Tam landed on the frame of the mirror and peered at it closely as if attempting to see through the cracks to the other side.
Pretending to concentrate on his paperwork, he used his magic to repair a small portion of the mirror. It was only big enough for Tam to climb through, but the surge of magic left him feeling drained again. He hated that it was taking him so damn long to recover his powers after so many years without them. Tilting his head at an angle, he secretly kept her in his line of sight while purposely shifting around the papers on his desk to hide what he was doing. He held his breath as he waited to see what she would decide. Glancing between him and the mirror, she snuck closer to the repaired sliver. Slowly, she slipped one foot through as if afraid it wouldn’t work. As she stood straddling the two worlds, Freddie fought against the urge to stop her, while silently praying she would choose him.
With one final glance in his direction, she disappeared back into the mortal realm.
His shoulders fell, and he dropped his forehead to the desk as he released a breath that he had not known he was holding. That was it. She’d made her choice, and it wasn’t him. He had been so sure that once he explained himself, she would choose him. The pain that slashed through him was even worse than he ever imagined.
When he first arrived back in the Mirror lands, he had at least held a small hope they would be reunited someday. Now that dream was dead.
***
Thomas fired up Ella’s laptop and logged into the email account that Tam set up for him. He had no real interest in it but he was bored off his ass. With Tam around, he felt a sense of duty and responsibility. With Tam gone and Gideon in his place, Thomas was at a loss as to what to do with himself. The speculum stood in his line of sight but so did the wide-framed, blond angel, Gideon.
The inside of Thomas’ head was a mess. He was a god of war, yet he wanted Katrina to only know peace. He, who had only known battle, found love with her. The Great War would have raged on and on if anyone ever learned of them, and Tam…. He shuddered at the thought of what her life would have been like. She would have always been a pawn. He’d done the best he could by her.
Flickering on the screen drew his eye, and the zero showing next to his inbox left him feeling even more deflated. This place, the technology and the lusty heat were not for him. He had no purpose here. War raged in his blood, but he’d managed to focus that energy on Katrina. What was he supposed to do with himself now?
A flash of motion captured his attention. He glanced back up as Tam popped out of the mirror to rush past him.
“Gotta pee,” she squealed as she disappeared into the bathroom.
A minute later, she reappeared smiling brightly. “That’s much better,” she sighed, before adding, “Why are you still here?”
Thomas shrugged. “I’ve got nothing better to do,” he admitted.
She pointed at the ceiling and ordered, “Get back to work.” Then with a tiny wave, she hopped through the mirror as if nothing had happened.
Gideon, who stood at his post, met Thomas’ eyes and smiled. “You heard the lady,” Gideon said, sounding entirely too cheerful.
“Is there anyone who doesn’t know my business?”
Gideon rocked back on his heels. “Not really.”
With a decisive nod, Thomas snapped the laptop closed and stood. It was time he got back to work.
***
“Shew-wee. That was a close one!” Tam cried, causing Freddie’s head to snap up in wonder. She switched back to full size and kicked the repaired spot on the mirror, shattering it once more.
Bouncing on her toes, she skipped to his side. Her green eyes sparkled in delight as she forced his chair backwards until she could straddle his hips. He was stunned speechless.
“Thanks babe.”
“For what?” he asked, unable to form another thought.
“For letting me pop over to the human world long enough to break the spell keeping me chained to you, of course.” She paused, tilting her head to the side as if thinking things over, before adding, “also, I really needed to pee, and you can’t keep going with me. That’s just too much.”
In his shocked haze, he watched as his arms lifted to hold her. It wasn’t until her body pressed against his own, that he accepted she was real. She had re-broken the speculum. She had chosen him.
“I love you,” he whispered through numb lips as she kissed a path along his jaw until she reached his ear.
“Mhmm, I love you too,” she returned, as she took his earlobe between her teeth, nipping lightly and causing his erection to grow. “Yum,” she moaned. “I’ve decided something.”
“What’s that?” He asked, the heat of his body was making it hard to concentrate on her words.
“That I like a Freddie snack as much as you like a Tam snack.”
Holding her to his chest, he shot to his feet and strode towards the bed, while she clung to him like a monkey. The picture of her tongue stroking his every line had him moving quickly.
“I do love to eat,” he said, causing her to break into peals of laughter. It was a sound he knew he would never tire of hearing. His stomach muscles clenched in anticipation.
Tossing her to the bed, he followed her down and covered her body with his own. Her eyes shined with merriment until he rolled his hips and his erection ground against her core. Her laughter died on a moan.
Catching him off-guard, Tam flipped him onto his back and straddled his hips. With her weight braced on her hands, her eyes roamed over his body as if trying to decide where to begin.
Lacing his fingers behind his head, he relaxed into the bed, content in allowing her free reign.
“You’re incredibly delicious,” she said, and a surge of pride ran through him at the words.
“Not as delicious as you.”
“Hmm,” she said non-committedly. “We’ll see.”
Shoving both hands beneath his shirt, Tam pushed it upward until his chest was exposed. Lowering her head, she licked a path across both his nipples and over the deep ridges of his abdomen.
