Spark of Intent

by Harper Wylde

  “Um. Criminal Justice was my plan, but I’m not fully sure anymore.”

  “Why’s that?” Her questions were polite, but I wasn’t exactly sure how to answer. How did you tell someone you didn’t know what to do with your life. Their Council wanted me to bear children, to solidify my place in their twisted, prejudicial world.

  “Mom.” Theo’s quiet censure drew his mother’s eyes from her spot at the stove. Her glance at his serious face had her eyes shooting to me and assessing her words.

  “Ah.” She cleared her throat, her features softening as I kept her in my peripheral vision. I saw her shooing my guys to the other side of the room and she approached me, making sure not to sneak up on me as she came to sort through the vegetables I was chopping. “Nix.” Her voice was quiet enough that the others probably wouldn’t hear her. “You’re going to hear a lot of things about this culture. I don’t know much about the human world, but I assume it’s full of its own problems. You are in the center of all of it, and it’s going to be extremely difficult for you, there’s no doubt. Just realize that you do have people supporting you. Not as a rare shifter, but as a young woman. If you want to study criminal justice, study it. If you don’t want to have children yet, then don’t. You need to figure out your own limits and stick to them. Don’t let them change you as a person, sweetheart. My boys adore you and they aren’t easily fooled. I’ll help you as much as I can, the same way I’m helping Molly.” Angela reached out as though to stroke my hair before pulling her hand back to her work. “The Gala will be a challenge. It’s going to test everything you know about our world and its people. It’s politics, Nix, and it’s never pretty. Molly will be presented this year as well. It’s not always about power, though. I want her—and you—to find someone or a group of someones you are able be happy with. I will never use her as a pawn, and I won’t let you be used as one either.” She stepped back towards the stove, heating the oil to saute the vegetables I was working on. “Boys!” The sudden increase in volume had me jolting, barely missing my fingers with the knife I was using. “Come set the table. Dinner will be ready soon.”

  Eleven

  Killian

  Listening to Ciarán hum tunelessly to himself, I just wanted to slam my head against a door. Nix and the guys had been gone all day, leaving just my brother and me alone. Ciarán had never learned to be quiet or subtle. The moment everyone was out the door, he began to dance around the room, pepper me with questions, and encourage me to ‘break down emotional walls.’ I was done after fifteen minutes of having my brother in the house. After years with the men I considered my brothers, I realized I had become spoiled. They understood and accepted my introversion and gave me my space.

  Nix had added another twist to our group dynamic, but even she never fell into the female mate stereotype, harassing me for more than I was willing to give. I wanted to open myself to her, to let her see the parts of me I kept hidden. However, I was finding more negative aspects to my own personality as our relationship with Nix grew more intimate. I was insanely jealous of time that Nix spent with others outside of our own little family unit. I knew what was coming with the Gala and was dreading it. While Damien’s grandfather would take good care of her—would act as an effective Guardian—it didn’t lessen my stress. I had been falling for Nix since she had stirred my Puca the first time. Watching as she was integrated into our group, seeing my brothers fall for her, feeling her responses to us—I enjoyed the little world we had created. I didn’t appreciate that the rules of a society I didn’t even enjoy being a part of were dictating when I could claim her. As much as I adored Nix, my Puca was thrashing in my head at the idea of other men presenting themselves to her. I didn’t believe she would be disloyal—not that we had even had that talk yet—but my Puca was dedicated. He would take her as a mate immediately.

  Ciarán’s singing was like nails against a chalkboard, my Puca sending out sparks consistently despite my attempts to wrangle him back.

  “Ciar!” The word was nearly a scream as I prevented myself from strangling my little brother.

  “Kill!” He bounced over, again attempting to hug me. “Are you ready for a heart to heart? Maybe about that pretty little Phoenix that has you tied into knots? Come on, bro! Open up! Give me some details!”

  “Shut the fuck up, Ciar. You need to stop. You need to calm down. You need to stop singing, or I'm going to fucking lose it on you.”

  “Aw, you don’t want to sing with me? Or talk with me? No one else is here! We have all the privacy we could ever want. You know I’ll support you. Do you want her for yourself, or are you and your friends all going to claim her as mate?”

