Always Remembered (11 page)

That was so far from what Evan expected her
to say that he choked on his water, the bubbles burning as they
went down the wrong pipe.

“Are you okay?” she asked.

“I’m fine.” He cleared his throat and took a
smaller, more cautious sip. “Where is your mom now?”

“Dead.” Deanna’s voice cracked when she said
this, but beneath the pain was an edge of steel. “Ken claimed she
was murdered, but I know for a fact he ordered it.” Her gaze
sharpened and became shrewd. “You can read his mind, can’t
you?”

She caught Evan off guard again. Before he
could decide whether it was smart to admit it or not, he found
himself saying yes. She sat back with a satisfied smile. “I knew
it. I sensed it the moment I met you in the club. And Ken has no
idea.”

“He doesn’t? How do you know?”

“I can do the same thing,” she said. “This is
why I know he ordered that quack of a doctor to kill my mother with
a lethal injection. I also know that the doctor worked on you.” She
leaned forward and touched Evan’s arm, her hand warm and soft. “I’m
sorry about that. Losing your humanity must be shocking.”

“Both Ken and my professor, Ted Nolan, told
me I would have eventually died if they didn’t intervene.”

“It’s possible.” She shrugged and took
another small sip from her bottle. “I know very little about what
they did, and you are the first of the Blue Men to be born. Ever.
The others are all immortal as I’m sure they’ve told you.”

“That much I knew,” Evan said. It was a
relief talking to Deanna and knowing there was someone here who
could help him. Someone who wanted to help him without ulterior
motives. Wait—did she have ulterior motives? “Why are you helping
me?”

“I like you.” Her response was quick and
sounded honest. “I will help you any way I can. In turn, I hope
you’ll help me.”

“Help you how?” Evan tried to keep the
suspicion out of his voice.

“The Blue Men are not meant to control the
Sirens. I want to free my people. I should rightfully be the ruler
now, and I want you to help me overthrow Ken.” As she talked, the
anger darkened her words. She stood and began to pace the room in
agitation. “I want him out.”

“I’ll help you however I can,” Evan said
sincerely. Her request was fair. He agreed with her. Ken treated
the Sirens poorly. “I need your help first though. Ken is using my
power to feed the mantle plume. He’s driving the molten lava toward
the Selkies. He plans to destroy their island.”

She stopped pacing, her face white with
shock. “That explains more than anything why he rushed your
transformation. What do you want to do? Block him from taking your
power?”

“Exactly! Not only do I need to block him,
but I also must do it in a way that he doesn’t know I’m doing it.
He seems to know how much or how little power he’s receiving from
me.”

Deanna frowned. “I don’t know much about
that. The Blue Men’s powers are foreign to my kind. It wasn’t until
Ken overtook our society that we interacted with them at all.”

“How long ago was that?”

“It’s been five years, a painful amount of
time to us, and merely a blip to the Blue Men.” When Evan gave her
a questioning look, she shrugged. “When you’re infinite, time has
different meaning.” She sank back into the chair, lost in
thought.

“Sirens aren’t immortal?” Evan assumed that
they were or at least had longer life spans like Selkies. If Meara
decided to stay a Selkie, she might live hundreds of years. Evan
knew very little about Deanna and her kind.

“I wish.” She gave him a sad smile. “Our life
span is closer to that of a human, around ninety years.”

“Slightly longer than most humans.”

“If you say so. With Ken and his gang around,
I’d argue that it’s slightly less.”

“Are any of the Blue Men trustworthy?” Evan
asked. “If I could just talk to one and learn more about what I
am…” He trailed off, feeling helpless. How could he be one of the
Blue Men and have no idea what that meant?

“Some of them seem to be trustworthy. A few
of the girls have taken to them. I’ll ask around and see what I can
find out.” She took his empty bottle and, along with her own,
placed them in a bin by the sink. When she turned around, she
leaned against the counter. “What will you do tomorrow?”

