The end of my tail knocked against a puffball beneath us, and shifted back to legs after a short burst of magic I had no control over.

Unlike me, Triton didn’t shift. “Keep pushing it.”

I did as he instructed, stretching the magic as far as I could. After another minute, it started feeling like a rubber band I’d stretched to its limit.

“Can’t hold on much longer,” I panted.

“Just last as long as you can. That’s how you build the muscle.”

“What if it snaps?”

“Then it snaps. It’s magic; it’s infinite. What happens to it doesn’t matter. If you use all that you can access, you’ll exhaust yourself, but it will come back.”

I nodded, fighting to maintain my hold. The magic itself wasn’t visible, which made the whole experience feel insane. But there was no denying the power all around me, or the way I strained to hold it.

If I hadn’t been underwater, sweat would’ve dripped down my forehead or spine.

“Just like that, Sweetheart.” Triton’s voice strained. “I’m impressed.”

“Liar.”

He laughed roughly. “I wouldn’t lie to you.”

I pushed the magic out just a tiny bit further, gasping for air when I stretched it the very furthest I possibly could. “It’s going to snap.”

“I’ll brace myself.”

After one last heartbeat, it tore abruptly.

A powerful shock of magic ripped through the water like lightning. Triton growled ferociously, and his mouth crashed into mine as he pinned me harder to the cliff.

I couldn’t stop myself from kissing him back, wrapping my legs around his waist when he shifted. His erection ground against my center as we made out, and even though logic told me I shouldn’t have, I pulled him closer.

His hands moved over my abdomen and breasts, grabbing and teasing and claiming.

I finally managed to break the kiss with a gasp, my heart still racing. He kissed and licked his way down the side of my throat as I panted, “We should stop.”

“Why?” He sucked on the sensitive part of my throat lightly.

“We still don’t know each other.” As I said the words, I couldn’t stop myself from moving his hand from my breast to between my thighs.

“There’s an easy remedy for that.” He stroked my upper thigh lightly, not giving me what I wanted even when I pushed his hand beneath my skirt.

“But we—oh.” I moaned as his fingers finally brushed my clit.

My hips arched.

My eyes slammed shut.

“Arre vah,” the king growled, the same phrase he’d used earlier. I still didn’t know what it meant, but my face twisted with pleasure as I rocked against his hand.

“Just fuck me already so I can go back to trying to put distance between us, Triton.”