9. Grace & Sebastian

Chapter 9

Grace & Sebastian

W e got up early the next morning and went down to breakfast. I wasn't really one to have sugar in the mornings—it made me queasy—so we all went to the same diner where I'd met Rafe and piled into a booth, with Kazi at our feet. We ordered, and as we were waiting for our meal, Rafe and Sebastian caught up with us.

"Hello, lovely ladies," Rafe said as he slid into the booth next to Micaela. "My slave driver has given me a reprieve for a few hours and I'm going with you guys on your excursion today, if you'll have me?"

Mama looked at him over the rim of her cherry-red glasses. "And who might you be?"

Rafe smiled disarmingly. "A friend of the group."

"Hmph."

I hid my smile by taking a drink of my water. Mama was especially feisty this morning. And she was pouting a little because Micaela had gently asked her to leave her bat in the suite today, promising that she would take care of anything that came my way.

I fully believed it after watching Micaela's workout routine yesterday. I'd had to go with her to the boxing gym because she couldn't leave me alone. Not only could she run any thugs you cared to name into the ground, but I also didn't see them surviving her right hook. I'd hit the bag at the gym a few times, but Micaela had nearly knocked it off the chain that hooked it to the ceiling.

I'd left from that experience with my head in the clouds and had gone straight to my suite to fix some chapters that needed to be updated to show off Micaela's fierceness.

I fidgeted with the straw wrapper and glanced at Sebastian, who'd said a soft good morning to everyone but was being awfully quiet otherwise.

"Did you sleep well, Sebastian?" I only realized I'd said the words out loud because I had the sudden, violent impulse to shove my foot into my mouth. Seriously? That's what you wanted to ask him ? I sighed. I might be more socially awkward than I'd feared. Maybe all those times I had to hide out in a police precinct had stunted my social growth.

Sebastian's forest green eyes, warm with emotion, held mine. "I did, Grace. Thank you. Did you?"

Umm, no I did not. I was up all night thinking about him.

I shook my head and grimaced. "Not so much. Mama snores."

"Grace Evelyn Liora, you take that back! I do not!"

I laughed and patted her hand. "I was just teasing, Mama."

Sebastian smiled at our interaction. "Are you ready for the turtles today?"

Excited didn't quite cover how I felt about our excursion. I'd wanted to swim with turtles my whole life. I had to wonder if this was a popular excursion, or if Sebastian was a good guesser? "I'm super excited about today. It's literally a dream come true. Thanks for setting everything up again." I smiled shyly and tucked my hair behind my ear. "Next time I get to pick and plan the excursion." I held my hand out to him to shake on it. "Deal?"

His warm hand dwarfed mine as he took it. "Deal," he murmured. He released my hand, but I could swear I still felt his touch. I was a little regretful that we were surrounded by people right then. I wanted to talk about last night, and about how he felt about everything. But most of all, I wanted to talk about that handshake at my door. Who does that!?

Rafe, who'd flagged down the waitress and ordered something for himself, took a sip of his hot tea. It smelled like a cinnamon roll. He noticed my puzzled gaze on his cup and handed it to me to try. "What is this magic?" I asked as I took another sip. It was amazing! Creamy, spicy, with just the right amount of sweetness. Rafe laughed and finally had to wrestle his mug away from me because I wouldn't give it back to him.

"Cinnamon roll tea. It's made with cinnamon tea bags, maple creamer, sugar, and whipped cream. Delicious, right? It tastes like fall in a cup."

"Yeah. I normally don't like sugar in the mornings, but that was amazing. Thanks for letting me have a tiny bit."

He snorted, looking into his nearly empty cup. "I'm ordering one for you. Otherwise, you'll keep stealing mine."

Our order was eventually delivered, and we dug in, all of us acting like we'd been on a deserted island for weeks without food. Even Sebastian ordered a meal in addition to his typical cup of liquid. I guess he was hungry for more than just blood today. I ordered biscuits and sausage gravy with a side of fruit and hashbrowns and moaned when I dug a spoon in and got the perfect bite of fluffy bread with the perfect amount of creamy, savory sauce.

"Oh my gosh, this is divine."

Everyone else agreed, and we finished a good half of our plates in silence.

"Do you think the turtles will stay close to me, like the mantas did?" I asked, finally coming up for air.

Sebastian was drinking from a discreet silver cup with a lid and a straw. You could see the red in the straw, but the rest of the drink was covered. Humans probably just thought he was a Big Red addict.

