“Wow. ” Lexi stared at the girl. “She’s perfect. ”
“I know,” Penn agreed. “Lexi, meet Olivia Olsen. ”
“Liv,” the girl said as she extended her hand. “My friends call me Liv, and I’m hoping that we’ll all be good friends. ”
“Oh, I’m certain we will be,” Lexi said with a wide smile.
SIXTEEN
Man-Eater
Gemma had snuck behind the dark velvet curtains to inspect Daniel’s work on the sets backstage. She thought it might help take her mind off of her growing hunger.
Planks of wood were stacked, and a skeleton of two-by-fours was the only part really put together. Daniel obviously tried to keep his work space somewhat orderly, but not all of his equipment seemed to fit in the oversized toolbox, so some tools were lying about.
His blueprints were stacked together on top of a table. Gemma bent over them and tried to get an idea of the set. It had to be easily turned, so it could serve double duty as two sets. He also planned to create walls that could slide in to create the illusion of more private quarters, like bedrooms.
“Thus in plain terms: your father hath consented,” Aiden said, his voice low as he recited his lines, “that you shall be my wife, your dowry ’greed on, and you will…” He trailed off and muttered the beginnings of his speech over again.
Practice had finished up about ten minutes ago, with everyone dispersing, but Aiden had lingered behind to go over his lines again. He’d wandered backstage, his brow creased in thought, and continued to mumble to himself.
It was dimly lit backstage, so apparently he hadn’t seen Gemma yet. She stayed where she was, leaning on the table, and watched him struggle. The concern in his brown eyes, as if he worried he’d never be able to learn his part, endeared him a bit more to Gemma.
So far, all she’d really seen of Aiden had been overly confident attempts at flirting with an uninterested Thea, or blundering through a scene and completely butchering his lines. It had never occurred to Gemma that he actually cared about the part or that he was even trying.
She’d assumed that he’d skated through life on his good looks and his father’s name. He’d graduated from college last year, and the town had all but hailed it as the return of the Golden Boy and given him a key to the city.
But seeing him rub his temple with his battered script rolled up in his hand humanized him. For the first time, Aiden actually looked attractive to Gemma. Her stomach seemed to growl in agreement, and she swallowed back her hunger.
“Need some help?” Gemma asked, and he jumped a bit, startled by her presence. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you. ”
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“No, you didn’t scare me,” he assured her with a grin. He walked closer to where she was standing, but the table was still between them. “I thought I was the only one here. What are you doing?”
She shrugged and looked back down at the plans. “I didn’t really have anywhere else to go. ”
The truth was that she didn’t know how much longer she could keep her appetite in control, and Aiden was looking very tempting right now.
Anxiety only seemed to make her hunger worse, and after her conversation with Thea the day before, she’d been rather dejected. She didn’t know where else to look for the scroll, and wasn’t sure how much good it would do her even if she found it.
On top of that she’d had something of a run-in with Alex today. Her car wasn’t working, so Gemma’d been outside looking under the hood of the car, attempting to make sense of it, when Alex had come home. She’d lifted her head just in time to see him getting out of his own car, wearing his dirty work clothes.
Just the sight of him was enough to make her heart drop to her stomach. Even as much as he’d changed over the last month, she could still see the boy she’d fallen in love with, but wrapped in an even sexier package. His sleeve pulled taut on his arm, and she remembered the way he’d held her and promised to love her forever.
Then, as he was walking up to his house, he’d glanced over at her. She’d lifted her hand to offer a small wave, but he glared with such intense hate that it felt as if her heart had literally been ripped in two. It was all she’d been able to do to keep herself from bursting into tears on the spot.
She reminded herself that this was what she wanted, that this was what was best for Alex. The sirens didn’t care about him at all now that he hated her.
This was the only way to keep Alex safe, and even if it meant that he’d never be able to love her again, Gemma knew that she’d made the right choice. No matter what else happened between the two of them, she could always remember the times that they’d shared together, and that had to be enough.
“Now, I don’t believe that for a second,” Aiden said, and Gemma looked up at him. “I’m sure you have plenty of places where you could be on a Wednesday night. ”
“Sadly, no,” she said with a thin smile. “At least none that I’d rather go to than the dusty backstage of the theater. ”
“You really love the theater, then?” Aiden asked.
