“You read?” I asked him, surprise lining my voice as he sat me on the ledge of the platform. The water came up insanely close to the top of the wood, but for some reason, it didn’t splash up there even when I kicked my feet a little.

Triton placed his hands on the ledge and lifted himself easily out of the water. I tried not to drool at his abs, or the way they flexed, but failed entirely.

Damn his muscles.

And his stupid skirt.

And his obnoxiously gorgeous face, which was now smirking at me after catching me checking him out yet again.

I stood up, forcing my attention away from the king as I took in the books.

“Yes, I read. A king has far too much free time, and far too few friends to spend it with.” When I looked back, I found his gaze on the shelves, scanning them like he was making sure everything was still there.

“Doesn’t the saltwater hurt the books?” I asked.

“Not in my world. The magic here softens its effect.”

Magic.

I swear, it could explain everything.

“What kind of books are they?” I asked, gravitating toward the shelf.

He stopped me a few inches away with a hand on my hip again. “Shift, and I’ll tell you.”

I gestured toward the books. “I’ve finally found something we have in common, and you want me to shift? Come on, Triton.”

His lips twitched. “We have the same color scales. That’s another thing in common. Shift first, then you can read.”

I sighed dramatically. “Fine.”

I reluctantly joined him back on the ledge of the platform, and he held the small bundle of green silk out toward me.

“You brought that?”

“Yes. I assumed you wouldn’t be comfortable shifting in front of me without it yet.”

My mind went back to the way he’d walked me across the beach entirely naked, and I quickly took the fabric. “You assumed correctly.”

His lips curved. “I’ll give you a minute.”

“If you peek, I’ll have to kill you,” I warned, feigning seriousness.

If he was my husband and we had to seal the bond soon—which were both true as far as I could tell—there wasn’t much of a point to privacy.

“Of course.” He strode behind me, and I glanced over my shoulder to find him studying his bookshelf up close.

I’d seen how the odd clothing fit Rayna, so it wasn’t difficult to swap it for my current underwear. The sea silk molded itself to my body and was smooth against my skin. I could feel the tiniest undercurrent of energy running through the fabric, reinforcing Triton’s explanation of how it worked.

“What do you do with the scraps of sea silk left over after a project?” I asked.