Adam was stirred from the depths of his slumber by the muted roar of the wind outside the cave. The fire had died down to glowing embers that pulsed with faint orange glows. Nerida was still draped across his naked body, combining and sharing their warmth. At some point, her hand had drifted to his erect cock and was resting gently over it. It was a pleasant and thrilling sensation.
He risked tilting his head to look at her. Asleep, she looked like a fallen angel; skin as smooth as the softest silk, as white as a new moon and as unblemished as fresh snow. Her eyes were closed and a peaceful tranquillity emanated from her.
As if sensing his vigil, she inhaled and slowly opened her eyes. She blinked several times and then tilted her head up to look at Adam. It was perfect, a tender moment of synchronicity. Nothing else existed, only them.
Unfortunately, Nerida realised where her hand was positioned and jerked it away so fast that Adam was sure she'd torn his cock off.
"FUUUUCK!" he screamed, rolling over and clutching his abused manhood. His back and muscles added jolts of pain to his agony, still tender from the previous night's adventure.
"I'm sorry!" Nerida cried, crouching beside him. "I didn't realise I was holding... it! And then I did and my first reaction was to pull away! Does it hurt?"
"WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU THINK!?"
"Sorry!" Nerida hovered over him and patted his shoulder awkwardly. "Uh, can I do anything?"
"You've already done enough!" Adam said through clenched teeth. "Just... give me a minute."
He took deep breaths and willed the pain away. After five minutes, it reduced to a dull ache and he was able to move. He risked checking and found that all body parts were still attached. Nerida had dressed and laid out his clothes beside him.
"I'm sorry," she said again as Adam quickly changed, doing his best to retain some dignity. It sounded like she was trying to hold back laughter.
He looked up and his eyes narrowed, causing her to bite her lip and her shoulders to shake. "I've never met someone who infuriates me like you do," Adam said, sitting down with a hiss as pain shot through him again.
Nerida's smile vanished and she rushed to his side, helping him sit with his back against the cave wall. "Glad I'm not the only one," she replied. "You might be the most annoying person I've ever met."
"Yet you still kept me warm last night."
"And nearly tore off your... thing in the morning."
Adam raised an eyebrow. "You mean my cock?"
Nerida blushed and shuffled away. "The storm should pass in a few hours. I'll help you from the cave and get you back to the lighthouse then," she said, eyes on the fire.
Adam smirked but let the matter drop. Another mystery to add to the growing list. He decided to tackle a more pressing one. "How did you save me from the ocean yesterday? It was far too violent, I should have drowned."
Nerida shrugged. "I'm a good swimmer."
"Maybe, but no one's
that
good."
She lifted her chin. "How do you think I managed it?"
Adam rubbed his head. "As... as impossible as it sounds, I think there was a little more truth to your Sea Folk tale than I first thought."
Her face didn't give anything away. "And if there was a little more truth?"
"Then... I suppose I need to adjust my view of the world - although that's starting to happen already." He inhaled and grimaced at what he was about to say. "Are you... are you a mermaid?"
Nerida's peals of laughter rang around the cave. "You mean the half-fish-half-woman creatures humans created? Does it look like I have a tail?"
"Well, no," Adam retorted. "But swimming naked in the sea, not feeling the cold, rescuing me in the middle of the storm - it all adds up to something weird, not to mention your family and its history. If you aren't a mermaid, what are you?"
"I am one of the Sea Folk; a race of people who made their kingdom beneath the waves before humans started killing the world."
An uncomfortableness that had nothing to do with Adam's injuries settled in his stomach. He was one of those humans. "Say I don't buy this island, you know that someone else will eventually, right?"
Her nostrils flared and some of the old Nerida came back. "Then I'll deal with them as well."
Adam shook his head. "Sorry, I don't think you will. If I hadn't decided to visit this place, I'd have probably sent a team and bought it anyway. Other people will do the same. You want to save it? You're going to need help."
"Oh? And you'd be the one to give it? Why the change?"
"I never said that... but I guess I did a lot of thinking yesterday before Sire-" He stopped abruptly as he remembered the reason why he was on the rocks searching for Nerida in the first place. A sharp stab of guilt pierced his stomach.
Nerida gave him an understanding smile. "I appreciate you coming to look for me," she said, reading his expression. "And Sirena can be... persuasive."
Adam smiled guiltily. "I'm sorry for what I said to you, I was angry and confused at the volume of information you and Sirena had fired at me. Couple that with Sirena's... advances and your timely appearance, it's a wonder I haven't had some sort of breakdown. Just so you know, Sirena was more terrifying than arousing, and I do want to be your friend, if you'll have me?"
