changed by the mysterious, troubled soul.

  So for the last week, he’d watched the water at night, wondering and trying to stifle the bloom of hope that rose up each time he considered that perhaps, if luck was on his side, the person coming for him was his siren. Like the shifters’ true mates, a merman’s siren was the one person on the planet meant for him alone.

  Shaking his thoughts away, he focused more intently, sweeping the binoculars slowly to the left and then to the right. He listened for sounds of distress but heard nothing aside from the lapping waves on the beach and the occasional splash of a fish.

  He tucked the binoculars back in their case with a sigh.

  It was after midnight, and he’d been watching the water for over an hour. He was beginning to think he was going crazy.

  He walked into the top floor of the lighthouse, where the huge, bright light served as a beacon to ships. As lighthouse keeper, it was his job to make sure the light was always on to guide ships to safety near the small town of Sable Cove. The light was automated, but he had to maintain the computer system and the surrounding shoreline. He’d called Sable Cove home for the last two years, after getting kicked out of his merfolk tribe. Taking the lighthouse keeper job, which had been vacated when the old keeper decided to retire, had been a way to stay close to the water without spending too much time with the locals.

  He had no problem with the locals, so long as they cleaned up after themselves at the beach and kept their distance. He wasn’t a chatty guy, had never been one for small talk even before his exile. The townspeople kept clear of him and he did the same to them.

  Except now he had this strange vision-slash-prophesy banging around in his skull.

  He wasn’t some kind of swooning, hopeless romantic, but he couldn’t stop feeling as though it were significant.

  His life was going to change when he found the mystery person, but what kind of change would it be?

  * * *

  The following morning, Cassian drove to Sable Cove Diner in town for breakfast, run by wolf shifters Tyce and Tia. He’d slept like shit, and when he was up at the ass-crack of dawn and wanted something to eat, of course he’d discovered he had no food in the house.

  “Heya, Cassian,” Tia said from behind the counter. She handed change to a diner and thanked them for stopping by. “Take a seat anywhere.”

  Cassian sat in the corner booth. Tia appeared with a mug and a carafe of coffee. She filled the mug and set the carafe on the table. “Usual?”

  “Yep, thanks.”

  She smiled and hustled away. He pulled out his phone to check the news and weather when someone cleared their throat.

  He looked up and saw Yasmine, the town vet and a selkie shifter. “Morning.”

  “Hi, Cassian. I wanted to let you know that I’ll be going for a swim tonight. It’s that time of the month.”

  Selkies liked to shift and swim as the full moon was waning. He understood the pull of the water, although he didn’t keep his shifting to once a month.

  “Thanks for letting me know.” She opened her mouth as if to say something more but paused. He raised an eyebrow at her. “Yes?”

  “I heard about Delaney’s vision. If you do come across someone in distress and need medical assistance, you can reach out to me. I’d be faster than the ambulance from the hospital.”

  He frowned. He hadn’t thought about what he’d do if his mystery person needed medical help. “All right, I’ll keep that in mind.”

  She nodded and left. Tia set two plates on the table, one with a stack of pancakes and another with eggs, bacon, and hashbrowns.

  “Thanks,” he said.

  “You bet. Holler if you need me.”

  He ate in silence and read over the marine forecast, noting that a storm front was coming up from the south in the next few days. When he’d finished eating, he paid the bill and left a generous tip for Tia. He gave a chin-jut toward Tyce through the window into the kitchen, who returned the silent greet
ing.

  After stopping to resupply his kitchen at the local mom and pop grocery, and narrowly avoiding a long conversation with the “mom” of the store, who liked to try to set him up with what seemed like a never-ending supply of granddaughters, nieces, and family friends, he headed home.

  The day lay ahead of him, filled with things he needed to complete. But while his mind was set on the tasks at hand, he couldn’t stop thinking about the witch’s vision and what it meant for him.

  “I’m going fucking nuts,” he declared as he rested his hands on the railing of the first-floor deck and looked out at the water. “Absolutely fucking crazy.”

