“Are you kidding me? We totally do. ” He took his hands out of his pockets and held his arm out for her.
With little choice left, Harper smiled and took his arm. Once they found a clear spot, he stretched out his arm, then put his hand on her waist, pulling her closer to him. He took her hand in his, and she put her hand on his shoulder.
“You seem to be in an awfully good mood today,” Harper commented. “You and Gemma can’t seem to stop smiling today. ”
“I am in a very good mood,” Alex admitted with his easy grin.
Daniel and Gemma spun by, doing some kind of exaggerated waltz that had Gemma laughing.
“Everything going good with Gemma?” Harper asked once Gemma and Daniel had danced far enough away that they couldn’t hear them again.
“Couldn’t be better,” Alex said, then corrected himself. “Well, it’d be nicer if there wasn’t that whole siren thing … but considering, it’s actually pretty amazing. ”
“I’m glad. You guys seem really good together. ”
“Thank you. ” Alex looked genuinely pleased with the compliment, and Harper realized that this was probably the happiest she’d ever seen him. “Now that you’re getting more used to the idea, we can start hanging out again. ”
It wasn’t until now, with things feeling easy and simple and like old times again, that Harper realized she’d missed him. She loved Daniel and Gemma, and even Marcy, but it would be good to have Alex in her life again.
Then, unexpectedly, Alex took her hand and spun her, causing her to twirl as she laughed in surprise, then he pulled her back to him.
“It seems like you’ve picked up some dance moves,” Harper said, as they started to speed around the dance floor. She thought he was doing a version of the Charleston, but her feet didn’t cooperate as much as she’d liked.
Page 90
“I’ve picked up a lot of things. It’s been a long time,” Alex said, and when she tripped on her foot, they both laughed. “Maybe we should try something slower. ”
“It’s probably for the best since I don’t really want to break my leg,” she agreed, and grinned up at him. Once they began to move slowly again, she brushed a hair back from her forehead, and he smiled down at her.
“I’ve kinda missed you actually. ”
“Me, too,” she admitted.
“I should be going to Sundham for the spring semester, so maybe we can be study buddies again,” Alex suggested.
“That would be fantastic. I’m not doing so well in school so far. ” Harper frowned, knowing that was an understatement.
“Well, I’m sure once all this stuff with Gemma is solved, you’ll do much better. ”
She smiled, trying to look as confident as Alex sounded. “Yeah. Me, too. ”
The song ended, switching over to Agnes Obel’s “Riverside,” which felt much slower than the previous one. She glanced around, looking for Daniel, or barring that, an excuse to sit back down.
While she’d been looking left, Daniel and Gemma appeared at her right, and she turned to see Daniel asking Alex, “Mind if I cut in?”
“Nope. ” Alex stepped back, offering her hand to Daniel. “She’s all yours. ”
Harper slid gratefully into Daniel’s arms, and out of the corner of her eye, she saw Gemma and Alex disappearing onto the dance floor again. She looped her arms around Daniel’s neck, and he held her much closer to him than Alex had.
“Did you have a nice time with Alex?”
She nodded as she swayed with him. “Yeah. How about you?”
“Pretty good. Your sister’s a rather enthusiastic dancer, though. ”
“Oh yeah?”
“Yeah. And she stepped on my foot. ”
“Is it okay?” She tried to step back, so she could see his foot, but he held her close to him, refusing to let her go. “Do you want to sit down?”
“No. ” He smiled and shook his head. “I never wanna sit. I just wanna dance with you for the rest of the night. Just like this. ”
Staring up into his eyes, it was hard for her not to cry. So she rested her chin on his shoulder and held on tighter to him. His arm felt strong around her waist, but his other hand was up higher, pressing warmly against her skin in the open back of her dress. The stubble on his cheek rubbed against hers, but she didn’t mind.
In fact, she relished it. She wanted to savor every moment of this. The way his arms felt safe around her, the way he smelled of sandalwood, the scrape of his cheek, even the feel of his shirt underneath her hands as she hung on to him.
“I don’t want this song to end,” she whispered.
“I can go talk to the DJ,” Daniel suggested, trying to make a joke. “Bribe him to keep playing it all night long. ”
Harper didn’t say anything, but she didn’t let go of him, either. He exhaled deeply, and she felt his breath warm on her neck. He moved his head, so that he could kiss her cheek, then she looked up at him.
