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  I leaned back against the booth and Erick’s shoulder, listening to them talk about his sister’s wedding. Apparently, she wasn’t Erick’s real sister, but he’d saved her life several centuries ago and she’d called him brother ever since.

  When Miles asked what had happened with the Djinn, I sat up. Erick glanced at me briefly before continuing, as if trying to decide if he should let me in on this conversation. “He was there to bother Cyn. The wedding was out in the open, so we knew he’d try something.”

  “We’ve got to take care of that asshole,” Miles said. “He’s getting more brazen and I don’t like it.”

  Miles snapped up the last piece of celery and licked his lips before chomping it down in one bite. “Oh, by the way.” He looked straight at me, his brown eyes flickering with just a hint of honey. “Arlea told me to tell you hi, Bailey. She said she understands your hesitation to enter the Castle, but hopes you will visit soon.”

  “Miles,” Erick growled.

  “Hey, I’m just relaying a message from the Oracle. I don’t know about you, but if Arlea tells me to do something, I sure as hell do it. I don’t need any more bad karma. Me and Eli already have enough. Losing Diana pretty much kicked our collective asses.”

  “We will find her, Miles. Even the Sisters say that she will return to you.”

  “Yeah.” He sighed. “That’s what they’ve been saying for centuries.” Moving from the booth, he stood slowly, his seven-foot frame looming over the table. “I have to go relieve my brother from dungeon duty, so I’ll see you two lovebirds later,” he said, a mischievous glint shining in his brown eyes. He nodded his head to me before heading out the front door.

  I laughed and then slapped my hand over my mouth, staring down at the table in horror. Miles was already outside, but I couldn’t believe I’d felt comfortable enough to laugh at him. But, he’d just used the words dungeon and lovebirds in the same sentence. As if it were perfectly normal for someone to have something called dungeon duty. I guess when a castle, dragons, and kinky sex are involved, having a dungeon isn’t so far out of the realm of possibility.

  Erick gave me a gentle smile. “It’s good to hear you laugh.”

  “It feels strange.” I glanced around the café. Lots of people were laughing and carrying on. Some were quiet. There were even a few couples tucked into the back of the room. “I haven’t had friends since … well … even after the way they scared me at first, Miles seems like someone I can trust. Actually, I feel pretty comfortable with everyone I’ve met in town so far.

  “Even Garrett?”

  “He may not be your biggest fan, but yes, I think I can trust him. He protected me on the bus. Even though he continues to invade my personal thoughts from time to time, he seems like an okay guy.”

  “He is interested in you.”

  I nearly choked on my tongue. Interested? The art of flirtation was not one of my talents. In fact, I’d made quite an art of avoiding all such advances over the last few years. How had I missed Garrett’s intentions?

  “Ummm ...”

  “Are you interested in him?”

  “No! Not that way. I just …”

  Erick stared at me, waiting patiently. No jealousy, just persistence. He wanted an answer. What was I supposed to say? That I found Garrett attractive, but had no interest in being with him?

  “Find him attractive?” he ventured.

  “I, maybe, but … I don’t have feelings for him.”

  “I know.” He slipped an arm around my waist and squeezed. “You shouldn’t feel bad for being attracted to him or anyone in town. Appreciating someone’s appearance isn’t wrong.”

  “Oh.”

  “Humans are brainwashed into believing that appreciation or admiration is tantamount to cheating on their significant other. Many supernaturals feel the same way, but I am not one of them. Nor are my friends.” He paused a moment and kissed the top of my head. “Garrett and his brother are not my friends,” he whispered.

  “But you trust them?”

  “To protect the town? Yes.” Erick’s eyes darkened, pulling me into their inky blue depths. “To try and woo you away from me? Yes.”

  “I wouldn’t ever … why would he think ... ?”

  “Men do not always follow logic and reason where women are concerned.” He slid from his seat and stood, offering me his hand. His palm was cool and his grasp on my fingers was firm, but gentle.