By the time Tam reached his waistband, Freddie thought his head might explode. Each brush of her tongue against his bare skin sent a fissure of pleasure straight to his cock.
In response, it was attempting to burst from his jeans in order to be closer to her. When Tam finally slid his zipper down, it sprang from his pants screaming for her attention.
Thankfully, she didn’t make him wait as she took him between her lips. Tam’s mouth closed around his erection, and her tongue flattened against it as he slid down her throat.
Every muscle in his body tightened as his nerve endings danced to life. Closing his eyes, he shut out every sensation and focused solely on Tam’s ministrations.
He was torn between the desire to bury his hand in her hair to guide her into a rhythm and the need to let her have everything at her own pace. He held out until he was on the edge of orgasm before gently pushing her away. It took every bit of his willpower, but he wanted to be inside her when that moment came, and he’d be damned if he found pleasure before she did. It was a matter of pride for him.
She started to protest, but as he tore away her dress and removed the rest of his own clothing, she fell silent. Each time she made a sound as if to speak, he reached between them, boldly stroking her clit and cutting off her words.
Tam was soaked beneath his fingers and hunger gnawed at his insides. Her lips were swollen from his kisses and her eyes were glazed with lust by the time he settled her onto her back once more. With her knees brushing against his hips, he probed at her entrance with his cock, and covered the head with her juices.
A groan tore from his chest as he entered her in tiny increments. It had been so long since she had welcomed him inside her body. A line of sweat broke out across his forehead as he strained against his release. He craved her orgasm.
Tam was like a sickness to him that he did not want to shake. Her body tensed before convulsing. She squeezed her inner muscles around
him, pulling into oblivion.
His heart raced as he exploded inside her, leaving his body drained. Tam’s breathing sounded labored and a flush covered her skin. It was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen, and his throat swelled from the rush of love he felt as he stared down at the woman beneath him.
CHAPTER FOUR
Katrina stepped from her bedroom into her private sitting room, already dressed for the day. Her blonde hair fell down her back, and her khaki shorts and pink fitted t-shirt looked amazing against her tanned skin. He could not leave her unprotected. She was his Fate.
She kept her eyes cast downward, and he kept his wings against the door, wondering how long it would take her to notice him. He’d intentionally gone back to wearing his kilt in hopes of blending into the scenery. Gideon had worked in his place while Thomas watched over Tam, but now that Gideon was guarding the mirror, Katrina would need a new guard. That was Thomas’ place.
Katrina had said that the universe was his oyster. If that was true, then she belonged to him, because she was the universe in his eyes. If she was a prisoner in this palace, then so too would he be. The mortal realm was not his realm. He’d made the decision long ago that his realm would be wherever she was, and that was still true today. He should have never lost sight of that goal.
She almost made it to the overstuffed flowered settee when her body froze in place mid-step. Thomas felt a wry smile touch his lips as he watched her slowly turn in his direction. Not much slipped past her notice. When their eyes met, a flicker of surprise crossed her face before she was able to hide it.
“I see that you came dressed to work,” she remarked.
“Yes, Mistress Katrina.”
She waved him away from the door. “Well, come with me then. I hardly think anyone intends to invade my quarters.”
Turning on heel, she headed back toward her bedroom while saying over her shoulder, “I had Gideon move my dresser while you were gone, but now I hate where it’s at. Would you move it back for me?”
Keeping a sedate pace, he followed on her heels. “Yes, Mistress Katrina,” he answered dutifully. However, as they crossed the threshold of her chamber, he tossed the meek demeanor to the wind and slammed the door closed behind them before throwing the bolt.
He caught a flash of shock on her face before he pulled her into his arms and covered her mouth with his. It had been so very long since he tasted her. It felt like a lifetime ago.
***
Flipping her hair, Tam ran a brush through it, before attempting to secure it on top of her head with a Scrunchie. It was especially tangled today, she thought with a wicked smile. Freddie had run off almost an hour earlier to turn over the forms that had eventually gained his attention, but not before leaving her deliciously sore in a few different places. She’d taken the chance to grab a quick shower and change into one of the many new outfits he’d created in the endless chest of wonders. It was a bright yellow sundress, and she’d found an awesome pair of sparkly tights to wear beneath it. However, her hair did not seem to want to get on board with her usual hotness. The shattered mirror was doing nothing to help the situation
A movement in the doorway caught her attention, and she turned her attention toward it while tugging at the bun.
“Oh, Freya Tam. Please excuse me?” Sigurd cried as he quickly turned his back to her. “I will do better in the future of respecting your privacy,” he added, sounding genuinely distressed.
“It’s okay, Siggy,” she said, securing her hair on top of her head. “I’m sure you’ve seen a woman or two fix their hair in your day.”
She could see him twisting his fingers, even with his back to her. “It is not right for me to see Balder Fredrick’s woman in such a state of undress.”
Tam sighed loudly. “Who is the Freddie that has more hair than mine ‘cause I’m here to tell you that my Freddie has a very full, scrumptious head of hair, and I don’t know that I like you calling him bald all the time.”
