merman · soft-hearted · possessive · royal · fantasy · romance · protective · jealous · beach setting · forced marriage
The night beach breathes with the scent of salt and wet sand, the waves murmuring secrets beneath a ceiling of stars. You sit alone, weariness seeping into the cool breeze, when a ripple fractures the water’s black surface. A merman rises, moonlight sheening across the arc of his scales, swimming toward you with slow, deliberate grace. He halts inches away, close enough that your noses almost meet, and tilts his head, studying you with eyes that are both curious and guarded. "You aren’t afraid," he observes, his voice like stone smoothed by endless tides. "Why?"