When Tam and I had come to visit Jerako, we’d entered from the opposite side of the island. I wasn’t sure whether things were the same over here, but as we stepped through the veil of light that glittered at the opposite end of the bridge, the magic of the Greenlings hit.
The snow was still falling, but once again, the magic of the fairyland revealed itself. My mood lifted as the lacework of frost spread through tree and branch, through limb and bough. The snow was clean, a sparkling white field, and the air so crisp my sinuses hurt. The energy here ran so pure and clear that it made me want to sink into a snow bank and rest as the land wove its spell around me.
Holly reigned while the oak rested. I was looking around the clearing into which we had entered, wondering where Jerako was, when a booming voice from the side startled all of us.
“So, the young goddess returns to visit this old one.” Jerako entered from the other side of the clearing, his voice rocking the night. He was tall, a child of the earth, ancient among even the Fae. His body was formed of branches and boughs woven together in a continuous knotwork of lignified wood. Jerako stood ten feet tall, and his face was a mask of vines and leaves that formed his features. But his eyes…Jerako’s eyes were what I remembered most.
Those ancient eyes were wide and clear, awake as ever, limpid pools that flickered between crimson and sunshine orange, and lemon chiffon, all continually swirling into living marble. I gazed up at him, once again feeling my heart open. I was standing before the lord of Gaia’s army, and I both revered and feared him. He was cloaked in holly leaf rather than ivy, and a crown of berries encircled his head.
Jerako gently reached out to tickle my cheek with one of his leafy fingers, although the scratchiness of the holly was more irritating than ticklish. “Well met to you and your friends. You have been traveling long, Zhan says, and you are weary and hungry.”
I nodded. “We’ve been on the road for days with few chances to rest. Jerako, we need to talk. Is there a place we could rest for a little while? I think we’re all exhausted.” Suddenly, like a light switching off, my reserves vanished and I felt like dead weight.
Jerako motioned for Zhan. “Take them to the visitors’ compound and feed them. Give them warmth and water to refresh themselves. I will talk to you in the morning, Fury. Until then, rest easy. There is nothing that will harm you under the cover of my kingdom.”
The first time, our visit had been for an hour or so and we had stayed outside. This time, Zhan led us to an enclosed area. The structure was built out of what looked like reclaimed stone, but it was shaped like a large hall with curved sides, the roof a half circle forming both walls and ceiling. Stone shouldn’t be able to bend that way, I thought. But the curves were too far up for me to check, and when I brushed my fingers along the wall, it felt like stone, all right.
As we entered the hall, the warmth hit me like a furnace. It wasn’t merely warm, but downright humid, and the shock of it almost knocked me off my feet. Zhan motioned to a side bench where we could sit to take off our boots and wet clothes.
“You may change there. I’ll summon food and drink for you. There are blankets and mattress pads on the other side of the hall. Eat your fill, refresh yourselves, and then sleep. There is a bathroom behind that door.” He pointed to one of the doors that lined the far wall. “If you wish to bathe, there are heated pools behind the door next to it. Feel free to take as long as you want. Please don’t wander around unescorted, though. The sentinels will act first and ask questions later. I wouldn’t want to be on the receiving end of their fists.”
The hedgemite winked, his gaze clear and beguiling, and then he vanished through yet another door. We watched him go, then made a beeline for the bench. Elan, Kendall, Greta, and I went into the bathroom together. There, we found fresh towels. We tidied up, used the facilities, washed our faces, and then wrapped ourselves in the towels before exiting. While the men got ready, we headed into the room with the heated pools.
When Zhan said “pool,” he meant a series of ponds. Or rather, natural hot spring. The pools were at various heights and they were all different sizes. I chose the closest, unwrapped my towel, and sank into the pool of hot water, closing my eyes as the heat worked its way through my frozen muscles. Leaning my head back, I closed my eyes as the others joined me.
