Page 88 of The Secret of Drulea Cottage
“More humans have arrived since I was last here.Why?” His severe tone sent a tremor through Briony’s body.
When she didn’t immediately answer, Niall grabbed her chin and forced her to look him in the eye. Their faces were almost touching, and Briony had to suppress the urge to draw back.
“They came to…” Suddenly, an idea struck Briony, clear as a lightning bolt. It was a mad, terrible idea, one she never should have thought of.But it also might be my best chance.
She leaned in toward Niall’s face until their noses met and stared deeply into his eyes. If she tried very hard, she could almost imagine they were green rather than black. She could almost replace his angular, aquiline face with a sturdy jaw and a short blond beard.
Santiago, forgive me.
“’Tis some trivial human issue. I’ve barely paid attention to it since it won’ affect us in the slightest,” she purred, looking back and forth from Niall’s eyes to his mouth.
A tiny softening passed over the selkie’s face but only for a moment before it vanished behind a veil of cynicism. He took a step away from her and shook his head as if to clear his mind.
Briony held back a sigh of relief.The effect I have on him might be just strong enough to work.
“‘Trivial human issue’? Do you mean to tell me that since you’ve learned yer heritage, you’ve lost all interest in the goings-on o’ this town? I’m na naive enough to believe that.”
Briony added a low hum to her voice, hoping it would bolster her selkie allure. “Why do you retreat from me? I thought you wanted me to accept my true nature and forsake this place. To acceptyou.”
Niall ran a hand through his hair, conflict all over his face. “And how am I to know yer sincere? The last time we spoke—”
Briony slammed her mouth against his, effectively shutting the man up. She was surprised at how pleasant his mouth felt against hers, softer and warmer than she’d thought it would be. Still, it didn’t compare to Santiago’s, and doing this felt like the greatest sin of her life.
But it can’ be helped. ’Tis the only way.
After a few minutes, Briony moved away to catch her breath. She giggled at Niall’s slack-jawed expression. “Does that tell you anything?”
Briony’s guilt increased tenfold at the blazing smile that spread across the man’s face, but her resolve held firm.
Niall grabbed her right hand and interlaced their fingers. “You can’ know how happy it makes me. I can’ wait to show you all o’ what you’ve been missing out on. Life is so much more beautiful than you’ve ever dreamed, Briony. And now you’ll get the chance to see that.”
Briony squeezed his hand, still doing her best to conjure up Santiago’s image in his place. “And I’m so happy you’ll be the one to show me.”
“Then let’s na waste any more time. Let’s get yer sealskin and be rid o’ this wretched place!” Niall started leading her inland, toward the town, but Briony stopped.
“Niall, you can’ be seen like this.” She gestured to his bare torso. “I know where the skin is; stay here and let me get it.”
Niall frowned. “I thought you no longer cared about this town. Surely yer na worried about yer neighbors’ opinions?”
Briony shook her head vehemently. “O’ course na! I just don’ want anyone to slow us down. Or fer anyone to discover what you are. Whatweare.”
Her words seemed to placate him some, but a trace of suspicion still lingered in his eyes. “In that case, come with me.” He tugged her back toward the beach, not stopping until they’d reached a large group of boulders. “Wait here.”
Niall ducked out of sight only to reappear a couple of minutes later, fully clothed. “We’ll come back here afterward to retrieve my skin. Then we can disappear forever into the sea.”
Briony masked her disappointment with a grin. Niall still didn’t fully trust her, which meant he wasn’t as enthralled as she’d hoped.If my plans are going to succeed, I’ll have to be very cautious.
She gripped his hand in hers, dreading the gossip that would come from being seen like this.Again, it can’ be helped. Na when the stakes are so high.
“Niall, there is one other thing we need to do before we leave,” Briony mumbled as they walked.
“Hmm? What would that be? Would you like me to cause a wee bit more chaos? I could burn everything down if you’d like. You and I both know this village could na do anything to stop me,” Niall said in an offhanded manner as if it was of little consequence.
But Briony knew that deep down that was precisely what he wished to do.He’s testing me to see if I’ve truly forsaken my human life.
“Actually, I’d like it if you taughtmehow to do it. Then I can destroy it all myself.”
“I’d be happy to,” Niall said with a sinister smile, “but there are a few things you need to know before I do that. First, most selkie powers can only be used in our human forms, like summoning a storm, burning things with a touch, and enchanting others with our singing. You may have already discovered some o’ these on yer own, but I’ll make sure you learn how to control them. We’re also nigh irresistible to humans when we wish to be. We can even affect other selkies if we try hard enough and they’re na on guard.
