Claimed by the Elven Brothers: Decision (An Elven King Novella Book 1)

by Cristina Rayne

  If I was smart, this would be the last time I ever stepped foot on this jogging path. I realized I had been extremely lucky to make it back into my world at all. I had a sinking feeling that if they had chosen, they could have easily forced me to go with them into the elven realm by tinkering with my mind, and I probably would have thought it was the best idea ever. By his own admission, Locien had done something to my head that had made me lose some of my memories from today—to remove the tampering of a so-far-unnamed elf, he had said—but I wasn’t sure I could completely trust his word at this point.

  I caught movement out of the corner of my eye, and I immediately jerked my head in that direction, my heart suddenly in my throat. Two women and a man were currently speed-walking around the bend up ahead, and I could suddenly breathe again. I definitely needed to get out of here if just standing so near to something that very well could be the portal to hell for all I knew was making me so jumpy.

  With that pleasant thought to spur me on, I took to the jogging trail at very nearly a sprint and didn’t stop until I literally rammed into the driver-side door of my red Camry because I couldn’t skid to a stop quickly enough. Thankfully, my keys were still in the pocket of my slacks, saving any poor late afternoon runners from hearing some pretty nasty cursing. After locking the door, I just sat there behind the wheel trying to catch my breath, in no condition to drive just yet.

  I considered going over to my best friend, Jenna’s, apartment, but I realized with some horror that I wasn’t even sure what day of the week it was, much less if today was one of her evening shifts at the restaurant where she worked as a hostess. Of course, I wasn’t even sure if I had told her about my weird dreams that weren’t dreams at all.

  I resisted the urge to bang my head against the steering wheel. The last thing I needed right now was a headache.

  Glancing momentarily back towards the tree line, I couldn’t help wondering again what had kept me coming back here so many times before, to willingly step into that Inbetween world without being a hundred percent positive that I would even be able to leave just to let a couple of elves try to pursue me. I had meant it when I had told them that I absolutely did not want any children, so the whole endeavor seemed rather pointless. However, no matter how hard I searched for those memories, most of the last week was a big, fat blank, and I soon gave it up as a lost cause.

  No, it was better for me to just go home and sleep on it. Even if Jenna was home, what could I really tell her? She would either think I was smoking something funny or just pulling her leg. Hell, if our roles were reversed, I probably wouldn’t have believed her even a little bit.

  Besides, there was really only one thing I needed to decide—whether or not I had lied to the elven brothers when I had told them that I would come back tomorrow afternoon.

  That night, I dreamed of my time in the Inbetween again.

  “Entertainment?” Seren echoed with a thoughtful look.

  “Yes, what do you elves do for fun?” I asked, leaning back on my hands as I sat in the grass between Locien and him. “For instance, I love going out with the girls to places where we can do a little dancing, drinking, gossiping, maybe flirt with a guy or two. Do you ever have huge parties or balls or whatever like that?”

  “More often than I would like,” Locien replied. “It seems nearly every few days someone finds an excuse to celebrate something or other, but Hilde enjoys them, even if it is just something as tedious as an official ceremony, so there is little I can do to avoid them.” He turned and scowled at Seren. “Unlike my brother.”

  “I can’t believe anyone would hate going to a party,” I said, shaking my head and feeling a little bit disappointed that neither brother seemed very enthusiastic about something I enjoyed. “I would be perfectly happy to dance and socialize every night for the rest of my life if I could.”

  “It’s not that I hate the social gatherings, themselves,” Seren hastened to explain. “I quite enjoy the music and seeing friends that have long been absent from the elven court. There are just certain—aspects of those particular evenings that I would rather avoid for the moment.”

  Locien snorted, earning a sharp look from Seren.

  “‘Aspects,’ huh?” I said, probably more intrigued than I should have been.

  Seren shrugged, looking altogether too nonchalant. “I shall tell you some other time, perhaps.”

  “Nothing like an evasive answer to keep a girl up at night,” I grumbled, but decided to let it go all the same. “So, would your mistress even be able to attend these parties? I know how uptight blue bloods can get about certain types of relationships being flaunted in public. I can tell you right now that I won’t put up with being kept behind closed doors like the family’s dirty secret. That alone would be a deal breaker.”

  Both elves suddenly began to shift uncomfortably, setting off alarm bells in my head.

  “The human brides are by no means something that must be kept secret,” Seren said firmly.

  “Then why do both of you look like I just asked if I could show up to one of your shindigs naked?” I demanded. “Are there different rules for you two because you’re part of the royal family or something?”

  Seren sighed. “It’s more a matter of circumstance rather than our being royals or a bride’s humanity. It’s the same reason why a human bride is often given rooms apart from her husband within his residence. Thus, the human brides frequently attend public gatherings together, rather than with their husbands, although, of course, there are exceptions.” He offered me a crooked grin that made something within me that had frozen with outrage melt, and I couldn’t help but smile back at him despite the heavy subject and how irritated about the whole thing I had been feeling only seconds earlier. “I think I can be persuaded to attend the gatherings again as your escort if that is what you wish.”

