20 Chapter Nineteen

The dinner was nice up until Darcy showed up. I think that Aiden would've kissed me if she hadn't. On the other hand, he may have only tried to kiss me because he saw Darcy and saw his chance to make her jealous.

I have to make sure Aiden doesn't ever try that again. I'm not some merhuman he can use to try and get with some red head. Who, by the way, I don't think likes me very much. I bet she likes him, too.

Maybe I don't like her either. I'm not sure why, but she gives me a bad feeling. But, if Aiden likes her, then I'll definitely try to be nice so that Aiden and I can stay as friends.

If he still wants to be.

Now, we're finally almost there and I was getting pretty tired. Unfortunately, by the time we get there, I'll only have about forty-five minutes before I turn into a mermaid.

"We'll be at the hotel in five minutes. And, don't worry, I got a room with a huge hot tub so that you can still be in the water." Aiden tells me.

I nod before closing my eyes. I must have fallen asleep because the next thing I know, I open my eyes and I'm in Aiden's arms. He was really warm and I didn't want to leave his arms.

"Go back to sleep, beautiful. I'll wake you before you turn." I hear Aiden say soothingly.

I nod slightly before cuddling into his chest. I can hear his heart speeding up before I fall back into a deep sleep.

Aiden

I look down at Bambina's sleeping figure and regret instantly having to wake her up. She seemed so peaceful when she was asleep. She looks like a princess in that beautiful dress while sleeping like snow white.

I wanted to kiss her so bad last night but then Darcy has to show up.. Again.

Maybe it's a sign that I shouldn't keep trying to kiss her. After we left, Bambina went back to acting like nothing almost happened between us and I couldn't help but wonder if maybe she's glad it didn't.

Maybe it's better that I don't kiss her either way. She's a mermaid after all and it's not like she would want to kiss someone like me anyway.

I admit that I like Bambina more than I should. I just don't think she feels the same about me. Even if we somehow broke this curse, she will still be my friend. My best friend.

If we can't break this curse, though, I'm not sure if I'd be able to stop my life for her for the rest of my life. No matter how much I'd like to.

One day, if I end up married, how would I explain leaving in the middle of the night to my wife? It'd be pretty difficult.

I gently move Bambina's hair from her face as I call out her name in a soothing voice.

"Bambi, wake up. It's almost time to get in the water."

Her eyes flutter open before she looks up at me. I smile down at her beautiful face and my heart speeds up as she smiles back. I wish she felt the same way about me as I do her.

Hopefully, tonight, we'll find something out about this curse so I can help her break it.

"But, I'm so comfortable here." She pouts as she turns over to snuggle into the blankets.

I chuckle before laying beside her. I wrap my arms around her waist and pull her closer to me. She sighs before turning to face me.

"How long do I have?" She asks me.

I check my phone and smile. "About ten minutes. Enough time to wake up and get undressed."

She chuckles. "And enough time to pick my outfit for tonight. What do you think I should wear?"

"Bambi, they're your parents. I don't think they will mind if you showed up on their front porch wearing a trash bag. They're just going to be excited to see you." I tell her comfortingly.

She smiles. "I really hope so."

***

All throughout the day, I watched Bambina swim around in the hot tub. She was pretty giddy about seeing her parents and just seeing her excitement made my heart speed up. A few times, I got in with her but, mostly she swam and we talked while I was preparing a surprise for Bambina.

I really hope she'll enjoy it.

She's told me a few times how lonely she used to be until she met me and then the merfolk so I'm really hoping to make her time on land as fun as possible while we figure out a way to break the curse.

"How do I look?"

I'm snatched out of my thoughts as I look up to see Bambina in some black skinny jeans and a white, off the shoulder, crop top. Her hair was now in a fishtail braid down her back.

"Beautiful." I tell her truthfully. "As always, of course." I add in.

She smiles at me as I grab my keys. "Ready to go?"

We got a hotel that was relatively close to her parents home so that it wouldn't take us long to get her. We only drove for about five minutes before we were sitting in their driveway.

I look over at Bambina and she was now twiddling her hands nervously. I grab her hand and give it a comforting squeeze and a smile.

She takes a deep breath before opening her for. I get out and walk over to Bambina, who looks like she's about to have a panic attack.

At the door, I look over at Bambina. When she notices, she gives me a nod, letting me know to go ahead. Finally, I knock on the door.

It doesn't take no oner than a minute before a woman with blue eyes and blonde hair, just like Bambina, opens the door and looks between Bambina and I.

I already knew from the resemblance but I still ask.

"Elizabeth Gallegar?"

Confused on how I knew her name, she clears her throat and looked between the two of us again. Probably trying to figure or if she knew us and couldn't remember.

Finally she nods. "Yes, that's me. Can I help you?"

This time, Bambina is the one to speak.

"Hi, mom. It's me. Bambina."