Sigurd tilted his head to the side as if he was confused by her words, which in Tam’s opinion looked stupid as hell with his back to her. “You can turn around,” she said with a stamp of her foot.
When he turned, his face held the exact look of confusion that she had been expecting. “Freya Tam, Balder is a sign of respect for our future king—it means prince,” Sigurd explained. “I shall call him Prince Frederick if it pleases you for me to do so. I meant no disrespect by doing otherwise.”
Tam felt for the chair at the desk behind her. “Prince,” she repeated numbly.
Freddie chose that moment to appear through the open doorway. The angry look he cast in Sigurd’s direction let her know he wasn’t happy with the elderly servant.
“Siggy, would you please fetch my mother and ask if she would join us for dinner tonight?” There was no mistaking the irritation in Freddie’s voice. Sigurd wasted no time bowing out to do as he requested.
“Yes, Balder Frederick.”
He almost made it out of the door before Freddie added, “And Sigurd…” The elderly servant froze in his tracks looking wary, “you’ll join us, as well.”
Sigurd’s shoulders sagged in relief, and he shuffled from the room as quickly as his feet would take him, before Freddie could change his mind and scold him.
As soon as they were alone, Freddie visibly squared his shoulders as if awaiting her wrath, but Tam found that she wasn’t all that surprised.
“So, this is why you left me,” she mused more to herself, but Freddie nodded, appearing relieved by her words.
“I have a duty to this place, and nothing else. There is nothing else that could ever engage my heart, only you.”
Tam sighed at his words. He’d always been so good with them. He possessed many talents, she reminded herself as she sidled closer to him. The closer she got, the more his shoulders seemed to relax.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” she asked, and he snapped back to his ridged stance, making Tam want to laugh. She was being mean, but she loved that she held this type of power over him. Torturing him just a tiny bit was the least Tam could do after he kept this secret from her.
“I wanted you to want me for me.”
Tam pressed her lips together to keep from calling him a liar. She knew that he wasn’t being honest, but neither could she decide why he would say those words to her when she’d loved him even as a zombie.
She had time and the skill to make him talk. It was going to be so much fun.
“Hmm,” she said non-committedly, as she ran her fingers along his chest. His white button-down shirt had one too many buttons undone, as if he had been getting ready to take it off before realizing Sigurd was in the room.
Undoing the rest of the buttons, she kept her eyes locked on his chest, and a ridiculous smile pulled at her lips as she imagined all the ways she would make him pay.
“I guess you are a bit more desirable as a prince. A title gets me all hot and bothered like. I might have to keep ya, after all.”
Freddie placed his hand over hers, stopping her movements. Her gaze snapped to his.
He searched her face, as if seeking the truth. “Does it really matter?”
The hurt in his eyes caused her to drop the act. With her heart on her sleeve, she answered. “No. Why would I care when I can make you anything I wish?” she asked, and to prove her point she made both of their clothes disappear.
“Like, nude, for example,” she said with an evil smile.
“Oh, my favorite game,” he exclaimed as he scooped her up and tossed her over his shoulder.
The happiness in his voice made her heart soar. It didn’t matter what his secret was. She’d find out eventually. For now, she had everything she wanted.
***
Katrina spent a sleepless night wondering where Thomas would go now, and how she had never known that Tyr was right here with her all along. When they had been together, he’d filled her nights with steamy lovemaking, and all her days had seemed brighter afterwards. However, whe
n he’d learned of her pregnancy, something inside him seemed to die. The light left his eyes as the words spilled from her lips, and up until Thomas made his confession, she’d always assumed that a baby was not what he hoped to achieve from their affair, and so he’d abandoned her.
Now, she realized that fading light had been the knowledge that it would be their last night together.
Gods, how she missed that life with him, but she’d shoved away the happy memories with him when the hurt of his betrayal moved in to stay.
But, he’d not left. He had been here all along, watching over her and their daughter. She loved him. It was an irrevocable truth that was staring her in the face, and when he threw the bolt on her bedroom door, he’d sealed his fate with her, as far as she was concerned. She would never let him get away from her again.
Thomas was everywhere, overwhelming her with his presence and overloading her senses with lust. His huge frame dwarfed her, and surrounded her body, his hands seeming to touch every part of her at the same time. She went from shock at seeing him back as her guardian to completely turned on in five seconds flat. She wanted to crawl inside his skin just to be closer to him.
She wanted to thank the gods that he was back to wearing an easy-access kilt, but since he was a god; the prayer would be a wasted one.
Instead, she chose to show her gratitude another way by inching it upward and wrapping her fingers around his massive cock. Holy crap, she’d forgotten how large he was in every way. He growled as she stroked his erection. Moisture pooled between her legs at the sound. She wanted him inside of her, now.
She didn’t realize she’d said the words aloud until Thomas began to tear the clothes from her body. “As you wish, my lady.”
His voice sounded strained, as if he couldn’t get inside her fast enough, and her own lust ratcheted up in response. There was nothing sexier than having a man such as Thomas out of control. Her clothes disappeared beneath his touch, and the sound of material ripping told her that was the last time she’d wear them, but she didn’t care.
The Pixie & The Prince Page 4
