Free Immersed in Pleasure by Tiffany Reisz Page B

that Derek knew he would be the idiot of the century to miss this chance. It wasn’t only that the Manhattan Mermaids were so legendary he still couldn’t quite believe he’d been talking to one. It was her—this girl—not the rumors and legends—who’d gotten to him. She’d saved his life…or at the very least his centerpiece. And she had such innocence about her. He didn’t meet innocent people in his line of work. As a defense attorney he was often called a shark. Briefly he wondered if sharks and mermaids were natural enemies or allies.
    As Ireland reached the table, Derek made up his mind.
    “You’re late,” he said.
    “Couldn’t remember if we were meeting at nine or ten,” she said, shrugging. He couldn’t recall just then why they were dating. Brainy and beautiful with her white-blond hair and her legs that went on for eternity, Ireland, unlike his ex-wife, was fantastic in bed and wasn’t afraid to try anything. But she was also cold and arrogant when she wanted to be. Tonight she apparently wanted to be. “Guess it was nine.”
    “Let’s make it eleven. We’ll meet at your place at eleven and then I’ll be an hour late.” He stood up. “See you at midnight.”
    “Wait, where the hell are you going?” Ireland demanded. “I just got here.”
    “And I’m just leaving.”
    Derek raced to the VIP table and found it depressingly empty. His mermaid and the dark-haired man had vanished. The only sign the girl had even been there was a small puddle of water on the floor by the chair she’d been sitting in.
    Water… Derek stopped looking around and started looking down. Not far from the VIP table he found the watery outline of a bare footprint on the floor. A few feet later he saw another tiny puddle of water glinting on the shiny dark blue tile. The drops led to a door tucked in a corner.
    A metal Employees Only sign decorated the door and gave Derek pause. In a club owned by Kingsley Edge, breaking the rules led to unpleasant consequences. But he’d abandoned one of the sexiest women in New York at his table for this chance, and he wasn’t going to miss it.
    He threw open the door and found a stairwell. Racing down the stairs, he prayed the water on the floor had come from her and not some clumsy waitress. At the landing two levels below Cirque du Nuit he knew he was on the right track. Breathing in, he inhaled warm wet air scented with a trace of chlorine. He passed through another door and stopped immediately when he discovered he wasn’t in Cirque du Nuit anymore or even the club’s basement.
    He was in Fathoms—no doubt about it. And Fathoms sat right below Cirque du Nuit. Looking around the dimly lit club, Derek couldn’t believe the legend was true. The underground catacombs did connect all of Kingsley Edge’s clubs.
    Derek hid behind a column and studied his surroundings. The club had dozens of interconnected swimming pools scattered about the large room. Between and about them sat tables and chairs—chairs occupied by the highest of high society. Derek recognized several faces—with a real estate mogul for a mother and the deputy mayor for a father, Derek could recognize the wealthy and famous on sight. And everywhere he looked, he spied money and power.
    At the center of the room stood a two-story-high transparent column about twelve feet across. In it swam a girl completely naked but for a silver belly chain. The silver fins tattooed on her feet, ankles and thighs glinted in the light. He tore his eyes from the column to another corner of the room. Another girl equally beautiful and equally naked sat on a large rock at the edge of one of the pools. A man Derek recognized as a city councilman said something to the girl. She rolled her eyes and splashed water in his face. The gesture made the man laugh as if it was some sort of honor to be splashed by such a woman.
    Derek tore his eyes from the scene and searched the club for his mermaid. Looking up, he saw a metal walkway at