ANGEL FELT LIKE A PRINCESS.Okay, so, technically, since her family was royalty, she was a princess. But other than the occasional “my lady,” the title didn’t mean a hill of shells in her world. Here, though… wow.Wendy must have melted that plastic with all these clothes. Angel knew it’d be fun to try on silky item after silky item, then put more on top of those. Swishy dresses, flowing skirts, lightweight pants, colorful tops. They were all so beautiful, like a tropical coral reef on a sunny day. That Humans could create such beautiful products said a lot about them—and gave her hope for the future.And the shoes! Oh, the shoes. The flats came in so many colors, and Wendy had insisted she try on a pair for each outfit. Really, Angel hadn’t needed much convincing. She loved the flamingo-colored sandals the saleswoman had said were the latest style. They were comfortable and looked so very pretty on her new feet. And then, the high heels! All different heights, some thick-heeled, s

“ANGEL, WATCH THIS!” MICHAEL JUMPED OFF THE EDGE OF the pool in Logan’s yard and did a half twist in the air before belly-flopping into the water. That had to hurt. Angel clapped when he surfaced. “Good job! You almost made it all the way around that time.” “I’ll get it. You’ll see.” “I’m sure you will, Michael.” She leaned back on the chaise lounge to watch him practice as he’d been doing since lunch. Logan had disappeared into his study to handle some business, and she and Michael had had an interesting afternoon making paper animals with pages from his notebook, as well as figuring out how to make a peanut butter sandwich. Between the two of them, there’d been enough pea-nut butter on their fingers that they hadn’t needed the sandwich part, but Angel wasn’t willing to pass up her first taste of dry bread. “I’m gonna do a handstand, ’kay, Angel?” “Go ahead.” She hooked the pen on the notebook where she’d jotted her observations and impressions before lunch, then ran her fing

MICHAEL KEPT CHATTERING SO MUCH DURING DINNER THAT Angel hadn’t known whether to be relieved she wouldn’t have to contribute to the conversation or to worry he’d accidentally blow her cover. Actually, she’d almost blown it herself. Human food wasn’t totally new to her, thanks to the occasional cap-sized vessel and the undersea wedding reception her parents had held for her brother Reel and his Human wife, Erica, complete with their favorite Human foods, but burgers hadn’t been part of her experience. She’d almost swooned when she bit into one. The combination of flavors and textures… And of course, the dry bread and condiments that hadn’t been watered down… The burger was to die for. The flavors were so different. Stronger. Better. And the beverages… She’d passed on the milk Logan had insisted Michael drink, but the iced tea was deli-cious. Fresh water, too, and even a sip or two of grape wine, so different from the kelp wine Mers had. What an experience for the palate. And the ch

SHE HAD THE BEST BREASTS HE’D SEEN IN A LONG TIME. Logan jerked his head. What was wrong with him? Ogling Angel’s breasts? He should be shot. And as for pinning her up against the cabinets and mauling her, he ought to be drawn and quartered. He wiped his face with the towel she’d mercifully tossed him and gave half a thought to gouging out his eyes. He’d never leered at a woman before, much less attacked one. She was a guest in his home. Michael’s babysitter. Could he be a bigger cad? He slumped against the counter and reached for the glass. Christ. Something had hit him like a tidal wave. There hadn’t been a subtle thing about the staring he’d done. At her breasts, no less. The poor woman was look-ing at him as if he’d suggested he tie her to the bedposts. He couldn’t blame her. In another life, that idea would have a lot to com-mend it. He shook his head. Something weird had come over him. Exhaustion maybe. The shock of finding Michael on his doorstep finally catching up with h

THE CHOCOLATE CAKE WAS EVERY BIT AS DELICIOUS AS HER father’s Olympian Advisor had claimed, and the smile on Michael’s face when Logan presented him with a baseball glove—an object Angel had heard about but didn’t really see the attraction of—was priceless. As was the ability to work beside Logan cleaning up the dinner. Priceless? Angel almost dropped a plate at that thought. If her mother could see her now, enjoying chores. Of course, the chores weren’t what she was enjoying. Something had changed. Drastically. Angel rubbed a spot on the plate a little more vigor-ously than necessary, forcing her mind back to the rea-son she’d stayed aboard ship last night. Well, the reason other than Harry, that is. This was all for the benefit of Merkind and the planet. And if she kept telling herself that, she might actually remember it. Then Logan’s arm brushed her shoulder, and sud-denly the fate of the planet took a backseat to what was happening here and now in the kitchen. She stacked