by Terry Spear
When he lightened his grip on her, he said, “Waking me in that manner is preferred to any other.” A hint of a smile played in his eyes, but he seemed serious, too.
“You faked being asleep,” she scolded, so unfamiliar with the feelings that were welling up inside her, she wasn’t sure whether to attempt to ignore them or glory in them.
He smiled then. “No. I heard your voice from far away, but not what you said. And then I felt your mouth seeking a kiss from me, and that’s when I fully awoke.”
But she could tell he was still groggy, the way his eyes were half–lidded, his speech still tired.
“Drink the brew,” she said, pulling away from him to get the mug of the antidote, wanting him to feel so much better. She helped him to sit up and offered him the fragrant potion.
“It is not poisoned, is it?” he asked, taking the mug in his hands.
She frowned at him, folding her arms. “Why would I poison you?”
“Not you, Serena. You could not finish the process yesterday. What if someone threw something else in the pot in the meantime?”
She leaned over and smelled the concoction. “No, it has the right scent. Hurry, Niall, and drink up before we’re caught. You don’t want to wait to overcome this condition you suffer from for another two months, do you?”
Niall wasn’t about to wait a second longer to get rid of this perpetual tiredness. He gulped down the fragrant drink that tasted like peppermint and lavender combined, not sure he liked the unusual flavor.
“I wish to go to South Padre Island,” Serena said, much to his surprise.
“Why there? Do you still think I cannot joust successfully against the dragon fae?” he asked, not liking that she might believe that about him, but realizing as soon as he said it, he shouldn’t have assumed that’s what she was thinking. He set the empty mug down on a small table next to the bed.
“No, of course not. The Renaissance fair is only open on the weekends. With all the time that it took for you to free me from the tower, and the time that you slept again, the fair is now closed. You’ve missed your chance to joust with him anyway.”
Before Niall could say anything further, she grabbed his hand and whisked him away to the white sand beaches of South Padre Island. He knew just where they were as soon as they stood in the middle of the beach, invisible to humans, the warm wind caressing their skin, the sun still high in the Texas sky because of the summer night, the songs of seagulls floating on the breeze.
When he was sure about most things, Serena was a woman who unbalanced him. One minute, he was in charge, the next, she was. And he kind of liked the way she decided things for them sometimes, not all the time, but sometimes.
He took a deep breath of the salty air. Something about the island not only reinvigorated him like the potion had done, but it also made him feel relaxed, at ease, as though all the burdens he was feeling were lifted off his shoulders at once. He felt lighthearted and for the first time since he’d met the winged Mabara princess, he wanted to just have fun—with her.
Humans strolled along the sandy shore, while others frolicked in the surf, but most were done playing on the beach early this evening.
But then his wariness kicked in, not so much of her, but of his own people. “So why are we here? If any of the Denkar become aware you are here again, they may very well lock you right back up,” he warned, worried that any Denkar might spot them, report back, and the royal guard dispatched at once.
“In your dungeon again?” she asked, eyes wide.
“Certainly not. At least I assume they wouldn’t. That is if they know who you are now. So why are we here?” he asked again.
She shrugged, pulled off her sandals, and smiled as the sand sifted through her toes while she walked toward the blue water. Her fae silk skirts fluttered in the heavenly breeze, and she looked as though she felt right at home here, and beautiful, just like the first time he had seen her, but this time her golden hair floated around her shoulders.
“Do you come here often?” she asked, glancing over her shoulder at him.
“Sometimes,” Niall said, dumping his boots next to her sandals.
She turned her gaze toward the water again and he yanked off his leather pouch and tunic. Then he rolled up his breeches so that they rested in wrinkly cuffs at his knees.
Their clothes would remain unseen lying on the beach as long as they didn’t put them on and then the fae make themselves visible. So their gear would be safe from thieves, unless a fae decided to steal the items. Which was a lot less likely than humans purloining anything left on a beach unattended.
“To chase after the girls?” She lifted her brows in question, her gaze shifting from the Gulf to see Niall’s response when he didn’t answer, and her eyes widened to see his golden chest bared.
“No,” he said, belatedly, amused that she seemed perturbed by the notion he might chase after other wenches. Was she jealous of his interest in other girls?
He was loath to admit he felt that way about Sir Reginald’s interest in Serena. When Niall had no claim to her!
***
Niall was gorgeous, his legs just as tan as his chest, his golden hair dusting his shoulders. Serena’s gaze shifted to his face. “No?” she asked, sounding as if she didn’t believe him, which she hadn’t meant to. “Just ogling the human girls then?”
He smiled.
Self–assured fae.
She snorted and headed for the water as Niall followed behind her.
“What is the fascination with human females anyway?” she persisted.
“None.”
Now she didn’t believe him! She glanced over her shoulder at him, her eyes rounded.
“None for me. I cannot speak for other fae.”
She still didn’t believe him. Why would a blue–blooded male fae not be intrigued by the human girls wearing string bikinis? “What do you do here then?”
“Swim.”
“Swim?” She reached the water’s edge as it swept over her toes and pulled back. “You swim.”
Looking sufficiently serious, he nodded. “Don’t you?”
