Page 45 of Rise of the Melody
Ugh, there went that zing down my torso again, down into my belly. I squeezed my thigh muscles.
“Not yet, Teague. And I’m serious. If you break this off with her, it has to be for yourself. And for her. Not for me.”
He made a growling sound and gripped the steering wheel, tugging it. “Okay. I can do this. I will. It’s time. Past time.”
“You’ve got this,” I said.
At that feel-good moment, a giant creature burst out of the tree line, and I screamed. The kelpie!
“It’s okay!” Teague assured me. “It’s just the Cu Sìth.”
And it was. I closed my eyes and exhaled sharply, my whole body trembling.
“You saw what I did with the log tonight, right?” Teague said. “I can protect us.”
I was still shaking and so frustrated. “I want to be able to protect myself.”
We both looked down at the cuff. “And you should. If you’re wearing that just to put other people at ease, forget them.”
I gritted my teeth and shrugged, internally cursing his uncle.
“What aren’t you telling me?” he asked softly. I wanted to laugh darkly at all the things I wasn’t telling him.
“It’s complicated,” I managed to whisper.
“Are you scared of your powers?”
“Yes,” I admitted, but not the ones he assumed.
He took my hand again and lifted it to give my knuckles a warm, soft kiss.
“Just one little kiss?” he asked.
Kissing was my weakness. He wasn’t the only one who needed to be strong and have willpower.
I shook my head, forced a wobbly smile, and pulled away.
“Thank you for the ride. Good night.”
He watched me with longing as I climbed out and pulled my gaze from his. It had been a long time since a boy captured my full interest like this. And of course, it couldn’t be simple.
She’s not a siren,he’d said.
But how would he feel about me if he knew I was?
Chapter12
Dark Spells
Aunt Lorna could probably tell I was moping the next morning because she asked me to join her in the greenhouse. I took my mug of honey and green tea, a dark sweatshirt hood over my head and flip-flops with mini pajama shorts. CooShee followed us lazily and flopped down by the door. The stray cats roamed over, and I watched with amusement as they walked around CooShee, checking him out, and then climbed on him. The ginger made biscuits on his belly while he lay there looking like King Mutt.
Wow.
I held out my wrist to Aunt Lorna and breathed a sigh of contentment when she took it off.
The late morning sky was overcast with fog. Again. But inside the greenhouse was warmer. I loved the earthen smells of peppery leaves and soil.
I finished my tea and filled a watering can, lifting it with magic and sending it down the aisle to water each plant. It tipped sloppily a couple times, spilling, but my aunt grinned with pride.
