I worked at the docks all morning, but my mind was on other things. I went through the motions, but all I could think about was seeing Eva this afternoon and trying to figure out what our next steps would be.

I needed to tell her the truth about Selena, but I had no idea how to approach the subject. She had trusted me enough to tell me the truth about her past. I needed to do the same for her, no matter how painful it might be to talk about.

I decided I wouldn’t talk about it with her until after the festival. I wanted us both to relax and have a good time, and I was still trying to convince her to stick around. Telling her about a powerful siren who had basically been holding me prisoner here in town wasn’t exactly something to write about on the town’s brochure.

It was more like a darker side to the town no one much liked to talk about and everyone preferred to look the other way instead of doing anything about it. Technically, Selena’s castle was just outside of the Willow Harbor city limits, so whatever she did on her own property was out of the town’s jurisdiction.

Still, the things she did here affected us all. She was just smart enough to find a way around the rules.

When I finally finished my work and hurried to back to Drifter’s, I found him standing behind the bar with a couple of his regulars, all sharing a round of pints. I only had about an hour left to get ready for the night, but when they asked me to join them for a few minutes, I couldn’t say no.

We had only been talking for a few minutes when my phone dinged with a new text message. Frustrated, I stared at Jennings’ name on my screen.

“Excuse me a second, guys,” I said. “I’ll be right back.”

I dialed Jennings’ number, and he answered on the first ring.

“Nice of you to call so quickly,” Jennings said. “Maybe you’re learning after all.”

“I’m not doing another job for you tonight,” I said, trying to keep my voice down until I stepped outside. “It’s the night of the festival, and I don’t intend to miss it.”

“Oh, well, maybe I was wrong,” Jennings said. “You seem to think you have a choice in the matter. Cute. But I wasn’t going to ask you to do a job tonight. Selena wants to see you, but not at the drop-off point. She wants you to come to her place. Be there at eight sharp.”

My jaw tensed, and I gripped the phone so hard, I was surprised I didn’t crack the case. This couldn’t be happening. Not tonight.

“What for?” I asked.

“Why does it matter?” Jennings asked. “She wants you there, end of story. Show up, or I’ll come looking for you myself. Trust me when I say you wouldn’t want that, boy.”

“Don’t call me boy,” I said. “And I can’t come tonight. I have other plans. Besides, Selena always gives us Halloween night off.”

“The rest of us? Yes. You? Not this year,” he said. “What’s so important about the festival tonight, anyway? You never seemed to care this much any other year?”

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. This was exactly why I had to get out from under this whole thing. I may have been able to tolerate it before Eva came into my life, but now I wondered how the hell I’d lived this way for so long. I couldn’t do it, anymore.

“Come looking for me if you must,” I said. “But tell Selena I won’t be there. Not tonight. Not ever.”

I hung up the phone, my hands shaking.

If I thought I was stupid before for getting lured in by a siren, that was nothing compared to what I’d just done. Jennings, I could handle. But pissing off Selena was something you just didn’t do. Not if you wanted to live to see tomorrow, which I very much wanted to do.

But I was going to have to face her someday, so why not tonight?

I would meet Eva, tell her the truth, and then I would get her as far away from me as possible until this whole thing was over. In the end, I would either be free or I would be dead, but at least it would be on my own terms.

My phone rang as Jennings tried to call me back, but I hit ignore and went back inside the bar.

“Pour me one of those,” I said to Drifter. “It’s going to be one hell of a night.”

---

I strolled up to the Willow Harbor Inn at six o’clock on the dot to find Mrs. Finnygood standing on her stool at the front desk with a sour look on her face.

“Good evening, Mrs. Finnygood,” I said.

“Is it a good evening?” she asked. “Or are you not here to take my beautiful new guest on a date to the Halloween festival tonight?”

I cleared my throat. She obviously didn’t much like the idea of it, and I guess I couldn’t blame her. She knew the anger of Selena just as well as anyone around town, but I didn’t see her or any of the rest of them enforcing their rules about doing no harm to the town’s citizens when it came to Selena, so who was she to judge me?

“I am,” I said. “Is she here?”

“I don’t have to tell you how much I disapprove of this,” she said. “Not that you aren’t a fine young man, I’m sure. I know you have a good heart, but if you put that poor girl in danger, I will never forgive you.”

“I assure you, I would never forgive myself, either,” I said. “But I also happen to know that Eva can take care of herself. She’s free to make her own decisions about who she spends her time with.”

“Yes, but does she have all the information to know what she might be walking into?” she asked.

“Walking into what?” Eva asked from the top of the staircase.

My mouth dropped open at the sight of her, and I could hardly focus enough to find my voice. She was stunning in a tight red dress that showed off her long legs, and a leather jacket. Her hair was piled on top of her head with loose curls coming down to frame her face. She wore a pair of tall black leather boots. I had never seen someone so sexy in my life, which got me thinking about that kiss again and wanting more.

“I’ll leave that up to Nikolas here to explain,” Mrs. Finnygood said. “Which I hope he plans to do as soon as possible. You look lovely, child. I hope you have a nice time tonight.”

“Thank you,” Eva said as she walked down the steps to join us in the entryway. “Are you not coming out to the festival?”

“Oh, goodness, no,” Mrs. Finnygood said. “I almost never leave the Inn these days. Too much to do, and I always want to be here if any of my guests need me. But you two have a nice time. And please be safe out there.”

“We will,” I said.

Mrs. Finnygood gave me a pointed look before she went back to her ledger, and I knew if I didn’t tell Eva the truth tonight, she most certainly would do it for me. She was fiercely protective of her guests, and I was glad for it. Eva would be safe here as long as she was a guest of the Finnygoods. That was exactly why I’d steered her toward this place.

“You ready?” Eva asked, and I realized I’d just been standing there staring at her.

“Of course,” I said, offering her my arm.

She linked her arm with mine, and we walked together toward the town square and the magical willow tree that looked out for us all.

I could only hope its magic was particularly strong tonight.