by Mark C. Wade
Alex prayed it would end soon.
He decided to ignore it and started to look for Dan.
Chapter 6
No reply to the text messages.
It was like everyone involved in finding and capturing the elf had disappeared, including Dan. Alex jogged around the town to the most obvious places: the Mug Shot Café, the Knightcap, and the Town Hall.
Alex even went back to check on the woman who’d been terrorized by the elf earlier. She wasn’t home. It was creepy, and he started to wonder if the elf was taking people hostage somewhere.
After a time, Alex couldn’t take it anymore. He needed a place to think, and so he headed off to his apartment.
Even though he’d essentially moved in to Dan’s rustic log cabin in the woods, they’d decided to keep his apartment until the end of the lease.
It had proven useful more than a few times in the harsh Connecticut winter. One night, Alex had to work late at the diner, and a mere hour’s worth of snow had essentially trapped him there. His apartment was walking distance to the diner, and so he’d spent the night there.
Now, he knew it was a way he could get out of the chaos to figure out what to do.
Since he was the only one in town that could actually open hovels and do magic, the pressure to figure this out was weighing down on Alex. He already felt the knots tightening in his shoulders.
Alex fiddled with the tricky lock. It always seized up in the cold weather. He finally managed to jam the key in, and the door creaked open before he could turn the handle.
Alex jumped back and said, “Holy shit!”
Dan asked, “What?” He looked around like they were being robbed.
Alex said, “I just didn’t expect anyone to be at the door.”
“Yeah. I heard you fiddling with it, so I came to let you in.”
“What are you doing here, and why aren’t you answering my texts?”
Dan said, “Same thing as you, probably. I just needed to get away from all of that for a moment.”
Dan pulled the bulky phone out of his back pocket and turned it on. The start screen flashed across it as the apps loaded.
Dan tapped his foot impatiently. He was the only person Alex knew of that still thought electronic devices should be turned off when not in use. He always mumbled something about saving the battery.
Dan said, “Oh, yeah. There they are.”
He started to type a reply to one of them.
Alex laughed. “I’m right here. You don’t have to do that now.”
Alex had never believed the people who said you became more and more like the person you live with. But they had started in such different places, and now they were sneaking off to the same hideout without even discussing it first.
Dan said, “Now get in here before someone notices and steals you away from me.”
They locked themselves in the apartment.
Alex removed his coat and was glad that Dan had gotten there earlier to turn up the heat.
The place depressed Alex. The walls were plain white, because his landlord hadn’t let him paint them. He’d also taken all the decorations down when he moved to Dan’s house.
Their home—he had to remember to use those words, since Dan always reminded him to not call it “Dan’s house.”
The rest of the place was empty except a bed. It reminded Alex of those high-class prisons or a psych ward.
Still, the thought of losing the place next month, when the lease ended, saddened Alex. It was his first and only place he’d had to himself. There was something special about that, and it felt weird to think he’d never see it again.
Life was strange like that: always changing, never repeating.
Alex grabbed Dan’s hand for comfort, and they made their way to the bed. It was the only place to sit.
Dan said, “You look ill. Is there anything I can do?”
“I’m just tense.”
Dan shifted around behind Alex and straddled his body. Dan put his hands on Alex’s shoulders and worked into the muscles. His thumbs were so strong as they prodded in just the right ways.
Dan said, “Oh, yeah. You’re really tight up here.”
Alex relaxed into the massage, and Dan slid closer. His cock shifted against Alex’s lower back.
Alex liked feeling how rock hard this made Dan. The earlier foreplay never amounting to anything probably made it all the worse.
Dan slid with a subtle motion against Alex in conjunctions with the massage. As Alex’s tightness dissipated, those fingers turned erotic.
Alex wanted to hold back and let it torment Dan for as long as possible, but he couldn’t do it anymore. An agonizing pressure had built up too much inside of his balls. He needed Dan, and he needed him now.
Alex shifted around and was on top of Dan before he knew what had happened. They kissed, and Dan’s forceful lips tore Alex’s mouth open.
His tongue pressed into Alex’s mouth. Dan’s graying stubble rubbed along Alex’s smooth face, driving him even more wild with desire. It was just the right amount of masculinity.
Dan sensed that Alex wanted to be taken hard by a virulent man, and his robust body flipped on top of Alex.
