With a slight smile, Fen complied. Dria wasn’t the only one who needed a distraction. Besides, it wouldn’t hurt to have a head start on the game before he faced the girls. He might even manage to win a match next time they did player vs. player. Anything was possible.
Maddy braided her long hair and then scrunched her nose at the result. How could her hair be both oily and frizzy at the same time? With a huff, she tugged the strands loose and grabbed the dry shampoo. Late summer in the South, that was why. She could go a week without washing the mess, and the humidity would still send little fly-aways sticking in the air like the spines of a red cactus.
Fifteen minutes later, she snapped the elastic band around the end of her braid, surveyed the results, and gave up. Most of the full-blooded fae she’d met were fastidious about their appearance, and Maddy had seen nothing to indicate that the Moranaian elves were any different. She was not going to negotiate with one of their healers while looking like she’d been electrocuted by a lightning spell gone wrong. A glamour it was. With a quick burst of magic, she smoothed the pesky stray pieces out of sight until the plait was as smooth and lovely as her full-blood Sidhe grandmother’s finest coiffure.
“What’s taking so long?” Anna called from the other room.
After wiping her damp palms along her jeans, Maddy headed out of their small bathroom. Anna stood beside the bedroom door, and Maddy couldn’t help but give her girlfriend an admiring glance. Anna’s uniform might be serviceable, but it did little to hide her gorgeous curves. Too bad they both had things to do.
“Sorry,” Maddy said, following her down the hallway. “I’m just nervous. I don’t want to look awful when I talk to the healer.”
“As if that’s a possibility.” Laughing, Anna skimmed her gaze down Maddy’s body. “Yep. Beautiful as always.”
Maddy grinned as they wove between the coffee table, couch, and dining room table to reach the front door. Their snug condo was just enough for the two of them. Barely. “It’s a glamour. Not even the best hair products are a match for river air in the summer.”
As if in agreement, the humidity closed around her in an unwelcome embrace when she stepped outside. Anna’s chin-length hair outdid both product and glamour, though it hadn’t always been so smooth. It had to be her newly awakened fae blood. Water didn’t seem to react to her the same way, and enough energy swirled about her that Maddy worried it might be causing her problems. But Maddy hadn’t pushed her to talk about it since Anna clearly wasn’t ready.
There was no sign of turmoil on Anna’s face as she slid into the passenger seat. “I hate that you have to go out of your way to take me to work,” Anna said. “At least the repairs on my car won’t be too much.”
Maddy plopped her purse onto the center console. “I told you that my father would—”
“You know how I feel about that.” Anna’s bottom lip turned down in the way that never failed to make Maddy want to kiss her. Not the effect her girlfriend was going for, but that didn’t seem to matter. “Maybe after we get married. Until then, your family shouldn’t pay for everything. It doesn’t seem right.”
With a sigh, Maddy put the car in reverse and carefully backed out of the driveway. It was an old argument, and one that wouldn’t be won today. Even so, she was tempted to try. So what if they’d only lived together for ten months of the eighteen that they’d been together? If Anna wasn’t so stressed about paying half the mortgage on the condo, she could work at the restaurant part time and write more. It wasn’t that unusual to let a significant other offer support.
“Then maybe we should pick a date,” Maddy finally said.
Silence stretched between them until Maddy’s chest squeezed in alarm. She tried to figure out Anna’s expression the best she could with a few quick glances, but the traffic was too heavy for her to make a study of it. “Anna?”
“You’re still sure about getting married, right?”
Maddy’s hands tightened around the steering wheel. If it wouldn’t make Anna late for work, she would have pulled over. “Of course. I can’t believe you would even ask that.”
“I know. I’m sorry. But…” Anna shifted against her seat belt. “You’ve been acting funny since you met Fen, and now that we’ve been spending time with him… Look, I know you love me, but are you having second thoughts?”