Within a few minutes, the men had traipsed in and they split into two groups—Jason, Laren, and Tam taking one pond, and Tyrell and Hans opting for a smaller one. Nobody spoke as we basked in the luxury of hot water as the circulation produced soft waves in each pond.
The heat filtered through my body, easing the ache in my joints. I glanced down at the whip on my leg, realizing I missed her. I missed having easy access. For all that a farmer’s life might seem idyllic, when I told Tyrell that I loved my work, I meant it. Even when it was difficult. Even when it hurt like hell.
After a good fifteen minutes, conversation started up.
“Do you think Jerako will help us sneak into Seattle?”
“I think he will. Hecate promised she’d send word to him as to why we were coming, so he probably knows as much as we do.” I let out a long breath, shifting my back till a wayward popped back into place.
“Can you contact Queet and find out what’s happening?” Jason asked.
I glanced over toward him. “I don’t think he can come into the Arbortariam. At least not without their permission. And I’m not feeling the urge to ask at this moment. We’ve got a daunting task facing us when we get home. I don’t think that I’m up to thinking about it tonight. I want one night, one single night, where we can put the zombies and Lyon and the Regent out of our minds. I want a night where I can breathe without wondering who I’m going to have to kill tomorrow in order to save the day, or some such shit like that.”
I hadn’t meant to sound so grumpy, but the truth was just that I was tired. I needed a night’s down time. Escaping out of Seattle had been bad enough, but now we had to sneak back in. Why hadn’t we stayed there in the first place? But as soon as I thought that, the vivid memory of zombies filling the streets, traffic jams, and people screaming filled my thoughts. The streets had flowed red with blood and there had been no time to plan. All we knew was the city was shutting down and we needed to be outside when the gates closed.
“I get it. Let’s spend tonight relaxing and sleeping,” Hans spoke up. “Thor would never turn down a chance for a good ale, or for a good night’s sleep.”
We spent another half hour in the pool. After drying off and slipping into loose nightshirts and underwear Tera had given us back in Eleavanor, Greta and I did some stretching in a warm room along the side wall. My muscles needed the gentle movement. The others headed back to the main hall while we worked out.
“Tam…you really love him, don’t you?” Greta was sitting, legs out in front of her. She grasped her feet in her hands and pulled her head down to her knees.
I was on my stomach, arching my back. “Yes, actually. I do.”
“Will you marry him?”
The question surprised me. “I haven’t even thought about it. We’ve barely had time to be together. I just know that he makes me smile in a way no other man has. And…we work together. I always thought I’d be with someone different. I mean—I never considered Tam as a potential match and then my eyes opened. It was like he was there, waiting for me to realize that he might be more than a friend.”
“I met Hans when I was young. He’s older than you by three or four times the years.”
I knew that Hans had been alive a lot longer than I had, but I never quite knew how old he was. It had never come up in conversation. “Where did you meet him?”
Greta changed position, rolling into a shoulder stand. “When I first went to Temple Valhalla, when my mother carried me before Freya to answer the summons. Freya handpicks her Valkyries. We are chosen at birth and when we are five years old, our parents present us to her. We’re given over for training. For the first five years we go home at night and
on weekends. From age ten through fifteen, we stay there during the week, and are allowed to return home on the weekends. From fifteen until we take our oaths—which happens about five years before our flying-up ceremony—we live in the temple all the time, although we get furloughs to spend with our family or boyfriends.”
The regimen seemed harsh, but then considering what the Valkyries were slated to do for Freya, it was probably necessary.
“Do you like being a Valkyrie?” I wasn’t sure why I was so obsessed with knowing whether my friends liked their lots in life, but I was asking the question a lot lately.
Greta’s smile answered for her. “I am proud of my alliance. I’m proud of what I do, and I’m looking forward to taking on tasks for Freya once I’m given my wings. I wish I could have completed the ceremony, but there will be time.”
“What happens during the ritual? Or is that private?”
“I become immortal.”
She said it quietly. So quietly I almost didn’t catch the words. I did a double take, turning to study her expression to see if she was serious.
