“I think he broke his ankle, Gran.”
“I see he’s also awake and talking, she said stiffly before stepping into the room. “Go fetch me a pot of hot water.”
Breena nodded and left him in the room with the cock slicer. “How do you know what I am?”
“I’ve seen your kind,” she whispered and tugged the quilt over his calves until only his bandage ankle was visible.
If she knew what he was and despised his kind so much, why was she helping him? Her actions made no sense. The object of his lust returned. Her gaze avoided his as she placed the pot down. Steam swirled from the black container and he closed his eyes as he heard a splash. The burning liquid splattered on his swollen joint, the scent of lavender and something more subtle he couldn’t identify wafted to his nose.
“It’s not broken. When it cools, dip it back in and place it back on the swollen part.”
Breena nodded quickly, her gaze still directed anywhere but him. The old woman stood with a creek of old bones and shuffled from the room. She mumbled something too low for him to understand and then a cool breeze swept over his frame. He hid the shudder, shifted to look around; he was once again alone with the gray-eyed beauty. “My name is Thame.” She hadn’t asked, but the urge to tell was overwhelming. He wanted to hear it on her lips.
Breena had never felt so awkward in her life. She nodded and knelt by the foot of the bed. Her body hummed with sexual awareness, her nipples tingled and moisture gathered in her core. Sure, she was attracted, but it was so much better when he was unconscious. Right now she fidgeted with her shirt seam, bopped her leg up and down while placing the wad of cloth into the hot water. It landed with a plop, splattered her legs and she bit her lip as she placed the wet cloth on his ankle.
She glanced up, her eyes going wide as he was still staring at her. Did she have something on her face? Was there breakfast spilt on her shirt? There was a quick glance downward as her nerves frittered. She didn’t see anything but he kept staring and there was no smile whatsoever. Maybe he expected a conversation. It took all of four seconds before she mentally screamed. What the hell were they going to talk about? She was a plain girl who lived her whole life in this little town with a superstitious Gran. God, this was pathetic.
“How old are you?”
“Twenty-two...” she mumbled instantly while staring at his ankle. Not that his swollen joint fascinated her but because she had no desire to make an ass out of herself, again.
“Why did you save me?”
Her mouth opened but no excuse fumbled out. “I...I just saw you on the road and couldn’t leave you there.” She shrugged her shoulders. “What happened to your back?” Breena pulled the cloth from his ankle, dunked it in the water and placed it back. She glanced up at him, and he seemed to be contemplating an answer which Gran said usually meant a man was going to lie. “You don’t have to tell me. Once you’re healed, you can go on your way.”
“Thank you,” he finally spoke, “for helping me and caring. I have not met a human who would be so kind to a stranger.”
A human? What the hell was that about? Breena hid her cringe. It would be her luck to find some hot, naked guy who claimed he was taken by space aliens. “Do you live on the main land?” The question blurted from her lips. Okay, so she wanted to know, maybe she could visit. Yeah right, Gran would spoon out her eyes.
“Yes.” He laid his head back on the pillow. “I still have no idea how I got here.”
His lips pressed together. That seemed to bother him immensely. “Maybe you took a ferry or plane or you swam...” she added the last one with a grin. There was a slight snort from him. Was that a laugh? She dropped the cloth in the cooling liquid and stood.
“Breena.”
“Yes?” God, the way he said her name made her nerves dissolve into a pile of longing.
“I’m glad it was you who saved me,” Thame whispered the words and his eyelids slid shut.
Chapter Four
I’m glad it was you who saved me.
Breena was still smiling as she plucked potatoes from the field beside their house. She plopped them into a small sack and kept repeating those words in her head. He was so damn sexy she couldn’t function normally around him.
The moment the words seeped into her overheated brain he fell back to sleep and she tripped on the way out of his room. She landed on her butt and cursed. Gran came from the hot stove to see her sitting on the floor. Her butt hurt from the landing even as laughter echoed through the kitchen. She bent and picked a few more. This field was one of many that Breena tended to so Gran could sell them at the market. It was their livelihood along with Gran’s knitting genius. The woman could sell a cat a coat in the peak of summer.
