“You can take your offer and shove it. You spied on me, you letch,” I snapped, yanking on my boots. I could hear the rustle of his clothes as he got dressed. “It’s rude and an invasion of my privacy. The worst part is you don’t feel an ounce of guilt.”
“How am I invading your privacy when you are mine and I’m yours? We should be comfortable naked around each other. I know I am, and I love your eyes on me. Like last night.”
He didn’t even fight fair, the annoying pirate. I couldn’t stay mad at him when he said things like that. I grabbed the bandages and wrapped the first one around my right hand.
“You are wrong on so many levels, Storm. Just annoying and wrong.”
“Can I say something else in my defense?” he asked.
“There’s nothing you can say to make this okay.” I started on my left hand.
“You’ve been plotting to leave me, lass. Even after our talk, you were planning to go to the cliffs and check out Port Vaarda. I had to make sure you didn’t jump off. There’s nothing below those cliffs but water and sharp rocks.”
“I was not thinking of jumping or sneaking off, you big oaf. I just want to see the port out of curiosity.” I wrapped my pearls and gems in my outer skirt, made sure they were secure, and started through the trees. Storm was still pulling on a boot.
“Wait, lass.”
I ignored him and kept going. When I heard curses, I glanced back and saw him hopping on one foot while pulling on a boot. He looked ridiculous. Funny, really. Laughing, I took off through the trees, cursing the stupid stallion for taking off and leaving me behind.
“Stop! Lexi!”
I kept running. He came from behind and scooped me up.
“Put me down, you Neanderthal.”
“Did you forget something?”
“No. The damn stallion deserted me,” I grumbled.
“I’m not talking about the stallion. You forgot the traps. You see the leaves you were about to step on? That’s a trap. And behind us, you barely missed one.”
Yikes. I wound my arm around his neck, while still gripping my pearls, and wrapped myself around him. “This is your fault, you know. If you hadn’t spied on me, I would not have taken off like that.” I studied the grounds and shuddered. “I could have gotten hurt.”
An emotion crossed his features so fast I couldn’t identify it. “Not hurt, lass. Just dangling on that branch with your skirts over your head and your sexy satin bloomers exposed, or fallen inside a water hole too shallow for you to get hurt but deep enough that you couldn’t get out until I came for you.” He studied my face, a tiny smile on his lips. “Have I told you how much I love your eyes, mon stór? They lighten when you are angry, and darken when you’re aroused or scared, like now. No matter the shade, they are unforgettable.” He was laying it on thick, accent and all. “I don’t like seeing you scared, but I enjoy rescuing you from your follies.”
“That backhanded compliment is not helping your case, mister,” I said, but my voice lacked heat. He loved my eyes.
“I can’t apologize when I’m not sorry. I plan to spend the rest of my life watching you dress and undress. You are very graceful. I’m clumsy and likely to rip off my clothes in my eagerness to get naked, but I hope you’ll enjoy watching me.”
I would. No, I did. “You say the craziest things.”
“Close your eyes.”
Lulled by his words and sexy voice, I did, but when wind rushed across my face and limbs, I peeked. We were headed up the hill to the northern cliffs. He ran fast, not like the Flash, but like a sprinter, and carrying me didn’t seem to bother him. Trees gave way to shrubs, then just slabs of rocks. He knew the terrain well because he used the lower ridges and flew across a rickety bridge over a river without slowing down. From its direction, it fed the waterfalls.
Storm wasn’t even breathing hard when we reached the top. It was rocky with very little vegetation. He lowered me to the ground.
“You see that outcrop?” He pointed ahead. “If you lean over it just a little bit, you’ll see the port.”
Excited, I picked my way to the rock, but all I saw was the ocean.
“Well?” Storm asked, coming behind me. “Was it worth it?”
“I can’t see anything,” I griped.
He gripped my waist and lifted me onto the rock. The top sloped a bit, and I could see the edge of the cliff. One misstep, and I’d be fish bait—or dragon food. I swallowed.
