Page 61 of Bewitched By the Siren
This is going to change her life. It’s going to change all our lives, and we’re ready for it.
Together, we’re ready for anything.
EPILOGUE
Hali
I takeoff my headset and meet Brendan’s gaze through the window that separates us. He’s smiling so wide, I can’t stop the laughter that bubbles up my throat.
“Good job, Hali. That sounded great.”
“Thanks, Natasha,” I say into the microphone before setting my guitar on its stand and making my way out of the recording booth.
To say things have been crazy over the last several months would be an understatement. After my performance at the Shrimp and Grits festival at the end of November, my life changed dramatically. The recordings of my performance flooded the internet, and dozens of talent agents descended upon Circe Key, en masse. It was fucking nuts.
Thank God for Brendan, with his insider knowledge of the industry. He helped and guided me, leading me to sign with an agency that had no qualms about signing a contract that allowed me to do thingsmyway.
I get to stay on the island with Mom, and the agency worked a deal with Natasha Monk for the use of her in-home studio torecord my first album. She even offered to produce it for me, so here we are, making dreams I didn’t even realize Ihadcome true.
And when it comes time to think about touring, I have the final say in when, where, and how many stops. Of course, those decisions are a ways off. We have to release the album first.
I clutch the shell pendant at my chest tightly as I exit the booth. Much like my performance at the festival, this album will feature my natural voice with no siren-magic enhancements.
“Everyone is going to love you,” Brendan murmurs before pulling me in for a tight hug.
He’s read my mind like he always seems to do, and I hug him back with all the ferocity I feel in my bones. When I try to pull back, he holds on tight and dips his head to press a firm kiss to my lips.
I catch his eye as he pulls back, and we just stand there smiling goofily at each other until I say, “I like you so much.”
He chuckles and kisses me again, then we pull apart to pack up our stuff so we can head home. Other than when Brendan told me he was falling for me when he returned to Circe Key, we haven’t really made any declarations of love. We’re taking things slow in that department.
But I can see the love in his eyes when he looks at me, and I’m sure he can see the same in mine. I’ve started telling him Ilikehim whenever the urge hits, and it always makes him smile at me like that. Like he knows what I’m really saying even though I haven’t been quite ready to actually say the words.
“Come on,” he says, holding out a hand for me to take. “I told Grace we’d be back in time for dinner, and we’re going to be late if we don’t get on the road soon.”
I nod and take his hand, my chest filling with warmth the way it always does when Brendan talks about or interacts with my mom. He really cares about her, and she absolutely adores him.He’s slid right into our little family unit seamlessly, and I can’t stop smiling about it.
After we thank Natasha again and say our goodbyes, we head out to get on the road. Brendan turns on the radio, and we both sing along, his deep baritone complimenting my middling soprano.
“Would you ever consider recording a duet with me?” I ask, the idea popping into my head as the song we were singing winds down.
“What?” he blurts, looking at me with incredulous eyes before returning his gaze to the road. “No. No way.”
“Why not?” I ask, angling my body toward his.
“Because I’m a terrible singer?”
“You are not,” I argue.
“I am compared to you,” he says. “Your fans would revolt.”
“I don’t think so,” I say quietly, my vision blurring as the beginnings of a song idea pop into my head.
Grabbing my bag, I pull out my journal to jot the ideas down before I lose them. Brendan reaches down to lower the volume on the radio so I can concentrate, and the corners of my mouth turn up.
It’s the little things like this that make me love him so much.
And I do. Love him, that is. Even if I haven’t been ready to say the words aloud, I’ve been thinking them in my head ever since he came back from L.A. But every time I have the urge to say it, I get all in my head about how it’s probably too soon. That even though he admitted to having developed feelings for me after knowing me a week, he might not be ready to take the leap intolove.
