Once upon a time, on a rocky island with enchantment under the ocean ... Cadence Bell left the windswept Northern Isles and his parents’ inn for the theaters and royal masques and glitter of Londre, swearing he’d make his fortune as a playwright and poet, trading fish stew and rain for fame and adoration and a place at the Queen’s Court. Now his parents are gone and Cade’s inheritance brings him back home, where he’d never wanted to return. But magic lurks beneath the waves, a stray pearl might be a key to another world, and even the quiet local schoolteacher has secrets of his own. Jeremiah Carver never meant to hide secrets. But he promised to tell no one about the other world he’s seen, and he keeps his word. Even if that means concealing magic from Cadence Bell. Which is difficult, since Cade’s not only a dazzling literary success, but also the person Jeremiah’s loved from afar since their years-ago childhood. And he’s afraid he’s falling for Cade all over again now. When Cadence falls under the siren spell of the ocean’s magic, Jeremiah has to make a choice and return to a world he’s left behind once before to rescue his heart from the sea.

Cadence and the Pearl

The grief burned—trapped in his chest, his throat—the way it did at infrequent inconvenient times. Three months in, he’d gotten somewhat used to the idea of his parents not simply being in the next room; he had not gotten used to the idea that they never would be again.


At seventeen, back when he’d left, he’d been sure he’d known what he wanted. He’d known he did not want their life. Like many seventeen-year-old children, he thought.


He hadmeant to come home. Later. Another year. After another successful theatrical season. When Queen Lyssa did not require his presence in Council meetings or helping write royal addresses or choosing themes and decorations for upcoming balls and banquets. When the storms relented and travel north got easier. The year after next.


He pulled legs up, wrapped his arms around them. His hair fell into one eye; he halfheartedly tucked it away again.


Chapter 12