“You’re safe, she’lahn. I’m not letting you go. Lie on your stomach and look to the left.”
I did as he instructed. Two ships were visible now. From the looks of it, they were anchored off the port. I couldn’t see the beach or the buildings.
“Can we visit it?”
“Maybe. It’s full of miscreants and busty wenches,” he said. He was laughing at me.
“That’s how all pirate ports are depicted in books and movies.”
“And they’re right, up to a point. Most ports around this area are packed with swordsmen, shieldmaidens, tavern wenches, traders, and spies from Hy’Brasil and Atlantis. Sometimes it’s hard to tell them apart, except for the wenches.”
“How?” I dragged my attention from the ships to him. He watched me under heavy eyelids.
“They dress very provocatively and try to empty swordsmen’s pockets in the name of love.”
The green-eyed monster rose and blindsided me. I didn’t like the feeling. I didn’t own him, so if he wanted to ogle some wench’s cleavage, he was welcome to do so. I glanced down at mine. Pitiful.
“Have you seen enough?” he asked.
Two ships that looked like ants from the ridge were hardly worth bragging about. “Yes. You sure we can’t go?”
“I need to check on the ships. Deck could be in serious trouble.”
I was disappointed, but his brother came first. “Do islanders work at the port?”
“Quite a few, including Tuh’rens who’re not mated. They’re all under Gemma’s supervision. She runs our offices there and represents the island if anyone wants to talk to me.”
“About what?”
“Trade. We buy and trade goods. Gemma also runs the largest tavern. The lasses and lads, who work under her, stay in boarding houses. Some of our people run smaller stores and other boarding houses.”
“Do they come to visit relatives and friends in the village?”
“Yes. We usually pick them up on the ships.” He laced our hands, and we started walking back.
“So the ships are the only way in and out of the island?”
“No. We also have underground tunnels, a crazy maze that’s impossible to navigate unless you are an islander. They are under the control of the elders and can only be used during emergencies. Want me to get you home fast?”
“Not yet.” I studied the scenery. On one side was the ocean and on the other, the entire island. “It’s beautiful up here. The island is like a crucible.”
“It is a crater of an extinct volcanic mountain,” he explained. “You see the tower to our left?”
I couldn’t see it, so Storm stood behind me, pressed his cheek against mine, and turned my head and pointed. I leaned against him, not wanting to move. There was a thick forest and mountains around the tower, but it blended nicely with the mountain.
“An elder lives there.” He pointed out one closer to Tuatha Dam, and a slightly larger one by the eastern side of the island. “That’s Deck’s.”
We walked for about an hour before I started to sweat. The layered clothes were often cool, but they were not designed for long walks in the sun. When Storm offered to get me home faster, I didn’t complain. The breeze as he ran was welcomed. He went through a lane in the sugar cane fields and didn’t stop until we reached where the trees began.
“How can you move so fast?”
“I was born and raised in water. Once you can move in water, air offers very little resistance.”
Born and raised in water, Delia had explained when talking about the
children. What had Storm said when I first arrived here? Something about Tuh’rens calling them monsters from the sea and using them to scare their children. I didn’t know any magical water people, except mermaids and fairies.
“Are you mer-people?” His eyebrows shot up, and I felt stupid. Of course, they were not. They had legs while mer-people had fins. “Never mind.”
“Mer-people are cold and calculating, lass.” He shuddered.
Now he was humoring me. “I said never mind.”
He sighed. “How else are you going to learn about us if you can’t open your mind to the impossible? I tell you things, and you dismiss them. You ask questions but don’t like my answers. This is why we need to talk.”
“Where does this path lead?”
Storm threaded our fingers. “Why are you changing the subject?”
“It’s safer, or I’ll start believing your crazy talk.”
“Tonight, you and I have a date, lass. I will make you a believer of my crazy talk before I leave. There’s so much for you to learn.”
