Page 9 of Siren's Gift

With his knowledge of all things Gifted thanks to his job at the GIG—not to mention his obsession with research—he might be able to help us with these talismans. If nothing else, he would enjoy learning more about siren magic. I felt less guilty knowing he was getting something out of this arrangement.

"Our talismans seem to be struggling." I blew on my coffee, sending wisps of steam dancing into the air. "Scales showed up on my arm last night during a fight, and Marissa has some on her chest."

As I showed him my arm and the slight amount of webbing growing between my fingers, his eyes narrowed in thought.

While he didn’t know everything about our past and who we really were, we’d revealed our siren nature to Calvin shortly after we moved in. Well, more like he walked in on Marissa and her tail in the bathtub after she’d taken off her talisman.

We could laugh about it now, but it was quite a chaotic scene back then. The entire bathroom had gotten soaked in her panic at being caught topless. Tail be darned, in her mind; it was the naked part that had her frantic.

"Can I see it?" he asked, his gaze fixed on my amulet.

"I can’t take it off, but you can look." I held it up for him as he approached. His soothing honeysuckle scent made me smile.

Calvin was a good-looking man, but he wasn’t the delicious temptation that Dominic was. At least not for me, and I was pretty sure not for Marissa, either.

Thankfully, the wizard had been nothing but a gentleman since the first day we’d met, never once making us feel uncomfortable with unwanted flirtation. I’d wondered if he preferred men, or maybe was asexual, but he’d laughed when I once asked about his dating life. I hadn’t been as subtle with my questions as I thought.

Apparently, he just hadn’t found the right lady to catch his eye yet. "No offense to you," he’d said quickly. But that had only made me chuckle.

He’d also admitted he had little time for dating and was too focused on his career to care. Moving up the ladder at the GIG was a tough…gig…

Oh.

I suddenly understood why some gym members snickered when the GIG came up in conversation. Yeesh, it had taken me way too long to put that together. Some days, I couldn’t help but wonder about my sanity. As in, how much did I have left, if any?

Calvin turned the tooth to study it from all sides. "Looks perfectly intact. Can I try something?"

"Go for it. Just don’t blow me up."

He grinned, flashing deep dimples in both cheeks. "No promises."

That might sound ominous coming from anyone else, but I trusted him completely. He was a talented wizard who wasn’t getting the advancement he deserved. Someday, I was sure he’d get his opportunity.

The main difference between wizards and witches was how they used their magic. Whereas witches typically drew on the elements to harness their spells as needed, wizards performed complex rituals with runes and used wands.

Because they could store extra mana in their wands, wizards didn’t need to rely on elemental particles being nearby like witches did. Most people considered wizards as more powerful than witches, and they often worked for the GIG.

Calvin slid his wand out from behind his ear and traced some sigils in the air, all while muttering some words in a language I didn’t understand. The tooth glowed bright pink, and the potion within started to bubble and fizz.

"Uh, Cal, it’s?—"

An explosion sent us both flying.

CHAPTER 6

Bree

Steaming coffee flew in a messy arc through the air, splattering against the walls and ceiling. I hit the ground with a thud and a grunt, my body jarred from the impact. Miraculously, I didn’t drop the now-empty mug.

"Ow." I shook hot coffee off my hand and stood. The room was a caffeinated mess. "I thought I said no blowing me up."

Calvin rubbed his head where he’d smacked it against a cabinet. "Sorry about that, but it answered my question."

"What question?"

He used the counter to pull himself to his feet and adjusted his glasses, which had fallen askew. "The magic used in that spell is unique to the sea. I’d bet my career that only the person—er, siren who created it can fix it."

Ugh. I’d dreaded that answer. I didn’t bother correcting him on Calypso being a sea serpent, not a siren. Not like it mattered anyway. A sea creature was a sea creature to most landlubbers.

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