The Mermaid's Pearl (Tears of the Deep Book 1) Read Online Free PDF Page A

Keeps me fed and lets me live on his ship.”
    I laughed. “Ah, you’re his servant boy.”
    “Cabin boy,” he corrected me.
    Same terrible thing. “Oh, well I’m sorry for the misunderstanding. What’s your name?”
    “Casey. Casey Martin.”
    It wasn’t much of a pirate’s name, but I couldn’t begrudge him that.
    “The cap’n says he’ll give me a better name when I’m ready.”
    “That’s good, unless you don’t want the other pirates to take you seriously,” I joked.
    He looked hurt.
    “I’m sorry, I was only kidding.”
    He smiled. “Oh—ok. Where do you come from?”
    “I can’t tell you, you’ll tell Aiden.”
    “It’s Captain. You can’t call him his by his name. None of us do. It’s disrespectful.” He spoke the words as if they had been told to him repeatedly.
    “Well I don’t, and he’ll get used to it. My name is Raewyn by the way. You don’t suppose I could follow you outside for a little sun do you?” I hoped he’d give in.
    A look of terror crossed his face. “Oh no, miss! There rules are you stay here. He said, ‘The dark-haired maiden must stay in my quarters. Any man who lets her out will be fed to the fishes,’ and I cannot betray him. I hope you’re not mad at me.”
    My excitement dropped. “You’re awful loyal for a kid stuck aboard a pirate ship.”
    “I told ya, I want to be here.”
    “Do you really think he will train you?”
    He nodded quickly. “Yes.”
    “Do you keep a weapon on you?”
    “No, I’m not old enough yet. I just clean and help as I’m needed. I help with the fishing too and preparing meals.” He held the tray up again. “Are you sure you won’t take a bite?”
    “No, thank you. Tell the captain to come speak with me if he has a problem with it.”
    “Okay.” He sighed and stood up. “I hope he doesn’t hurt you. I like you.” He bowed and left, securing the lock behind him.
    His words haunted me as I anxiously awaited Aiden. It wasn’t long before I heard a noise at the door again. I stood up from my place, careful not to go too fast, and moved to lie down on the bed. I tugged the dress up on my legs and ran my hands through my hair to tousle it before propping myself up on my elbow. Let him try to escape the charms of a mermaid.
    Just as suspected, Aiden stepped into the room and shut the door behind him. He leaned back against it and cast his gaze at me. His eyes roamed down my body, and I hid the smile that wanted to come upon my face. I had him.
    “Good afternoon, lass. Me cabin boy tells me you are too good for pirate food.”
    “That’s not at all what I said, Aiden,” I said sweetly.
    He cocked an eyebrow before stepping away from the door and closer to the bed. When he reached the bedpost at the foot of the bed, he stopped and crossed his arms. “What kind of game are you playing?”
    “Game? There’s no game.” I pushed myself up to sit and let the strap of the dress fall off my shoulder. I made my gaze darken and bit my lip, making it appear as if I wanted him to join me on the bed.
    Aiden’s eyes moved to my bare skin, his mouth curving into a devious smile as he shook his head. “Oh you are a beautiful thing, aren’t you?”
    I shrugged my shoulders and smiled up at him without responding. Flirting came easy to me, and I was determined to prove that I could use my charms to win. Even though I didn’t feel anything for Aiden, there was something about the way he looked back at me that made me feel uncomfortable.
    Without a word, Aiden placed a knee on the bed and leaned toward me. “I bet you taste like salt from the sea too.”
    My breath caught in my throat, and my pulse began to race. Did he know what I was? “And why would you think that?”
    His other knee came upon the bed and he crawled toward me. I could feel the danger crawl under my skin as he came closer to me. The warmth trailed up my body, surprising me, and I fought to ignore it. Aiden reached out to softly run his finger over my