We left the woods and headed to the back entrance of the castle wall. We entered the outer bailey and passed the penned animals and birds. Instead of the main back door to the castle, he led me toward a cobbled area with rope lines and several women stirring and beating things in wooden barrels with paddles. Water in copper containers dangled over two outdoor fireplaces. I must have missed it during my tour of the castle.
Storm introduced them, rattling off names. Then he asked them about their families. I didn’t catch any of their names or their children’s because I was busy watching one of them reach inside a barrel and pull out laundry with a paddle. They carried the dripping pants and hung them up on ropes.
“Do you know everyone on the island?” I asked Storm when we entered the hallway.
“Aye. Their names, their mates and children, where they live. Has Delia shown you around the castle yet?”
“No, but I gave myself a tour.” I glanced at the laundresses. “I didn’t even know that’s how they do laundry. You know, beat the crap out of them.”
He chuckled and explained about the clothes and the vats—the barrels the women used. “The Great Hall is the home of the unmated crew. They are fed, their rooms cleaned, and their laundry taken care of until they are mated. In return, they serve on the ships and defend the island and its people. Once mated, they get a parcel of land and we build them a house. Most continue to sail, but a few here and there choose to stop and focus on a craft, making things we need for the ships, homes, and the port. Farming. Processing foods and ale. Some hunt for pearls, which we use to buy goods we can’t trade. There’s enough to do around the island, not just sailing or being a guard.”
We passed the kitchen entrance and heard Gráinne issuing instructions like a drill sergeant. “I swear she’s like you. She sees and knows everything that goes on around the island. She knew we raided her kitchen.”
“No one is like me, she’lahn.” He said it without bragging, and he was right. There did seem to be something very special about him. Unfortunately, he was also full of himself.
Delia caught up with us before we reached the stairs. She wanted to know whether we’d want lunch for one or two. Storm said he would eat with his crew and took off. I ate lunch with Delia at her place.
During our rounds, Delia and I walked straight ahead once we crossed the main bridge, then made a left turn. Two of the women we visited had just given birth while the third one was close. Their mates were crewmen on Captain Deck’s ship.
When we finished with the last one, Delia led the way across a bridge I’d passed on my way to the dam. My mouth watered at the scent of ripe fruit. The orchard extended to our left and right, and ahead was a beautiful stone house with a porch. It was much bigger than the houses in the village. There were apples, papayas, mangoes, and bananas. The grapes were in the back, Delia explained.
A ripped, shirtless guy in black pants and scruffy boots came around the house, saw us, and gave us a slow smile full of mischief. His wavy light brown hair was cut short, a rarity among the islanders, and bristles covered his jawline and dimpled chin. My favorite black stallion followed him. I hadn’t seen him since this morning.
“What brings you to my farm, muh’Delia?” he asked, but his eyes were trained on me.
“Fruit, and you’ve missed a few meetings, Ryun,” Delia said.
“So he tells me.”
I had a feeling he meant Storm.
“You can’t keep doing that, lad.”
The smile on his lips said he would. He gave Delia a hug while the stallion nudged me with his head as though he needed a hug, too.
“Thanks a bunch for abandoning me earlier,” I whispered absentmindedly and rubbed his muzzle and neck. Not satisfied with that, the stallion extended his neck and rested his head against my shoulder.
“I’m serious, you naughty lad,” Delia was saying. “Sailor or not, you are a member of the council.”
“Then I quit.” Spring green eyes with a devilish glint volleyed between my face and the stallion. “Storm’s violet-eyed lass. You are even more breathtaking up close than from afar.”
“You could have met her properly had you been at the meeting a few days ago or come out to the pier after the raid.”
“And listen to them talk about their adventures?” He shuddered. “I don’t think so.” He took my hand and lifted it to his lips. “Captain Blackwell, but you can call me Ryun.”
“Alexandria Greendale, but you can call me Lexi.”
“Lexi,” he whispered against my knuckles, and I had a sudden urge to giggle. “You are the reason I miss the sea, she’lahn. I don’t get to be the first to meet the pretty girls anymore. Instead, I get leftovers. How am I going to find a mate this way?”
