What Do You Say to a Naked Elf?

by Cheryl Sterling

  “Give her a day or two to rest and assure herself of her mother’s better health,” Bryant advised. “Then ask. I know I’ve been absent from her life, but for what it’s worth, you have my blessing.”

  Though it killed him, Charlie stayed away from Jane the next day, and the one following, until he heard that Marion had regained consciousness and rested well.

  Hugh brought other news, relayed from Calme to Muttle. Mara and many women in the village were pregnant, having conceived on Midsummer’s Eve. A thought struck Charlie, squashed in with other realities—his waiting kingdom, the crush of his feelings, the force and power of their lovemaking that night. Could Jane be pregnant as well? He left in search of her.

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Jane.

  Charlie’s voice resonated through her mind. He hadn’t spoken to her telepathically since her rescue.

  Charlie? she asked, tentative in her response. I’m in the solarium.

  Temporarily banished from her mother’s side—for her own good, Bryant said—Jane explored Kerreleigh’s halls. That morning she’d found the solarium, jutting out from the fourth level on the south side. One flawless pane of glass enclosed it from the elements. The floor consisted of colored stones laid in an intricate knotted pattern. Comfortable benches huddled under vast sprays of foliage. Butterflies flitted past.

  Jane sat on one of the benches and waited for Charlie. In truth, she’d avoided him the past three days. Fatigue and worry for her mother took most of her time. She’d used those excuses to delay making any decisions about the future.

  And here it is, staring you in the face. She closed her eyes, her hand drifting to lie in a protective gesture over her womb. She could no longer deny the truth. Her loss of appetite, the queasiness she experienced that couldn’t be attributed to the smell of Capp’ear’s unwashed body or a vacuum-packed meal: it all pointed to an unexpected pregnancy.

  She carried a child. Not from the time she and Charlie made love in the glade, but from Midsummer’s Eve, when he’d taken her against the door. And fainted. Jane was convinced that his fainting had not been an accident. Most likely, he’d spent all his energy on releasing the winning sperm.

  A child of destiny, contrived by Lowth to exist. How else could she explain all that had happened? The whispered call of “Anjinaine” in the courtyard during her trial? The coincidence of Tivat in front of her car, with Charlie and the others close behind to whisk her away? A planet’s strategy to return her to the land of her conception? She lay at the heart of a master plan. She’d survive whatever trials came in the future, because, she now knew, you didn’t mess around with Lowth.

  How do I tell you, Charlie? You are part of this, too, though I don’t know how.

  She felt his presence before he spoke, and she opened her eyes.

  “Hi,” he said, his voice unsteady. Fatigue showed in the lines around his latte-colored eyes.

  “Hi, yourself.” Jane moved her hand from its traitorous position and patted the bench next to her. “Sit down.”

  He remained standing, keeping a distance from her. She sensed his awkwardness. Obviously, he had something on his mind. The end of their relationship now that she was no longer accused of murder? The thought stabbed at her more painfully than Capp’ear’s knife had.

  “Mom is better,” she said, filling the silence. “The doctors expect her to make a full recovery. She should be able to travel within a week.” There’s your opening.

  Ignoring it, he walked to the window. His hand pressed against its smoothness, his back to her, he said, “There are things we need to discuss, Jane.”

  Coming up behind him, she stopped a foot away, aching to reach out and touch the corded muscles in his neck, bunched from tension. His exposed wings lay against his back, tightly closed. The entrance of two fairies into the room prompted her to ask, “Should we go for a walk?”

  He turned and nodded, agony on the planes of his face. He led her down stairs and through opulent rooms until they reached a door leading to the outside. Silently, they walked along a trail crisscrossed by patches of sunlight. Birch, rowan and pine mingled with the larger iselwood trees. After a mile or so, Jane heard the sound of water to her left. They abandoned the path and descended into a small ravine. A shallow pool lay before them; graduated waterfalls poured through fissures and tumbled over outcroppings of rock to fill it.

  “Charlie, it’s beautiful,” Jane cried in awe.