I’m glad it was you who saved me. Her smile returned full force, white teeth visible and her eyes lifting to the cloudless sky. She wanted to walk right up to his partially covered body, lift away that flimsy cloth and take a long look at his good bits. That was entirely too bold for her. There was a soft sigh from her lips as she glanced back at the house. That took courage and will power; she had insignificant traces of either in her entire being.
“Iníon!”
Breena lifted a brow. How did she always know when she was thinking dirty?
“I have food for him...”
Oh, her cheeks flared pink as she hefted the sack and brought it into the house. She used her open doors to deposit it into the kitchen. Then Returned to close and lock them and by then her flush dissipated. The house had a strong, delicious smell of roasting tomatoes and savory garlic with extra potatoes, just the way she liked it.
“Go feed him first, we’ll see if it kills him then try it ourselves.” Gran grinned as she spoke.
Breena just shook her head and grabbed a small, steaming bowl off the counter. “Thame, his name is Thame.” It was the first time she spoke it aloud, and it slipped from her tongue like a silky drug.
She rushed out of Gran’s view before taking a deep breath, squaring her shoulders and watching her footing closely with each step. There was no need to add stew to the ‘food in her hair while trying to look sexy’ list. His door was ajar and she used her hip to press it open so she could squeeze in.
The sun was setting. Colors decorated the clear sky. With the curtains open, there was a shadowed, romantic feel to the room. The man that currently ruled her dreams was sitting up in bed with a wince that made her sex drive plummet.
“You shouldn’t be sitting up already.” That had to hurt. His eyes lifted, locked with hers and she broke the rule. She stopped watching her feet, forgot about the hot stew and stumbled. Her knee hit the bed, the stew flew upward and she inwardly cringed as she tried to catch her balance. That resulted in her landed with a yelp on the bed and the stew rained down on them in chunky blobs. She ignored the slight pain with the hot food on her skin and didn’t dare look at him.
Breena wanted to disappear right now. Her eyes were closed and she prayed to God to just make her vanish from the face of the earth. How could she be this clumsy every time she came near him? After several seconds of silence she cracked one eye open, and began her apologies. Of course, he had no tomato on him. It was primarily in her hair, smudge on her back and collecting in the blanket around his waist.
“You have bad balance.” he muttered then snorted, “...and very bad aim.”
She nodded, scrunched her lips in a frown and added stew to that previous list.
“...but even covered in food you look beautiful...”
Her heart lurched and she revoked the previous vanishing wish. Her lips lifted in a grin then Gran came through the door, took one look at them and lapsed into a fit of laughing. There were no words after that. Breena stood, ignored the few pieces of potato that plopped to the floor and walked out of the room. She passed a still cackling Gran and stormed straight into the bathroom.
Thame wanted to laugh. He hadn’t felt the urge to laugh in so many years, he didn’t know if he actually could. She was a m
ass of beauty and clumsiness but every time she tripped, he found himself trying to catch her. Would she be shy in his arms or would she be a fiery vixen who challenged his every move?
He liked the fact that she only flubbed around him. Did Breena feel the heat that sparked between them? Was she too afraid of him to accept this attraction? Was she even interested? He hadn’t been with a woman in so damn long and hadn’t cared about his appearance until he found himself in this cozy house with her. He also had the luck to meet her at the worst possible time. They were on the verge of war and he was thinking with his dick.
She would however, be in the shower right now. He could hear water rushing through the pipes in the old house. He closed his eyes and inhaled harshly. She was in there naked with water cascading down bare skin, between her ripe breasts and the sweet cove between her legs. He shifted, so he could lean forward and his back would greet the sun. The bandaged protected his skin from any harmful rays or particles.
