Mermaid Inc. Page 6

  At least she thought the bird’s tips worked. No one recoiled in horror from anything she’d said, nor were there any awkward pauses in the conversation after she spoke. But she caught more than a few people staring at her, their eyes focused on her lower half. A ripple of panic washed over her. Could people tell that she wasn’t really supposed to have legs? Still she forced herself to smile through her nerves until her face hurt just as much as her toes did from her silly golden shoes.

  She remained by Justin’s side, biding her time until he appeared to be completely engrossed in a conversation with a co-worker. As unobtrusively as possible, she opened her clutch purse, reached in to make sure her cell phone was still there, and then slipped away in search of Kenji Morimoto.

  Chapter Seven

  Finding the head honcho of Morimoto Industries was the easy part of her plan, but getting him away from the herd of people around him proved to be the greater challenge. Still, Miranda managed.

  “Your English is quiet impressive, Mr. Morimoto,” she said once they were away from the others.

  Kenji laughed in response. “Thank you, as well it should be. I spent four years studying international business at UC Berkeley. My parents would be pleased to hear that their investment in my education was a sound one.”

  “Were your parents involved in whaling?” Miranda asked, as she unobtrusively tried to draw her companion in the direction of the aquatic exhibits. It helped that other partygoers, champagne flutes in hand, were meandering through the park.

  To Miranda’s great surprise, the Japanese executive turned out to be quiet a charming gentleman. He was polite enough to ask questions about her life but she managed each time to allude to being Justin Lockheed’s girlfriend and then immediately bring the conversation back around to him.

  “Do you have any pets, Mr. Morimoto?” she asked as they paused by the dolphin encounter. “Back home in Japan, I mean.”

  The older gentleman leaned over the rocky ledge and peered down into the water. A small pod of dolphins congregated at the other end of their pool. Their nervous energy was palpable and it only served to fuel Miranda’s anger.

  “Ah, yes, Mrs. Morimoto and I have a cat named Gigi,” he said. “We love animals.”

  Miranda pulled out her cell phone and held it up with a smile. “Don’t mind me, I’m just going to take a few snapshots.” She also switched on the voice recording feature that Goldie had shown her how to use. “A cat, how lovely. You must miss Gigi when you travel.”

  He smiled. “I do. What would the world be like for humans without animals?”

  This she couldn’t find a way to answer civilly so she powered ahead with questions designed to elicit the responses she wanted. “Do you like horses?”

  “Ah, magnificent creatures aren’t they? I am in awe of their majesty.”

  Perfect. That quote would make the perfect voice over for an image of a harpooned whale thrashing around in a pool of its own blood. She was getting exactly what she needed.

  And so Miranda directed the conversation. Each question she asked was leading because, however innocent it may have sounded to Mr. Morimoto, it was intended to invoke a specific response. All the while she snapped photos as if she were an overzealous tourist. Keeping the conversation going was actually easier than she’d imagined it to be, due in great part to her target’s good manners and personal charm. But Miranda knew that Goldie, however saucy he could be, deserved his fair share of the credit for preparing her. She needed to thank him later.

  “Mr. Lockheed is indeed a fortunate man to have such a lovely and intelligent companion,” Mr. Morimoto said with a gracious incline of his head. “But I have taken enough of your time, Miss De La Playa.”

  “And I yours,” Miranda agreed. “Thank you for spending this time with me, it’s proved to be quite fruitful.”

  Kenji Morimoto motioned toward the lit path that led back to the general reception area. “After you, please.”

  “I think I’ll just spend a moment more here,” she demurred. “But of course you must get back to your guests.”

  If he found the request odd, he was too polite to say anything. Instead, he held out his hand and Miranda forced herself to shake it. He then bowed and walked away. As soon as he was out of sight, Miranda slipped off her shoes and sprinted along the semi-path toward the dolphin encounter.

