by A. C. James
MAELÍOSA POUTED AS the man went back to filling out the application. “Curious fella,” she said in a low voice to Kieran. “You ever see someone with a babby before?”
Kieran shook his head. “Not in here,” he said. “Wonder what the deal is.”
Maelíosa shrugged. Normally, she would’ve felt like snickering—was it really appropriate for a potential client to bring in his kid? She wouldn’t have let Darcy hang around The Stables, and Maelíosa thought that Fallon would probably agree with her. But there was something about the man that made him strangely appealing. Or at least, strangely immune to her scorn.
The silence of the lobby was punctuated by the scratching sound of the man’s pen gliding across the application. Maelíosa watched as he wrote information down with an incredibly intense look on his face. She wasn’t used to clients like this. Most of the applicants who came into The Stables were happy, blushing women who came in with their friends, tipsy from a drink at Tí Joe Watty’s, daring each other to apply for a púca mate. This man was serious, sombre. He crossed the room and handed his application off to Maelíosa, and a tingle shot up her arm as their hands touched.
“Right then,” Maelíosa said, trying to sound casual. She looked down at the papers in her hand. “Thanks, Sage.” Tucking the papers into a brown envelope, she turned to face him. His expression was curiously hard again, and Maelíosa felt a flicker of annoyance. Why isn’t he enjoying himself? Mating is supposed to be exciting. For a moment, she wondered if he was nervous that female púca wouldn’t be attracted to him. Then she realised that was impossible—the man was bloody gorgeous. No. That can’t be it. Maelíosa’s mare pranced nervously around and she tossed her head, trying to stay focused.
“Well, what now?” Sage shifted his weight from one foot to the other.
“Someone will call you for an interview in a few days,” Maelíosa said. “And if you’re a good fit, you’ll go right onto the waiting list.”
Sage’s expression grew stonier. “And how long is that waiting list?”
“About a year and a half, mate,” Kieran interjected. “At least a year.”
“That’s not possible,” Sage said, his voice rising. His hand curled into a fist and Maelíosa flinched as he brought it down hard on the front desk. “I’m not waiting a fucking year!”
“Sir, this is our policy, and if you’d taken the time to research before visiting...” She trailed off, suddenly sensing the man’s anger was more powerful than her own authority. “We need to verify the information you’ve given us, find a suitable match, and make sure you’re both ready to take the final step, because mating is for life. I’m sorry, but that’s our policy.”
“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me,” Sage gritted out. “I don’t have a year.”
Maelíosa shook her head. “I’m sorry. Our policy is in place for a number of reasons, most of which are designed to protect you.”
She thought of the mess Tomas had made with Cyn and the world of pain it’d brought to her father’s relationship. The Stables was designed as a safe, controlled environment where potential mates could get to know one another before they crossed the veil and went through with the mating ceremony. They didn’t want another bloody disaster on their hands. Mates were selected with care and given time to make sure they were right for one another.
“Then I demand to speak to your supervisor,” Sage said sharply. His voice was powerful and commanding—Maelíosa felt a little shiver go down the small of her back. With the exception of Fallon, there was no man willing to stand up to her the way that Sage was right now.
“Hey,” Kieran shot back, and leaned across the desk, looking menacing. “If you can’t shut your cake-hole, I’ll throw you out of here myself!”
Maelíosa tugged Kieran’s sleeve. “Kieran,” she whispered loudly. “Cut it out.”
The grey-eyed girl had closed the book on her lap and was hanging on every word of their exchange.
Chapter Three
“Dad!”
Sage whipped his head around just in time to see Carina launching herself across the lobby, hurtling toward him.
“Hey,” Carina said loudly. Her light grey eyes blazed with angry fire and her pale face was red. “Leave my dad alone!” Using both small hands, she gripped onto the brass railing at the front of the desk and hoisted herself into the air.
“Your da was giving me cheek,” Kieran retorted.