She fluttered her wings in an annoyed manner. “If they get wet…”
“You can’t fly?” he asked, sounding more than surprised.
She frowned at him. “I can’t fly, period.”
“Right. I didn’t mean that. I mean, oh, I don’t know what I meant.” He let out his breath in a huff, looking like he hated himself for having said something so idiotic that might have offended her. He probably had heard the Mabara were touchy about having lost the ability to fly, even though it had been centuries ago. “Do they get…waterlogged?” he tried again.
“I…I don’t know. They get wet in the bathwater, but it’s not the same as swimming in that.” She motioned to the Gulf where seagulls sailed overhead and small white caps gathered at the top edge of breakers.
“Do you want to try it out?” he asked, offering his hand.
She studied the water, wanting badly to swim, but afraid her wings might drag her down when they got too wet.
“Come,” he coaxed, taking her hand and gave her a gentle, reassuring pull. “If you don’t like it, we’ll go back in.”
Serena tucked her wings back as she carefully waded into the water, hand–in–hand with Niall. She loved the small intimacy he shared with her when they held hands. Though she recognized that since she was betrothed to another, she should not be so bold with Niall. But it felt right with him, and besides, he was only ensuring she didn’t drown. That was all.
She stepped off the shallower sand bar and into deeper water up to her collarbone, her eyes rounding with fear. He immediately pulled her to the next sand bar, waiting for her to agree to go out farther or stay here. She loved how concerned he was about how she felt. If she’d been with one of her fussy old tutors, he would have tsked, folded his arms, and waited until she got up the nerve to conquer her own fears. He probably would have stood on the shore, staying dry while he motioned for her to get
on with the task.
“How do you like it so far?” Niall asked.
She wasn’t certain yet. She took a tentative step forward into the darker Gulf and sank into the warm salty water up to her shoulders. At once, she felt both panic and exhilaration.
He joined her, still standing much taller, and wrapped his arm around her waist, making her feel secure and protected.
She relaxed, jumping a little to crest a small wave, looked up at him studying her carefully, and beamed. “I…I love it.”
That’s when his anxious expression melted away, the furrow of his brows disappeared, and he smiled broadly. “I like coming here to get away, to swim, to walk on the beach, mostly without anyone seeing me.”
“And to check out the girls,” she said pointedly, knowing he couldn’t come here and not take his fill of the bikini–clad girls. She almost wished she had one of those shimmering blue ones she’d seen in the shop where the clerk was trying to talk the customer into buying the hideous dress.
But because of her wings, Serena could never appear on the beach unless hidden from the humans’ view. Not at least until she had control over making her wings invisible.
As if he knew what was bothering her, he said, “Your wings are beautiful.”
She glanced up at him. He looked dreamy–eyed and sincere.
“I didn’t think other kinds of fae thought anything of the sort. More that we are oddities in the fae world.”
He smiled down at her. “You’re beautiful, Serena. Don’t ever let anyone else tell you differently.” Then he stiffened a little. “You’re not worried that Micala won’t want to marry you because of your wings, do you?”
“Micala.” She scowled and pulled away from Niall. She meant to stalk off to the shore, but she stepped into a trough and submerged completely under the water with a squeak.
Niall was there in a flash, pulling her from the water, holding her tight. She sputtered and coughed, trying to catch her breath.
Before she could scowl at how ridiculous she felt, Niall lifted her into his arms and kissed her cheek, and headed into shore.
Serena felt like the proverbial drowned rat, yet his touch was heating her inside out.
“I can walk,” she insisted, sounding horribly irritated.
“We can have another swimming lesson later,” Niall said cheerfully, ignoring her complaint.
He didn’t think she was a complete idiot?
“How are your wings feeling?” he asked, sounding concerned.
She unfurled them behind her and flapped them. “Wet.”
“But they’re all right?”
She sighed. “Yes.”
“Good. Next time, I’ll show you how to float, dog paddle, and ride the swells.”
“As opposed to drowning?”
He chuckled. “I didn’t expect you to fall in a hole or I would have kept hold of your hand.”
“Thanks for the rescue,” she demurely said, realizing this was becoming a common occurrence between them. Would Sir Reginald have taken her for a swim? Would he teach her to dog paddle and float and ride the swells of the waves?
“You want to go parasailing?”
She stared at him, wanting to so badly, but how could they do such a thing? With her wings, and no bathing suits, and…well, how could they?
Seeing the hesitation in her expression, Niall must have figured if he pushed her, she would agree. He grabbed her hand and raced with her down the beach.
“You’ll have a blast. Parascending is another thing I love to do when I come here.”
“But…”
He smiled at her. “We catch a ride. We don’t pay. Not when we own the island and everything here is for our recreational enjoyment.”
“But…”
His smile broadened. “Just wait and see. The wind is perfect for parasailing. See that man’s harness is getting hooked up to the parasail? He won’t run after the boat, but instead will resist the pull to keep his line taut. Then one to three steps and he’s airborne.”
“But he has a helmet, and he’s wearing shoes, a life vest even.”
“He can’t fae transport like we can if he gets into trouble. Come on!”
