Page 8 of Ensnaring the Siren
A Coast Warrior ally could be useful. Someone with ties to Surface Dweller leadership and its laws. Someone with jurisdiction over the fishermen killing her people. Someone who might be able to sway his leader’s decisions based on what he reported back after each mission.
It was a risk to approach the Coast Warrior in his domain, but she was used to taking those.
“Mind if I join you?”
A woman sidled up to him. Her unsteady gait, and the fact that he’d never seen her before, made him think she’d had a drink too many and might be part of the latest batch of cruise ship tourists. She wore a simple, sleeveless dress—no bra—and a messy braid fell to pieces over her shoulder, some of the dark brown strands wet and clinging.
And yet, despite the disheveled appearance, her peculiar, golden eyes were sharp and keen, chips of amber reflecting sunlight. He’d never seen irises that shade before.
“Don’t see why not.” Reid swept a hand toward the harbor, royal blue water dotted with all manner of fishing and recreational boats. “The view’s meant to be shared.”
“How generous.” The smile she threw his way was fleeting, but warm, as she folded her arms across the railing. “But that wasn’t a yes or no.”
Literal, this one, and despite appearances, lucid. “No, I don’t mind.”
“Better.” The corner of her mouth lifted, a teasing twinkle illuminating her strange eyes. “You come here often?”
He shrugged. “It’s close to where I work. This your first time visiting?”
To his surprise, she shook her head and said, “No. I come here quite often.”
Not a tourist then. “I didn’t peg you for a local.”
“I’m not.” She drummed long, pointed nails against the railing. “Not exactly. More…regional. You?”
“Nah. Just stationed here for a few years. I’m a rescue swimmer for the Coast Guard.”
There was a curious pause before her reply. “Guarding coasts? What’s that about?”
A small twinge of impatience sparked, but it didn’t linger. Not everyone remembered that the Coast Guard was one of the military branches, or knew it even existed, but that just wasn’t something worth getting hung up on. Recognition wasn’t why he joined. “It’s a lifesaving service,” he replied. “When people are in trouble at sea, I’m there to help.”
“Is it dangerous?”
Remembering the last case, and the fishermen devoured by flesh-eating mermaids, he swallowed thickly, careful to keep his tone light as he said, “It can be, especially when there’s heavy weather.”
Her brow pinched as she considered this. “You risk your life for people you don’t know.”
“All the time.”
“That’s honorable.” The way she said it made it sound like he’d both surprised and impressed her with a rare trait, but other first responders—firefighters, EMTs—did it every day. He wasn’t special. “You’re honorable, aren’t you?”
“Just trying to keep folks alive and bring them home to their families.” Reid always felt weird about accepting compliments for doing his job, but coming from this attractive woman, he felt like he’d earned something important. “What do you do?”
“Many things.” She stared out over the harbor, tensing as a NOAA research vessel puttered by. Strange how she tracked its course, not once looking away until it passed them. “Usually, it’s what others don’t have the stomach for, the hard things that need to be done, but are worth it because it can make a real difference.”
Mysterious. She sounded like either a public servant or a vigilante. Leaning a little closer, Reid considered asking if she’d like to get a cup of coffee with him and keep this conversation going. “How come I’ve never seen you around before?”
It was an innocent question, he thought, but her demeanor shifted, a switch flipped. Pinning him with an unblinking stare, her smile darkened, a sinister, predatory thing. “What makes you think you haven’t?”
“Do I know you?” Reid didn’t do flings, and if it weren’t for the distinctive golden eyes flecked with amber, he might’ve guessed an old classmate or some other passing acquaintance. But no, he’d never seen this woman before in his life. He’d remember those eyes—eerie and mesmerizing at the same time. Impossible to look away from.
“You don’t remember?” Her smile was too wide, too wicked, too knowing, and unease settled cold and heavy in his stomach. It made him want to run in the opposite direction or square up and fight, which was a hell of a way to feel about a random woman he’d just been about to ask out on a coffee date. But his animal brain demanded alertness. Don’t turn your back. Or look away.
“You sure you’ve got the right guy?”
She considered this for a moment, then inhaled deeply. “Positive.”
Had he met her before? He tried picturing her with different eyes. Maybe she was wearing colored contact lenses, and that’s what was throwing him off. But when he tried imagining her with brown eyes or blue, he still drew a blank.