He opened his mouth to answer, but before he could, a man suddenly appeared at our table. I was, perhaps foolishly, sitting at the end of the booth. The man knelt next to me and was just about to take my hand when another man, built like an NFL linebacker, came up behind him. Without a word, he used pressure points to make the kneeling man stand up, and started frog marching him away from our table. "Please don't hurt him!" I called out anxiously. "He's actually a good person!"

The linebacker nodded and gentled his hold. Maybe he would just take him out of the restaurant? He hadn't actually done anything wrong.

I turned back to my table to see Mama reaching for a bat that wasn't there, Micaela half out of her seat, Sebastian staring at the retreating pair thoughtfully, and Rafe gaping at me.

"Did you just ask Gray not to hurt the man that was going to touch you without your permission?" Rafe demanded.

I sat back and sighed, no longer interested in my food. I pushed my plate away. At this rate, I'd lose weight on this cruise rather than gain it, like my research had suggested most people did. "He was one of the good ones. Even though he was... temporarily mesmerized, if I would have said no, he would have pulled back and respected it. There's a big difference between a person who, while momentarily mesmerized, gently reaches for my hand without permission, and the dirt clods that touch me, rub against me, and try to kiss me, never once respecting that I should even have personal space."

Micaela had dug into her food again, seemingly unbothered by what had just happened. "What I'd like to know," she said, taking a sip of her hot cocoa, "is how you know what kind of person he is."

I shrugged my shoulders uncomfortably, unsure how to answer that, but Mama answered for me, so I needn't have bothered.

"She's always been like that. She could tell me, in a huge crowd of people, who were the good people, who were the iffy ones, and who were the ones you wanted to avoid at all costs." Mama petted Kazi, who'd poked his head out from under the table and was purr-growling in agitation. Possibly because I was upset? I didn't know. I touched his furry ears and tried to convey calm toward him, and he eventually settled.

Mama speared a piece of fruit. "She was forever bringing people home with her. Most of them were down on their luck. Some of them were homeless, some of them were trying to escape a dangerous situation. They would stay awhile until they could get back on their feet and then leave." Mama smiled fondly at me. "I cannot tell you how many elderly people she brought home with her. She'd invite them to dinner, and we'd just sit out on the back porch and talk and talk."

"Why the elderly?" Sebastian asked.

I shrugged sheepishly. "Most of them are really lonely, and a lot of them are nice people. Even the outwardly grouchy ones." I smiled and took another sip of Rafe's tea. He'd handed it to me when he noticed I'd stopped eating.

I remembered quite a few grouchy elderly people. But Mama and I had worn them down until they were putty in our hands. It helped that Mama could cook like a Michelin chef. "Also, Mama and I were lonely. She didn't date for many years because she was afraid of what would happen if she brought a guy into our household, and I was homeschooled and couldn't be around other kids too much." I shrugged again, as if that explained everything.

"We're still in contact with a lot of the people who have stayed in our house over the years," Mama added.

"Yes, but how do you know if people are good or not? " Micaela asked again.

I gave it some thought. "I...get a strong sense of a person, almost right away. I can just look around me and know."

Micaela looked fascinated. She held up a finger at me. "Hold that thought." Then she ducked underneath the table. I could hear Kazi huff at her as she climbed over him, and I knew everyone at the table was pulling their legs away from the crazy woman. She popped up next to me, and Mama shuffled a little toward Rafe to give her some room. "Sorry, Mama Liora. But Gracie and I need to test this out."

Mama waved us off.

Micaela was right next to me now, so she could whisper, and the people sitting at the tables closest to us wouldn't hear her.

She chin nodded at the table next to us. "Okay, go."

I glanced at the table briefly. "Starting clockwise: good, good, amazingly good, a little grey, decent, and good."

Micaela clapped her hands like I was a circus performer, and I couldn't help but smile at her enthusiasm. "Okay. Next, can you scan the whole restaurant and tell me if there's anyone that falls into the really bad news territory?"

I scanned the restaurant, my gaze lingering on a few individuals. "There's a few that are morally bankrupt, but wouldn't attack someone, if that's what you mean. But that man there." I discreetly pointed to him sitting at a table alone, reading the paper. "He's a predator."

Micaela's smile was razor sharp and nearly made me flinch. She rubbed my head like I was a particularly good dog that she was giving pets to and then climbed over me and approached the table where the guy I'd just told her about was sitting. I followed her progress, my heart in my throat, my eyes probably wide enough to give me panoramic views.

"What is she doing?" I whispered to the table at large.

Micaela was shaking the man's hand, and I could tell she was pouring on the charm. The man smiled, offering her the seat opposite him, and she took it with a contrived, demure smile.

"She's giving him his next easy victim," Sebastian said.

I turned to him, concerned.