Nerida stared at him without replying for so long that the air between them became tense. Eventually, she relaxed and said, "It's OK. I guess I get a little heated sometimes too. I'd like to be friends."
Adam lifted his arm and Nerida hesitantly shuffled underneath it. Her body fit perfectly against his. With her so close, he realised that he didn't want the storm to end.
"So... the island," Nerida prompted.
"Oh yeah," Adam replied, pulled back from his dreamy state. "I did a lot of thinking and a lot of what you said was very uncomfortable to hear. I was no better than the humans in the history of the Sea Folk and - in a lot of cases - I was the humans you described. Sirena called it the 'fundamental rule of existence': the weak die and the strong survive."
"That's where my sister and I disagree," Nerida said. Her hand was resting on his stomach and he had a strong urge to hold it. Before he could, Nerida was talking. "I think that the fundamental rule of nature is one of balance. There's a delicate cycle and balance that exists throughout all living things. If that balance becomes too heavily weighted on one side or is disrupted, species die, which will eventually lead to the death of everything."
Adam lifted his hand and held it close to hers. She timidly reached out and interlocked her fingers. Her hand was warm, slender, and smooth. He marvelled at it for a moment before saying, "And you think humans have unbalanced nature and the world in their favour."
Nerida lifted her head to look at Adam. "You don't?"
He sighed. "No, you're right. The scales were unbalanced a long time ago. Maybe it's too late to get that balance back, but I might be able to protect the island, at least."
Nerida squeezed his hand. "Thank you."
"No, thank you for saving my life."
*
Adam finished writing his most recent letter and recapped his pen. The journey back to the lighthouse was excruciatingly painful and took far longer than it should have. Nerida had to support him for much of it and was far stronger than her diminutive looks would suggest. Despite their new friendship and closeness, Adam couldn't help feeling that Nerida found his painful exclamations humorous.
While he showered and recovered, she had gone back to the village with the promise to return before evening. Confusingly, the deep cuts on his back had healed - not completely - but rather than looking a day old, they looked weeks. The skin around them was the light pink colour of new skin rather than the large scabs he should have had. He added it to his list of questions for Nerida that evening.
He'd used the rest of the spare time to write another letter to Jeff. In it, he ordered him to start the process of buying the island but hold off on planning proposals and applications. Adam thought he could purchase the island but not do anything with it; the villagers could go about their lives, the endangered species would be saved, and whatever Nerida was trying to protect the island or world from would be protected. All in all, he thought it was a fantastic plan.
He didn't explain his reasons or plan to Jeff. It was going to be a long and hard conversation that he needed to have with his number two face-to-face. His longer-term plans for the company had changed as well; he wanted to try and use his wealth and power to save the world rather than destroy it.
The reason for his drastic change came in the form of a ferocious blonde angel who knocked on the door as he folded the letter and addressed it.
"Hey," she said shyly when he opened the door. She looked nervous, fidgeting with her sleeves. Adam opened his arms and she hugged him briefly before stepping in, closing and bolting the door. They went upstairs into the living room.
"Any reason you're acting weirder than normal?" Adam asked teasingly.
She slapped his arm. "Hey! Do you not feel awkward after what happened last night?"
They perched beside each other on the sofa. She was wearing tight jeans and a fitted shirt that hugged her figure enough to see she wasn't wearing a bra. "You mean when you almost ripped my cock off?" he said with a smirk.
Nerida blushed adorably. "Shut up, it was an accident." She tucked her legs beneath her and changed the subject. "Have you had any more thoughts about the island?"
Adam grinned and picked up the letter. "Actually, I have!" He tossed the letter to her. "Post this as soon as you can, I'll leave what I'm doing as a surprise."
"A good surprise?"
"Yes, a very good surprise."
They ate a small meal together and talked about inconsequential things. It felt... easy. As Nerida relaxed, Adam began to see more of the person beneath the fiery temper. Fire did run through her veins, but it was a fire of passion and caring. Nerida was in touch with the world in a way that was almost spiritual. When she spoke about the ocean and its creatures, the island and the villagers, her eyes and dimples came alive. She had about her an energy and love for the world that flowed from the core of her being.
She asked Adam about his life. Not the business, but his family and friends. It was only in talking about them he realised how lonely and empty his life was. He had surrounded himself with grey walls and empty shells that only reverberated the echoes of his thoughts and feelings, never adding to or enhancing them.
The longer they spoke, the closer they moved. It was an unconscious thing, like two magnets slowly pulling toward each other. It only stopped when Nerida was beside him and her intoxicating scent drew him in.
