Gone With The Tide

Chapter 18

"Hey, mate! Is Callie ready to go?" Adam asked the next day, rocking on his heels in Callie's living area.

"She is still in her room getting ready," the sea prince said half-heartedly.

"Wicked." They stood there in an awkward silence. If the whole wall wasn't clear glass, Triton would've left Adam standing at the door. But the human could see Triton sitting on the couch when he had knocked. "No hard feelings about Delphi and Hayden, right?"

"None at all," Triton offered with his eyes trained on the TV.

"Really? Cause you seemed so determined to get her back... Hayden has been afraid to talk to you since he and Delphi... Thought you'd be mad," he chuckled, but his eyes were measuring.

"Is that right?" Not going to lie. The thought of Hayden being scared of him was hilarious to the prince, but he was more interested in what was going through Adam's head.

He didn't have to wonder long. Adam asked, "Did you change your mind? Are you interested in someone else?"

It should have been an easy question, but when Triton opened his mouth, the words refused to rise. Someone else...

Callie's bedroom door opened and she stepped out wearing a white v-neck tank top with blue skinny jeans and flats. With white rose studs decorating her ear lobes, a light gray cardigan grazed her shoulders matching the overtones of her eye makeup. There was just a hint of dark eyeliner on her eyes and gloss on her lips to accentuate her natural beauty. Triton could smell a new scent from her, a perfume that really teased his senses and made him want to hold her close enough, long enough, to identify its components.

"Sorry! I had a hard time choosing what to wear. It's my first date, so..." she trailed off.

Her flustered disposition made him smile. He thought to tease her until Adam's voice reminded him they were not alone. "No! Blimey! You did great, sheila. I will have to keep you in sight. We should get going. See ya, mate."

"Yes. Let me grab my purse," she said walking over to the counter. She turned and whispered to Triton who had followed her with no conscious thought, "Do I have something on my face?"

"No?"

She smiled, then raised her eyebrow. "Then why do you keep staring?"

"Am I?" He cleared his throat. "You just don't wear stuff like this. Like makeup." That wasn't true. She wore that tight white dress to the club that first night. He just doesn't remember not being able to look away. In fact, that dress showed much more skin than her current ensemble. It made no sense to him why he was so affected.

A crease appeared between her eyebrows and she whispered, "Does it look bad?"

"No. You look... beautiful, Callie."

She blinked and he looked away, wishing there was a black hole under his feet. Why did he say that? It was true, but what if she thinks the wrong thing? What if she thinks the right thing? At this point, Triton could not distinguish right and wrong when it came to his feelings for his human friend. It was just complicated.

"Have fun, you two," he said out loud nodding to Adam before he quickly disappeared into the bathroom. He sat on the floor, his back to the door, until he was sure they were gone.

TRITON tried to watch a movie, but he found himself looking around to see if Callie was laughing at the right moments. Fed up with the silence her absence left, he started pacing the room. It has only been an hour. How long do dates typically last? If she is having a bad time, will he allow her to leave? Will he take her home? She didn't take her car, so how is she supposed to get home in the event she can't tolerate Adam's presence a moment longer?