He brushed her hair back, burying his fingers in the thickness of it, and his thumb lingered on her cheek. She tried to meet his gaze, but she couldn’t do it. She didn’t want him to see the tears in her eyes, so she closed them.
And then she felt his mouth on hers. His fingers knotted in her hair, and his hand on the small of her back pressed her harder to him. She kissed him back, hungrily, greedily, and wrapped her arms tightly around his neck, pulling herself to him.
She didn’t care who was watching. She didn’t care how this looked. At that moment, all that mattered to her was Daniel, and hanging on to him for as long as she could. She wanted to consume him, to swallow every bit of him, so that she’d never be without him again, so no one could ever hurt him or take him away from her.
The song finished, switching to something that sounded far too peppy, and they stopped kissing. Breathing heavily, she buried her face in the crook of his neck. His hand moved to the back of her head, stroking her hair.
“Well, this looks like fun,” Penn said, her words carrying through the music and the sound of the crowd.
“No. Not tonight. Please,” Harper begged into his shoulder. “Not tonight. ”
“I’m sorry,” Daniel murmured, his words nearly lost in her hair.
“Can I have this dance?” Penn asked, sounding more like a demand than a question, and then she was right next to them.
Harper looked up and pulled away from Daniel a little bit, so it would be easier to see Penn. But he kept his arms around her, unwilling to let Harper get too far away.
“I’m dancing with my girlfriend right now, so no,” he told Penn firmly. “You can’t have this dance. And before you ask, you can’t have the next one, either. Harper has reserved me for the entire night. She’s actually reserved me all the way until Monday, so…”
“All right, all right. ” Marcy came out of nowhere to save the day and moved in between Daniel and Penn. “If you’re really desperate for a dance, Penn, I’ll dance with you. As long as you promise not to try any hanky-panky. ”
Penn crossed her arms over her chest and looked past Marcy, her dark gaze locked directly on Daniel. “I’ve changed my mind, Daniel. I want you tonight. ”
“Didn’t you hear the man?” Marcy asked. “He’s booked up. Take a number. ”
Liv’s familiar laugh came from behind her, and Harper glanced back to see her former roommate hanging on to Kirby. Thea stood a few feet away, looking bored as usual, while she poured herself a glass of punch at the refreshment table.
“Marcy, thank you, but why don’t you go with Kirby before Liv eats him?” Harper pointed over to where Liv was flirting. She appreciated Marcy’s help, but if things were going to go down with Penn, she’d rather have her out of harm’s way anyhow.
“Dammit. He’s like catnip to these witches,” Marcy muttered as she walked off to deal with the situation.
“That’s not what we agreed to, Penn. ” Daniel had moved away from Harper so he could reason wi
th Penn, but he kept one arm around her waist.
Penn shrugged. “Well, I’m changing the agreement. ”
“You can’t just change things whenever you want,” Daniel argued. “We have a deal. ”
“Daniel. ” Penn took a deep breath, and her eyes blazed. “If you’re gonna do this, we’re doing it now. Or the whole deal’s off. And you know what that means for Gemma and your little girlfriend?”
Page 91
He looked away from Penn, staring off at the horizon. His jaw tensed as he clenched his teeth.
“You don’t have to do this,” Harper said when she saw how conflicted he appeared. “We can figure something else out. ”
“What’s it gonna be? Do you want to end the night with her dead, or alive?” Penn asked, and based on the way her lips were curving up into a wicked smile, she already knew what his answer would be.
“Harper. ” He shook his head, then looked down at her. “I’m sorry. I have to go. ”
“No, Daniel, you don’t,” she insisted. “You don’t have to do this. ”
He put his hands on her cheeks, cradling her face. “We talked about this, okay? I love you. ”
“Daniel. ” Harper was pleading with him as tears welled in her eyes.
“I have to do this, so just kiss me and let me go,” he said.
She kissed him, and she could taste the salt from her tears on his lips. “I love you. Please come back to me. ”
Daniel didn’t say anything to that. He didn’t even look at her again. He just turned and walked away, moving through the crowd and disappearing off the dance floor, but Penn didn’t follow right away.