  No disgruntled Djinn, horny werewolf, or pissed-off ex would take me from Erick. I wanted this life. These friends.

  Something about this town called to me.

  It said I belonged.

  Chapter 9

  A warm summer breeze ruffled a few pieces of my hair that’d come loose from my braid. The moon and star-soaked sky shone brightly on Sanctuary. The gas street lamps along the main circle added a warm glow to the evening’s natural light. The lamps complemented the style of the town—old, brick, with cobblestone streets. Only the sidewalks were made of smooth concrete, reminding me I hadn’t stepped into a contraband history book.

  I touched one of the lampposts as we walked. The finish made it look like an old wooden post, but it was solid metal. Such detail and beauty in this hidden-away sanctuary. Little things made it special, like the hand-painted signs above the shops. It was a world away from the grind of the most people’s reality.

  “Is the market still open?” I pointed toward the grocery store window. “It would be nice to have some eggs and juice in the morning.”

  “I’m sure Bella will let us in. She’s usually there until all hours of the night.”

  “Is she a pixie? Rose said pixies ran the market.”

  “Yes. Sanctuary took in an entire grove of pixies when we first started building the town,” he answered, putting his hand around my waist as we walked along the winding sidewalk. “They came with the stream and oak forest that lie just west of the town border.”

  “They came with it?” How could people come from a river? Or some old trees?

  “Pixies, or fairies as some call them, are from nature. There isn’t an easy way to explain it, but they lived in the trees and in the water. When we arrived and started building, they would trash our camp every night, trying to scare us off.”

  “Didn’t that irritate you?”

  “Of course it did. On the third night, we caught a few of them and they had a heart-to-heart with Rose. After that, the pixies mostly stayed with us. There are a few who still live outside the town in their natural form, but most joined us.”

  I stopped at the window and looked in. The market looked like any other small grocery store I’d been in, except in the back. I could see lights and … bushes … trees. What was in there? I squinted.

  “We could go in and ask Bella to give you a tour.” The amusement in his voice was not masked, and I couldn’t help but smile. I nearly had my nose pressed to the glass, trying to get a closer look.

  “That would probably be better.”

  He chuckled. “I thought it might.”

  Before he grabbed the handle, the door swung open and a petite woman with short, sky blue hair stood in the entrance. Her skin was ivory and as smooth as porcelain. But it was her eyes that really stood out. Green— greener than a freshly budded leaf in springtime. No glowing or sparkling, just color in its purest form. Spectacular, really.

  “Bella, this is Bailey.” The rumble of his voice jarred me from my thoughts.

  “Hi,” I answered, extending my hand.

  She smiled and leaned forward to hug me instead. The quick squeeze was surprising but not unpleasant. “Hi, sweetie. I knew you’d be by eventually. A girl likes to have at least a little food in the house, am I right?”

  “Yes.” The pixie’s easygoing attitude put me completely at ease.

  “Come on in then. You won’t get far trying to dematerialize and come through the window pane.” She giggled and led us into the store.

  Heat flared in my cheeks. She’d seen me peering in the window.


  “Do you want to see the plants in the back first? I think that’s what caught your eye, wasn’t it?” I caught sight of a smirk on her face before she trotted through the store and back to the area where I thought I’d seen shrubbery.

  “How do you grow them inside?” I walked forward, grateful to feel Erick’s hand at the small of my back. It was exciting to see new things and not be afraid of talking to people. I could see myself staying and making friends with the people in Sanctuary. As long as they would tolerate me—a human.

  “We have skylights.” She gestured to the ceiling and I looked up. Indeed, there were skylights. In fact, the entire roof was made of glass. Only the front of the store was covered. “Well, technically it’s more of a greenhouse.” She twirled and smiled. “I love seeing the reaction on people’s faces when they see it for the first time.” She waved her hands and iridescent water droplets rained from the glass ceiling onto the variety of plants. Some I recognized and others looked like miniatures of larger trees.