“Tomorrow?”

“When you go back to the plume with Ken?”

“I’ll give as little power to him as I can
without him noticing. I’m not sure how successful I’ll be, but I
have to try.”

“That’s all you can do. Try.” She walked over
and crouched in front of him, her hands on his knees. “I’m glad I
met you, Evan. I know that you’re a good person, and I am sorry
that this happened to you.”

Her pale green eyes were wide and trusting.
He felt the need to touch her, so he ran his fingers through her
hair. She closed her eyes and leaned her head against his hand.

“I wish we met under different
circumstances,” she murmured.

“Had the circumstances been different, I’m
not sure we would’ve met.” Evan took her hand in his free one. “I’m
glad we met as we did.”

She opened her eyes and searched his face.
“You are?”

Instead of answering, he leaned forward and
kissed her. It was slow and sweet. Her lips were soft, and her
breathy sighs did things to him. He wanted to deepen the kiss, but
he restrained himself. She was special, and he wanted to treat her
that way. She pulled back first with a sigh. “I better get you
home. Ken will come early to claim you.”

“Don’t remind me,” Evan said.

“Meara?
Are you ready?” Kieran’s voice rang through the door. Because he
sounded slightly nervous, I relaxed and smiled when I opened the
door.

His eyes lit up when he saw me. “You look
beautiful.” He held out a bouquet of dahlias, a mixture of
brilliant purple and peach. “These are for you. I know it’s
customary for human males to give flowers on a first date.”

“They’re lovely.” I was touched by his
gesture. “Where did you get these?” It wasn’t like there was a
florist shop on the island.

He dipped his head and said, “I picked them
on the way here.”

I bit my cheek to keep from laughing. He
picked them from Ronac’s gardens. He was going to pay for that
later. Uncle Paddy didn’t like anyone messing with his plants,
certainly not cutting some of his most beautiful flowers.

I conjured a vase filled with water and
placed it on my dresser. After quickly arranging the fragrant
blooms, I crossed the room and gave Kieran a kiss on the cheek.
“Thank you for the flowers. That was thoughtful.”

“It’s just the beginning of a magical
evening.” He wiggled his eyebrows and made me laugh. When he
offered me his arm, I took it and followed him out the door.

“Where are we going?” I asked.

“You’ll see.”

We wove our way down the back staircase and
through the hall that led to the kitchen. Were we having a cooking
date? A private dinner by the hot oven?

“Seriously, where are we going?” I couldn’t
stand the suspense.

He turned and raised an eyebrow. “Where does
it look like we’re going?”

“The kitchen.”

After all, it was the only thing down this
corridor, unless he was going to pass through the hall and go
outside.

“Very good.” I heard the humor in his voice.
“Don’t worry; it’s not our final destination.”

The kitchen was bustling with more workers
than I’d seen in a long time. Then again, I tended to avoid this
part of the castle unless I needed a snack. Uncle Padraic knew
better than to put me to work. I was an awful cook. He tried to
teach me when I first came to Ronac and failed. If it didn’t come
from a jar or a can or it required more than heating, I wasn’t the
girl for the job.

Uncle Paddy lorded over a large kettle
housing his latest soup or stew.

“What’s on the menu for tonight?” I asked,
and he looked up in surprise.

“Gumbo.” He held out a spoon to give me a
taste. It was smoky with a little spice.

“Delicious,” I said.

“Good.” He smiled. “Too bad you’re not having
any.” I pouted, which made him laugh. “Don’t worry. Kieran’s got it
all planned out.”

The guys shared a companionable look. Unlike
Ula, my uncle seemed happy that Kieran and I were together. From
the beginning, he encouraged it. It could be because they were
friends, which somewhat surprised me. Paddy was shy and usually
kept to his kitchen, where Kieran was outgoing. And yet, I often
saw them shooting hoops or racing across the flat, open ground. I
was glad Kieran had a friend here.