Maddy nibbled on her lip. She’d been trying to find a way to talk to Anna about Fen, but what could she say? His revelation had stunned her, and she hadn’t figured out quite what to do about it. According to Vek, we could be mates, he’d said. And taking your blood would seal the bond.
How could she tell her beloved that?
Not even Maddy and Fen had talked about it since that day, though sometimes she was certain he was thinking about the unresolved truth hanging between them. How many times had he glanced away from her with a blush in the last couple of weeks? Though come to think of it, he’d stared at Anna with a strange expression, too, and quiet Anna had fumbled her words more than once in his presence.
“You don’t exactly ignore him,” Maddy pointed out. “And you tend to be attracted to guys less than I am.”
Anna surprised her by nodding. “You’re right. Whenever I’m around him, I feel…I don’t know how to describe it. An odd pull, I guess. And I like him as a person.”
“I do, too,” Maddy agreed.
“But you don’t seem like you’re shaking off the feeling the way I do.”
The stoplight turned red, and Maddy eased the car to a halt. For once, she was grateful for the delay, since it gave her the chance to meet Anna’s gaze. “Absolutely nothing could change my love for you. I’m sorry if the last couple of months have made you doubt that. I can’t imagine any relationship that didn’t have you in it.”
“I love you, too.” Anna reached over to squeeze Maddy’s thigh. “So it’s sort of weird that we’re both drawn to Fen. I’m sorry if I worried you, but I had to ask. I wouldn’t want to be in a relationship without you, either.”
A loud honk made them both jump. The light had turned. Maddy forced her attention back to the road and started the car forward. “We can puzzle it out later. I’d better get you to work on time so you can get your prep tasks done before the evening rush. Plus, I want to see how Tamara is doing at the shop before I call Moranaia.”
“Probably a good idea.”
It would be a nice procrastination tactic if nothing else. For two weeks, Maddy had avoided giving the Moranaian healer an answer to his offer to teach her, and there was a good chance he wouldn’t like what she had to say once she did. Yes, her gift needed training. She couldn’t use her healing magic without risking harm to the patient, and the Sidhe, her father’s people, had no interest in teaching her since she was half human. But she couldn’t relocate to another world for a few decades—or centuries—either. No way.
If the healer couldn’t deal with that, she didn’t know what she would do.
After she kissed Anna goodbye in the restaurant parking lot, she straightened her spine and backed the car out with all the confidence she could muster. It wouldn’t stop her from finding a solution if Lial refused to accept her terms. She wouldn’t let it.
Chapter 2
Maddy snatched her purse from the center console and slung the strap over her shoulder as she rushed from the car. Thanks to protesters blocking part of the Market Street bridge, she was running later than expected. Not that she blamed them—they did deserve to know the truth about magic’s return to Earth. The baffled local government might have tried to hide the women lobbing fireballs, lightning, and other bits of magic at each other on that very bridge, but the fight had been caught on film. There was no way to deflect something like that.
At least the news crew hadn’t been able to get closer than a neighboring bridge during the initial incident, and the protection shield that had surrounded the fighting pair had obscured fine details like facial features. Otherwise, Maddy never would have gotten away with hiring Tamara, one of t
he two on the bridge. But the fight hadn’t been Tamara’s fault. The poor woman hadn’t had a clue that she was half-Sidhe, and the full-blooded Sidhe who’d tried to abduct her had gotten what she deserved when Vek and Dria intervened.
As Maddy hurried along the side street that led to the back of the shop, she studied the area out of reflex. The crowds were thinner now that summer was nearing its close, both in the connecting alleys and the larger streets. Tourists poured in from surrounding areas for short getaways or trips to the aquarium in June and July, but there was typically a lull when school was solidly in session.
Too bad there wasn’t a lull in the heat. A fine sheen of sweat covered her skin as she neared the back entrance to the shop, but her palms dampened further at the sight of a man emerging from the alley that ran beside the store. He had mahogany skin, closely cropped curly hair, and a frown, but none of that caused her heartrate to surge.