  Once she reached it, she dropped her shoes and purse, and then glanced around. Again the fates had blessed her. There wasn’t a human in sight. She scrambled up to the highest point of the rocky ledge and then swung her legs over the edge, action that was made all the easier by her short dress. With one more surreptitious glance around, she climbed down and sat on a rock in the shallow end of the pool. Her legs dangled in the water. She sighed, at peace for the first time since she’d hit land.

  “It’s okay, I’m a friend,” she clicked to the dolphins at the opposite end of the pool. “Come say hello.”

  Which Miranda knew they would, dolphins by nature were curious and friendly. These in particular were especially curious and they peppered her with questions.

  “Sshh...won’t a night guard come down here if they hear a commotion?” she asked.

  “Don’t even worry about that,” the eldest assured her. “The night guards are a pair of human clowns who think we only make noise. They’d never think we were communicating.”

  Miranda shook her head. There truly was no end to human folly. She tried to flick her fin but as soon as she felt her ankle bones crack she remembered. She had feet. Aching feet, but feet nonetheless. “Tell me about your life here.”

  They did. As the dolphins chattered away she forgot all about her lack of scales and any problems she thought she had. Her woes paled in comparison to the eight dolphins on display. After several moments spent with the eldest in the pod, she was introduced to the two youngest dolphins. Both had been born in captivity and didn’t know of the world that should have been their birthright. They’d never even met a mermaid before. It boggled her mind and broke her heart.

  Their innate intelligence was on display with the questions they asked about her mission. “How successful do you think you’ll ultimately be?” the largest of the dolphins asked her.

  Miranda sighed. “Not successful enough, I’m afraid. If the conservationists with ships down there can’t seem to completely stop the whalers, we won’t be able to do it from here. So the best we can hope for is to temporarily embarrass Morimoto.”

  “What else can you find out from this man you live with?”

  Miranda wiggled her toes in the water. The deep relaxation she felt in her lower body was in pretty sharp contrast with the guilt that plagued her conscience. But she didn’t start this war. She just had her part to do. “I’m hoping to find some information on exactly where the Morimoto fleets plans to begin whaling this year.”

  She reached down and ran her hands along the littlest dolphin, the touch of the familiar wet rubbery skin felt so right. By the way he was splashing around, she could see he liked it too. “Getting that information to an anti-whaling group would be the best possible outcome. Any disruption we can cause them keeps them from whaling. Wouldn’t it be brilliant to throw them so off their plans that they couldn’t catch a single whale?”

  Their collective response was so enthusiastic that at first Miranda didn’t hear Justin calling her name. But as the dolphins quieted down, there it was again. By the semi-frantic sound of his voice, she realized he’d spotted her.

  “Everything’s okay, Justin, I’m fine,” she called to him. But based on his panicked facial expression, he clearly didn’t agree with her.

  “Oh, my God, Miranda, hold on,” he shouted. “I’ll get help.”

  That threat nearly set off a panic attack of her own. “No, no,” she pleaded. The last thing she needed was for anyone to come over and find her in the pool. “I just slipped. Come over to the rocks and help pull me up.”

  In a low voice she apologized to her new friends. “I pro
mise to visit again.”

  “Hurry, Miranda, give me your hand.” Justin’s voice was filled with such panic that Miranda felt a tidal wave of guilt wash over her. It was bad enough to use him for her own purposes, it seemed downright cruel to scare him too.

  She quickly scaled the rocky display and reached out for Justin’s outstretched hand. She felt his hands close over her wrist, and then Justin’s arms went around her but the he lost his balance and after that everything happened so quickly that the next thing she heard was someone calling for the paramedics.

  ***

  As he drove home from Ocean World, Justin glanced at Miranda several times. Each time she was staring at the crimson blood stain on his bandage. Her concerned expression touched him. He reached out and covered her hand with his.

  “Don’t worry, Miranda. I’m fine.” He made an effort to keep his voice calm and soothing. “It’s just a surface cut.”