“Are you… You’re not joking, are you?”
She shook her head. “All of the Elder Gods are immortal, although they can be wounded and hurt and they aren’t all-powerful. So are the Valkyries and other servants like us. I’ll earn my wings and take on the veil of immortality in Freya’s service. Forever, I will be at her side.”
“You ready for food?” Jason peeked in, interrupting us.
Greta jumped up, then helped pull me to my feet. “I’m hungry. Let’s eat.” As she bounced away, I couldn’t help but smile. From telling me she was facing immortality, to racing toward the dinner table. She was a conundrum and I was beginning to see what Hans saw in her.
After we ate, we settled down in groups. I glanced over at Tam, who was sitting at one of the tables, bare-chested, talking to Hans. I wandered over to him, waiting for a break in conversation.
He looked up at me as I stood beside him. “Yes, love?”
“Can I talk to you about something?” I wasn’t very smooth at seduction yet, but I wanted him, and I wanted him now.
He excused himself and followed me as I led him to the hot springs room. As the door closed behind us, I began to pull off the nightshift I was wearing.
“We’ll have privacy,” I said. My body was trembling. It had been awhile since we’d had the opportunity to make love, and I was hungry for him. The weariness of the journey and the fear and uncertainty warred within me. I needed something to take the edge off.
He broke into a cunning smile. “I like the way you think,” he whispered, running his fingers up my arm. “In the pool?”
I nodded. “The water circulates from an underground stream. It’s hygienic.”
Tam laughed, then. “Always thinking of others.”
“Well, I wouldn’t want to bathe in a pool after somebody had sex in it unless I knew the water had cleared through.” With a smirk I dropped the nightshirt on the floor and stepped into one of the far pools. Not only was it big enough in which to fully stretch out, but it would give us a tad more privacy should anybody decide to come looking for us.
Tam slipped out of his jeans. He was already erect, his cock standing strong and ready. There was something unnerving about the Fae prince—he was lean and lanky, but in a sensuous, sinewy way, and he oozed sexuality from the silver of his eyes to the wild tangle of his hair as it curled down his back.
He held out his hand and led me to the pool. As I stepped in, immersing myself in the warmth of the water, he followed, pulling me to him with his arm snuggly around my waist. Tam rested his forehead against mine, holding me around the waist with one arm. He reached for my hand, bringing it up between us so our fingers were entwined between his chest and my breast.
“I love you,” I murmured. My heart beat a rapid pace, tattooing his name with every pulse. Tam, Tam, Tam…
“I love you too, Fury. Do you know why I don’t call you Kae, like Jason?”
I shook my head. “I’ve wondered. You used to.”
“When you were younger. But as you grew into adulthood, I watched your power and strength grow. You truly are Fury, as Hecate named you. My Fury, my furious one with a fiery whip and a passion to match.” And then he kissed me, his lips lingering over mine as he probed my mouth with his tongue. He kissed me, tasting of dark wine and midnight dreams. He was my dark knight, my Faerie Prince, my Bonny Lord, and I was his chosen.
Tam drew me down on one of the stone benches in the pool. He rubbed one nipple between two fingers, pinching until I gasped from the shock. It hurt, but then blossomed into a delicious warmth that spread from between my thighs all the way up to my face. I flushed, shifting position as I reached down to grasp his cock, holding him tightly as the veins rippled in my hands, throbbing.
Urgency hit then, and I leaned over the side of the pool, resting my elbows on the floor. Tam swung around behind me, penetrating me with one long, delicious thrust. I moaned, swiveling on his shaft. He reached around my waist, finding my clit, stroking me hard as I let out a low moan.
“Tell me what you want, my love.” His voice was ragged and husky as he fingered me.
“Fuck me, please…love me.”
I pressed my hand over his as he stroked me into a frenzy. He pinned me between his body and the side of the pool. The rhythm of his fucking blended with the currents and I fell into a haze as the warmth of the water and the heat from his body cradled me, swinging me higher and higher. I rocked, meeting his thrusts as he drove himself deeper and deeper inside me.