He smiled at my expression. "She knows what she's doing, Grace, I promise."

"But what if he spikes her drink or something?"

Sebastian shook his head. "She'd never leave him alone with her drink. She's been doing this for quite a few years." He squeezed my hand. "Just trust her."

I sat back, still worried, but less so after Sebastian's assurances. "Well, I guess we're down one person for the excursion today."

"She should have him wrapped up and trussed like a turkey for the Honolulu police by the end of the day," Rafe said, his gaze still on Micaela as she flirted with the guy across from her. Rafe turned to me. "We'll stay with you today until she can join you again." Then he smiled. "I feel like we should have everyone on the ship gather for a," he used air quotes "mandatory meeting, and have you look down, maybe from the level two lounge, or a passageway, and point out the people that are bad news, just for our security to keep a special eye on."

Sebastian nodded. "Not a bad idea, if you're amenable, Grace? We can do that before we need to disembark for our excursion."

"Sure, if you'd like." I shrugged. "But not everyone is onboard since we're in port."

"We'll catch the others another time."

After breakfast, I did my thing, but I was subdued afterward. There had been five. Five people on a happy Hawaiian cruise who were really bad-news people. One woman and four men. My heart felt heavy afterward, and I took some time to myself before we had to leave for our excursion. Kazi followed me like the good bodyguard he was.

I found a secluded place on the aft of the ship on deck one and pulled up a lounge chair. Rafe was at the end of the section with his eye on me, blocking the entrance so people didn't come into the area. Kazi snuggled against me, facing the direction my back was turned so he could see if anyone snuck up on us.

"I know it sounds dumb, Kazi, but I wish I didn't have... whatever this gift is. It's awful to know. Sometimes I just wish I could bury my head in the sand and pretend everyone is good and kind."

I petted Kazi's side.

"But that's kinda dumb, not to mention unsafe. And also... there are people I could help with... whatever this is."

I sighed. "I just sometimes wish that it wasn't me, you know? That this fell to someone else to handle."

I sniffed. "And that poor man this morning!" I growled in frustration, wiping my eyes. "I'm seriously never writing a siren romance. Sirens are the worst!" No matter what I could do with my singing voice, my regular presence did so much damage!

I was, by nature, an ambivert. That meant that I liked to be social sometimes, but I also really valued my alone time and had a lot of introverted tendencies. My room, being full of people at the moment, was kinda killing me. Micaela was awesome, and I adored my mom, but I needed a bit of space every day and some peace and quiet.

I breathed deeply for the first time in twenty-four hours and closed my eyes, completely trusting that Kazi would protect me. The shushing and crashing of the waves, the sea breeze on my face, the stillness all around me, all of it filled my soul until I felt ready to join everyone again.

Sebastian

I sat above Grace's hiding spot on the aft of the ship. The deck two lounge and bar were low key, with a relaxing atmosphere. Since it was nine a.m., there were fewer people in the lounge to disturb me with their noise. I sat and sipped a glass of water so I wouldn't look like an idiot just sitting there with nothing in front of me, and clenched my fist, almost cracking my glass when I saw tears streak down Grace's cheeks.

I hadn't thought...

It must hurt her heart to see people the way she did. To know what she knew. She must wish she didn't have the ability.

Grace's siren nature had worn off since the first night we'd spent getting dinner together. Her blood no longer sang siren songs to me. Now, her blood sang to me simply because I wanted to be closer to her. Because I wanted her to be mine.

I was fully under my own autonomy now. I always had been. My vampiric nature was much stronger than her siren nature, simply because I was so much older than she was. Her nature had lured me in, but I'd broken through it during our dinner. No, her appeal to me now was so much more than a lure, and so much more terrifying.

I wasn't sure yet, but I thought she might be my forever mate. The match of my innermost heart and soul. And that I might be hers.

So, if Grace needed me to go slowly? To give her the dating and falling in love experience that she'd always dreamed of? Then I would do that. If Grace needed alone time because she was more introverted than I was? No problem. I'd send Kazi with her and have a bodyguard discreetly follow her. If Grace needed a soft place to land because being a siren was confusing and sometimes painful? I would give her that and more.

I swallowed more ice water as Grace stood up. I hadn't wanted to intrude upon her privacy, but my other security personnel were otherwise occupied, discreetly following the five people she'd pointed out, and I hadn't wanted to leave her with just Kazi and Rafe when she'd been in such distress.

I would tell her I'd watched over her. It was the gentlemanly thing to do.

I just hoped she was ready for the battle I was about to wage for her heart. A battle that took no prisoners, and where both sides surrendered. A battle that I intended to win.

But first, I needed to take care of something.