  “But you were bleeding,” she protested. “One minute you were helping me down and the next minute you were on the ground. What happened?” And then before he could answer, she gasped and her eyes widened. “Ooh, am I too heavy? Is that why you fell?”

  He laughed. “Don’t be crazy. It was me, not you. I slipped when my foot hit that puddle of water. You felt perfect in my arms.” Embarrassed by the fact he wasn’t even trying to hide his attraction to her, Justin put his hand back on the steering wheel and stared straight ahead as his Mercedes made the climb up the hill toward his house. “What were you doing on those rocks anyway?”

  When she didn’t answer, he stole a sideways glance. She was staring at him. Not at the bandage at his temple, but at his profile. The intensity of her gaze made him feel like he had butterflies in his stomach. Was it even possible for a thirty-four year old man to feel like a love struck teenager? Before tonight he wouldn’t have thought it was.

  “You’re a nice man, Justin Lockheed.”

  Justin wasn’t sure how to respond. No woman had ever said anything like that to him before. Truthfully no woman had ever looked at him that way either. Miranda got to him. There was just something about her that got under his skin. He glanced over again. She’d snuggled sideways in her seat with her eyes closed. There was an air of innocence about her, like every day was her first.

  He turned his attention back to the road in front of him. There was a bit of mystery mixed into that innocence though. He thought back to the huge wad of cash she’d pulled out of an envelope when they’d gone shopping. Why would a woman have no clothes, act like she’d never worn shoes before, and have so much cash on hand?

  An even more pressing question tugged at his conscience. Why was a woman working as a maid when she barely knew how to wipe down a counter? Was she just down on her luck? A spoiled rich girl who needed a job, any job, and a place to stay? Or was it something a bit more complicated? Was she in trouble with the law and she needed to hide some place? Miranda a criminal? Preposterous. The entire notion was inconceivable. She was kind and gentle. The patient way she treated that obnoxious blue and gold macaw was proof enough for him.

  Once the Mercedes was through the gate and into its parking spot, he shut off the motor. He undid his seatbelt and came around to open the opposite door. “Miranda,” he kept his voice low and gentle. “We’re home.”

  Her eyelids fluttered open for a moment and then shut. But she smiled, and it went straight to his heart. He reached in and gently eased her out of the car and into his arms. He carried her into the house and laid her on her bed. There was no way he’d embarrass her, or tempt himself, by even trying to remove her dress but he did slip off her shoes and lay them by the side of her bed.

  Justin leaned down and brushed a gentle kiss across her forehead. He realized that he’d neglected to thank her for accompanying him and for the way she’d effortlessly charmed Kenji Morimoto. Not only had she made him look good, she’d made the evening easy for him. He owed her. And he knew just how to repay her generosity.

  He was going to find out who she was and why she was in need of work and a place to stay. With just a bit of research he would be able to find out just who Miranda De La Playa was and what she might need to get back on her feet. It was the least he could do.

  ***

  “Tell me every juicy detail, starting with who threw the first punch.”

  Miranda ignored Goldie as she wrestled with the case her pillow was trapped in. Making the bed was an exhausting task. It was no wonder that so many humans always looked so stressed out. Housework was torture of the worst kind. She punched the pillow.

  “Now we’re getting somewhere,” Goldie squawked. He spread his wings wide and flapped them with great enthusiasm. “You’re trying to tell me that pretty boy hit the other guy first?”

  Miranda gave up her tussle and plopped down on the bed. She hugged the pillow close to her chest. “Nobody hit anybody last night, Goldie. I’m sorry to disappoint you but it wasn’t that kind of evening. The only violence I witnessed was watching people scarf down trays of sushi.”

  “So why did your man Justin come home with a big ‘ole band aid on his head?” He bobbed his head from side to side. “Hey, I know. He got smart with you in the car and you cuffed him for being fresh, huh?”

  Miranda studied the macaw. “You’re insane, you know that?” She sighed. “You don’t understand Justin at all. He would never hurt anyone. Especially not me.”