The strong, well-constructed shield of magic that surrounded him? Yeah, that could be a problem.
Maddy had been kidnapped in this very spot a few weeks ago by a pair of half-blood fae working for the rogue Moranaian prince Kien. This was not the place for a magic user to confront her. She might not have learned how to consistently fix illnesses, but she could kill. It would suck, she would probably hate herself, and she might go to jail—but she wasn’t going to be kidnapped by anyone again.
She gathered healing magic in her palm and clenched her fingers around it. The power fluctuated, kicking her already pounding heart into overdrive, but she managed to wrestle it under control. She’d rarely used her abilities since energy had returned to Earth, and the amount of available power made holding onto magic now a real challenge.
Gods, I hope I can arrange that training.
“Excuse me,” the man said.
Maddy stopped as far away as she could without being outright rude. “You’ll want to head back to the main road. There’s not much to see on this side street.”
His frown deepened, though whether it was at her sharp, unfriendly tone or something else, she didn’t know. “I’m not a tourist looking for the shops. You’re Maddy, right?”
“Like I’m telling some rando in an alley.” She tightened her hold on the energy in her hand before anxiety could shred her control. “You have a few seconds to explain what you want and go. Honestly, I don’t even owe you that.”
“Damn, that’s harsh,” the guy muttered. “But I guess it’s deserved since I haven’t introduced myself. My name’s Anthony, and I promise I’m not here to cause you trouble. I might look—”
“You look fine, but that magic around you isn’t exactly reassuring.”
His mouth dropped open. “You’re worried about my protection shield? Seriously? You got one, too. Might as well’ve grabbed your purse and rushed on by.”
Maddy’s skin heated. Dammit, she was overreacting, and not for the reason he thought. Nothing about the guy was threatening beyond the evidence that he possessed magic. His energy signature was as calm and easy as the breeze trying to waft in from the river, and he didn’t have the vibe of any of the dangerous fae who sometimes came into the shop. It was this stupid back street, so close to where Kien’s men had snatched her into their car at knifepoint.
“Sorry,” Maddy said, still cautious but no longer afraid. “Last time someone approached me out here, it didn’t go well.”
Anthony grimaced. “Shit. Sounds like I’m the one who should be sorry. I know how those kinds of memories can be.”
Though her curiosity stirred at the shadows that entered his eyes, Maddy didn’t ask. She had enough of her own problems without delving into a stranger’s. “So why are you out here looking for me?”
“I need help with a problem, and a couple of white guys directed me your way. They gave me a code. Something about clothing.” His brow furrowed for a moment before he snapped his fingers. “Clothing is magic. As am I.”
Maddy let her magic disperse—but not fully. “You’re supposed to go into the shop.”
“I did, but the woman inside said you weren’t there.” Anthony shrugged. “I was told to talk to you. I didn’t mean to scare you, but I was heading back to the parking lot when I saw you. You matched the description I was given, so I thought I’d take a chance.”
Her nervousness eased, but the knot in her stomach didn’t fade. That had nothing to do with the handsome man staring at her expectantly. “I have an appointment in…” Maddy checked her watch. “Ten minutes. If you can wait a while, we can talk, but you’ll have to come back later if you’re in a hurry.”
He smiled. “I’ve got an hour, so sounds good if your meeting won’t be too long.”
“Shouldn’t be.” Maddy gestured toward the alley. “Let’s head up to the front.”
Thankfully, Anthony didn’t seem to mind. The back entrance might be closer, but she wasn’t letting anyone but employees or really good friends through that way. In fact, she would rather strangers not realize there was another entrance. Maybe she should change where she parked and avoid the other door entirely for a while.
The kidnapping had made her far too jumpy. It wasn’t unreasonable to be cautious when walking alone in the city, but she wasn’t usually rude without cause. The man could have been a fae tourist for all she knew. It was more common than most humans realized.
