“You say that like it’s an insult, but I’d rather face a small whale without teeth than that bastard.” I gestured in the direction the creature had been, though we were moving quickly enough that I couldn’t see it anymore.

“I’m far scarier than a whale with teeth.”

“Is that supposed to make me feel better?”

“You married me, so yes.”

“I did not marry you. I don’t even know your name. And you don’t know mine either, so—what the hell?” I sputtered a curse as he turned sharply, slowing drastically as we sped toward a rocky slope. His tail vanished, and he tucked me closer to his side as he pulled me upright.

His feet met the slope just as rough rock turned to soft-looking sand, and after he took a few large steps, he set me down on my feet. Our heads cleared the water, and he instructed me to breathe out before taking in any air.

I followed the instruction, and thankfully, didn’t end up choking or coughing.

We walked forward, his hands on my hips again. The sand was soft. Ridiculously so.

All I had on was my flimsy bralette and leggings, so when the king’s front met my back, my eyes widened.

That was definitely an erection against my spine.

Definitely.

I guess popping his tail out must’ve torn the swim shorts he had on or something, because he was naked.

Very naked.

I wasn’t going to bring it up, though. I had plenty of bigger things to worry about.

Well, maybe not bigger things…

Argh. I needed to stop getting distracted.

There were other things to stress over.

My gaze was fixed on the gorgeous island in front of us as the king walked me forward.

Or rather, it was fixed on the castle built on top of the gorgeous island in front of us.

It didn’t look anything like a storybook castle. Made of stone in the same shade as the cream-colored sand on the beach, it sprawled out rather than just towering up. The style loosely reminded me of Spanish architecture, with dozens of arches within view and multiple large domes at the top of the building.

“You’re really a king?” I asked the man who was still walking me out of the water.

“The king.”

“So humble,” I murmured, still taking in the castle. The beach it sat on was just as stunning as the structure was, with cream-colored sand stretching on for ages. Gorgeous coconut trees loomed over us, taller and thicker than any on earth. The coconuts I could see on them looked huge, even from the ground.

“Our kingdom doesn’t need me humble. They need me confident,” he said easily.

“You can be confident without being full of yourself.”

His lips brushed my ear, making me shiver.

I definitely hadn’t forgotten our kiss on the beach.