  This set off a vehement protest. “I’m going to molt if you ever say that again,” Goldie squawked. “I’m also going to tell Summer she’s gotta get you out of here pronto.”

  “No,” Miranda cried. “It’s not time. I’m not done with what I came here to do.”

  “Face it, fish tail, you’re not focused. Or maybe you are focused but just not on the right thing.” Goldie hopped down from the dresser and began to pace the floor.

  Miranda glanced down at the little marks his talons made on the carpet. She really should vacuum to make them disappear but, although she’d figured out how to plug the contraption in, she couldn’t bear all the noise it made. She sighed. “You’re right, Goldie. Absolutely right.”

  “Ah, music to my ears. Say it again.”

  Miranda owed him that much. “You’re right that I’ve lost my focus. I need to be thinking of men with harpoons rather than men with gorgeous brown eyes. When I think about the strength of a man’s arms, I ought to be thinking of how to stop those whalers from slicing into those poor tortured whales rather than daydreaming about Justin holding me.”

  She would have gone on but the phone interrupted her next words. This task she could handle. She lifted the receiver. “Lockheed residence,” she said before pausing to listen. “Of course, that would be lovely. Yes, that’s fine. You’re sending a car tomorrow at nine a.m., wonderful. See you then.”

  “What did you just agree to?” the macaw demanded after she hung up the phone.

  “That was Kenji Morimoto. He called to invite Justin and me out on his private yacht tomorrow for a day at sea.” Miranda smiled. “Doesn’t that sound like heaven?”

  “Ha.” Goldie swung his head from side to side. “Your favorite human is going to love that. Better pack him some Dramamine.”

  Chapter Eight

  Once onboard the luxury yacht owned by Morimoto Industries, Miranda was glad she’d decided to wear her new light green sun dress. The color perfectly matched Justin’s face as they put out to sea.

  “You’re going to be fine, Justin.” Miranda rubbed his back in a gentle, circular motion. “Relax, surrender to the power of the waves.”

  Without loosening his death grip on the railing, Justin turned to look her in the eye. “You lied to me.”

  “I had to,” she said, keeping her voice low and soothing. “It was the only way to get you onboard.” She should have been reassured that he was losing his green pallor but his cheeks were rapidly turning red. She wasn’t sure which she preferred, sick or angry? Or maybe that wasn’t it at all. “Are you embarrassed?”

&
nbsp; In answer he bent over and dropped his head onto his arms. His moan was low but agonized. “What would I have to be embarrassed about? Oh, you mean the fact you had to push me up the gang plank so that I’d get on this floating death trap?”

  Miranda smiled, she couldn’t help it. “It wasn’t a gang plank, for heaven’s sake. You’ve watched too many pirate movies.” She gently brushed a wayward lock of chestnut hair from his forehead. “No one will judge you. Although I do think they heard you protesting that you’d rather perish on land than at sea.”

  “Great, just great.” Justin pushed himself back from the rail and took a moment to find his balance. “Mr. Morimoto is going to demand I’m taken off the project, I just know it.”

  “Would that be so very bad?” Miranda surprised herself by asking. Of course it would, it would be terrible for the Undersea Rescue Society’s cause. Whaling season was approaching far too quickly for them to start at zero with a new plan. But seeing Justin suffer like this was painful.

  “Yes, it would. I’m at the point in my career where I can either get ahead or get left behind.”

  She nodded. “I think I understand. You mean you’ll either sink or swim based on how this goes?”

  Justin closed his eyes and clutched his stomach. “Great analogy, Miranda. Lovely visual.” He opened his eyes and stared down at her with an expression she didn’t quite understand. It was almost as if he was begging her to understand him. To accept him.

  “I’m sorry that this is so hard on you. And I’m sorry I lied. But you needed to be here today, we both know that.” She moved to his side and slipped an arm around his waist. “Put your arm around my shoulders, yes, like that. Good. Now put your sun glasses on and just be as quiet as you can. Everyone will just think you’re super relaxed. Water has that effect on some people.”