Page 36 of Ensnaring the Siren

She had a point.

“Insightful, Shorewalker.” Nireed smirked. “Must’ve gotten that from me.”

Lorelei playfully chucked a decorative pillow at her. “You should talk to him about it. Maybe he’s changed his mind, maybe he hasn’t. Let him decide.”

“More wise words.”

Never able to accept a compliment, Lorelei shrugged dismissively, mouth lifting into a bashful smile. One day, Nireed would get the stubborn woman to own her merits. “What’s he like, this Reid?”

“Never hesitates to argue,” Nireed scoffed. Then, a little more softly, “Speaks his mind, even when he’s afraid.”

“Keeping you humble.”

Nireed rolled her eyes.

“Go on.”

“He’s strong in the water. Not as strong as us, but he far surpasses any Surface Dweller I’ve ever seen. Wears some funny thing over his eyes.” Nireed framed the outside of hers with her hands, demonstrating the shape.

“Goggles.” Lorelei laughed.

“Goggles.” The word felt as weird to say as the contraption looked. “Keep going?”

Lorelei nodded eagerly, tucking a bit of blanket under her cheek.

If Nireed didn’t know any better, she’d say Shorewalker was hanging onto every word, but why would she be so interested in the Coast Warrior? “He’s purpose driven. Believes in helping people, even those such as me. Seems patient and sweet when he lets his guard down. And even when he disagrees, I think he really listens.”

“Sounds like someone worth knowing.” Her friend sounded so wistful, Nireed had to wonder if there was something more to her interest. Something Shorewalker wasn’t telling her.

Chapter

Eleven

Too tired to swim home, Nireed spent the night in Shorewalker’s cove, snugly wedged between two rocks, hugging a ball of seaweed to her chest. Not so snug that she’d get stuck, or be unable to move water past her gills, but secure enough that a current wouldn’t carry her away while she slept.

Shorewalker had offered the spare bedroom inside the house, but the sea was familiar.

The swim to Reid’s houseboat the next morning was easy, just three inlets to the north, which saw significantly less fishing and shipping traffic than the main Haven Cove harbor. Staying close to the murky seafloor to avoid detection, Nireed dodged the occasional anchor and lobster pot.

Please be home and safe.

If he wasn’t, she’d search the town from top to bottom, and if he wasn’t there either, she’d return to the docks despite her promise to Lorelei and scour that place down to its last barnacle-encrusted plank.

She couldn’t return home without knowing whether she’d doomed him.

As she approached the houseboat, she took care to stay well beneath the surface until she was right up against the stern, using the vessel to shield her from sight. To her relief, she could smell him inside, hear his quiet, even breathing.

He was asleep.

But how to get his attention? Rock the boat? Yell out his name? Sing? The first option would likely scare him, and she’d done that more than enough times. The second two might draw attention from his neighbors, and that was undesirable, especially after the events of yesterday.

She could shift and walk in, but the thought of entering such a small, enclosed space made her shudder. Even her tank had been bigger than this glorified tin can.

Another idea hit her.

Diving to the seafloor, Nireed scooped up a handful of pebbles. One by one, she tossed them at the backdoor. Tink. Tink. Tink. Then listened.

A sharp, sleepy inhale, followed by a groggy, “What?”

---