“Can’t you see he’s sick?” Carina’s eyes flashed daggers at Kieran and the beautiful woman. Sage leaned in just close enough to read a nametag pinned to the front of her nondescript black blouse: ‘Maelíosa’.
“Carina,” Sage said sharply. He took hold of her thin, birdlike shoulders and removed her from the desk. The effort made his stomach ache and he wanted to sit down, but he hated showing weakness in front of his daughter.
“No,” Kieran replied. He frowned and picked up Sage’s application. “And he didn’t mention a bloody thing about being sick on the application.” Kieran glared at Sage. “Are you sick?”
Sage grimaced. He hadn’t wanted to mention it—after all, he didn’t know how they made their selection, or if it would deter one of their females from choosing him. And even though the púca were now famed healers, he wasn’t sure he trusted they could restore his health. After all, the cancer was bad. His father had died of colon cancer at age thirty-five, just a year older than Sage. He knew that he didn’t have much time. This whole mating thing had been a crazy gamble. It was a last-ditch effort to at least ensure that if he died, his daughter would have someone to look out for her. Still, he’d managed to hold out hope. And now, finding out that they might not be able to help him and Carina was enough to make him want to scream. Sage shifted his gaze to his daughter. She was still scowling at Kieran and Maelíosa, her tiny arms crossed over her chest. Carina was strong, but Sage knew that his daughter’s strength came from him. Without him around, she’d be vulnerable.
“Yeah,” Sage replied darkly. “I’m sick.”
Maelíosa was staring at Sage with an odd expression on her lovely face. It was enough to make him uncomfortable, and he shifted his weight to the other foot. Somehow it was better than the tiresome, pitying looks that he normally received, though.
MAELÍOSA TURNED TO Kieran, her face clouded with shock and sympathy. She pulled Kieran’s sleeve, tugging him off to the side of the desk.
“Kieran, cut the bollocks,” she whispered. “The fella’s got a kid with him.” She glanced back at Carina, observing the fury blazing in the young girl’s eyes. Something about Carina touched Maelíosa in a way that she couldn’t—or didn’t feel like trying to—articulate. She almost reminded Maelíosa of herself when she was younger. Hell, who was she kidding? Maelíosa hadn’t changed much since then, except to maybe grow more cynical. And she saw every bit of that shining through the girl’s fierce eyes.
“Fine,” Kieran snapped. The two walked back to the front of the desk.
“What do you say to an interview now?” Maelíosa offered Sage. “Might speed up the process a little bit.” She swallowed hard, feeling more awkward than she had in a long time. “I can’t make any promises, but I’ll see what I can do.”
Sage looked down at Carina. “Car, can you go wait in the lobby for me?” He turned to Maelíosa. “I don’t think I’ll be long.”
“No, more than an hour,” Maelíosa promised. She smiled down at Carina. “Do you mind letting me borrow your da?”
Carina frowned, then stood up on tip-toe and threw her arms around Sage. As she walked back toward the lobby, Maelíosa gestured for Sage to follow her.
“Normally we like to verify applications before the interview, and I’m not sure how this will go over, but it’s the best I can do right now,” Maelíosa said as she led Sage into a small room. There were two chairs and a wooden desk covered in puzzle pieces. The staff of The Stables took their breaks here, and Kieran and Finn had been playing a drinking game that involved placing puzzle pieces do
wn and then taking shots. Maelíosa rolled her eyes. She didn’t particularly care for indulging in games like that, but at least Kieran knew how to pass the time.
“This is fine,” Sage said gruffly. He lowered himself down into a chair. “Thanks.”
Maelíosa nodded. “Don’t get your hopes up,” she warned softly as she pulled a notepad and pen into her lap. “This isn’t something I normally do.”
Sage nodded. “Right. I’ll tell you whatever you need to know. Where do you want to start?”
“Tell me about your family.”
“You’ve met her,” Sage said. His expression was closed.
This was going to be like pulling teeth. Heaven help the female púca who decided to take him as a mate. Maelíosa leaned close. “And? Who else?”