“I love pretending to be someone else for an hour or two,” she admitted.
“Well, would you want to help me pretend to be someone else for a little while?” Aiden asked with an alluring smile.
“I’ll be happy to help with the play, if that’s what you’re asking,” Gemma said, returning his expression with a coy one of her own.
He laughed and tapped the script in his hand. “I guess I can settle for that for now. ”
“You seemed to be having trouble with the same bit. Do you want to try again and I’ll see if I can give you hints if you get stuck?” Gemma suggested.
“Sure. ” Aiden handed her the script. She had her own, but his was already out. “The page is folded down. I’ve been getting stuck with it a lot. ”
She hopped up on the table, crossing her legs so he wouldn’t be able to see up her skirt, and opened the book to the dog-eared page. His passages were highlighted, so she found the spot easily, and then nodded to him.
“Okay. ” Aiden shook his body, mentally preparing himself for the scene. “Okay. ” He cleared this throat, then began, “Thus in plain terms: your father hath consented that you shall be my wife, your dowry ’greed on, and I will…” He stumbled again. “I will…”
“It’s not I will,” Gemma said. “It’s and will you, if that helps at all. ”
“Your dowry ’greed on, and will you…” Aiden tried again, then shook his head. “I have no idea what you’ll do. ”
She laughed lightly. “And will you, nill you, I will marry you. ”
“Wow, Gemma, that’s a pretty bold proposition,” Aiden said with a broad smile. “We hardly even know each other. We should probably go on a few dates before you start making declarations of marriage. ”
Gemma laughed, but before she could come up with an equally flirty response, the back door to the theater slammed shut. Both she and Aiden turned to see who it was, and they heard the clack of wedge sandals on the stairs a few seconds before Lexi appeared.
“This is play rehearsal?” Lexi asked with a disparaging look around the stage. “It looks more like somebody’s dirty basement and two horny teenagers. ”
“I’m not a teenager,” Aiden said, doing his best to stand up for them, but Gemma couldn’t tell if he was annoyed by Lexi’s interruption or pleased by the appearance of the leggy blonde.
“This isn’t play rehearsal,” Gemma said. “That’s over. ”
“Are you serious?” Lexi groaned. “Where the hell is Thea, then?”
Gemma shook her head. “I don’t know. I thought Penn picked her up. ”
“No, Penn was busy…”—Lexi stopped to choose her words carefully, smiling wickedly as she did—“entertaining a guest. So I came down to get Thea. ”
“She probably started walking home,” Gemma said and set Aiden’s script aside.
“Great. Now I have to go tra
ck her down,” Lexi said.
Gemma hopped down off the table, almost bumping into Aiden, who’d moved closer to her as she’d been talking.
“I can go with you,” Gemma offered, brushing past Aiden to talk to Lexi. “I could help you look. ” If she couldn’t find the scroll, she could at least try to ingratiate herself with the sirens to buy herself a bit more time to look.
“I’m pretty sure I can handle it myself, but thanks anyway,” Lexi said, her silken voice dripping with venom. “You can go back to playing grab-ass. ” She turned to Aiden then. “Watch out for this one. She’s a real man-eater. ”
Lexi winked at Gemma, then turned to walk away. Gemma hurried after her, stopping her before she even made it to the back stairs.
“We’re running lines,” Gemma explained quickly. “But why don’t I go with you? It’s been a few days since I’ve gone swimming. Maybe we could all go out to the bay. ”
“What is with you?” Lexi whirled around to face her. “Since when do you want to do anything with me or Penn?”
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“I—I—I don’t,” Gemma stammered. “I just … I wanted to … We haven’t talked much lately. ”
“There’s nothing to talk about,” Lexi snapped, then she glanced around. “Wait a second. Where is that scruffy plumber or whatever that Penn is all hung up on?”
“Daniel?” Gemma asked. “He’s not a plumber. He’s a handyman. ”
Lexi glared at her. “Like I care what he does. I was just wondering where he is. ”
“He’s at Pearl’s Diner, helping Pearl fix an overhead fan,” Gemma said.