  “It’s like magick.” The words slipped from my mouth without hesitation. I sounded so infantile. Magick? Really. But, they were supernatural beings with extraordinary powers … and the siren made enchanted, self-cleaning clothes. Were pixies with a supernatural greenhouse so outlandish?

  Bella’s face beamed. I could have sworn I saw an effervescent glow surround her. “It is magick. Fae dust, to be precise. Mixed into the water we give the plants, it allows us to completely control the essence of the plant, down to its atomic structure. Any plant anyone brings me, we can grow here.” She waved her hands again and the glowing mist ceased to fall. Lights brightened in the room until it appeared as though it was noon outside. “Now, tell me. What’s your favorite fruit?”

  “Pineapple.”

  “Oh, good one! Follow me.” She scurried down an aisle beckoning us to follow.

  I glanced back at Erick.

  “I’ll wait here for you. Go see,” he answered, grinning.

  My hesitation lasted only a second before I darted after her. She’d stopped in the back corner and had picked up a pot from the floor and set it on an empty table in the middle of the aisle. Maybe it was a pineapple plant. I couldn’t be sure. I didn’t really know what they grew on.

  She looked up and caught my gaze. “Watch the bud in the center of the plant.”

  Nodding, I focused on the reddish-pink ball in the middle. It was the size of a tennis ball and looked like it was covered with reptilian scales. A flick of her wrist surrounded us in the fine glowing mist again. I gasped. The plant moved, growing and changing right in front of me. The bud got bigger and brighter. It was bigger than my fist in seconds and then started changing colors, fading from the bright pink red to a rich green. The scales started to widen and stretch. Then I began to see a faint yellow outline around each one. It was ripe. A pineapple had grown and ripened in front of me in a matter of seconds.

  “How?”

  “Like you said earlier.” She grabbed the fruit and cut it from the stem. “It’s magick.”

  “So all the plants here … they grow just as you need them?”

  Bella nodded. “Except for meat and packaged food, though why anyone would ever want to eat something called a Twinkie is beyond me, the town is completely self-sufficient. We provide produce for everyone’s home, including the café.”

  “I don’t know what to say.” The whole place was overwhelming.

  “Just tell me what you need for breakfast and I’ll set you up with a quick basket. I can show you more another time.”

  “I would like that. If there’s anything I can do to help in the store, please let me know. I’m not really sure where they think I’m going to fit in around here. I’d really like to have something to keep me busy.”

  She waggled a pointer finger at me and clicked her tongue. “Be careful what you ask for, I may just hold you to that offer.”

  “Thank you.”

  “What do you need?”

  “Oh, some eggs, orange juice, maybe a little bacon would be good. Any fresh fruit you are willing to part with would be appreciated.”

  “Excellent. I’ll meet you at the front.”

  “Thank you, again.”

  “Phffft. No trouble, sweetie.” She flitted away, plucking this and that from different plants.

  I walked back to the front of the store where Erick stood. His gaze darkened as it fell on me and I felt his hunger in the air between us like a sparking live wire. His wasn’t the only energy. My arousal spiked right along with his. I wanted nothing more than to be naked and wrapped in his arms.

  “Kjaere,” his accent oozed sex. I’d met dozens of vampires since I’d moved to Texas, but Erick was a whole different variety. Hell, he was a whole different variety of man, too. “Did you enjoy the tour?”

  “Yes,” I nodded, licking my lips. “She showed me how the fae dust feeds the plants.”

  He stepped forward and pulled me into his arms. His peppermint scent filled my lungs just as his mouth captured my lips. He tasted like honey and smelled like peppermint. Where did he get the candy? He drove his tongue into my mouth and all thoughts of missing the bowl of mints vanished. He crushed my lips with his, all the while cradling my head in his large palms. His thumbs caressed the rise of my cheeks and I moaned into his mouth.

  My body burned and my sex throbbed. I could feel my pulse everywhere. Moisture soaked my panties and my breasts were heavy. It was like we’d been in bed touching each other for hours, instead of only a few seconds.

  “Erick Thorson, take your tongue out of her mouth and get her into a proper bed before you spread her across the counter next to the cash register.”

