Page 99 of Siren in the Rain

Shae snorts. “Ha! I do remember you mentioning the naked surfing.” He glances toward my lap. “Isn’t that dangerous though?”

I wink at him. “I’ve mastered the art.”

“Let’s just say those drunken elderly ladies got an eyeful and were honking their boat horn and tossing the ship’s life vests at Griffin,” Dallas continues. “They were keen to ‘rescue’ him and give him ‘mouth-to-mouth’ on their ship. We could hear everything they wanted to do thanks to the bullhorn they had with them.”

I smile fondly. “They were delightful. We let them dock their boat in our private marina and they came up to the house. They spent the whole afternoon hanging out with us and eating Dallas’s home-cooked food while they sobered up.”

“Turns out they were all old college friends who’d been having an annual meetup for the last fifty years,” Dallas adds.

“They must have been wild in their younger days because they were still full of mojo in their seventies,” I say.

Cal cackles. “I’ll say! One of them was a photographer and wanted Griff to pose naked for her.”

“Ah, Sandra. She was lovely. And so talented. I’ll have to show you some of her stuff, Shae.” I beam at him. “She later mailed me one of her photo books.”

“She wasn’t the only one who had the hots for Griff after his naked surfing performance,” Cal interjects. “There was also Betty, who warned you that if she’d been even twenty years younger, she would have devoured you.” He breaks down laughing, pounding the table with his fist.

“I had to politely inform her that while I was deeply flattered, I was also super gay and into dick.”

“And she said she was too!” Cal adds, still wheezing with laughter.

“We really bonded over that,” I muse in recollection. “She spent the next two hours telling me the fascinating story of her life—and all the men she’d, according to her, ‘made whoopie with’ over the decades.” I whistle. “No lie, I was impressed.”

We all chuckle over this until Ruby suggests, “Maybe we should try moving on to something more difficult?”

“I’m not sure.” Shae’s whole body tenses. “I don’t want to force anyone to divulge something they don’t feel comfortable sharing.”

I raise my hand. “No problem. I volunteer myself as tribute.”

Shae’s brow furrows as he studies me.

I lean over and whisper in his ear. “I know you’re nervous about using the Voice of Truth to force something private. As your mate, I want to do this for you. I’m prepared to share all of myself with you and I’m confident in your powers.”

I draw back and he studies me intently. “You’re sure?”

“One hundred percent.”

He takes a deep breath. “Okay, then. And thank you.”

I pick up his hand and kiss the back of it. “Anything for my mate.”

I mean it too. For Shae, I’m willing to do anything to help him hold on to his newfound happiness.

He closes his eyes, concentrating for a long moment. When he opens them, they’re faintly glowing again. I feel the hair on the back of my neck rise and goose bumps form on my skin as his magic washes over me with the force of a ten-foot wave. “What’s something you’re afraid of that you haven’t wanted to tell me?”

I jolt at the command and the words start to tumble from my lips before I can even try to stop them. “I’m worried that I might not be enough to keep you safe. That your family could get to you and hurt you again, and I won’t be able to protect you.”

Shae stares at me in horror.

I wince a little. “Yeah, I haven’t really wanted to tell you that, but I needed to. I’m kind of glad your powers forced me to be honest.”

“How can you not feel… violated?” he whispers.

“Having my mate compel me to be honest actually feels rather liberating.” I smile. “I feel a lot better now that I’ve told you.”

To my surprise, he gets up and plunks himself in my lap, wrapping his arms around my neck and hugging me tight. “Thank you for telling me that, even if I forced you. And thank you for letting me test my powers on you. I think it’s safe to say they work.”

“It’s totally your superpower,” I agree.

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