Lexi made a retching sound. “He’s so gross. I have no idea what Penn’s problem is. She’s…” She trailed off and shook her head. “Whatever. I should go find Thea. ”
“You’re sure you don’t want me to come with?” Gemma asked again, trying to keep the desperation out of her voice. “I’m sure I could help. ”
“Honestly, I would love to leave you in charge, wandering around this tiny little shithole until you found Thea, but that would take too long,” Lexi said. “I need to get Thea, and I need to get back. ”
“Because Penn’s entertaining a guest?” Gemma asked, recalling what Lexi said earlier. She assumed that Penn had a guy over she was getting frisky with.
Lexi tilted her head. “That’s what this is all about? You’re trying to figure out who our ‘guest’ is?”
“I’m just a little curious, that’s all,” she admitted.
“You’re worried, aren’t you?” Lexi stepped forward so she was standing right in front of her. Lexi was taller than her, but thanks to the wedge heels, she now towered over Gemma. “You’re afraid we might be interviewing replacements for you? That we might have found a replacement?”
Gemma swallowed hard. “That actually hadn’t crossed my mind before. ”
“Well, we are. And she’s marvelous. ” Lexi smiled. “Thea’s meeting her tonight, and if it all goes well, then it’s all over for you. ”
Gemma really didn’t have anything to say to that, so Lexi just laughed. She turned and walked toward the door.
“It’s a good thing I found the scroll, then,” Gemma said, stopping her.
Lexi paused and narrowed her eyes at her. “What?”
Gemma swallowed hard and decided to plunge ahead. Thea wouldn’t tell her where the scroll was, so there was no way that Lexi would, either. At least not if Gemma came right out and asked for it.
“The scroll that has your curse on it. If I destroy it, then I destroy all of you,” Gemma said.
“You did not find it. ” Lexi stepped away from the door and moved closer to Gemma, but Gemma just held her ground and stared up at her.
“I did,” Gemma said. “It was the second place I looked, and if you don’t help me break the curse, I’ll find a way to destroy it. ”
“Ugh. ” Lexi groaned and rolled her eyes. “I told Penn we shouldn’t have hid it there. Once you knew who her dad was, it was, like, obvious. ”
“Yeah, well…” Gemma licked her lips. “I did meet her dad, and I got it. ”
“Met her dad?” Lexi smirked. “You little liar. You didn’t find anything. Her dad’s dead. ”
“I’m close, Lexi,” Gemma insisted as Lexi backed away to the door. “I’m going to find it, and when I do, I’ll destroy the scroll and you along with it. If you help me break it, maybe there’s a way that we can all live. ”
“Nice try. You won’t find it, you won’t stop us. At least not before we replace you. You’re out of time, Gemma. ” Lexi laughed and walked out of the theater, letting the door slam shut behind her.
Aiden started talking to Gemma, asking her what that was all about, but Gemma ignored him. He’d been standing back up on the stage, so he hadn’t been able to hear everything, but he’d heard enough to know something was up.
The sirens were looking to replace her, and they were probably going to do it soon. If Gemma didn’t break the curse, she was as good as dead. And the only clue Lexi had given her was that the hiding place had something to do with Penn’s dead father.
SEVENTEEN
Diner
“Pearl’s?” Harper asked with a raised eyebrow as she slid into the booth across from Daniel. “This counts as a proper date?”
“I never used the term ‘proper date. ’” Daniel held up his hands defensively. “I said that we needed to get out more. ”
Pearl’s didn’t have an oceanic theme like most of the tourist traps in Capri, aside from one painting hung behind the counter. It depicted a mermaid sitting on an open clamshell holding a huge pearl, and Harper avoided looking at it when they sat down.
When Daniel had said that he wanted to go out tonight, Harper thought he meant something a bit more special, even though it was only a Thursday, and she’d tried to get dolled up. She wore a light summer dress and kept pulling it down to make sure the hem fell below the scar on her thigh.
Pearl, the owner and namesake of the diner, made her way over to their booth. The diner had other waitresses, but every time Harper came with Daniel, Pearl made a special point of waiting on them. That was probably because Daniel was always helping Pearl out, and she wanted to make sure he was treated well.