  “Bryant told me of it. He’s visited here before and thought you might enjoy it.” A sliver of tension fell from him.

  “I do.” She looked around, gauging the distance between trees, at the lack of undergrowth. Memories of another pond in another glade returned. “Are we safe?” she asked.

  Charlie touched her arm in reassurance. “The forest watches over us. At last report, the danger was far to the west. Capp’ear can’t hurt you anymore.”

  The heat from his hand traveled up her arm, suffusing her with warmth and longing. Slowly, they leaned toward each other. Jane parted her lips to speak. Charlie watched her, his expression softer. He raised his hand to outline her mouth with his fingertips. Jane sensed a change in the forest, a gentleness in the air. They heard the music of a distant song.

  Somebody needs to draw this guy a road map, she thought at the delay. Their gazes met. “Charlie,” she whispered.

  “Shhh. Listen. The land sang to us when we came to rescue you.” He drew intricate designs on her forearm with his fingers. “I always hear music around you.” He bent his head and kissed her, his lips brushing hers at first, as if afraid to break the tentative peace. Then he groaned and pulled her nearer, one hand in the small of her back.

  “I’ve missed you.” His breath mingled with hers. “I’m sorry I made you angry.”

  Total body meltdown threatened. She whispered. “It doesn’t matter anymore.”

  “Nothing matters except you and how I feel.”

  He kissed her again. Jane felt her toes curl in response. All coherent thought vanished, a wash of sensations threatening to drown her. When she came up for air, she laid her head against his shoulder and smiled into his dusky brown eyes.

  He brushed a curl off her forehead. “I love you, Jane Drysdale,” he said, his voice breaking.

  Her heart ka-chunked in her chest. “Oh, Charlie.”

  “When this is over—”

  “No, let’s not talk of the future.”

  “Jane,” he protested.

  She placed a hand over his mouth. “It’s not ours to command.” Other forces interfered. “Who knows what tomorrow will bring? Love me for today.”

  Dark emotions shadowed his eyes. With a sigh of resignation, he nodded. His fingers traced along her arms, sending shivers cascading through her body. Heat crackled in her nerve endings. Charlie slid his palms across her breasts. The depth of sensuality she felt staggered her.

  “Perfect,” he breathed. He rolled her nipple between his thumb and forefinger.

  “Too small,” she said in an incoherent gurgle.

  He looked her in the eyes, and a smile tugged at the corners of his mouth. “They’re perfect,” he breathed.

  Jane wanted to lose herself in him. He nuzzled her earlobe, the throb of her pulse at the base of her throat. She reached behind him, fingers grazing the edge of his wing. Charlie groaned. She did it again, stroking this time. A shudder ran over him. He swung her into his arms, then lowered her into the sweet-smelling grasses at the edge of the pool.

  He tasted of clean air and cinnamon. His tongue invaded her mouth, eager, insatiable. They kissed frantically. His fingers tugged her blouse free. The buzz of a nearby insect joined the murmur of rushing water. Jane expected the bees to send out scouts and report on their lovemaking. She imagined them coming back later to glean nectar from the flowers crushed under her and Charlie’s bodies.

  Charlie removed her blouse with a startling finesse. Giving a cry, he lowered his head to her breasts, laving first one tip, then another. She whim
pered with wanting and frustration. His lips trailed down the center of her body, scorching wild kisses on a path from her mouth to her waistband. His fingers dipped below the fabric, then untied the knots and lacing. With a growl, he pulled off her skirt.

  His hand rubbed through the thin fabric of her thong, the one piece of Earth clothing she still retained. He pushed it aside, his fingers seeking her swollen need. Jane cried out at the sheer ecstasy, afraid he’d push her over the edge.

  Two can play this game, she thought, her head light from lack of air. She raised a hand and laid it against his chest, shoving his tunic out of her way, the sprinkle of chest hair rough against her skin. She gripped the frame of his wings with her other hand and traced the raised pattern.

  “By the two moons,” he exclaimed with a shudder.

  “You like?”

