Seeking the Deep (Mountain Mermaids Book 2)

Jase McCarthy straddled a stool at the end of the bar and raised one finger at the man behind it, signaling he wanted his usual. The Saucy Wench was a favorite watering hole for locals who were looking to ease away the stress of the day and let loose without scaring off tourists with tall tales about Sapphire Lake.

People in Aurora Falls liked to talk. Jase knew that all too well.

And sometimes getting a rise out of tourists who were too quick to believe in the supernatural was a fun game for them to play. Stories of the giant serpent who inhabited the lake, and the finned warriors who lived beneath, were entertaining little morsels for those who ventured this far north to the small town for an adventure.

But they wouldn’t find much of that here.

Club Scales was the destination for the types who wanted a show. For everyone else there was The Wench. It was good raunchy fun most Friday nights, but one night a month, it was full to the brim and even wilder than normal. It was when the workers who mined the North Shore of the lake came into town for their three days off.

And tonight happened to be that night.

Jase scanned the quickly crowding establishment for a specific familiar face. He was supposed to be meeting his friend. Mansen was one of the men who worked the lake. He had no family to speak of so Jase made it a point to check on him every month. They had a standing monthly meetup time. 7pm. Which meant he was late.

The Wench grew louder as people piled in. He wouldn’t be caught inside the place if it wasn’t for Mansen. Not because he didn’t like raunchy. Raunchy was pretty much his middle name. Jase Raunchy McCarthy. Yeah, the local gossips would love that. But no, Jase had other reasons for not hanging around the bar.

More than one, really.

But the biggest was because he never wanted to feel at home in a bar. Never wanted to get too comfortable. Never wanted to drink away his time on earth. Like his father had. Like his father before him did. Like the people of this town expected him to.

He’d fought long and hard to beat back the cloud of bad reputation his family had left hanging over him. And done a damn fine job of it so far. He’d carved out a nice little life for himself here despite starting from dirt bottom when he turned eighteen. Unbelievably, he owned most of main street. Owned the shops and buildings that supported this bustling tourist town, and quietly rented them to the vendors, working as his own fix-it man when things cropped up.

It kept him busy, kept money in the bank, and set him up for a comfortable future.

It was enough.

He told himself that often, even if he still felt like there was more to do. More to prove.

The bartender passed Jase his drink—ginger ale with two jalapeno slices in the bottom of the glass—and scurried off to take the next order.

Jase gulped his soda as he looked for Mansen again.

The ratio of men to women was always off. Though he supposed it worked in favor of the local women who had designs on the muscle-bound workers. The miners were mostly male, though the females of the group were instantly recognizable. Many were curvy and stood with their shoulders tall. Regal. They seemed regal. Long hair, eyes that shone with something dark, an expression that looked like they’d eat a man for dinner.

His gaze caught on one as she strolled up to the bar, leaning over it to give her order. Her blond hair spun in waves down to her waist as she twisted to brace her elbows on the counter while she waited, staring out at all the people. The motion brought all Jase’s attention to her body. And gave him a jolt of desire that zeroed right below his belt making him instantly hard.

Well, fuck.

She was hot as hell. Compact and curvaceous with a set of tits that threatened to hypnotize him from behind her tank top. It was rude to stare, he knew. But every time he tried to look away, she shifted her hips causing them to sway, an ocean of soft flesh that he was ready to dive into.

Suddenly, she went still and since his gaze was still on her chest, he noticed the way her perfect nipples pebbled up tight, pushing the fabric out, and choked back a groan.

It’d been too long since he’d had a woman. And frankly, he’d never had one like her.

Somehow, his gaze climbed to her face, and goddamn she was beautiful. Round cheeks that tapered into a pointed chin. Her face was like a heart, and he was practically seeing hearts. Like those dumb cartoon characters when their eyes bug out in the shape of the thumping organ. And speaking of eyes, hers were icy blue, rimmed with long lashes, and staring right at him…staring at her…

This was not good.

She didn’t look away, and he couldn’t either, but something about her expression seemed…amused.

Jase caught sight of Mansen approaching just over her shoulder, and it managed to break the spell the woman had on him. Mansen’s expression was its normal scowl. The man never quite seemed happy to be in town. Or happy at all. Ever. It made Jase want to pick and peck at him until he broke a little. He’d managed to pull a few smirks from the man over the years.

As Mansen passed the woman at the bar, she called out to him, grabbing his attention. They knew each other. Clearly. They worked together on the lake, right. But an odd wave of jealousy hit Jase in the gut. They spoke for a moment before Mansen frowned hard and shook his head. But the woman argued and he glanced over his shoulder to squint at Jase. And then his expression changed to one of surprise.

What the hell?

Jase looked away, downing some more of his ginger ale.

Moments later, Mansen pulled up beside him, plunking down on the next stool. “That female wants you,” he muttered before waving the bartender over to place an order.

Jase shrugged, trying to seem casual while he willed his hard-on down. “They all want me.”

It wasn’t a lie, but still an asshole thing to say. There was no shortage of women willing to be with him. Especially the ones who hadn’t known him as a kid. The ones who didn’t know much about his family. Sure, lots of women wanted him. Fine.

The problem was, he didn’t want them back.

He couldn’t say the same about Miss Blond Icy-Eyes over there.

“You know each other?” Yes, that was his voice that came out all edgy. Damn.

Mansen eyed him, raising one dark eyebrow. It made him look like a professional wrestler Jase watched on TV when he was little. “Yes. I know her,” was all he offered in the way of explanation.

“Know her well?” Jase gritted.

“A long time, yes. But not that well.”

Jase blew out a hard breath, relieved at that. “How’s the lake?”

“Same as it always is. Cold. And wet. Why are you asking me shit like that?”

“It’s called small talk. It’s what normal people do in social situations. You should try it sometime.”

Mansen’s beer arrived and he took a swig before answering. “I don’t do small anything.”

This time, Jase raised an eyebrow. "Oookay. Noted.”

“What?”

“Nothing.”

“What did I say?”

Jase raised both hands, feigning surrender. “Look, man. It ain’t none of my business what kind of women you like. Really. To each their own.”

Mansen frowned. “What are you talking about, asshole?”

“You like ‘em… you know…” Jase smirked, egging him on. “Bigger. You like the thicker ladies. Like ‘em curvy.”

Mansen tipped his chin forward in agreement. “It’s true. I do like my females… grabbable.”

Jase stared at his friend’s clueless expression.

“What of it?” Mansen asked.

“Dear god. Never mind,” Jase muttered, turning back to his drink. “You are zero percent fun, you know that?”

It might be a long night.