“It’s ready then?” A pleased expression
crossed Kieran’s face.

“Right here.” My uncle patted a large, wicker
basket before handing it to Kieran. “It’s everything you asked
for.”

Kieran was taking me on a picnic! It was such
a romantic thing to do that it shocked me. I was all about the
romance, but Kieran never struck me as a romantic. Truth be told, I
thought he was more the love ‘em and leave ‘em type. That was,
until recently. If he weren
’
t interested
in me on a more permanent basis, he never would have risked his
life for mine. I never wanted to see him lying cold and still like
that again.

“Thanks,” Kieran said after peering at the
contents. “What do I owe you?”

“Nothing.” My uncle put an arm around us and
guided us to the door. “Just get out of my kitchen and go have
fun.”

After giving us a gentle shove, my uncle
headed back to his kettle. Kieran took my hand. I had a moment to
register how nice it felt to hold his hand before he transported
us.

We stood on an area of the island that I
hadn’t visited, which surprised me, since I explored the entire
thing and thought I saw it all. The island wasn’t that big, really,
so this confused me. “Where are we?”

Rich green moss dotted with tiny, yellow
flowers covered the rocks, softening their sharpness and creating a
plush, natural carpet. The air smelled both sweet and clean.

“This cove is reserved for the ruling family
only,” Kieran said.

“Really? Why don’t I know about it?” My dad
didn’t mention it as far as I could remember. It was one more thing
to add to the ever-growing list of withheld information.

“They would’ve told you when you made Elder.”
He sat and pulled me down next to him. “I guess it’s more of an
Elder thing than ruling family. I’m not sure if Paddy and Ula know
about it.”

That made me sad. Aunt Ula and Uncle Paddy
did so much for the clan, but they weren’t held to the same esteem
as my dad, Aunt Brigid, or Uncle Angus, simply because they weren’t
powerful. It wasn’t their fault. They were born that way. Maybe I
could help them change that with training.

“They told you about it?” I knew Kieran was
growing closer to my family, but was he close enough to know about
the secret family hangout?

“I heard them talking about it during an
Elder meeting. I asked where it was, and Brigid showed me.”

“Brigid showed you?” I tried to keep the
sarcasm out of my voice. I knew I failed when Kieran gave me a
confused look.

“Yeah? So?”

“Brigid doesn’t really do things like that,”
I said.

“Like what?”

“Help others.”

He laughed. The sound was rich and smooth. He
didn’t laugh enough. I loved the sound of his happiness. He quieted
into a smirk. “She’s not that bad. She’s proud of you, you
know?”

“She is?” She never said anything to me. I
thought she saw me as a disappointment or a burden.

“Sure. She’s always talking about how much
you’ve learned in such a short time. You’ve impressed her.”

“Hmm…”

“Would you rather sit on a blanket? The
ground is kind of damp.” He opened the basket and pulled out a blue
woven throw. When he stood and attempted to lay it out, the wind
lifted the edge and folded it over. I stood and took the other end
to help him. Once the blanket was down, he began unpacking the
basket.

“What made you think of a picnic?” I
asked.

He glanced up and gave me a sheepish grin.
“I’ve seen picnics in movies and watched families at the beach. It
seemed like fun.” He cleared his throat, and his face grew serious.
“Plus, I wanted to spend time alone with you.”

Leaning forward, his lips touched mine, soft
at first, but with growing urgency. I broke the kiss and placed my
hand on his chest. “I’m not ready for… that… you know?”

His lips quirked in that lopsided way that I
loved. “I know. It doesn’t mean we can’t still have some fun, does
it? Even if I can’t ravish you on the picnic blanket?”

I rolled my eyes. “Have you been reading
romance novels?”

“What? No! This is all me.” He gestured down
his body, which I had to admit looked really nice in dark blue
jeans and a white polo. The white shirt set off his dark, tanned
skin and clung to his muscles. The jeans were a nice change from
his usual basketball shorts.