Anthony held the shop door open, and she entered with a grateful smile. Maddy waved at Tamara, who was ringing up a customer at the counter, and headed straight for the back corner. This time, she opened the door marked Staff Only and gestured for Anthony to precede her. If he sensed the shielding and refused to go in, that would tell its own story.
But although he appeared a touch uneasy—understandable—he entered the small break room without comment. There wasn’t much in here, just a table, chairs, a tiny cabinet with a microwave, and another door leading to the stockroom. The true importance of the place only became obvious when she closed the door behind her and the shielding locked fully into place.
The protections here had been designed by her friend Cora, who had owned The Magic Touch before moving to Moranaia with Prince Ralan. The shields were clever, for although they mostly seemed to prevent anyone outside the room from scrying or overhearing by mundane means, they could also be used to barricade a dangerous or threatening fae inside. With enough power, the protections would keep anyone in or out. If she was going to trust an unknown fae man alone in her shop while she made the most important mirror call of her life, he would have to stay in this room. It might have been different if Jase were here, but Tamara had too little training to be put in charge of keeping them safe.
Anthony pivoted, his eyes going wide as his magic connected with the shields. “Maybe I should be the one worried.”
Despite the nerves winding tighter at the thought of the mirror call, Maddy summoned her most reassuring smile. “The magic keeps us safe and ensures that our conversation is private. You knew the secret code. Don’t you know what we do here?”
“You help newly arrived fae get what they need to blend into the human world.”
Maddy nodded. “And as you might imagine, that involves some potentially dangerous fae. That’s the reason for the shielding. But the well-intentioned never seem to mind.”
He gave a quick grin. “Gotta say, I didn’t think a clothing store could get so dangerous.”
“There’s more to blending in than clothes.” Maddy skimmed her gaze along his perfectly modern T-shirt and jeans. “Which is something you don’t seem to need.”
He shrugged. “No weird-ass robes for me. I was born here.”
“Then why—” Cheerful but insistent ringing sounded from her pocket, and she tugged her phone free to turn off the alarm. “I have to go. I promise I’ll be back in a few minutes. On my honor as a Seelie Sidhe, you aren’t in any danger in our safe room. Just give me ten or twenty minutes, and we can talk.”
After a thankfully brief study, Anthony nodded. “I’ll wait right here.”
> Maddy didn’t have time to give him more reassurances. She exited into the main part of the shop so she could swing by the counter. The bell at the front jingled as their only customer carried her purchase out the door, and Tamara shot Maddy a nervous smile. Difficult to believe that such a sweet woman had been hurling deadly spells off the Market Street Bridge only a couple of weeks ago.
Crazy what fear would do.
Pausing at the end of the counter, Maddy leaned close. “If my new friend Anthony tries to leave, let him. I don’t have the shielding fully engaged. But stay out here, and don’t let anyone in that room. Even though he knew the passphrase, I have no idea if he’s trustworthy.”
Tamara gripped the edge of the counter. “You’re leaving me alone with him?”
“My meeting, remember? I’ll still be in the shop.” Maddy patted Tamara’s arm. “If you have to come into the stockroom, that’s fine, but try to keep people from seeing inside it. I have my mirror angled where no one should spot anything, but you never know. And if there’s any hint of danger, don’t hesitate to interrupt. I’ll adjust the shielding on the storage room.”
“Ah…sure.”
Maddy peered at the phone still in her hand and grimaced. “Gotta go.”
She was late. One of the most important meetings of her life, and she was late.
Anna tried her best not to stare out the window instead of rolling silverware into napkins, but it was a battle hard won. Tuck. Fold. Wrap. Glance through the glass at the river flowing a few yards beyond the restaurant. Tuck. Fold. Wrap. Glance again. The pull was maddening, and it was only getting stronger.
How long would she be able to keep this up? She’d talked to Maddy about her newfound affinity for water after magic had returned to Earth, but she hadn’t gone into as much detail as she could have. It was controllable, after all. Why worry Maddy about something that Anna could handle, especially since Maddy was finally close to getting the training she dearly needed?
Ascent Page 2