Besides, his erection needed some breathing room. The quilt tented just as the older woman entered the bedroom. Just what he needed more evidence that he was lust motivated.
“I met one of your kind once...”
She handed him a bowl of steaming stew and he immediately thought of Breena. He took the bowl in both hands and held it over his lap.
“He was...a nice man, a good man, he saved me and for a while he’d come here to tell me stories about this magical kingdom.”
“What was his name?” Thame figured if she really hated his kind, the stew would be poisoned or she’d just cleave off his head, which meant it wasn’t hate as he first suspected.
“Keyn.”
His mouth nearly dropped open. He wasn’t the only scared fairy in the kingdom but Keyn had this gnarly scar across his eye. He also hated humans with a passion after they tortured him as a child.
“He’s still alive isn’t he? Probably looking like a young stud while I’m all wrinkled.” she scrunched her nose in distaste. “But he was like a brother to me. He was about fourteen when he found us and had the cutest smile in all of Ireland. Very sweet and kind. He’d come here every night to tell me these amazing stories and then one day he just stopped showing up. It broke me heart.” Her voice became thick with accent and both her hands fluttered to her chest. “Is he well? Is he happy?”
Thame wasn’t sure what to say. Should he reveal the truth or go with a bold face lie? “He’s well.” He went with the lie, but it was worth whatever penance when her face lit up with a smile.
“Eat your stew,” she said with a grin, but it quickly faded. “And stay away from me Iníon!” With that, she walked out and closed the door until barely a sliver of light illuminated the room.
Trying to maneuver to the bathroom without his wings and a broken ankle was likely to be an event in itself. If he had his wings, he could easily fly out take care of business and be back in bed before either woman knew. He’d also be able to fly home.
Debating solved nothing so he slowly, cautiously moved his legs to the edge of the bed. His good foot landed. When no pain exploded through his body, he fumbled to his feet. His muscles were sore from the lack of movement and the healing that was slowly taking place. The bone where his wings grew had been untouched by the cruel hands of the trolls and his beloved feature was slowly growing back. It would take at least a week for them to pierce the raw, ravaged skin and then a long recovery before he could possibly fly. He was looking at months of waiting unless Brielle, their healing fairy was able to speed things up.
Thame used the wooden chair for leverage. He’d take a step on his good leg, use the chair for balance and then shift the chair forward before taking another step. He was breathing heavy. A sheen of sweat bathed his skin, but it was working. He was halfway down a dark hallway. He couldn’t tell the color of the floor or the walls he occasionally leaned against. This would be a gift from the Goddess herself if he made it there and back without either of the women knowing.
His back screamed like a banshee as he shifted to the open door and nudged it closed with his elbow. Thame took care of his personal business as quickly as possible and by the time his bladder stopped screaming, the rest of his body took its place. Pain was so sever in his back that shudders racked his body. Each step was an energy stealing effort that caused his legs to buckle and his back to hunch. He wasn’t that far. There was still a possibility of success.
The guys would be laughing at his feeble state and the trolls would have easily had his head on their plate. That thought alone was enough to boost him two more steps before his legs began to tremble. His knuckles turned white as he tried to hold on. All to quickly the floor came at his face. There was a thud, a sharp pain across his torso, then he was lying on the floor with his palpitating heart and gasping breaths.
“Shite...” Her voice was sudden. It sounded from the darkened hall with the soft patter of bare feet. “You should have called,” she mumbled as she shifted to his side.
He could see her pale feet. They were without covering and gold polish shined on her toenails. It was such an odd color against her skin drawing his attention as she knelt beside him and pushed his golden hair from his face.
“Are you hurt? You pulled open something,” she said with a glance to his back.
He could care less if he was bleeding. Right now, his eyes were traveling up her ankles to her knees and to her creamy thighs. Then the small knit robe she wore cut off his view. He reached out, was going to push that up so he could view her creamy center. It wasn’t a plan just an instinct but the moment he moved she stood and tugged on his outstretched arm.
