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“Don’t. Ever. Say that again,” he growled through a clenched jaw. The look in his eyes was one I’d never seen—at least not directed at me—piercing and focused. He watched my eyes like he was searching for a secret message hidden within them. Then, by the nearby light of a tavern torch, I saw in the reflection of his steady, intense gaze, my own ocean blue eyes staring back into his.
I paused; my breath caught in my throat. Staring back at myself were the most beautiful, barely human eyes, framed by delicate lashes that seemed to have intensified themselves to draw all attention to my gaze. They were two moonlight lagoons, nearly glowing with the most radiant blue that rivaled the depths themselves. Like magic.
I blinked, clenching my eyes shut, and when I opened them, everything had returned to normal. I breathed a sigh of relief, but barely had time to recompose myself before Milo crashed his mouth into mine. He pulled away long enough to bring his lips to my ear, which made heat pool between my thighs.
“Damn, I hate this side of you,” he whispered.
“Then why are you kissing me?” I uttered.
“Because it’s still you,” he said without hesitation. “And because I’ve been dying to kiss you for too long.”
I knew then that I had to tell him about Bellamy. “Milo,” I said. “I…I kissed Bellamy. But…”
“But it wasn’t you?” He said. “Is that what you’re going to tell me?”
“Well, yes…because that’s the truth. I never would have…” I struggled to finish my sentence.
“Are you sure?” He leaned into me as someone walked past. “Because something in me isn’t quite so sure. And that’s why I hate this side of you, Katrina. Because I can’t trust you when you’re in it. I can’t tell what’s true and what isn’t. And your siren has a way of bringing my deepest fears to light. So, I’ll ask you this question, but I don’t want you to answer it until you’ve become a siren fully and satisfied that side of you for a while. Because I want to hear the answer from you.”
I dug my gaze into him, my brows tense and pressed together, urging him to go on. He looked at the ground, then back up at me. “Do you love me?”
“Well…yes…of course you know I—”
“No,” he breathed against my lips, caressing them like velvet with his own. “Don’t answer it yet.”
“Fine,” I said, “Then let’s get going. We’re wasting time here.”
Milo nodded, and then walked away, turning back toward the night to lead us through the city and into the dark outskirts of town, where nothing awaited us but tangled jungle and a long hike to the middle of it.
30
Waterfall
Katrina
Milo led me to a path framed by hanging moss and gnarled vines. The moonlight illuminated our steps well, shining down from a bright moon. We were silent, but the humming of nocturnal insects and summer crickets filled the air with their song. After a few long moments making our way through this tropical maze, a new sound reached our ears.
“A waterfall,” I noted, as we arrived in a clearing with a lagoon in the middle of it.
“You should be safe here.” Milo gestured. “I used to enjoy this spot when I was younger. Few know about it. And I doubt that’s changed.”
I took in the wonder around me of the greenery encircling us in this private glade. The moon’s glow cut through the jungle canopy and streaked down in rays toward the glistening crystal water pooling at the foot of the cascading water. The mist from the waterfall surrounded us, casting a delicate haze that only emphasized the rhythmic golden pulses of firefly flashes over the water. But what enchanted me the most was the blue and white bioluminescent glow of the churning water from the waterfall. The water lit up like starlight with every ripple.
“So, I should just…get in?” I turned to Milo, unsure.
“It’s a start,” he said, helping me closer to the lagoon’s edge. “Here there is no pressure. Take however long you need, Katrina, to figure yourself out.”
He went to sit on a mossy log nearby at the foot of the water, while I stared down into the blue lagoon below. The water called to me, and I longed to become part of it. I felt the siren taking over. I dipped my toe in.
“Oh!” I exclaimed, in awe at the way the water glowed when I disturbed the surface.
“That’s my favorite thing about it here,” Milo laughed. The gentle happiness in his voice was like warm honey I’d longed to taste again. But then my siren made me scoff.
No. Shut up. Get in the water and shut up.
I dove in, my clothes billowing around me as the bubbles I created in the water lit up like silver fairy dust. For the first time, I wanted this. I truly wanted to be underwater, merging with its streams and currents. Becoming it. The water met my skin like a kiss between two long-lost lovers, and I closed my eyes, hoping to open them to a shimmering tail like the one I’d seen the night I broke the curse.
But when I opened them, I was still the same. I burst forth out of the water, drawing in a breath. Something in me still begged to be released. The siren was still there, still secretly in control in the back of my mind. I looked at Milo, confused.