Alex had grown to love the way Dan’s larger stomach pressed against him during sex. The incessant skin contact heightened the pleasure.
There was no interrupting them this time. Dan took full control, and the squeaky bed left nothing to the imagination for the neighbors as Dan pounded Alex into oblivion.
That, and the way Dan made Alex squeal in ecstasy as he shot his load.
They fell onto each other, sweaty from the workout. Now Alex thought Dan had turned the heat up a bit too much.
It was the perfect interlude to the horrifying events of the day.
They’d get through it. The town always did. Alex trusted the system or Merlin’s magic or whatever it was that never let anything get too bad.
The tension built in Alex’s muscles again as his thoughts took over. Maybe he was the system and the magic this time, and if he didn’t fix it, no one would.
Alex shifted into Dan’s embrace and looked to those kind eyes for comfort.
Alex asked, “It’s going to be okay, isn’t it?”
Dan said, “Yes. We’ll figure it out. It’s not that bad. What’s the worst-case scenario? Everyone in town gets a prank gift. There are ways this could have been worse.”
“Thanks. You warned us, and we didn’t listen. Although, we don’t know for sure that none of the gifts will be dangerous.”
Dan said, “I think David is far more dangerous than a Christmas elf.”
Alex wanted to laugh as if it were a joke, but it was true.
They snuggled a bit more as Alex thought of options. An idea came to him, but it seemed too obvious to work.
Alex looked back at Dan’s eyes. They brought him the strength to go ahead with it.
Alex asked, “What do you think about this?”
He described the plan to Dan.
Dan nodded along, and when it was over, he said, “It might work, but we’ll need to notify the town somehow.”
Alex said, “There’s a mailing list.”
Dan laughed. “Somehow, I don’t think people will get the message.”
They both said together, “David.”
At least they could make him useful for something.
Alex did not want to encourage David to use the emergency system any more than he already was, but they didn’t have much of a choice.
Chapter 7
The little elf peered out from around the corner. He watched the kids enjoying the puppet show and took a few hops closer. His head cocked sideways when he stopped, and then he inched his way to the back of the crowd.
The elf settled down onto his butt, and Alex noticed a few of the nearby people grow uncomfortable at the presence of the strange creature.
But he was so cute.
They had set up the puppet show from the beginning and announced it to t
he town. The most important factor seemed to be to get a bunch of people in one place. They hoped that would attract the elf.
The plan had been to capture him once he showed up, but now Alex wasn’t so sure.
He made a motion to the rest of the crew to continue the play.
Alex focused back on the task and moved Rudolph forward a few steps. Dan read his lines, and Alex heard the wavery nerves in his voice.
The elf scooted forward and watched intently. The show went on, and everyone fell back into their roles.
The elf even made his strange laughing noises in the right parts.
Alex relaxed. This was it. It all made so much sense. The elf was just a little kid. All he wanted to do was watch the show and have fun. He wanted to eat too much sugar and bounce off the walls. When he got bored, he started to act out and play pranks to get attention.
He’d come through the hovel to watch the play. That was what he truly desired, as Old Joe had put it. Faeries always came through for a purpose.
Now that he’d get to see the end, he would go back.
Or so Alex hoped. If this didn’t work, they’d have to cram him back through against his will.
The final scene of the puppet show arrived, and there hadn’t been any disturbances by David or Yule logs exploding or magical creatures sneaking in.
Alex had a lot of pride in pulling off the show, and the sound of the audience’s clapping almost made him forget about the elf.
But then the room went silent, and everyone turned to look at the elf as he stood.
The bells on his shoes gave little chimes as the elf hopped up to the front of the room. The town collectively held its breath as they watched.
The elf stopped at the hovel and stared in. Then he turned around.
Alex gasped. He wasn’t going to leave.
But the little guy waved to everyone and then backflipped in.
To the rest of the town, it would have looked like he disappeared, because people untrained in the use of magic wouldn’t be able to see the doorway to the other realm.
Alex knew the truth, and he quickly shut it before any other craziness ensued.
Then, as if on cue, a hauntingly beautiful song began to play. Night had fallen on Merlin’s Grove, and the crowd moved to the window to see what was happening.
The Merlin’s Grove brass band had set up in the Town Square to play carols. It was freezing, but many people migrated outside to hear better.
Dan wrapped his arms around Alex as they watched through the frosted window. Rudy was out there playing with the band, and Alex smiled in recognition.