  “Ciar!" I couldn’t help the scream that ripped from my throat. "Oh my god! Are you incapable of being silent?”

  “Of course not! I'm quiet all the time. I sleep, don’t I? Well, to be fair, Ma says I talk in my sleep, so maybe that doesn’t count. I’m quiet when I eat, though.”

  “Please, Ciar, just shut the hell up. The guys will all be home soon. They’re going to strangle you if you don’t shut up. I’m not going to stop them, either.” I rubbed at my temples, wishing Ryder would get back quickly to help take the edge off of my headache. Not that he would be willing to, however. He had been fairly stingy with his healing skills when it came to Ciarán induced headaches, claiming that it was my own fault. I wasn’t sure how. It’s not like I’d invited him here! Ciar pouted, falling into my lap before I shoved him to the floor.

  “You wouldn’t protect me from your friends? What kind of big brother are you, Kill?” Sulking, he slunk from my room, just as I heard car doors slam. Oh, thank God. Maybe I could sic Ciar on Ryder for awhile. The asshole deserved it, anyhow. He was always causing trouble and running his mouth, now he could get some in return. Though he did try to hide it, I knew Ciar got on his nerves. “Friends!” Ciarán’s cheerful voice echoed up the stairs.

  How much longer is he staying, Kill? Damien’s mental voice was exhausted. If I keep hearing these goddamn songs I'm going to lose my own mind.

  Yes, please. Hiro’s voice was hard. I think he’s even driving Nix up a wall, and you know how hard she is to phase. She even handles Ryder with just a smile.

  Hey! Ryder quipped back. I’m not nearly as bad as he is. After a miniscule pause, he added, but Nix can handle me anytime.

  I groaned.

  Tell Ciar to be good, Kill. We’ve got a visitor. Theo’s voice was warmer than I had expected. He must have enjoyed himself. I knew the thought was a little bitter, but I couldn’t help it. We hadn’t wanted to leave Ciar at the house by himself, nor had we wanted to thrust him onto Theo’s family, hence why I had been stuck here with him alone. Rini tagged along for a bit. Get down here and wrangle the psycho. I jogged down the stairs, slamming the door to my room behind me. I could see Nix and Rini by the car, chatting and giggling about something. I felt my mouth twist in a smile as even from this distance her enthusiasm washed over me. I stepped into the living room, where Ciar danced in place, held back from welcoming our guest by an exasperated Ryder.

  “Seriously, Ciar. Leave the girls alone. Rini’s got mates who will kill you if you touch her without her permission. We’ve already warned you about touching Nix.”

  He crossed his arms over his chest, adapting a pouting look while he schooled me with a whipped puppy expression tightening the laugh lines on his eyes. “Kill. As if I would ever touch a woman without her permission. I never touched Nix, and you know it. Ma would kick my arse, same as she would kick yours. Now, if they want a hug or a shoulder to lean on, my arms are always open.” I rolled my eyes, locking my arm around my brother’s neck to hold him in place as the girls bounced up the steps. “Nix!” My brother’s gushing greeting cut off my own as she shot a smile my way.

  God, I had missed her. My Puca echoed my sentiment, irritated at the large gathering of people. He wanted to shift, to be cosseted by her some more. As much as I was embarrassed by riding around in her hoodie, in allowing her to tie
ribbons around my neck and coo to me like I was a pet, I did really enjoy it. My Puca was thrilled by it. He had gone my entire life with very limited attention, and he was flourishing in Nix’s arms. Yellow sparks slipped through my shield and Nix’s grin widened. “Hey, Nix. Rini.”

  “Hey, Kill! We all missed you today.” Rini was nearly bouncing in place as she ran over to give me a hug. Her smile faltered a little as she studied a suddenly silent Ciarán.

  “Rini, this is my brother Ciarán. Ciar, this is Rini. She’s a good friend of ours. Like a little sister.”

  “A little sister, hm?” Ciarán’s voice was slightly deeper, a little slower than I was used to and I froze for a moment, studying him more intently. He hadn’t yet removed his eyes from Rini’s. “Well, Rini, it’s nice to know I have a sister I wasn’t aware of. We’ll have to spend some time getting to know each other.”