“Come on...”
He used his last bit of strength and her soft body to stumble to the bed. There was no graceful landing but a collapse onto his stomach and a grunt. His erection demanded attention even if the rest of his body didn’t. He wanted to keep looking. Was her hair down? Would her robe open and reveal hard little nipples? There was so much he wanted to see and memorize but his head throbbed in pain. Blood loss once again stole his conscious. “Thank...” he muttered but the beautiful sight that was Breena faded away.
Breena took the deepest breath of her life as his eyes closed. Her body was on fire. The thumping of her heart was so loud it could wake the dead. He was in his loincloth and his ass cheeks were barely hidden. When she first saw him lying on the floor, she intended to berate him and then help, but her eyes fell on his excess of uncovered flesh. She was a goner from there. Holding her breath and trying desperately to keep her hands from exploring.
The man was a work of art. She watched his closed eyelids and placed her hand on his back. They didn’t flutter open and she took that as a sign. Her fingertips trailed down to his lower back. His skin was so soft. She continued lower, her palm greeting the flesh of his tanned butt. Her teeth nibbled at her lower lip and she followed the path to his thigh. There was so much muscle, such strength beneath the soft exterior. What a girl could do with all this muscle.
Her palm slid back up, this time along his hip, over the cloth and toward his head. She bypassed the red bandages and brushed her fingers through his silky golden locks. Breena shifted the hair away from his face, her fingers caressing his chiseled jaw and one finger grazed his lower lip. Lord, she would go to hell for this.
Breena leaned down so intent on pressing her lips to his. Her first kiss was going to be to an unconscious man she knew nothing about. Not even a last name, how lame was that? There was a quick shrug of her shoulders. She’d still get to kiss the most striking guy in all of Ireland. Her breath fanned his cheek. She tilted her head as nerves rattled her composure. She’d never been this close to a man in her life. Her breath quickened and moisture flared between her legs. Nipples turned to pebbles, pressing against the soft lace she wore and then he opened his eyes.
Her mouth parted in a surprised gasp. How the hell was she going to explain this? “You’re dreaming.” The words burst from her mouth before the plan formed.
His gaze s
oftened, his hand reached out and his strong fingers gripped her chin. This was it; her first kiss and he was conscious. She wanted to smile but he stopped just short of her lips. His breath was warm as it fanned her skin. “Dreaming?”
Shite. “Yes.” he looked confused by that and frowned before his grip went lack. Thame’s eyelids slowly closed and left Breena with an overwhelming need to relieve this sexual buildup. He hadn’t even kissed her yet and she wanted to rip both their clothes off to rub against him until an orgasm relieved the tension. This wasn’t over. There could still be a kiss between them tonight. She leaned forward and then the window shattered.
Chapter Five
Moonlight made the glass pieces glitter as they rained into the room. Confusion and shock also hit Breena as she covered Thame’s body with her own. She held her breath without realizing it until her lungs screamed. Her gasp joined the whistle of wind. When she lifted her head, she glared wide-eyed at the demolished window. Pieces of sharp glass fell from her hair and she tried her best to keep them off Thame. He was still out. Gran rushed into the room with a kitchen knife and Breena was shifting focus to the feel of her hard nipples against his firm back.
“Iníon!” It was a frantic cry from Gran’s lips.
“I’m okay,” she said, her words muddled as she stood. Fragments began to litter the floor, “Was that from the storm?” The glass was old but not feeble enough to shatter so forcefully from wind. She spotted the culprit as it lay in the middle of the room, glinting in the moonlight. “A bone?” She had no idea if it was human.
“Kids...” Gran said quickly then lowered her kitchen utensil. “It’s probably the Creegan boys looking for a wee crack.”
“Breaking windows is not fun.” Breena shook her head; more glittering shards tumbled from her form. “They could have killed us!” Gran was usually more vocal then her on the boys’ manners or lack thereof, but she was oddly silent.
The Ravaged Fairy Page 3