One of the two flight crew members holding the parasail signaled the boat to hit it. The motor boat took off, but not before both Serena and Niall had grabbed hold of the man and held tight. They weighed nothing when they clung to a human like this, but they would make him tingle with a strange numbness.
The man settled into the harness as if he was sitting, and Serena glanced over his back at Niall, who was watching her, not the spectacular view.
She grinned, having the time of her life. She was flying! With a Denkar fae, who had freed her from the tower. What would her mother think?
She glanced at the view of a bank of clouds highlighted in ribbons of pinks and purples with the setting sun, the darkening waters below, rippling with small crests of white bubbles, at Niall, the man who had given her the most fun experiences she’d had in a long time—swimming and now parasailing.
“We’re about 225 feet up in the air. What do you think, Serena?”
“I love it!” He had to know she did from the way she was beaming.
She felt she could do this all night when she realized the boat was headed in closer to shore, then the driver reduced the boat’s throttle. The flyer and the fae began to gently drift down toward the dark waters. And when the boat stopped, the man unhooked from the harness as he floated in the water with the fae. The boat crew quickly picked him up, along with the parasail, and a couple of fae—without the crew or the man’s knowledge.
A first for a boat ride, too, Serena thought happily satisfied. With the breeze in their faces, Niall pulled a wet Serena into his arms, and she snuggled against him, loving everything about him.
She smiled up at him. “Ohmigoddess, that was the most fun I’ve ever had. No Mabara will ever believe I actually flew!”
The man who’d paid for the flight talked away to the crew members, saying he wanted to try a landing on the beach next time. But Serena had loved landing in the water, clinging to the man’s life vest and Niall’s hand and finding that wet wings and all, she could sort of swim, kicking at the water with her feet.
She couldn’t wait to do it all over again another day.
But as soon as they reached the shore and Niall carried her out of the boat and onto the sandy beach, she caught sight of Micala, the dark fae count she was supposed to be marrying. He was walking along the beach in full human view, his hand wrapped around a human girl’s. Serena instantly scrambled to get out of Niall’s grasp.
“What’s the matter?” he asked, nearly dropping her.
She pointed to Micala and the girl. “That’s who I’m to marry!”
Niall stared at the two of them, then shook his head.
“Come on,” Serena said, tugging him in Micala’s direction.
“What are you planning?” He sounded reluctant to take part in this venture.
“I want to see who the human is.”
“We can’t become visible. We’re both wearing fae clothes, or at least you are. I’m half–dressed, and we’re both soaking wet and looking a little bedraggled.”
“So we follow them in our invisible forms.”
“What are you planning to do?” Niall asked again.
“I want to meet my groom–to–be!” She smiled at Niall, whose golden skin suddenly looked pale in the fading sunlight.
Serena studied Micala, his blond hair long like Niall’s. Were his eyes blue also?
He was the same height as both Niall and Deveron, same tall, slim build, wearing wet blue and white floral swim trunks, bare feet, no shirt. He must have been swimming with the human girl just before they had arrived, and his gait was easy and relaxed. The human girl had wet, dark brown curls that the breeze tossed around, and she wore a hot pink bikini, showing off a great figure. On top of that, she was walking way too close to Micala, when he was betrothed to Serena! Mi
cala and the girl were even holding hands!
Serena wasn’t often jealous, but she envied that the girl could show off a great bod because she didn’t have any wings to hide. Which was part of what got Serena’s own people into trouble centuries ago when they coveted looking like humans and lost their ability to fly. At least they were smart enough not to lose their power over the air elementals.
At that moment, she had the greatest urge to whip up a sand devil and give them both a blast of it.
Chapter 11
“What is her name?” Serena asked Niall as she quickened her pace in the sand, and they drew even closer to Micala and his human girlfriend.
“Serena…,” Niall warned, casting her a glance that said cool it.
But she wasn’t going to fight her territorial fae tendencies, even if she didn’t want the guy. If her mother and Queen Irenis said it was a done deal and she couldn’t get out of it, she had every right to protest Micala’s actions. “You know her name, don’t you?”
Niall sighed. “Cassie. She’s a friend of Alicia, Prince Deveron’s betrothed.”
“Why ever would a fae have a human friend?”
“She lived among them.”
“Humpf.”
Niall definitely was trying to forestall Serena’s meeting up with Micala as he kept holding her back as if he couldn’t walk through the sand that quickly. Maybe hoping to change her mind before they reached Micala and the girl and Serena made a scene?
But Serena was betrothed to Micala and if she couldn’t get out of this arrangement, she would be stuck with him. No way was she going to share him with some human girl.
She finally shook loose of Niall’s restraining touch and quickly moved to intercept Micala.
As soon as she appeared in front of him, Micala yanked Cassie to a stop and stared wide–eyed at Serena, no recognition whatsoever that she should mean something to him though.
“What’s wrong?” Cassie asked Micala, her voice concerned.
“What’s wrong,” Serena said, her voice highly ruffled, although only Micala and Niall could hear and see her, “is that lover boy…” She waved her hand at Micala, then planted both her hands on her hips in an infuriated fashion. “…is betrothed to me! And I don’t share!”