  “I’ll show you how much.” Barely touching her, he ran a finger across her bare stomach. Her muscles convulsed. Invisible flames combusted along the path he made.

  “Don’t,” Jane cried, though she wanted more. She pushed away, the cool transparency of the waterfall calling to quench her fire. She slipped the remaining distance to the pond’s edge, but Charlie caught her in a fierce embrace.

  “I love you,” he whispered.

  “Oh, Charlie, I love you.” She wanted to tell him about the baby, but couldn’t bring herself to spoil the moment. Time for truths later, when rationality returned.

  Jane leaned into him until they lost their balance. They fell into the water, performing an aquatic ballet, losing the rest of their clothing between snatched kisses. Charlie lifted her and strode halfway up the waterfalls. He laid her on a stone shelf behind a curtain of water in a hidden cave. The mist felt soft against her skin.

  “Vixen.” He covered her with his body, his erection teasing her with its nearness. His knee nudged her legs apart. She opened for him, eager for them to join.

  Jane smiled in the muted light. “I bet you say that to all the Earthlings.”

  His mouth descended on hers. “Only one. You.”

  All thoughts of home, the baby, and her future flew away under his assault.

  Jane gasped as he entered her. She arched her body and rocked her hips, changing the angle of his thrust. The tune from the waterfall changed, no longer bubbling but beating. Water fell in sheets, the force changing to match their rhythm.

  Charlie drew his length out of her, then plunged in again. She thought she’d die from the sensation. A cry escaped her. Water ebbed and crested around them, a From Here to Eternity wave crash miles from the nearest sea.

  Isleighah joined in their lovemaking, adding an accompaniment to sensation. Music and rhythms surrounded them and swept them away, each wave greater than the last. The light changed. Charlie bent over Jane, his gaze on her face, his eyes dusky, half closed. He feathered a hand across her jaw, and she turned toward him, nibbling at the flesh of his thumb.

  Their bodies surged together, slipping in and out. The water around them rose and fell, the tide synchronized with their movements. A joyous noise engulfed them. Jane cried at the pleasure, her tears mingling to join the stream. Cymbals and drums beat in time, building, stretching toward a crescendo. A simultaneous release broke over them.

  Farewell notes withdrew. The sounds in the cavern returned to the everyday rush of the waterfall. Light diffused to normal. The tide receded from the ledge.

  Charlie lay at her side, his breathing hard and sharp.

  “Did I imagine that?” she asked, her limbs weak. The faintest trace of enchantment shimmered in the air of the cave, like the afterglow of fireworks.

  “It’s the magic of Isleighah,” Charlie said.

  “Wow.” She shook her head, unable to grasp the concept. “Wow. It’s almost as much fun as flying with you.”

  He smiled and touched her face gently. “Maybe next time we can do both.”

  What? Startled, she sat up. “Superman? Do you really mean it? Flying sex?” The logistics boggled her mind. Charlie even considering it boggled her mind.

  “I have fantasies,” he said, pulling her into the crook of his arm. “I’m not any different than any other man.”

  “Yes, you are.” She snuggled deeper. “You’re better.”

  Sated, she drifted toward sleep. Music tinkled far off in the distance.

  “Jane?” Charlie said after long minutes passed.

  “Hmmm?” She wanted to lie quietly, undisturbed.

  “Jane? We need to talk.”

  She rolled onto her back, unmindful of her naked form. “I hate those four words.”

  Once started, he hesitated.

  “Charlie, what is it?” Alarm ran down her spine. She sat up, tucking her legs beneath her.

  “Something happened while you were gone.” He pulled the words out, as if reluctant to relive his experience.

  “What?” She couldn’t imagine anything to upset him so.

  He sighed and looked away, through the sheen of water pouring over the ledge. “I learned of my heritage.”

  She leaned forward and touched his arm in excitement. “Charlie, that’s wonderful. . . .” Only, by his behavior, he didn’t seem to think so. “What’s wrong?”

  Jane listened while he told her of his first meeting with King Tuniesin. A cold, hard knot formed in her stomach. Now she knew his part in Lowth’s plan, and that it wasn’t over.