  Damn him—one smile and it was as though all of my very real concerns just disappeared. Was I really prepared to leave all my friends behind—no, more importantly, to reconsider my stance on having children just for the chance to become the wife of one of these incredible men? Could I really accept such a simple role?

  I ran a hand agitatedly through my hair. Yeah right. I couldn’t even give them a straight answer to Locien’s last proposition. I looked at first Seren and then Locian, who had been unusually quiet as Seren and I had talked. Maybe it was time to quit stalling and to take that last, great leap.

  “Locian, about your suggestion from yesterday…”

  The rest of my words were lost within the shrieking sound of my alarm, and the hazy meadow was replaced with a blurry view of my clock atop my nightstand. However, the first thing that ran through my head was not disdain for being woken up at such an interesting point in the dream, but, Who the hell is Hilde?

  CHAPTER FIVE

  “I have to either be the stupidest or craziest woman in existence,” I muttered as I stepped between the trees for the second time in twenty-four hours.

  Here it was, Friday night, and instead of meeting Jenna, Tara, and Mel at the usual hotspot, I blew them off with some lame excuse of having a migraine in order to meet a couple of elves in another dimension. Yeah—crazy didn’t quite cut it.

  Maybe if I hadn’t had that dream last night, I might have been able to stay away, but if there was something worse than my big mouth, then it definitely was my damnable curiosity. I was like a dog with a bone; once I sunk my teeth into something, there was no way I could let it go until I had chewed down to the marrow. The marrow in this case was finding out if last night’s dream had really been another seemingly lost memory surfacing, and if so, I was dying to find out who Hilde was. Just thinking about the name made something within me stand up and take notice, but it was so vague that I couldn’t tell if it was in a good way or a bad way.

  I nearly fell over backwards when Seren suddenly appeared right in front of me even before the strange landscape of the Inbetween could fully replace the trees that once surrounded me, though I couldn
’t stop my startled squawk.

  “Are you trying to give me a heart attack!” I scolded in an attempt to hide my embarrassment.

  “Sorry,” he said sheepishly.

  Today he was dressed in silver and white robes of silk that made him look even more like the mythical creature he was than yesterday. It made me feel suddenly nervous.

  “Where’s Locien?” I asked, finally noticing the other’s absence.

  “Attending to a matter within the realm,” he replied. “He will join us shortly.” He gestured towards a navy-blue blanket spread out a few yards away. “Come, have a seat.”

  It was not lost on me that he had prepared a place for us within easy view of the doorway back to my world. It made me wonder just how much like a deer-in-headlights I had looked yesterday. Shrieking the minute I saw him today probably hadn’t helped matters much. I really didn’t want him or Locien to walk on eggshells around me, deciding to keep things from me or only tell me half-truths in order not to upset me.

  Once I was seated, Seren handed me a cup of something cold and almost as clear as water. I took a cautious sip under his watchful eyes and found that it was the same sweet and bitter drink that I remembered drinking in one of my memory-dreams. I half-expected my mind to start fuzzing out and braced myself to fight it, but when a couple of silent minutes went by and both my thoughts and vision remained as clear as ever, I set the cup down onto the blanket beside me and was finally able to relax.

  In a way, my elven host had just passed a test he hadn’t known he was taking.

  “I had another dream about us last night,” I confessed abruptly, breaking the thick silence.

  Seren’s expression at once became more excited. “A memory?”

  I shrugged. “It was pretty vivid, so I would guess so. Does the name ‘Hilde’ ring a bell?”

  He flinched as if I had suddenly shot my fist towards his face. “I suppose I should not be surprised that her name surfaced within your subconscious,” he said with a wry smile. “You were quite upset the first time you learned of her. Perhaps it is fortunate that Locien is absent this time around as things may not get so awkward.”

  His words caused my chest to tighten unpleasantly. Going by the context within the dream and Seren’s cryptic remarks, two and two were suddenly adding up really quickly.

  “She’s his wife, isn’t she?”

  “She is,” he confirmed, watching my face closely.

  “So, what, you elves practice polygamy?” I tried to sound calm about it, but from the look of concern on his face, I don’t think I quite accomplished it.

  “It’s not frowned upon, but also not something that is done often. In the case of a Sidhe taking a human bride, it is almost always so.”

  This was just getting better and better. “I guess that means you have a wife, too?”

  Again, Seren flashed me that wry smile. “I suppose in this, I have been somewhat of a rebel within my family. While they would have liked to see me bonded with any number of families for political reasons, I have seen little gain for myself to do so for that reason alone.”

  “Because you’re from the royal family?” I asked, remembering another aspect of last night’s dream.

  “Ah, good,” he said. “You remember our conversation about the king and the Royal Wife.”

  “Uh—no, I don’t,” I said, leaning forward in interest. “In the dream last night, we talked about elven parties and the fact of you two being royals came up. Who is this royal wife?”

  “It’s the title given to the bride of the elven king should she be human. Her name is Emily.”

  “I take it she’s not considered the queen?” I said dryly. Seren suddenly looked uncomfortable, and I hastily added, “I don’t mean anything by that, really. It’s just that I’m not surprised a human wouldn’t be allowed to be the queen of the elves.”