“There’s no one else,” Sage said roughly. “It’s just me and Carina.”
“What about her mother?”
“Dead.” Sage’s voice sounded robotic.
“Right then,” Maelíosa said. She looked into Sage’s grey eyes. “Anything else you’d like to share?”
“I have cancer. Stage four.” Sage admitted, his facial expression as stony as ever. “And I might not live long enough to survive the waitlist.”
She hated asking the question that came next, but she had to know. “What do you hope to get out of mating?”
Sage swallowed. “I want a partner who will take care of my daughter when I’m gone.”
Maelíosa arched an eyebrow. “And?”
He sighed. “I don’t want to lie to you. I’ve heard your people are known for healing.”
Maelíosa stared. She knew that cancer was a big killer among the humans, and stage four was pretty much a death sentence. She thought about his little girl in the lobby, and the dire situation facing them both. Her heart broke, having to waste time on an interview when all she wanted to do was help him. Now that she was alone with Sage, she could sense something deadly lurking in his body. Another human wouldn’t necessarily have guessed it—he looked big, muscular, and strong. But Maelíosa’s senses were keen, and thanks to her mare prancing around nervously, she could smell the odour of death emanating faintly from Sage’s pores.
“It’s true. There is a possibility that we can help you. What’s your attitude toward the púca? I have to ask because not all humans view us favourably.” It was a standard question she had to ask. They’d check into his background and find out whether he was affiliated with Only Human, but she still needed to cover all the bases.
Sage shifted in his seat. “I admit that I only know what I’ve read. This is my last resort. I’m doing this for my daughter. How I feel makes no difference as long as she’s taken care of.”
Maelíosa nodded. She scribbled down his comment. Of course, it probably wouldn’t win him any points with the female púca who’d signed up to find a mate through The Stables. She’d rephrase it later. Maelíosa thought it was really sweet how he put his daughter above everything else. Family was important to her too. She went through the rest of the questions with him, jotting down notes. Maelíosa nodded and smiled, trying to put him at ease. He seemed to relax a little by the time the interview concluded.
“Sage, I want to help you,” Maelíosa said. “Really I do, but I don’t want to get your hopes up, either. The list is long. We have a vetting procedure that’s in place to protect you, as I said, but also my clan.”
She shifted uncomfortably in the metal folding chair. Cyn had been trapped beyond the veil because Tomas hadn’t taken her drunken state into account or explained the mating process adequately. When Cyn left Fallon after their mating, he’d nearly died. The púca had known when they set up The Stables that they’d need a lot of precautions to make sure that never happened again, and the agreement with the British government entailed a verification and courting process that was to everyone’s benefit.
“What’s the process?”
Maelíosa shook her head. “I can’t reveal any details about it at this time,” she said briskly. “But I promise I’ll be in touch.”
Sage eyed her warily. “And that’s all for now?”
Maelíosa nodded. “Yes.”
She was torn. She’d never expected working at The Stables would be emotional for her. Before, she’d never cared much about these humans. But something about Sage made her want to save him. Or maybe it was his daughter, who she saw so much of herself in... The girl had already lost a mother.
“Thanks,” Sage said stiffly. He stood up from the chair and Maelíosa detected that although he wasn’t going to show it, he was in a lot of pain. “I’ll be going now. Hopefully I’ll hear from you sooner rather than later.”
Maelíosa escorted him back to his daughter and tried to push the objections of her mare out of her mind.
“Take care,” Maelíosa said once they were back in the lobby. “As I mentioned, I’ll be in touch.”
She watched as Sage took Carina by the hand and led her outside, into the bright sunshine of Inis Mór. Her mare shook her head in disapproval. She scowled. For fuck’s sake, what did her beast expect her to do?
Chapter Four
The man darted down a dark alley, crouching and pulling the collar of his jumper up over his neck. It was a warm, humid day in London but he couldn’t risk being seen by anyone, no matter how innocuous. He was waiting for Nathan, the writer who’d started everything with a single, damning blog post.
