Free The Sea King's Daughter by Miranda Simon Page A

retreating to a throbbing ache, but always there. I'd learned to ignore it, or at least push it into the background. I'd convinced myself to accept it willingly, almost gratefully. This was the price I had to pay to be with Lysander.
    "Careful, little one," he said, as I stumbled and almost fell a second time. "You walk like you're a newborn puppy, splay-legged and weak. Are you sure you don't want to go back to the house?"
    "Of course I'm sure. I can't wait to see the village, all the new people, the donkeys and the children, the birds and trees and wildflowers -- oh, I want to see everything."
    Lysander laughed. "You're an odd little creature. You act as if you'd never seen any of those things before."
    "Well, no, I --" I bit my tongue and shook my head. "Not these particular birds and trees and flowers."
    He smiled down at me like an uncle doting on a favorite niece. I frowned at the sight of this too-familiar expression. I wanted him to look at me with love and desire, not fondness. For the past few days, while I recuperated, he'd treated me like a favorite puppy, petting and spoiling me. But he never kissed me or said the silly, fervent things that lovers say. I knew I could change all that, with a little time.
    We walked together down into the village. I leaned on Lysander's arm.  I could smell the rich animal scent of him, under the hot sun, and the perspiration on my body too. There was no seawater around me now to cool me and wash the sweat and dirt away. It was one of those little differences I hadn't anticipated, one more thing to get used to.
    I kept my eyes open wide. I wanted to drink everything in. In the market square, humans bartered over jugs of wine and olive oil, wedges of cheese, sacks of wheat and barley, the carcasses of octopii and squid, and blue bream staring out at the world with blind, blank dead eyes. I'd never seen so many humans all together in one place. It was overwhelming, but exciting too.
    The children ran wild through the dust, screaming as they chased one another. One little boy tugged at my tunic. I bent down to smile at him and try to understand his garbled words. "He hopes you'll give him something," Lysander said. He grabbed at the child's shoulder. "Go away, boy, and leave us in peace."
    "No, wait, Lysander. Let me buy him something. What would he like?"
    Lysander rolled his eyes, but he smiled. He slipped a silver disk into my hand. I stared down at the image of Herakles strangling a snake. "Go ahead," Lysander said. "Buy him some figs from that farmer there."
    I approached the man and held out the coin. He gave me a handful of sweet figs and several smaller coins as change. I bent down and fed the little boy one of the figs, and ate one myself. Lysander laughed down at us and pulled me up again. I squeezed his fingers and he squeezed back. We stared into each other's eyes. I thought I saw something change in his face.
    Would he kiss me now? I stood up on tiptoe, looked straight into his eyes, and wet my lips. The whole world seemed to come to a halt. This was the moment I'd waited for, the moment when everything would change.
    "Lysander, my friend." Phidias had slipped up behind us and clasped Lysander's shoulder. Just that quickly, the moment was lost.  "Come quickly-- there's boxing up near the old temple. Hieron has issued a challenge. Will you accept it?"
    "Of course I will." Lysander turned to me. "Hurry, little one. I've got to defend my title."
    I sighed, disappointed, but I tagged along after them. I would have to learn patience, which had never been one of my virtues. My breath came faster than usual when I remembered the look in Lysander's eyes. He felt something for me. I knew he did.
    The temple perched on one of the hills above the village. It was a hard climb, especially on my aching legs. Lysander ran up ahead with his friends. He didn't notice how I struggled. But Phidias took my arm. "Here, lean on me," he said. Gratefully, I slumped against his shoulder.
    "You