Better Where It's Wetter

By Ava Cuvay

Alana LaRue assumes the sexy merman pictured on the lake house wall is “just art.” Then a violent storm topples her into his arms and she discovers the ocean isn’t the only thing that makes her wet.

A satisfying, quick read with sass and some tongue-in-cheek mermaid humor.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Ava Cuvay
• Release date: Feb 6, 2022
• ISBN: 9781733482738

Ava Cuvay

Ava Cuvay writes out of this world romance featuring sassy heroines, gutsy heroes, passion, adventure, and an alcoholic beverage or two... Often set in a galaxy far, far away. She resides in central Indiana with her own scruffy-looking nerfherder, kiddos who are growing up without her permission, and two kitties that make her laugh. She believes life is too short to bother with negative people, everything is better with Champagne, and Han Solo shot first. When not writing, Ava is thinking about writing. Or wine. And she’s always thinking about bacon.

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Better Where it’s Wetter

Better Where it’s Wetter"

written by Ava Cuvay

Copyright ©2019

Published by Drinking the Stars Press, LLC

P.O. Box 15, Whiteland, IN 46184

Cover Design by Fiona Jayde, www.FionaJaydeMedia.com

Copy Edited by Nan Reinhardt

ISBN #978-1-7334827-2-1 (print)

ISBN #978-1-7334827-3-8 (digital)

All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced without written permission from the author, with the exception of quotes used in reviews. Requests for permission to excerpt portions of this book may be directed to the author. This book is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to any persons, living or deceased, or references to historical events or actual locations is purely coincidental and used fictitiously. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination, with the exception of any popular culture references.

Website: AvaCuvay.com

Facebook Page: AvaCuvayAuthor

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DEDICATION

To all the secret mermaids out there

and everyone who loves to make waves.

Acknowledgements

Thank you to the members and friends at the Crossroads Romance group, who put the original version of this short story in their Lake House anthology. The challenge to write a short story was an immeasurable learning experience!

CONTENTS

Better Where it’s Wetter

Epilogue

About Ava

Tah’Grian by the Tail Sneak Peek

BETTER WHERE IT’S WETTER

Are you a mermaid?

The child’s question pulled me from the nap I’d drifted into. The gentle waves of Lake Triton, one of the smaller and more secluded water bodies here on Aquata-Prime, had lured me away from my paintings to come play. Instead I’d fallen asleep on my inflatable raft in the warmth of the late afternoon sun, dreams of fanciful sea creatures swimming in my head. I was tempted to blame the vivid imaginings on my solitude these past few weeks—housesitting out here on the lake didn’t always suit social people like me—but I wasn’t lonely, and I wasn’t alone. I had my painting supplies to keep me occupied. And the picture of a handsome merman on the wall to keep me company.

I lowered my sunglasses to peer at the little girl standing at the stern of the boat sliding silently through the water. I hadn’t heard the boat approach, yet it was already docking against the side of the floating house I currently called home. The girl was young, perhaps five, with a fuzzy halo of red curls, her brown eyes bright with wonder. She leaned so far forward, I feared she might tumble from the low bow into the water.

She thought I was a mermaid? That would be a childhood dream-come-true, if such were possible. I returned her smile. What makes you think I’m a mermaid, sweetie?

You have a green tail and your hair is my favorite color!

Her confident tone implied I should be well aware of the requirements for being a mermaid. My gaze followed where she pointed to my legs. Sure enough, the emerald-green wrap I’d worn in my customary attempt to hide my thighs had slipped and now trailed in the water like a broad tail making lazy circles in the water. Top that with my elbow-length curls dyed flamingo pink, and I made an adequate impersonation of what a little girl might imagine a mermaid to be.

Oh, I can’t be a mermaid. There weren’t any seashells in all the waters of Aquata-Prime big enough to cover my large buoys. My ample cleavage was often a hassle—like whenever I jogged or slept on my stomach or stood upright—but she didn’t need to know that. I stuck my bottom lip out in an exaggerated pout. Mermaids are notoriously beautiful singers, and I can’t hold a tune to save my life.

I warbled a few off-key notes. She covered her mouth and giggled. I laughed with her.

The boat slid flush with the dock and a middle-aged woman with a more sedate version of the girl’s hair stood from the captain’s seat. She nodded a friendly greeting. You must be the house sitter for the Morays. The one from the artist colony?

I swung my legs over the side of my float to sit up. Yes, I’m Alana LaRue. You’re Eartha from the Farmer’s Market, right? The Morays said you’d be by.

Yep, and this is my daughter, Terra. We usually swing through every few weeks with groceries or anything else you might need. ’Course the water taxis can be called if you want something immediately or are dying to walk on dry land for a bit.

Aquata-Prime was a planet of water dotted with a few strips of land crowded with towering cities such as the one I’d grown up in. Urban megaliths filled with noise and chaos and crappy boyfriends. The thought of leaving Lake Triton before I’d soaked up every last possible bit of peace and quiet made me laugh. Thanks, but water is my Zen garden. I went through six interviews and sat on a three-year waiting list to get a dream job like this. My toes aren’t touching land until they absolutely have to.

I know what you mean. A bad day on the water is still better than a good day on land. Eartha laughed with me. I assume the Morays left you pretty well stocked. Anything they missed?

I looked at the lake house behind me, a two-story floating mansion in the middle of a lake the size of our smallest moon. This model of luxury and wealth—I