As the carols finished, Dan said, “How about we retire home now before more stuff starts up?”
“That sounds nice.”
~ ~ ~
Alex settled into Dan’s arms. Their cozy home in the woods provided the perfect respite from the craziness.
It was Christmas Eve, and somehow all of Merlin’s Grove had survived. Alex could have fallen asleep in those arms if left like that for long enough, but he knew from experience that he’d wake in an hour with the worst cramped neck.
He shifted to watch Dan’s face.
Dan pulled something out of the drawer in the end table by the couch. He handed the red and white striped box to Alex.
Alex said, “But it’s Christmas Eve. Aren’t we supposed to exchange gifts tomorrow?”
Dan said, “I figure you might need it before then with how things have been going.”
That intrigued Alex.
Alex said, “Okay. Wait here. It’s only fair that I give you yours now, too.”
He ran into the bedroom where he’d hidden it and came back out. They both were probably thinking the same thing, even though neither said it.
The two gifts were about the same size with the same wrapping paper. They were even beginning to give gifts alike. Alex wondered if they’d turn into the couple that finished each other’s sentences soon.
Thoughts like that used to scare Alex, but now he looked forward to it.
Alex handed it to Dan and slowly unwrapped his gift. The box was long, and he had absolutely no idea what it could be.
Dan shifted. “I’m glad I can still surprise you.”
Alex opened the box to find a long wooden baton.
Alex held it. It was heavier than he expected. It had intricate rune carvings inscribed along it. Someone had obviously put a great deal of effort into making it, but Alex was still confused.
He held it up and asked, “Is it for conducting an orchestra?”
Dan laughed. “No. It’s a magic wand!”
Alex laughed with him. “Oh. You know that’s not how it works, right?”
“Yeah, I know. Hear me out. I did a lot of research for this. So, according to legend, Merlin is buried in Brocéilande, an enchanted forest. It’s thought that this is Paimpont Forest in France.
“So, this wand is made from wood from that forest. Then I had this Welsh inscription put on it since Merlin is from Wales. I’m not sure there’s an exact translation, but it says something like: selfless hero.
“You’re always putting yourself in harm's way to save others just like you saved me. Plus, I figured the town is always doing plays and reenactments and rituals. You’ll probably find a practical use for it.”
Alex leaned in and kissed Dan. “It’s perfect. I can’t believe you did all that. It must have cost a fortune.”
“It was nothing.”
Dan started to unwrap his own present with excitement in his eyes. Alex was nervous about how silly it was compared to what he’d just gotten.
Dan looked at the box and opened it. On a bed of cotton rested an elegant black fountain pen.
Dan’s face lit up.
Dan asked, “Is this what I think it is?”
“What do you think it is?”
“A Lamy Safari fountain pen?”
Alex laughed. How anyone could know that by looking at it baffled him.
Alex said, “Yes. I figured you’re always jotting away in your secret journal. You may as well have a fancy pen to do it with.”
Dan said, “It’s perfect. Now get over here.”
Alex slid onto Dan’s body.
It would be a good Christmas indeed.
Do you love mm romance with paranormal or fantasy elements?
Sign up for the Mark C. Wade newsletter to be notified of new releases.
SUBSCRIBE HERE or at MarkCWade.com.
Contact the Author
Twitter
Facebook
Amazon
Website
Goodreads
Blog
Also by Mark C. Wade
Stand in Need of Comfort
Uniform Fantasies
Granite Peak Holiday
The Glyphaery:
Prince Elashor (Book 1)
Irish Dream Hunks:
The Harp of Dunnbog (Book 1)
The Kelpie of Glansagart (Book 2)
The Staff of Dagda (Book 3)
Box Set: Books 1-3
Merlin’s Grove Series:
The Overlook (Book 1)
The Track Coach (Book 2)
The Enchanted Triangle (Book 3)
Box Set: Books 1-3
About the Author
Mark has always been the oddball. He openly read romance novels in high school, and somehow never got mocked for it. His parents once told him to go to more parties, because all that reading couldn't be healthy for his social life.
Well, they were right. But he still found his HEA with his husband and Old English Sheepdog. They like to go on long walks in the Connecticut countryside or just hang out by the pond with a glass of wine.
Now he has his dream job, and he couldn't be happier to bring all of you the strange fantasies floating in his head.
For more information, visit:
www.MarkCWade.com
Companion Story
