Just before they reached the shallow cave Luce began to slow, sending pulses of water backwards with her tail to counter the boat’s momentum. At least here they’d have some shelter from the wind, the rain. Stands of rock broke the waves so that the sea only flicked gently at the stones. Water dripped from the tangled roots overhead, and a curtain of rain cut off the world beyond. Dorian clambered out of the rowboat and flopped onto the shore while Luce tied the rope to a spiky branch of the fallen spruce tree. “Jesus, you scared me!” The words gasped out, but he was smiling at her.

“It kind of serves you right.” Swimming so quickly had streaked the tension out of her, though. Dorian stretched out near the edge of the water, and she swam close to him and let him slide his hands into her hair. After a moment she rested her head on the beach, her face inches away from his.

“If I keep kissing you all the time we’re never going to talk.” His voice was warm and already going throaty. “But it’s hard not to.”

“I don’t even want to kiss you now.” Luce was surprised to hear herself say it, especially in such a strong tone.

“Because I said one stupid thing? And it might not even have been that stupid, anyway. Luce, I mean, how am I supposed to know—”

“No. Because it’s too hard for me that you’re always changing how you feel about me.” His fingers were still curling back and forth across her cheeks, brushing against her neck. Almost against her will she found herself leaning into his touch. The warmth of each caress washed through her skin.

“That’s not true.” He sounded so serious that Luce let her hand drift up to touch him back. “Luce, I mean . . . I’ve been getting freaked out because it doesn’t change. I’m way too into you, and it doesn’t ever stop. You don’t know that? And I hardly even know you. I don’t even know what you are, really.”

“You hate what I am.” Even though you’re one of us, Luce thought. You just don’t know it. “You think we’re all evil, and you’re still talking about going to the FBI, even though that would make them start coming after us—”

“Most of you are evil! You said your friend Dana is one of the nicest ones, and she tried to get you to kill me.” Dorian halfway laughed. “You can’t say that’s not—some pretty warped shit.”

“I showed her your jacket.” This was what she had to tell him, Luce realized. He needed to understand. “You were right. She completely believed me that you were dead. She was even embarrassed to be asking me about it at all.”

“Good. We fooled the bitch.”