  Chapter Two

  Ziarena wandered down the long hall of her parents’ home toward the gathering room where she’d been summoned to appear that morning. The door opened magically as she neared, and she smiled as she saw her parents sitting at matching carved mahogany desks.

  “Hello love,” her mom, Olive, said as she set down her pen and stood. Zia’s mom was a traditional fairy, who always wore gauzy dresses and kept her wings out at all times except when she slept. Today’s gown was pale green with a belt and matching crown of woven lavender.

  Zia kissed her mom’s cheek and hugged her. “You look nice.”

  Olive gave her an indulgent smile. “You look comfortable.”

  Zia glanced down at her outfit—leggings covered with sunflowers and a dark yellow tunic. “I am. You should try leggings sometime. They’re very freeing.”

  “You know I love dresses.”

  “I know.”

  When Zia was little, she’d dressed just like her mom. It was how fairies were supposed to dress, at least the older generation always said so. Zia’s generation, however, liked to dress more modern. The only time Zia dressed like her mom now was when she was meeting with other fairy dignitaries from other cities, during the annual ball, or for a wedding or other ceremony.

  But she far preferred comfy clothes.

  Zia walked around to her dad’s desk and kissed his cheek. “Hi, Papa.”

  “Zia!” He blinked up at her like he hadn’t realized she’d come into the room. Judging by the thick book open in front of him that he’d been studying, she could guess that was the case. “Oh, I forgot the time. Have a seat, youngling.”

  Zia sat in one of the fancy chairs across from the desks. Her phone buzzed, making her boob vibrate. She’d tucked the phone into the strap of her bra because her leggings didn’t have pockets.

  She let out a little “eep” of surprise at the vibration and snatched her phone from inside her tunic. Her bestie Joy was calling, and she hit ignore and then put the phone in her lap.

  “So what’s up?” she asked, looking at her parents.

  “It’s the night of the crescent moon,” her mom said. “I was hoping you’d be willing to go out and gather some night-blooming algae for me. I need to replenish my stock.”

  “Sure,” Zia said. Since her power was over plants, she could easily find any plant. Night-blooming algae had medicinal purposes in fairies including helping to ease arthritis of the wings, something her father’s best friend had, which made flying difficult. Fairies by and large didn’t get sick, because their immune systems were strong and they had quick healing due to their supernatural abilities. And for the things that did affect fairies health-wise, there were people like her mom who used plants to assist with healing.

  “Anything else?” she asked, looking at her father, Athene, who was peering at the old book in front of him.

  He looked up at her over his half-glasses. “I don’t know, Z. Do you have any hot dates on the horizon?”

  Zia rolled her eyes. “I think you know I don’t.”

  “We could put you in with a matchmaker if you’d like,” her mom said. She smiled indulgently at Zia’s father. “It worked for us.”

  Matchmaking for fairies involved a spell, and though Zia knew it worked very well, she didn’t want to go that route. “I’m a few years away from wanting any kind of magical interference. I’d like to just meet my soulmate and know that he’s mine.”

  “You’ll find him when the time is right, magic or not,” her father said.

  Zia smiled. “I know. So... just the algae?”

  “Yes,” her mother said. “I need to make a stronger poultice.”

  “I’ll fill up two jars, then, instead of the usual one.”

  “You’re a love,” her mom said, smiling. “Don’t go out alone. You know how I worry.”

  “I won’t. I’ll have one of the guards go with me.”

  Her parents were highly-ranked in their fairy city. Her father was the advisor to the king, and her mother and the queen were best friends. Zia had grown up playing on the steps of the royal dais with her bestie Joy, daughter of the king and queen. If a guard wasn’t available, maybe she’d ask Joy to go with her.

  “Be safe,” her father said.

  And “I will.”

  Zia left the room and headed home, texting the scheduler for the guards to ask for an escort to gather the plant. Her phone buzzed as she made her way down the stone steps of her parents’ home and hung a left to follow the cobblestones to her cottage a few hundred yards from her parents’ massive house.