“I’m close, so close,” I moaned.
“Not yet,” Tam said, abruptly withdrawing. He spun me around and lifted me to the side of the pool, pressing me back against the floor. His face was smooth, with the faintest whisper of stubble, as he spread my thighs and his tongue sought my center. He bathed me, at first nuzzling gently, and then he grew more insistent, swirling his tongue on my core, heightening my desire until my teeth chattered with the tension.
I couldn’t breathe. Everything felt suspended. It was as though I was hanging over a deep chasm by a slender thread, and Tam was in charge. One more moment, one motion, and he’d break the thread and I’d fall. I tried to catch my breath, tried to focus, but all focus was gone, and then it was just me and the feel of his tongue against me, stoking the fire, stoking the fury inside.
I rode the wave, rode that swinging thread for all it was worth. Then, in one sharp motion, he nipped—hard—and the thread broke and I fell, the sharp pain cascading me into the orgasm, pleasure following as I tumbled into the release. The sensation buoyed me up, catching me before I hit the bottom. My body rippled, waves circling out like the concentric rings on a pond. I let out a low cry.
“Now, time for you to ride me, girl.” Tam pulled me to awareness as I found myself sliding back in the pool. He sat on the rock bench and stretched out his long legs, pulling me down on his groin so I was facing him. I slid back onto his cock, satiated and yet wanting more. As I leaned my breasts against his chest, I caught hold of the sides of the pool with my hands, and began to ride him hard, sliding up and down his girth, loving every second as he stretched me wide, thick and hard.
Tam caught one of my breasts in his mouth, sucking hard, and I swiveled on his lap, rocking from side to side as his eyes glittered. His urgency struck me, and I picked up my speed. He wrapped his arms around me and, lifting me by my butt, he rose, spinning me around still impaled on his shaft, as he pushed me against the pond again. He began to thrust faster, laughing low as his delight mingled with mine. Before I realized it, I was coming again. As the orgasm rippled through me, Tam let out one final gasp, then a low guttural cry as he stiffened against me, pinning me against the side of the pool, tensing as he came hard and fast and long.
A moment’s pause…then another, and finally he gently released me, reaching up to stroke my hair back from my face.
“My beautiful Fury. I needed you. Thank you.” His voice
was soft, a murmur really.
I kissed his nose. “I needed you.”
He pulled me into his arms, kissing me, but this time, the kiss was slow like honey, and it sealed our lovemaking like a nightcap on the end of a long day.
Tam and I washed off, soaping up and making certain the water was clear.
“You go ahead. I’ll be in, in a moment.”
“Are you sure?” He reached out and took my hand, kissing the palm. “Fury… You are mine, aren’t you? I know how you felt about Jason.”
I hadn’t realized that. “I did have a crush on him. But that’s done and over with. Tam, I’m yours as much as I’m anybody’s. I belong first to Hecate, second to myself, and third, to you. Rest assured, no other man takes your place in my heart.”
“That’s all I need to know, love. That’s all I need to hear.”
I waved him out of the pool room. I wanted a moment by myself to rest, to let our passion settle before returning to the others. Tam and I had come together so quickly that I hadn’t really had much time to think about it, given all the trials we were facing. But now, I was beginning to realize how deep my love for him was growing.
We had already said the words—at least on that boyfriend–girlfriend level. But tonight, the energy between us had pierced a barricade I usually kept well protected from others. I had truly let Tam into my heart, and the thought of being without him made me panic.
I couldn’t imagine loving anybody else. When I thought back to my crush on Jason, it seemed surreal and shallow, and that realization actually comforted me. I wasn’t on the rebound. Could you really ever be on the rebound from a relationship that never existed?
Whatever the case, the Bonny Prince and his magnetic smile had reeled me in. I was hooked, and I was his, and whatever the future brought, I was grateful that we had each other.