Page 62 of Bewitched By the Siren
It’s stupid, I know. But the only person I’ve ever said those words to is my mother, so this is kind of a big deal to me. I want it to be right. I want it to be perfect.
“I love you.”
I inhale sharply and audibly as the words pop out of my mouth before I can stop them. Squeezing my eyes closed, I hold the breath and fight the urge to take them back. I sway forward and to the left as the car slows and pulls off the road.
“Hali,” Brendan says when I refuse to open my eyes. “Look at me. Please.”
Blowing out the breath I’ve been holding, I blink my eyes open and look at him. “Sorry. I didn’t mean––”
“Don’t say that. Please, don’t say you didn’t mean it,” he cuts in, his voice laced with desperation.
I shake my head. “I was going to say I didn’t mean to blurt it out like that. Like, out of nowhere.”
“Say it again.”
The words are breathless and fraught with tension. He reaches over to take my hand, holding on tightly while he awaits my response. My own heart pounds in my throat, and I have to swallow against the tightness there before I can speak.
“I love you, Brendan.”
Brendan
“Fuck,” I breathe, using our clasped hands to drag her closer.
I press my lips to hers, kissing her with all the love and devotion I’ve been trying to hold inside for the last few weeks. Driving my free hand into her hair, I grip it tightly and tilt her head. Her mouth falls open, and I drive my tongue inside, unable to get enough.
When I break off the kiss and pull back, my chest is heaving. I can’t catch my breath. Like a skydiver plummeting toward the earth, I’m drawn into Hali’s gravitational pull with no hope for release. Nodesirefor release.
“I love you so much,” I say when I finally regain my voice. “Sofucking much.”
“You do?” she asks, her expression softening as her lips curl upward.
“I do,” I assure her. “I’ve been going crazy, waiting for you to be ready so I could say it. Now that you are, you better be prepared to hear itallthe time.”
“I think I’m okay with that,” she says with a soft laugh.
“I love you,” I say.
“I love you,” she replies.
I kiss her again, and it goes on and on until I finally pull away with a deep sigh. “We should get going. Your mom will be waiting for us.”
She nods, and I lean in, pressing my forehead to hers as I say the words again. I press my lips to hers in a quick kiss before she can respond, then pull away with a tortured groan.
I could stay right here, kissing her forever.
I hold onto her hand as I pull the car back out onto the road, my thumb brushing over the soft skin of her knuckles. Hali leans back in her seat, a serene smile on her face as she stares through her window.
“Are you nervous about tomorrow?” she asks suddenly.
“A little,” I say. “But I’m more excited, than anything.”
“It’s going to be amazing,” she says, rolling her head in my direction.
Shortly after moving here, I started thinking about what I want to do with my time. With my life. The money I made on the condo in Los Angeles will only stretch so far after buying the house here, and I had no desire to find a job with anothertalent agency, so Hali and I brainstormed, talking all night about the possibilities. About what would make me happyandsupport me, financially.
I took a huge leap of faith, buying a food truck I found for sale in Savannah and spending the last few weeks overhauling the inside and painting the exterior. It’s like new, fully stocked with supplies and ingredients and ready to roll out.
And tomorrow,Triton Tacoswill become a reality.