  “I never dreamed any of this,” she said when he’d finished. “What happens now?”

  He shook his head, utter desolation on his face. “I don’t know. Tell King Garmade? I couldn’t ask you to share in any future without letting you know. Do you see?”

  Jane nodded, her thoughts grim. She needed to change her plans again. Her head whirled with what had to be done.

  “There’s one more thing,” he said, his tone solemn.

  “What?” She could think of one hundred and seventy-two things.

  “Muttle relayed news to Hugh that might affect our plans.”

  Cold chills crept up the insides of her arms. She forced herself to ask, “What?”

  “Mara is pregnant, as well as most of the village women. Due to your influence, they say.”

  She felt the blood drain from her face. Dread at what he might ask overpowered her joy at the news. “Charlie, I didn’t have anything to do with it. Maybe the Dymynsh is over.”

  “Broken by you?” His gaze pierced her to the core. “Jane, are you pregnant?”

  She had no recourse but to lie. She looked him in the eyes and gathered all the deceit in her body. “No, I’m not.”

  How could she tell him the truth when she didn’t have all the answers yet? Suspicions raced through her, a half-formed belief that Bryant had more importance to Malik than anyone thought. If her child bore the royal blood of Malin, why not that of Malik as well? The machinations of Lowth astounded her, plotting to unite two of its houses.

  She had no proof. Not until she could get to Malik’s capital of Shallen and question those who might have been present at Bryant’s birth. All while dodging Blacwin.

  Jane watched Charlie struggle to believe her.

  “If there are heirs of my body, it is more significant now,” he said, searching her face.

  “Wouldn’t I tell you?” She crossed her fingers.

  “Would you?” he asked, angry. “What are your plans now that Tivat is alive?”

  She couldn’t tell him. So much depended on slipping away from Isleighah and finding her way to Malik. Without him, Muttle, or the entire flying population of Kerreleigh finding her. “To get my mother well,” she bluffed.

  “Then?”

  She tilted her chin and met his gaze. “Have Eagar lift my sentence.”

  “Then? By the light, Jane, I want to have a future with you.” He punched his hand into a puddle of water for emphasis.

  “As Queen of Malin?” Her future role, and that of her unborn child, magnified. All the more reason to know the truth before telling him. He’d only stop her.

&
nbsp; “I don’t care about that aspect,” he said.

  “You should.” He presented a perfect opportunity to pick a fight. She needed to divert his attention from speculation on her pregnancy. “Eagar and King Garmade need to know.”

  “It can wait.”

  “Damn if it can. For once in your life, don’t be the mediator, the one who smoothes ruffled feathers. Fight for what’s yours.”

  “It’s mine only if I’m recognized as heir.”

  “You have King Tuniesin’s word on that. He knew both your parents. Is Eagar going to call him a liar?”

  “We both know what he will and won’t do. He controls a lot of what happens in Malin.” A vein throbbed in Charlie’s temple.

  “All the more reason to take a stand now, and show him who’s boss.” Jane pushed the subject, hoping to tick Charlie off enough to keep from inquiring about her plans again.

  “He’s boss now,” Charlie said through clenched teeth.

  “You’re king,” she pointed out.

  “I’m a half-breed.” Bitterness edged his voice. “Lawyer, trade negotiator, and anything else Sylthia needs of me. I live in my brother’s house and have nothing to show for my life.”

  No, that’s not true. You have me. And our baby. Jane bit her tongue to keep from blurting that out. She desperately wanted to reassure him, but fate changed that. The first order of business had to be unraveling Lowth’s plans. It wouldn’t let her do anything else.

  “You’re heir to Malin,” she cried. “Be a man and grab what’s yours.”

  He pulled her to him roughly. “You’re mine,” he growled. “Are you willing to make a commitment to me?”

  Jane stared at him, seeking a way out of this dilemma. His face remained hard. Her heart breaking, she turned away, answering his question with the movement.

  “Fair enough,” he said. “Until you tell me where you stand, I remain silent on my background.”