  “I heard you’re going plant picking,” Joy said.

  “How the heck did you hear that so fast?” Zia asked.

  “I’m with the guards, and your text came up.”

  “I was going to ask if you wanted to come with me.”

  “Can’t. Hot date.”

  “Oh! Anyone I know?”

  “Dhrew.”

  Zia hummed in surprise. The fairy male was a guard and a couple years ahead of them in school. “I didn’t know you liked him. Or he liked you.”

  “Well, we didn’t run in the same circles at all, but I needed an escort to go out of town for a few errands the other day and he was assigned. We just hit it off.”

  “Sounds like kismet.”

  “It does! So sorry, but I can’t go with you tonight.”

  “I wouldn’t want you to cancel anyway. One of us should have a life, and I’m glad it’s you.”

  “You’ll meet your Mr. Right soon, I’m sure.”

  “Someday. Hopefully sooner rather than later. Have fun on your date.”

  “I will.”

  “Do you know who’s going to be assigned to me?”

  “Not yet, they were discussing it and Tycar said he’d go but then he realized you needed to be on the boat, and he gets seasick.”

  Zia giggled. “That would suck.”

  “For both of you.”

  “I’m off to get some work done in the greenhouse until the sun sets. Text me all the deets on your hot date when you get home.”

  “Will do. Be safe.”

  “You too.”

  Zia ended the call just as she reached her home. Built onto the side of the quaint cottage was a large greenhouse. Her fairy power was over plants and flowers, and she grew many different things in the greenhouse. Her favorites were flowers, but she also grew fruits and vegetables to help feed the city of Trieve. Once she was inside the greenhouse, she smiled at the plants and grabbed her favorite half-apron from the hook by the door.

  She was happy for her bestie, but she certainly wished she were the one going on a hot date tonight.

  Maybe she’d be lucky enough to meet her soulmate soon, and then she and Joy could double date.

  “You’re so lucky you don’t have to date,” she whispered to a lilac bush as she touched the pretty leaves and inhaled the sweet scent. Then she set about working, her head and heart on what her romantic future might hold.

  Chapter Three

  Cassian woke on the day of the crescent moon, his skin tingling and his magic on overload. While mermen were not magical in the way of witches and warlocks, they were magical in their own right. He could commune with sea life of all sorts, and had an innate sense of danger on the water, which allowed him to help stranded boaters before it was too late. When he
’d lived with his merpeople in Sitnalta, in the depths of the Atlantic Ocean, he’d been taught to distance himself from humans and other supernatural creatures, to worry only about saving merpeople and keeping their people protected. Merpeople rarely mated with humans or others and were usually exiled if they chose to do so. When his grandparents were young, it had been a punishable offense to change forms around others that were not mer, but it wasn’t that way now.

  Not that it mattered to Cassian anymore. He could do whatever he wanted because he was already exiled. A clan all on his own. Someday, when he found his siren—his soulmate—he wouldn’t be alone anymore. But for now he was. He’d been exiled and living in Sable Cove for two years. The quiet seaside town offered him the solitude he craved, but unfortunately with that solitude came very few females. The unmated females in town weren’t his siren, or he would’ve found her already.

  His mind strayed to the prophesy as he rose from his bed and stretched, staring out the window at the colorful sunrise.

  The crescent moon was tonight. While he hadn’t known when the crescent moon in Delaney’s vision would occur, the way his magic was acting up this morning made him wonder if he might find the person in the prophesy tonight. He’d be sure to be alert and ready.

  After grabbing breakfast and reading the news on his phone, he got ready for the day. There wasn’t much to being a lighthouse keeper. Back before modernization, the light was an oil lamp that had to be tended all night long in case it went out. The Sable Cove lighthouse was now completely digital. While he tended to stay up late because he was a night owl by nature, it wasn’t because he had to monitor the coastline. Sable Cove wasn’t on a busy waterway, so there wasn’t a lot of boat traffic.