Page 12 of Bewitched By the Siren (The Bewitching Hour #1)

CHAPTER TWELVE

Hali

What in the hell did I just do? Did I really agree to be Brendan’s tour guide? To go to the Shrimp and Grits Festival with him next weekend?

“Mom, I’m back,” I call out as I walk into the house and kick off my sandals.

“Did you bring me a burrito?” she asks, and I grin as I walk into her room, waggling it in front of me. “Oh, bless you. Bless you.”

She’s being dramatic, like she hasn’t eaten in a week and the burrito in my hand is the only thing that can save her. I roll my eyes as I hand it over, my lips curled up into a smile.

“So, how was it?” she asks as she works to unwrap the foil.

“It was…nice.”

“Nice?” she asks, frowning. “Just nice?”

I plop down into the chair with a groan. “Fine. It was fun, okay? He’s a really nice guy, and I like talking to him.”

“When are you going to see him again?”

“Mom.”

“What?” she asks, narrowing her eyes at my impatient tone. “Is it so bad I want to see my only daughter happy?”

“He only wants to hang out with me so he can find an opening to get me to sign with his agency.”

“Is that what you think?” she asks, arching a brow before taking her first bite of the burrito. Then with a full mouth, she groans. “Jesus, this is good.”

“I know, right?” I say, grinning. “I had the same reaction with my first bite.”

Unwrapping the remnants of my own burrito, I take a bite and savor the flavors that burst on my tongue. Brendan is proving to be an amazing cook.

“So, let me see if I have this right,” she says once she chews and swallows. “This guy…Brendan? Yes. Brendan is nice, you have fun with him, he can cook, he’s good looking––”

“I never said he was good looking,” I cut in, and when she just stares at me, I sigh. “Fine. He’s hot. Like, really hot.”

“So spend some time with him, Hals. Regardless of his motives––which I don’t think you’re completely right about, by the way––you deserve to have a little fun.

And in the end, if you don’t want to sign, don’t sign.

At least you’ll have had a good time while it lasted. That’s what life is all about, honey.”

She’d be right if she were talking to anyone else.

But me? I’ve never been able to get close to anyone for fear they’d find out my secret.

I spend time with my band only when we’re rehearsing.

I don’t have any girlfriends. I maintain the barest relationship with people at the turtle center.

It’s always just been me and Mom. I can’t risk anything else. And Mom knows that.

Hell, Brendan caught me staring at the ocean and suggested a swim, and I nearly had a heart attack.

I’ve watched enough couples frolicking on this beach to know guys think it’s cute and hilarious to carry their girls into the water and toss them in.

What if Brendan decided to do that to me?

I could stop him, of course. I would simply take off my necklace and order him to put me down. And he’d have no choice but to comply.

But I already used my siren song against him once, and that was risky enough. If I did it again, he’d have questions about why he can’t resist my commands. Questions I can’t answer.

“I see your wheels spinning, Hali. Stop overthinking it. I want you to live . To build a life that doesn’t completely revolve around taking care of me.”

We’ve had this conversation before. Many, many times. Mom loves me. Of course, she wants me to live my own life. But what’s the point of forming relationships if all you can do is lie to the people you care about? It’s not worth the risk. If I let anyone get too close and they discover what I am…

Life as we know it would be over. I’d lose Mom, completely, because I’d have to choose between escaping to the ocean and living as a mermaid full-time, going on the run and creating a new identity, or giving up and letting the government lock me up in some lab to be tested, poked, and prodded for the rest of my life.

I meet her eyes. “I’m happy with things just the way they are.”

She gives me a sad smile. “I know you are, sweetheart. But I fear you’re missing out on so much. I don’t want to be the reason you’re lonely. When I’m gone––”

“I don’t even want to think about that,” I cut in before she can finish the sentence.

“I know you don’t. But you have to, Hali. I don’t want you to be all alone when the time comes. You need to find someone you can trust with your secrets. Someone who’ll love you, fins and all, just like I do.”

My eyes burn as my lips curve up into a cheerless smile. “You’re one in a million, Mom. If anyone else had found me…”

I let the words trail off as a shudder runs through me.

I don’t like to think about what might’ve happened all those years ago if someone else had found me and turned me over to family services.

I’m sure I’d have lived my life as a lab experiment or as some kind of circus sideshow if that had happened.

“I did find you, and I love you and want you to be happy. You said Brendan is only in town for a short time while he tries to convince you to sign a deal, right?”

“Right,” I say, drawing out the word and filling it with suspicion.

“So he’s low-risk. Spend some time with him. Have fun while he’s here. Trusting people takes practice, and he’d be the perfect guinea pig. Trust him with small details about your life. Show him the things you love about this place. You’ll see how fulfilling it can be.”

“I’ll think about it,” I mumble after taking a moment to roll her words around in my head. She nods and takes another big bite of her burrito, and while she chews, I add, “I’m going for a swim tonight.”

She swallows and gives me solemn nod. “Be careful.”

She knows how dangerous it is, but she also understands the necessity.

When I was little, she used to stand at the water’s edge with a giant bath sheet, ready to scoop me up and dry me off before anyone could see my tail.

But once she got sick and couldn’t be there for me, I had to get creative.

It’s not easy, getting out of the water when you have no legs.

“I’ll be careful,” I promise.

I know it terrifies her even more than it does me, that someone––either human or siren––will see me. But I’ve put it off for too long, the pain is becoming unbearable, and I don’t have a choice but to take the risk.

Leaving her to finish her breakfast and rest, I head back to the kitchen for a drink of water. Looking through the window, I see Brendan walking up the beach toward his rental next door.

Is Mom right? Can I practice becoming friends with him with minimal risk since he’s only here temporarily?

I heave a sigh as I make a decision. Heading into my bedroom, I find the business card he gave me stashed in my sock drawer where I put it instead of tossing it into the trash like I’d planned.

It has his phone number on it. Pulling my phone from my back pocket, I take a deep breath and type in the number.

Here goes nothing.