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I inched backward, slamming my eyes shut as I moved. “Leave me alone.” My voice sounded like it was a million miles away. Soft mud squished between my knuckles, and I dug my fingers into the ground at my side, sucking in a deep breath. “Leave me the fuck alone!”
The hum raised in pitch until it felt like a banshee was trapped inside my head. A familiar, coppery taste filled my mouth and warmth dribbled from my nose. Could the woman in the lake kill me with her mind?
I shoved myself back as hard as I could and when I opened my eyes, the picturesque lagoon was gone, replaced by a stinking black pool of sludge and slime.
And the woman—oh gods—I fought back a gag.
She must have sensed that her spell had been broken, because she rushed the water’s edge screeching like a madwoman. Her rotten green teeth showed through her sneer and the purple, bruised flesh of her face and neck sagged in the most sickening way.
What would happen if I wrapped my hand around that water-logged neck? Would the skin slide and peel off under my fingers?
I retched again, dragging myself to my feet and stumbling.
The woman cackled like a lunatic, a sound so unsettling in made my stomach roll, before melting back into the darkness. The moment she was out of sight, the air around me shimmered and the illusion of an enchanting, breathtaking lagoon returned.
“Definitely not in Kansas,” I whispered.
“It’s a glamour.” The man’s coarse voice still stirred something in me, but when I turned, I found myself face to face with the asshole from the beach.
“Oh, for fuck’s sake. What the hell do you want with me?”
He tilted his head as he wiped blood from his split lip. “‘Thank you’ is the generally accepted response when one has been rescued from meeting a rather grotesque end.”
I planted my hands on my hips and instantly regretted the move when I realized my palms were still coated in foul-smelling mud. Then I remembered the taste of blood in my mouth and spit on the ground in front of me.
“That was part of the glamour too.” He was studying me now and doing nothing to hide it. “Most people who get that close end up as siren food.”
I clenched my jaw so tight my teeth ached. “Thank you,” I gritted out.
One side of his kissable lips quirked up in a smile, and he looked almost impressed.
Wait. Kissable? Did I hit my head?
“I only got you away from the water, miss. You’re the one who broke the siren’s connection.”
“Well, goodie for me,” I muttered. Then I glared up at him. “Were you following me?” I stalked forward, stopping just out of arm’s reach. “You know what, no. Let’s back up a little farther. Why were you carrying me across the beach?”
He folded his arms over his chest and lifted his chin, looking down at me with all the arrogance in the world.
“Answer me,” I snarled at him, but his response was a maddeningly calm lift of his brow.
“I don’t owe you an explanation.” He dropped his arms and took a step toward me. “If anything, you owe me an apology for accosting me.”
I glanced at his split lip, and a twinge of guilt snaked through me. But why? I mean, yeah, he probably saved my life, but he’d also manhandled me. The memory of his whisper in my ear sent a wicked chill through me, and I clenched my fists, digging my short fingernails into my palms.
“I was defending myself.”
That fucking smirk made a comeback right before he tilted his head back and laughed. “You are an ungrateful little thing, aren’t you?”
“You’re the one who should know better than to sneak up on a woman.”
“Even a foolish woman who runs herself right into a siren’s lair?” He held his hands up and backed away a few steps. “Never fear, my lady. It is not a mistake I will make again.” Then he turned and walked away.
Was he fucking kidding me?
“I am not foolish!” I stalked after him, telling myself it was because I wasn’t done with the conversation yet. “Where were you taking me earlier?”
He didn’t turn to look at me, but when he drew a short sword from the scabbard at his hip I paused. “Holy shit, are you arealpirate?”