In her early fifties, Pearl was a somewhat heavyset woman. She looked a little gruff, but Harper knew that she was as sweet as her blueberry pie. Which, incidentally, matched her hair. Harper assumed that Pearl attempted to cover up her gray with some type of at-home dye kit, and it left her with bluish curls that she pinned back.
“Don’t you both look nice?” Pearl commented when she reached their table and looked from Harper to Daniel. “Celebrating something special?”
Although Daniel managed to look foxy no matter what he did, Harper wouldn’t classify him as looking particularly nice tonight. He wore a Led Zeppelin T-shirt with Icarus on it, and he still had the perpetual stubble on his face.
Though Harper had come to prefer his scruff to his clean-shaven look. When he’d shaved once a few weeks ago, his kisses felt different and a little alien.
“No, just hitting the town for the night,” Daniel said, grinning up at Pearl. “What do you have on special tonight?”
“I have meatloaf with homemade gravy, and a chicken salad sandwich,” Pearl said. “The chicken salad comes with fries. But if there’s anything you want, I can make it up for you. And it’s on the house tonight. ”
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Pearl’s didn’t have menus. She had a few specials written on a chalkboard hanging behind the counter, but with everything else, customers were just supposed to know what she served.
“Thank you, Pearl,” Daniel said. “We’d like a few minutes to think it over. ”
“Take your time. ” Pearl winked at him. “I’ll check on you in a bit. ”
“Thanks, Pearl,” Harper said, then turned her attention back to Daniel.
“What?” Daniel as
ked once Pearl had walked away.
“She paid you in food again, didn’t she?” Harper asked.
He leaned on the table and offered her a sheepish smile. “I did fix her overhead fan, and offers of food were made, yes. ”
“Daniel. ” Harper smiled and shook her head. “You have to stop letting people pay you in food. ”
He shrugged. “It doesn’t happen that often. I have plenty of jobs that pay me in cash. ”
“Really?” She was skeptical and crossed her arms over her chest. “’Cause it seems like you get paid in food or gently used sofas or a box of bootleg VHS tapes. ”
“That was one time. ” Daniel held up a finger. “And it had an entire season of the original Adam West Batman in it. ”
“You don’t have a VCR!” Harper countered.
“I’ll get one,” he insisted.
“Well, if you wait long enough, you’ll probably get paid with one. ”
“Haha,” he said dryly, but he was still smiling.
Harper relented a bit, uncrossing her arms and leaning forward on the table. “I’m just saying. You have bills to pay, and I don’t think my dad would let you pay him rent in food or videotapes. ”
“Don’t worry. I have it covered. ” He waved off her concern. “The Paramount job is paying pretty well. ”
“How is that going, by the way?”
“Good. It’s coming together, slowly but surely. ”
“Good. Glad to hear it. ” Harper rubbed at a spot on the table and, as nonchalantly as possible, she went on. “I thought something might have happened. Gemma came home last night acting kind of strange, but when I pressed her about it, she kept insisting that nothing was wrong. She just spent the whole night reading up on the mythology books I brought home from the library. ”
Daniel shook his head. “I had to leave early because I was helping Pearl, but everything seemed fine when I was there. ”
“Good. ” Harper smiled at him.
Pearl came back to take their orders. Harper hadn’t really been thinking about it, so she just got the meatloaf and a cherry malt. Daniel apparently liked the sound of that, because he ordered the same.
Once Pearl had left to fill their order, he leaned back in the booth. He stared across at Harper and sighed.
“This is going against my rule where I said I wouldn’t tattle on Gemma,” he said finally.
“It’s not tattling,” Harper argued. “We’re adults. Adults don’t tattle. ”
“That’s kind of my point. ” He scratched the back of his head and glanced around the diner. “When I started working on the play, I said I would keep an eye on Gemma, but I wouldn’t run to you telling you every little thing she did wrong. ”
“I know. And I’ve never asked you to,” she said. “I don’t need to know everything she does. I just want to know that she’s safe, and I trust your judgment. ”
“Well, anyway…” He sighed again. “I didn’t see her much last night because I left early, but tonight, she seemed like herself. She was getting a little flirty with Aiden Crawford. ”
“Aiden? The mayor’s son?” Harper asked, her eyes widening a little. “I thought she was seeing Kirby Logan. ”
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