“Liv, Thea!” Penn shouted, and they turned to look at her. “Make sure nobody follows or interferes. You hear me?” Then she smiled and did a small wave. “Bye-bye, Harper. ”
As Penn left, the crowd parted for her like the Red Sea, and she could see Daniel again. Penn’s convertible was at the edge of the park, and he was standing beside it, waiting for Penn to come and take him away, and the only thing Harper could do was watch.
FORTY
Sacrifice
Gemma had been dancing with Alex when she saw Penn talking to Daniel and Harper. Initially, she didn’t want to intervene since Harper had insisted that whatever was going on with them was between her and Daniel.
But when she saw Daniel go, leaving her sister crying in the middle of the dance floor, Gemma ran over to her, with Alex hurrying after her.
“What’s going on? Why did he just leave with Penn?” Gemma asked.
Harper was hugging herself. “He did what he had to do. ”
“What the hell is going on?” Gemma asked, just as Thea walked over to her, apparently deciding to follow Penn’s orders to keep an eye on them. “Thea?”
“Ask your sister. ” Thea held up her hands. “I’m trying to stay out of this one. ”
Gemma glared at her, then turned back to Harper. “Is Daniel going to sleep with Penn?”
“He’s doing what?” Alex asked, sounding appalled.
“Yes. ” Harper took a deep breath and stared straight ahead, at the spot where Penn’s car had been parked even though she’d already sped off. “And then she’s gonna turn him into a siren. ”
“What?” Now it was Thea’s turn to look appalled, her green eyes widening in surprise. “I knew she was up to something, but that’s her plan?”
“She can’t. ” Gemma shook her head, thinking that Harper must’ve misunderstood. “He’s a guy, and there are already four sirens. ”
“She says she’s killing Liv to make him, and apparently guys can be sirens,” Harper explained. A tear slid down her cheek, but her voice was flat, like she’d gone numb.
“You are so annoying!” Marcy shouted behind them.
Gemma looked over her shoulder to see her yelling at Liv. She stood between her and Kirby, trying to defend him from Liv’s attempts at seduction. Gemma wanted to help Marcy, but she had much bigger issues to deal with first.
“You can’t let him do that,” Gemma told Harper.
“I don’t want to. But it’s his choice, and I don’t know if it’s the right thing or not. ” She pursed her lips. “If he doesn’t do it, she’ll kill you and me and probably Alex and Dad. ”
“Not if I kill her first,” Gemma growled.
Her gums began to itch, as her fangs wanted to grow, and she balled up her fists to keep her fingers from extending. There had been so much she’d been willing to tolerate in Penn, but she could never stand for that.
Not only was this hurting her sister, but this would destroy Daniel. He’d been nothing but a good friend to her, and he’d already sacrificed far too much. She couldn’t let him do this even if it meant that she would die stopping him.
Being a siren took away bits of her soul, eating away at it every day. She was clinging to it, fighting for her humanity, but eventually, if she lived long enough, she would lose it all. And that fate sounded worse than anything she could ever imagine, and she wouldn’t let Daniel endure it.
Harper finally turned to look at her. “Gemma, you’re not strong enough. ”
“I don’t care,” Gemma said, and she meant it. After her fight with Penn yesterday, she knew she probably couldn’t win, but if she was dead and gone, it didn’t really matter to her just then. It was her fault everyone was in this mess, and she couldn’t let it go on anymore. “I’m not gonna stand by and let this happen. Give me the keys to your car. ”
“No. ” Her keys were in the small clutch purse around her wrist, and Harper held it to her chest. “I won’t let you go in there alone. ”
“Harper. ”
“He’s my boyfriend. If you go, I go,” she insisted.
Gemma didn’t want Harper getting more involved in this than she already was, but maybe if Harper went with her, she could get Daniel out of there while Gemma distracted Penn. Besides, Harper had driven here, and it would take her far too long to get to the sirens’ house without it.
She didn’t feel comfortable flying. Gemma had been practicing her wings, but she didn’t have quite the same skill at using the siren song. She couldn’t risk taking off in front of a crowd, and she wasn’t about to attempt the siren song to scramble their perception on her own.
“Then let’s go,” Gemma said.