  “Yeah.” Rini’s voice was clipped as she studied him. Nix stared as well, her eyebrows high as she glanced between the two. “We’ll have to get to know each other.”

  “Um, have you guys met?” Nix seemed a little concerned as she continued to watch the pair warily. She had inched her way slightly between the two, creating distance just as I pulled Ciarán back slightly from Rini’s reach. I had no idea what the hell was going on, but apparently Nix and I weren’t the only ones feeling the tension. Everyone in the room had frozen, studying the odd tableau that was unfolding. None of us had ever seen Ciar serious, and the sudden shift from Rini’s bubbly personality to icy quiet was odd.

  “No, never. I would have remembered a face as pretty as hers. Maybe we’ve met in our dreams.” Ciarán’s happy-go-lucky smile was back in place, his arm looping around my shoulders as he tried to turn my restraining grip to an embrace. “Did you have fun today, Nix? I wanted to go! Kill wouldn’t let me though.” He pouted, tugging out of my grasp to go see my brothers.

  Rini seemed to shake off whatever had frozen her to the spot and her own smile returned as well. “Well, Kill, he looks like you, but you really need to give him lessons on being bubbly, apparently you didn’t pass on that trait.” She winked at me to emphasize her tease. Nix continued to keep her body in between the two, watching them warily.

  “I was glad you were there today, Rini.” Nix turned her attention to her friend, bracing her hand on her shoulder, her eyes still not moving from Ciarán. “It was nice to have some backup for meeting the parents for the first time.” Her smile was a little wry as she shot a look at Theo. Was he—blushing? I stared at him in shock, studying the faint tint to the Aussie’s cheeks.

  Whoa, what did I miss? My Puca thrashed and I tried to silence him. These were my brothers. I wasn’t jealous of my brothers. Though the other people she met—I was definitely jealous of that.

  I shifted for her. Theo admitted. After that, she met my mom, my sister, and Rini’s mom. I know it was a bit overwhelming, but she did amazing.

  Nix’s smile was grateful and a bit sheepish as she caught on to our mental conversation. I’m not the greatest at meeting new people. They were all really nice though. I hope it went as well as they’ve been trying to convince me it did during the trek home. Her eyes met mine quickly and then she focused back on Rini, though I could tell her next thought was directed at me. Any idea what’s going on with these two?

  He slipped a bit, Damien commented quickly. He’s incredibly attracted to her. That thought was loud and pulsing before he reverted back to static.

  You heard him clearly? Theo’s voice was interested, his head cocked as he twisted his glasses. Interesting. I wonder if the static is actually natural. If it’s a protective wall, it’s quite effective. I’d be interested in learning the technique.

  Theo, you’re my brother, but I swear to God if you start having these ridiculous songs playing non-stop the way he does, I would be forced to kill you, I grumbled.

  Nix snickered before returning her focus to her friend. “I’m sorry your bears couldn’t make it tonight. It feels odd not having them here. You know you guys are always welcome.”

  Rini’s smile was sly as she shot us a wink. “I think your guys may object to your definition of ‘always.’ I’m sure they can think of a few activities to keep you occupied so you wouldn’t need company.” Nix snorted, bumping her shoulder into Rini’s.

  “You’re one to talk. You’re always up on your bears.” I thought for a moment I heard Ciar hiss, but his smile never faltered. A glance around showed I was the only one to have heard anything out of the ordinary.

  “Staying for dinner, Rini?” Damien walked backwards toward the kitchen, gesturing towards our group. “You know I always make plenty.”

  “Yeah, I’ll stay. I want some more time with Nix, anyhow. Maybe we can talk about outfits?” Nix groaned but her smile never faltered as she began to tow her friend towards the kitchen. Rini’s gaze flicked to Ciar once more as she passed, but the moment was so fleeting I couldn’t be sure there was anything weird about it.

  “Well, I know I get in Damien’s hair.” Ciar’s voice drew our attention as the girls swept into the kitchen. “Kill and I had a nice, long talk while you all were gone having fun without me.” His pout didn’t crack any of our faces as we studied him. Suddenly, his face cleared, sobering slightly. “I’ll try to be a little more ‘out of your hair.’ I’m going to go give Ma a call. The cold is quite refreshing here.” With a small finger wave, he walked off to the porch. I just shook my head.