  He sighed. “In this case, the issue is much more complicated than her humanity.”

  “Oh!” I exclaimed in sudden comprehension. “She’s not his only wife, is she?”

  “No, she was not. For centuries, our queen has always been of the House of Vanvir, and this time was no exception. She—” He stopped and shook his head. “I think it is probably best that I leave that tale for a better time. It’s not something that I can easily explain without you having a better understanding of the Sidhe as a people, as well as knowledge of at least some of our history. For now, it is enough to say that we no longer have a queen.”

  “But you will tell me all about it someday, right?” I persisted. “I don’t know if I ever told you this, but I hate being left hanging like that. It keeps me up at night, literally, and I don’t appreciate it one bit.”

  “Well, I suppose the answer to that is left in your hands, is it not?” he replied with a mischievous grin.

  I gave him a dirty look. “You elves don’t fight fair at all,” I complained.

  He shrugged, looking unrepentant. “All Locien and I can do is plead our case. The one who will decide if our fates will continue to intertwine is ultimately you.”

  “That’s not entirely true,” I protested, crossing my arms against my chest. He raised a skeptical eyebrow, and I elaborated, “If I decide to become your mistress…” I paused and made a face. I really, really, really hated that word. “…didn’t you say that none of us would have a say in the outcome, that I wouldn’t be able to choose which one of you I would end up marrying? Whoever knocks me up first, remember? Sounds to me that Fate is holding all the cards on that one.”

  Seren laughed. “I stand corrected. In that case, I promise I shall tell you more about what befell our queen whether you decide to accept our proposal or not. It’s the least I can do.”

  “It doesn’t bother you at all, does it?” I asked. “The fact that your potential wife will be sleeping with another man, I mean?”

  His smile instantly disappeared, and he regarded me for a long moment with a more sober expression. “You must not think that this is a decision that we both made lightly. It is hardly an ideal position to find ourselves in, but short of either one of us giving up the right to continue our family line, this was the only acceptable course for us. Had I been expected to share my potential bride with anyone other than my brother, then I would never have agreed to the terms. Locien has said much the same.”

  “That brings up the other elephant in the room,” I said uncomfortably. “What does Locien’s wife have to say about this? I’d sooner claw another woman’s eyes out than let her sleep with my husband. Just the thought of it is infuriating. Hell, I could be that other woman if it turns out that Locien wins the pregnancy lotto, and that just doesn’t sit right with me. Even if I end up with you, I’ll still have been living in your household, sleeping with another woman’s husband.”

  “If Hilde had not made complete peace with the thought of him taking a secondary wife, then none of us would be meeting here today. She wants a child just as much as Locien and is willing to accept not only you, should you join their family, but a secondary role in the lives of any children you may have.” I felt a knot rise in my throat at the deep sadness that suddenly flooded his eyes. “These plagues of infertility that have befallen my people over the long millennia are terrible things to behold, more so since the lifespan of a Sidhe is measured in the thousands rather than the decades of a human. Believe me when I say that she will be more welcoming and accepting than you think.”

  I couldn’t look at him then, my eyes falling first, to my hands in my lap, then to the teacup at my side. I picked it up to take a sip, just to give me something else to focus on briefly as my mind raced.

  Why, why did I have to bring up such a loaded question now? If I were being completely honest with myself, what had driven me back here today wasn’t because I was seriously considering their proposition, but only because I was extremely curious about the elves, themselves. Stumbling into the Inbetween and meeting the elven brothers was without doubt the most exciting thing that had ever happened in my
excruciatingly mundane life.

  Being a bank teller wasn’t exactly my dream job, and even if I somehow managed to move up in the ranks, it would just be more of the same, mindless dull work. Even going out with my friends most weekends, though fun, had become just as routine and less titillating.

  Without realizing it, I had been thumbing my nose at them all this time with my selfish desire to satisfy my own curiosity without once even considering the true weight of my answer. The worst part was that even though I didn’t know the brothers very well, I was still pretty sure neither Seren nor Locien would see my flippant attitude about the whole thing that way at all.

  “I have upset you,” Seren said, making me involuntarily look over at him again.

  “I’m not upset,” I said. “At least not with anything that you said.”

  “You know you can ask me, ask us anything,” he said, his brilliant green eyes seemingly piercing right through me, making me squirm.

  “It’s not that,” I insisted, forcing myself not to look away. “I just realized that I don’t really know as much as I thought I did about all of this, about elves, your society, everything. I’ve been listening to everything you’ve been telling me through a filter of human experiences, and I don’t think that’s going to get any of us anywhere here.”

  “Not necessarily,” Seren replied, suddenly looking thoughtful. “Perhaps that human filter is exactly what is needed here, albeit one that has an entirely unique perspective on the matter than anything you or I can contribute.”

  “What do you mean?”

  Before he could answer, I heard soft footsteps directly behind me, and I nearly dropped my cup as I abruptly twisted my body around towards the sound, my heart now in my throat. Seeing that it was merely Locien approaching steadily, my racing heart was able to slow down a notch. Elves were just too damn quiet for my piece of mind, I thought resentfully.