  I squeaked and tried to pull away, but he held me tight, licking the edges of my lips before slowly releasing me from his grasp.

  Bella held up a basket of groceries and flashed me a quick smile before looking back at Erick. “She had a nice dowsing of dust. You can thank me later by helping me build some new tables for the back.”

  “Will do.” He took the basket and guided me out of the store with his other hand at my back. “Night, Bella,” he called out before she closed the door after us.

  “What was that? What did she mean I got dowsed? I thought that stuff was just for the plants.”

  “Fae dust has a unique effect on humans,” he finally answered as we turned off the main town circle. “It heightens their senses and libido.”

  “It makes us horny?” I giggled. I certainly felt horny and absolutely ready to strip naked in the street. Damn, we needed to hurry. I pushed into a faster walk and felt his arm encircle my waist. My feet lifted from the ground and we rushed forward. Air whipped against my face. The scent of honeysuckle was on the breeze and a second later we were at his door.

  He set me down in the center of his foyer and left my side in a blur. The lights flashed in the kitchen for only a few seconds before he was back and carrying me up the stairs, cradled in his arms like a precious treasure.

  Shouldering open the double doors to his bedroom, he walked to the edge of the bed and let me slide slowly to my feet. I kicked off the ballet flats and raised my arms in the air over my head, allowing him to pull off my shirt. It sailed across the room and moments later, my bra followed.

  He paused and kissed each breast before unsnapping my jeans and pushing them gently over my hips. I shimmied until they fell to the floor. The underwear was next and I breathed a sigh of relief when he let me step out of them instead of tearing them from my body. I really liked these clothes. I would hate to have to ask Calliope for more so soon.

  His lips seared my skin, leaving a hot trail from my neck down to my breasts. I pulled at the hem of his shirt, begging him to join me skin to skin. He obliged and I ran my hands over his solid pecs and taut, eight-pack abs. I wanted to bite and nip at his body. He smelled so good.

  He lifted me like a feather and laid me gently on the bed. I sat up and crawled toward him on my knees. He shucked his pants and underwear and
gestured with a hand for me to turn. My pussy creamed at the thought of him behind me and I twisted to present my ass. He gave each cheek a quick smack and I yelped. Before I could move, he grabbed my hips and drove into me from behind with one thrust.

  So full. So much pressure.

  My heart leapt into my throat and I strangled a moan. He held me there several moments before slowly pulling out and then pushing back in. The movement was torturously slow. I tried to push back against him to get a better rhythm, but he held my hips still.

  “Am I hurting you?”

  “No,” I gasped. Nerve endings surged with electricity as he drew his cock in and out of my slick pussy. Every moment was pure pleasure. One of his hands slid down from my hips and between the folds of my sex, finding the tiny swollen nub that thrummed with need and circling it with a finger ever so slowly. “Ahhh,” I whimpered and pushed back against his cock. Struggling against his grip, I fought to take him harder and faster, but he wouldn’t be rushed. His thrusts remained slow, and just his one hand on my hip held me firmly in place.

  As his cock slid in and out, his talented fingers tortured my clit until a sheen of sweat coated my skin and my entire body shook. The release I needed was just out of reach. Every time I would rise to the crest, he slowed down, keeping me on an edge that bordered on painful.

  “Please.” My arms threatened to collapse. Soon I would just be a writhing mass, crying for an orgasm to soothe my humming body. “I need you.”

  He released my hips, slid from my body. I cried out. The emptiness was worse than the desire to come had been.

  “Shhh, kjaere. I am here.” He turned me over and spread me out on my back. Kneeling between my legs, his form was truly spectacular. His tanned skin glowed in the low lamplight of the bedroom, and his blond hair caught the light and shone like strands of spun gold. A god among men.

  He was overwhelmingly male … protector, predator, and lover.

  His blue eyes were as dark as the night sky and I caught a glimpse of crimson sparkling from them. My skin tingled in anticipation of his bite. I knew it was coming. I wanted it to come.