Dylan didn't say anything about Molly's absence the next morning, but I noticed the tightness in his jaw and around his eyes as he informed me we'd have to make do with cereal for breakfast. Humming, I poured a bowl full and shoved a spoonful of sugary goodness into my mouth, smiling as I pulled the utensil out with an exaggerated popping sound.

"So good," I said, crunching down on the flakes while milk dribbled down my chin.

He arched an eyebrow. "You're in a good mood."

"Why wouldn't I be?" I asked, "you'd think I was being held prisoner or something."

"Isla."

"Dylan," I shot back.

Sighing, he took a drink of his coffee, but the sigh became a wince when the bitter brew touched his tongue. He'd never been able to make drinkable coffee. After Mama left, I'd become the designated coffee maker. Until Molly. 

I sure as hell wouldn't be resuming my daughterly duties now that our housekeeper was under lock and key. He would have to suffer or go into town to get a decent cup, and it gave me great pleasure to know that last night hadn't been a complete bust. Even if the only thing we got out of it was inconveniencing Dylan. And a very foolish plan. 

I dropped the spoon into my empty bowl, waiting until the clang of metal on porcelain stopped before speaking. "I've decided I want to have a party for my birthday."

"A party?"

"Yep. A very expensive, over the top masquerade party. Like the one Mama promised me for my sixteenth birthday."

"We could probably make that happen, though we should probably do it the day before."

"No."

"No?" He grunted the single syllable, his hands clenching into fists before flattening against the table's surface. "You know that the day of is going to be difficult."

"Yes, yes," I said, waving at the air as though I were waving away his concerns, "I understand there's the entire matter of my sacrifice, but we've got all day. You're already taking everything else away from me. You owe me a party on the actual day of my birth."

The tension in his jaw dissipated. It was like watching a string snap as his chin began to tremble. Tears glimmering in his eyes stirred up emotions I refused to acknowledge, and I looked away from the man who fathered me and out the dining room window.

"Fine. I'll talk to Lorelei, and we'll see what works. From my understanding, it has to happen just before midnight. Should be plenty of time to have a party, right?"

I jumped up from the table and grabbed my book bag. "I just need enough time to get plastered so I don't know what's going on."

"Isla!"

I slammed the door on his protests, a grin stretching from ear to ear when I spied Kieran waiting for me at the end of the driveway. Despite how things began between us, I was coming to realize Kieran was my rock. My fixed point. When everything around me was spinning, I could hold onto him, and the world would steady.

He leaned against the bike, his eyes trained on mine as I hurried to him. A few months ago, this would've been my father's worst nightmare. A boy in a leather jacket with a motorcycle. It made my grin widen, and Kieran's smile grew in response. Then it hit me- my father's nightmare would include one more thing.

Hoping Dylan was watching from the window, I threw my arms around Kieran's neck and brought his lips down on mine, but the response I received wasn't the one I expected. Our mouths were locked together, but there was no heat or movement. It was like kissing a stone statue.

Opening my eyes, I found him staring back at me, shock evident in his hazel eyes. Embarrassed, I tried to pull away but only managed the barest hint of separation before Kieran jolted back to life. His arms went around my waist, and he tugged me to my tip toes so he could deepen the kiss.

The first time we'd kissed had been the night Al sold his soul to Lorelei. It had been frantic and harsh, a moment stolen to reassure the other we had survived the car crash. 

This. 

This was everything I'd imagined kissing Kieran to be. I heard thunderstorms in his voice, but I tasted lightning on his lips. Every time they shifted across mine, sparks popped, traveling into my bloodstream, burrowing into my muscles, making my toes curl in my boots. I thought of how he'd touched me the day he described my tail. His hands had been hesitant as they slid across my stomach. A boyish blend of shyness and wonder. Today, none of that timidity remained, his hands sure as they came off my waist and tangled in my hair.

"Isla Halloran!"

The sound of my father's voice cracked like a whip, forcing us apart. We stared at one another- our eyes wide, our cheeks pink, and our smiles shaky. I didn't have to look over my shoulder to know Dylan was marching towards us. The crunch of gravel gave him away, and Kieran thrust the extra helmet at me as he pulled on his own.

Within seconds we were on the motorcycle, and I was waving at my fuming father as we zoomed down the road. Once he faded from sight, I buried my face in Kieran's back and tried to calm myself before we arrived at school.

What did you do? Stupid. Stupid.

I berated myself with those words over and over again. It wasn't as if I didn't know our pact to be just friends was out the window, but holding hands and comforting one another was a lot different than kissing. Hell, kissing was a lot different than what we'd just done. I'd kissed boys before, and it had never been like that. This had been all consuming, touching more than just skin.