  “Well, at least that part of the conversation got through to him.” I gestured to the rest of the guys, indicating for them to follow me to the kitchen. “If he’s on the phone with Ma she’ll keep him busy for at least a half hour. We can make dinner in peace.” I hoped that we could get through dinner itself in the same quiet we were finally surrounded by, though I wasn’t expecting it.

  Twelve

  Nix

  Steam escaped into the hallway as I opened the door to the bathroom. The hot shower had been relaxing after a long day, and I couldn’t argue that I smelled better—more like myself—now that the perfume had been washed down the drain.

  I’d survived the day meeting parents, and while it had gone well, I was worn out from worrying about the encounter. I was looking forward to some downtime for the rest of the weekend.

  Wandering into my room, I dropped my dirty clothing in the hamper. The small purple bag of toiletries I used sat on top of the low dresser, and I grabbed it as I made my way back to the bathroom, humming the tune of a song I’d heard on the radio on the drive home this evening. The sound of rushing water had me looking up as I stepped through the door.

  Ryder stood in the bathroom, shirtless, brushing his teeth. His golden skin was on display and my eyes roamed down his body, enjoying every etched line and defined abdominal. Carved lines of muscles angled into his low slung maroon pants, and I’d never been more jealous of a piece of clothing in my life. I blushed at my wayward thoughts and having intruded on his private time, but he simply grinned at me from behind his toothbrush and let his gaze travel down my body in kind. Outfitted in a pair of pajama shorts and a tank top with a little robe like jacket, I’d tried to make an effort to look cute while being comfortable. I didn’t have a lot of sexy things to wear at night, but I’d wanted to put something nice on tonight. Unfortunately, this was the best I had short of walking around in my underwear.

  You are always welcome to walk around in your underwear. Damien shot into my mind with a sexy growl.

  Ryder nearly choked on his toothpaste as Damien translated my mental musings to the others, and his gaze flicked to mine once more. I caught hints of his thoughts from D, wondering what I was wearing underneath my sleepwear, and I blushed a deeper rosy shade as I set my toiletries bag down on the counter. I briefly debated fleeing to my room and waiting until the bathroom was free once more, but I straightened my back and made the decision to stay and share the small space with my sexy unicorn.

  I knew Damien was listening so I enunciated the word.

&n
bsp; Ryder mumbled something that sounded suspiciously like “cer-ap-tor” behind his toothbrush, and I grinned.

  “Whatever you say, Rainbow Dash.” A sexy rumble sounded in his chest, and he arched an eyebrow at me as he scrubbed his teeth slowly.

  Hiro chuckled in my mind through the link that Damien finally left open. It was an overwhelming relief that our minds were song and static free, and that Damien had let us all in.

  You have no idea. Killian sighed. His weariness settled over the connection like a thick blanket. Ciarán had been with us for just over twenty four hours, yet he had us all exhausted already. I had to wonder how Ciar could keep up the energy level!

  My heart squeezed as I thought about how much I’d missed this connection to all of my guys.

  While I second Damien’s statement full heartedly, Theo started… if you need more clothing, Nix, you know we are always happy to get you whatever you need.

  Or want. Ryder winked at me as he swished mouthwash, and I smiled.

  Any excuse to shop, huh, Twilight Sparkle? I finished brushing my teeth, hiding my mouth from view of his gaze with my hand as I spit into the sink and rinsed it down the drain.

  He grinned in the mirror at me when I glanced back up, embarrassed that he’d been watching me. Absolutely, but shopping for you would be even more fun. His smile was salacious, and I didn’t need Damien to tell me what was on his mind. I just knew if I let Ryder shop for me I’d probably end up with bikinis and fashionable underthings.

  Ryder snickered. I can be much more creative than bikinis.

  I shook my head, holding back a laugh. Thank you all, but you don’t have to do that.

  We know we don’t have to. We want to. We want to provide for you. My heart swelled with Theo’s words.

  I quickly finished up my nightly routine while Ryder leaned against the countertop, watching me. I peeked up at him as I re-packed my little bag.