As seconds ticked by on his watch, the man raised his gaze and flattened himself against a wall. The brick snagged at his expensive woollen jumper, but he didn’t mind. This business was much more important than some sodding piece of clothing.
Finally, a well-built man with a flushed face trotted up the sidewalk. Nathan was clad in a pair of slacks and camel blazer with a white jumper underneath, dressed almost like the magazine picture the man held tightly in one hand. The pink hue to his face made him look a bit porcine. The stranger watched as Nathan straightened his collar in his reflection in a window.
The building, home of Channel 4 Television, was anchored in a large, open square. It was a richly designed structure, with two giant columns on either side of the entrance and a concave wall of glass that towered over the open air. While Nathan checked his watch and darted inside, the man lowered himself down onto a bench and pulled out a book. As he pretended to read, he casually flicked his glance down at the marked page. There was a handwritten note in the margin: “follow N. Wood, telly interview at Ch. 4. OH meet, 16:00. Flanagan’s pub.”
He smiled to himself as he watched Nathan trot through the lobby. The man had no idea that someone was following him—indeed, no idea that he’d been followed for the past two months.
CYN BECKETT GROANED as she saw Nathan stepping out of the building. As always when she saw him now, he managed to look tremendously pleased with himself. His cheeks were ruddy and his forehead was shining with sweat—it was a hot summer day, yet he was dressed for the fall in a luxe camel’s hair blazer that Cyn had plucked for him from a sample sale over three years ago. Aside from the dark circles under his bloodshot eyes, he looked much the same.
“What’re you doing here?” Nathan stared at Cyn. She glared as his eyes travelled up and down her lush, curvy body. “Off the horse-man again?”
“Shut it, Nathan,” Cyn said mildly. She stretched and set her tote bag down at her feet. “I’m here on behalf of the púca clan.” She glared. “You know, since you wrote that bloody book and told everyone that they exist. They asked me for an interview too, and I suppose someone has to refute your bollocks.”
Nathan shrugged, and anger rippled through her body. Because of him, her friends and family were in danger. Because of him, a racist hate group was spreading fear and threatening to return the púca clan to the Dark Ages.
“They Live Among Us has enjoyed international success,” Nathan said with a smirk. “Your lot might even do with a read.”
“I’ve read it,” Cyn snapped. “And you didn’t have to make me out to be such a
slapper!”
Nathan tutted. “I only speak the truth, Cyn.”
She bristled at the sound of her name coming from his mouth. A year ago, Cyn had felt guilty and anxious at the thought of causing her now-former friend so much pain. She’d led him on for years without realizing it, and some of this was surely her fault. But that was where the guilt stopped. She never guessed he’d become so crazy, so obsessive over her. Ever since that damning blog post and They Live Among Us had premiered to rave reviews, Cyn had stopped caring. Nathan had made his choice when he turned his back on his two best friends—herself and Felicity—and she knew that she could never forgive him.
“I’m using my reputation for good,” Cyn said smugly. The tote bag at her feet bore promotional material for the púca clan’s new matchmaking service, The Stables.
“Bully for you,” Nathan said.
Cyn glared. She realised that Nathan had changed after all. He used to be easily intimidated with just a word or two, but now he was sure of his own place in the world, and he liked it. She rolled her eyes. His rambling blog post had reminded her of his drunken text messages. Wallowing in self-pity had brought him accidental fame, but she honestly didn’t give a fuck.
“Yeah, Nathan, I know it’s not as brill as ruining peoples’ lives or being responsible for the formation of a hate group, but I’m sure trying my damnedest.”
Cyn picked up the tote bag and rested it on her shoulder. The heat of the day was beginning to make her feel like a wilted flower, and a wave of nausea washed over her. She pushed it down because she didn’t want Nathan to sense her weakness. It was probably a mixture of confronting Nathan, her jangled nerves, and the sun getting to her. She’d also skipped breakfast before the interview. You’ve got this. Just walk away from him. Turning around, she faced the Channel 4 building and put her hand on the door.