When we came to a stop, I hurried off the bike and willed the flush from my cheeks before I pulled off the helmet. I'd never been a mushy girl- a believer in soul mates- even before my mother left us. After she left, I put up walls to make certain I couldn't be hurt like that again. I thought I was playing a game this morning, getting back at my father for his cruelty. Fighting fire with fire. Only, now, I felt like a child playing with matches, and while it was okay if I was burned, I couldn't hurt Kieran. He didn't deserve it.

"So, are we going to talk about whatever that was?"

Damn it. So much for hoping we'd just sweep it under the rug. "Yeah, sorry. I didn't expect it to get so out of hand."

Kieran put his hands on my helmet but didn't take it. It hovered between us, acting as a barrier to the emotions rolling off us in waves.

Brows furrowed, he asked, "What do you mean? I mean, it was a little more than a normal good morning kiss. A peck on the cheek. You pretty much threw yourself into my arms."

"Are we arguing about this?" I was confused by the ire creeping into his voice.

"Did you kiss me because yer dad was watching?

I could lie. It would smooth things over. Unless, of course, he didn't believe me. I'd never been much of a liar before, but I could manage well enough if the occasion called for it. Like the time we told Mel's parents her window was broken during a storm when really we'd broken it sneaking out to meet Tommy and Buddy Hanks for a late night swim in their pond. But this was Kieran, and he could see right through me.

"That was my initial motivation, yes."

"Oi," Tara shouted across the parking lot. She stood next to Niko and a very sullen looking Al. "You two coming to class before the bell rings?"

"Be right there," Kieran replied, his gaze lingering on his best friend before he turned back to me. "I see."

"No, you don't," I said, snagging him by the arm before he could walk away. I didn't understand why he was getting so angry. "I mean, yes. I kissed you because I thought it would piss off my dad, but I kept kissing you because..."

"Because?"

"Because," I stammered, looking down, up, around, or anywhere but at Kieran. What answer could I give him that wouldn't sound terrible? And then, it dawned on me. The truth. "Because it was what I wanted. Not what my father wanted, or the people of the Island, or some crazy siren. Me."

His tight lipped frown softened into a half smirk. "I can't say my ego wasn't a little wounded at first."

I scoffed. "You have an ego?"

"Ha, ha, ha. I know I kissed you that night after the accident, and I was hoping our next kiss would be a little more romantic-"

"What's more romantic than a kiss during a moment of life and death?"

Kieran growled. "Would you let me finish speaking, woman?"

"You won't do anymore speaking if you call me woman again," I fussed, keeping my tone light enough so he could hear the teasing beneath the warning.

"Apologies. Never again. But, as I was saying, I wanted it to be better. Take my time. I didn't think we'd have an audience."

"We had an audience the first time."

"Ach, and if Tara was bad, yer father was worse. He's going to tell my mum, and I'm going to get an earful."

"Just tell your mum it's all part of your act."

"Ah, yes. She knows what a hardship it's been. She'll understand."

I shoved him across the threshold and into the school building. "We could always go back to pretending like we're not very close. That means no hand holding in public. No sitting next to each other in class. And definitely no kissing."

Kieran made a horrified face, and if it hadn't been so genuine, I might've shoved him again. Giving the hallway a furtive glance, he pulled me into a corner. Taking my hand in his, he raised them to his lips and kissed my knuckles.

"That would be the true hardship," he whispered, making me blush. "Isla, I need you to promise me something."

"What?" I asked, not naive enough to say I would agree to anything he asked.

"Yer not going to do something stupid."

"What are you talking about?"

"I saw yer face last night, and I know yer thinking of doing something foolish."

I pulled my hands out of his and shoved them in my pockets. Scowling, I replied, "You're making things up. I agreed to this masquerade ball."

"Just like you also agreed to stay out of trouble all the times before. But then there was the cave, the sea witch, the-"

I put a hand over his mouth. "You've made your point."

"I promise I'll protect you. The others will too. What Molly described is murder."

Dread washed over me in a frigid wave, but I did my best to keep it out of my expression. "I trust you."

He shook his head. "I'm not worried about you trusting me. I know you do."

The first warning bell rang, and I tried to step around Kieran. He shuffled to the side, blocking my way. "Then what is this about?"

"I can see that yer thinking about trying to save us, and I need you to understand that I don't want to be saved if the cost is losing you."

"Stupid boy," I fussed, blinking back the tears his words caused. I didn't know how to make him understand that he felt this way now because we were drowning in hormones. Twenty years from now, he wouldn't feel the same way, and it would be too late.

"Isla."

"You sound like my dad."

"Ach, that was mean, and yer not going to distract me. Promise me."

"Kieran-"

"Promise me."

"I promise," I said out loud, adding in my head, to do whatever it takes to end this curse.