He glared at the stallion and tucked my hand in his. He smelled of earth and ripe fruit, and I loved fruit, but Storm’s scent was more potent. I realized Ryun was talking and forced myself to stop daydreaming about Storm.
“Leave her with me for the rest of the day, Delia, and take him with you. You know how I get lonesome up here on the farm.”
“And whose fault is that? Attend meetings, or move back to the Great Hall. Your rooms are waiting for you.”
“Meetings are boring.” The stallion bumped him, and Ryun elbowed him back. “Cut it out, bonehead. I’ll attend one when I know I’m heading out to sea.”
Delia sighed. “You two should talk about it. We’re here to pick up some fruit for the children and the widows.”
“We grieve with them,” Ryun said. “I’ll pick the finest fruit my orchard offers after we have something to drink. I insist.” He glanced down at me and winked. “I have the finest wine on the island.”
“She’d like some fruit, too.”
Ryun cocked an eyebrow. “Are you planning on making home brew, lass?”
“No. I plan on eating them.” The look on his face was comical. Obviously, fresh fruit was not part of his diet.
“Then you shall have the best, too.” His eyes went to the stallion. He was following us with his ears flattened. Not a good sign. “Go find something else to do, pal, while I get to know the lass.”
The stallion’s ears quivered. I let go of Ryun’s hand and walked back to stroke the horse’s neck and stomach. The ears changed direction.
“You like horses?” Ryun asked, watching us.
“Love them. I used to be a nanny to this little girl whose family owned a few. I’d ride with her. This one is pretty friendly and beautiful.” The stallion nickered as though pleased by the compliment, and Delia laughed.
“Don’t compliment him,” Ryun said. “He already has a big ego.”
“So he should. Look at his mane. It’s glossy. And his fur is silky. He’s pretty smart, too.” There were weird bumps on his back. “Is he yours? Was he hurt? I can feel deep grooves on his back.”
“No, he’s not mine. As for the ridges on his back, he’s a rare stallion with wings. Or he used
to have them until an evil man chopped them off.” He went nose-to-nose with the stallion. “Now he’s the bane of my existence. Doesn’t know when he’s being a pest.” He stared into the stallion’s eye. “Go away.”
Ryun’s hotness just dropped a notch. I never liked people who were mean to animals. And someone had hurt this poor stallion. Wait a second. Chopped off his wings? Storm had told me the same thing about his scars. Did people on this island make up stories for shits and giggles? Horses didn’t have wings, unless they were the offspring of a Pegasus. And humans didn’t have wings either, unless they were fairies. Storm had said Tuh’rens had considered them monsters and trapped them. I didn’t know anything about fairies.
Ryun took my arm again and escorted me up the steps to a cushioned wicker chair. Barrels piled on top of each other took up one end of the porch. Empty tumblers by several chairs said he’d had company.
“I heard about your little adventure with a handsome palomino stallion. He’s usually friendly and is an easy ride with simple needs.”
“He saved me from going into the forest, so I owe him.”
“A good belly rub should be enough thank you,” Ryun said.
Delia chuckled while the black stallion made that weird snort I now associated with annoyance.
“I’m hoping to get a brush from the brush maker. I could give him a nice rub down, too. Is he yours?”
“You could say that.”
“I think I saw him with the black stallion the night I arrived. They were spooked by lightning and took off toward the forest.”
Ryun laughed. “They weren’t spooked. They roll with thunder and run with the wind.”
I frowned. “I thought horses hated thunder and lightning.”
“Not these ones. They love it. Some say they might even be responsible,” he added mysteriously.
“That’s enough,” Delia ordered and slapped the black stallion’s rump. “Go.” The horse moved back while she fixed Ryun with a glare. “Behave or I’ll never bring Lexi to visit you again.”
“What did I do? I think the lass should know a thing or two about the islanders. These amazing, magical horses are available if she ever needs to ride one. You heard her.”
[Phantom Islanders 02.0] Storm Revealed Page 4