“Gemma. ” Alex grabbed her hand. “You can’t go up there to get yourself killed. ”
“I have to stop Penn. This can’t go on any longer. ” Gemma squeezed his hand and looked him in the eyes, begging him to understand. “I can’t live like this anymore. I can’t let anybody else get hurt. Not when I’m strong enough to do something. ”
“I’m supposed to stop you from going up there, but I don’t care. But Liv, she might care. ” Thea interrupted the moment to motion to where Liv and Marcy were exchanging obscenities. “Not because she listens to Penn but because she hates you and really likes killing things. ”
Page 92
“Alex, I need you to stay here and help Marcy keep Liv from following us,” Gemma said. “You know I’ve been practicing. I can fight Penn, but I don’t think I could handle Liv, too. ”
He glanced back at Liv, then turned back to her. “Gemma. ”
“I can do this, okay? But you have to help me. ”
Reluctantly, he nodded and let go of her hand. “Okay. ”
“I love you. ” She kissed him, and she’d wanted it to last longer because she knew this might be the last time she ever kissed him, but she didn’t have time to linger. “Be safe. ”
“I love you, too,” Alex said. “Now go kill that bitch and come back safe. ”
Gemma looked to her sister. Harper looked as pale and nervous as Gemma felt, but her gray eyes had a steely determination.
They turned and pushed their way off the dance floor, nearly running under the twilight sky as they left. Behind them, Gemma heard Liv shouting at them, telling them to stop, and s
he hoped that Alex would be okay against her.
FORTY-ONE
Onus
Alex watched his girlfriend leave, but when he heard Liv swearing at her, he looked back. She’d been standing a few feet away, arguing with Marcy, but her brown eyes shifted into an odd green that reminded him of some kind of bird or maybe a lizard.
Since Gemma hadn’t listened, Liv must’ve decided that she’d better catch her, so she started sprinting ahead, gliding easily on her high heels.
“Where you going, Teenage Mutant Ninja Mermaid?” Marcy shouted, and took a few steps after her. “Too chicken to fight me?”
In the few interactions that Alex had had with Liv, pride had seemed to be a sticky subject for her, so as soon as Marcy had called her out on it, she stopped. She turned around and walked back toward Marcy.
Alex didn’t stop her, but he trailed behind her like a shadow. Liv stopped right in front of Marcy, smiling down at her, and Marcy readjusted her glasses but met her gaze evenly.
“Oh, Marcy,” Liv said with that syrupy voice she used too often.
Since she was a siren, it should’ve been hypnotic to Alex, but it had always rubbed him the wrong way, and it made the hair on the back of his neck stand up.
“If there weren’t a crowd of people around, I already would’ve ripped out your liver and swallowed it whole,” Liv went on cheerily. “But I’ve got better things to deal with. ”
She turned around, preparing to stalk away again, but Alex blocked her path, and she almost ran right into him.
“Where are you going?” Alex asked.
“Move,” Liv commanded. Her voice lilted to a singsong, and he felt the fog creeping in around the edge of his thoughts.
But he’d felt that before, and he’d fought against it when Gemma used her song against him. That month when he’d been under her spell had been the hardest of his life, but at least now he knew how to keep it at bay. Not completely, and not if Liv really gave it her all, but he could keep himself together long enough to put up a fight.
He shook his head. “I can’t let you do that. ”
“If you don’t get out of my way, I will sing a song that makes you want to kill Gemma, then you can help me finally get rid of her. ” She smiled sweetly at him. “How’s that sound?”
“That sounds great. Except for one thing. ” He held up a finger with one hand, telling her to wait, and with the other he dug in his pocket. When he retrieved two wax earplugs, he held them out to show her for a second, then popped them in his ears. “I never go anywhere without them. ”
Liv rolled her eyes. Then, without warning, she pushed him. But it wasn’t the way a normal person would shove someone. It was a lot more like getting hit by a bus.
He went flying back, and he could feel himself pushing people out of the way, like a wrecking ball. When he crashed into the refreshment table, sending punch flying everywhere, he finally came to a stop.
The spot where she’d pushed him on his chest throbbed, and his back didn’t feel so hot either, but he was mostly fine, and he got up quickly. He was just in time to see Liv, who had apparently decided she didn’t have any more time to waste, run off the dance floor like she was the Flash.