[Phantom Islanders 02.0] Storm Revealed

by Ednah Walters

  “Perfect. What was in the gel? It feels nice.”

  “Special seaweed.”

  “I’ll add more tomorrow.” Delia stood.

  “If you want to use this place as a spare bedroom while I’m off the island, Lexi, everything in the room must be replaced,” Storm said, rejoining us. “You need a new bed, mattress, furniture, decent curtains on the window, sconces, and maybe wall decorations.”

  Great! We were back to playing house again.

  “I’ll talk to the merchants tomorrow,” Delia said. “You need to make an appearance in the hall, Storm.” When he hesitated, she added, “She’s not going anywhere but the tower. I promise.”

  He nodded and left, closing the door behind him.

  “Now, lass”—Delia pinned me with narrowed eyes—“what’s going on? What is this about wanting to stay with me?” She looked ready to rain all kinds of shit on my head.

  I shook my head. “It’s hard to explain.”

  “Then let me say something, lass. That boy went through a lot to find you. And yes, relationships do start rocky, especially with Tuh’ren women, but they always turn out all right if you give them a chance. Give the lad a chance. Tell him what you need to be happy. Demand it. I don’t care if you ask for a longer courtship before the claim or afterward. You must know what you want. Weak women don’t survive on the islands, and you are not weak, Lexi. You are strong, smart, and strong-willed. Ask yourself what you want. Then go and get it.”

  Go and get it. She made it sound so easy. “What if I don’t want him?”

  “Then let him go.”

  Hell no. That was not the answer I’d expected to hear.

  “If the lad is not the one for you, and you don’t feel a true mate’s pull, let him know right now before he claims you. He can still find love and happiness with someone else.”

  Storm with another woman? The very thought was… unsettling. No, “unsettling” was too mild a word for what I was feeling.

  “Is that how you feel? Do you want to let him go? I can call the other elders and settle the matter.”

  Not if I can help it. I might hold him accountable for everything that was wrong with my life, right now, but no bitch was getting her claws in him.

  “I need time, Delia.”

  She grinned. “Time. Now that’s something I understand. But if you ever feel a stronger connection with another islander, you must tell me. Okay?”

  Wasn’t going to happen, but I nodded.

  “Now, let’s talk about the bedroom.”

  My face warmed. “I don’t need a lecture in that department.”

  Delia chuckled and pointed to the one I’d cleaned. “That bedroom, lass. My place is not fancy like the tower, but you can pretty up the room. I’ll talk to the merchants tomorrow. You are welcome to use it whenever Storm is gone and you are lonely in the tower, but when he’s home, your place is with him. Unless you give him up.” Her eyes narrowed.

  “I get it.” I nodded emphatically. No need to threaten me with giving him up now that I’d accepted I wasn’t going anywhere.

  “But that doesn’t mean monkey business before claiming each other. I mean it. Or I’ll box both of your ears.”

  I fought a laugh. Thank goodness she hadn’t heard about what happened in the captain’s cabin.

  “Now get out of here. I’ll bring dinner for you and the lad upstairs. Until he claims you, you cannot eat in the hall.”

  “You don’t have to keep bringing food upstairs. I can take it up and bring down the dishes.”

  “Thank you, lass, but until your hand heals, he’ll be like a Kelpie in fresh water. Crazy and mean.”

  “Let him. I can carry lots of things without hurting my hands.” Delia grinned at my response. I followed her into the kitchen and avoided looking at Gráinne as we prepared a tray for upstairs.

  “Claim the lad soon, so my girls can stop these unnecessary trips up and down those stairs,” Gráinne said as I took a bowl with meat from her and put it on the tray.

  Love you too, Granny. “Yeah, that’s a great reason to claim a mate. I don’t know why I didn’t think of that one.”

  “You have a mouth on you, Storm’s lass. Good for you, but you should know when to keep it shut. Just like we know how to keep certain trap doors around here shut.” She gave me a pointed look.

  I stared at her, blood draining from my cheeks. She knew about my attempt to open the trap door.

  “Gráinne sees everything,” Gráinne added softly. Raising her voice, she added, “Meris, carry the tray for the lass. No need to make her injuries worse, or we’ll never hear the last of it from Storm.”

  I waited until we were on the stairs.

  “Does she really see everything?” I asked.

  “Most of the time.”

  Damn! I took the tray after I opened the door and thanked Meris. “I’ll bring everything downstairs when we are done.”

  “Despite what Gráinne said, we don’t mind doing things for you. Storm does so much for us that looking after his mate is the least we can do to thank him. Ask anyone on this island. They’ll tell you the same thing. It’s an honor to take care of you.”

  “Thank you, Meris.”

  I closed the door after she left and carried the tray to the bedroom. Sounds of water sloshing came from the washroom. Thinking some of the girls were running a bath for me, I left the food on the table, went to the washroom, and pushed open the door.

  I froze when I realized who was in the tub.

  My mouth opened and closed several times before I said, “You were… downstairs.”

  “And now I’m upstairs,” Storm said, smiling. At least he didn’t stand. I didn’t think I could handle seeing all of him right now. Not since the cabin and the way my feelings toward him were all over the place.

  I could only see from his chest up, all masculine and perfect, and I couldn’t look away. He sat up, masculine arms over the rim, a sexy smile on his lips. He was such a beautiful man. Funny I hadn’t thought so when we’d first met.

  “I put in an appearance downstairs, told them I needed to spend time with my lass, and here I am, getting cleaned up just for you.”

  Cleaned up for me. Ha. The sneaky pirate always knew what to say to disarm me.

  “Yeah. Dinner is here.” I indicated the bedroom. “I’ll wait.” I hightailed it out of the washroom and heard him chuckle. I released a breath after closing the door. Things were getting too intense too quickly between us. I just needed to push aside the incident on the ship, and I’d be okay.

  I arranged the dishes on the table and sat on the window seat to wait for Storm. The ships were still docked near the Great Hall, but the islanders were done hauling their spoils of war.

  Admitting defeat was not in my nature, but I had to accept I was never going home to help Tommy walk again. That alone was enough to make me want to hate Storm, yet I couldn’t hate him. He was responsible for bringing me here and for taking me away from my family. I could resent him, get angry, and even blame him, but I couldn’t hate him. He was a product of his environment. The islanders’ ways of doing things were different from ours.

  Compounding things was the attraction between us. It had been there when we first met, and it had only grown stronger. I’d tried to deny it and to fight it, but I couldn’t anymore. He’d shown me in Nerissa’s cabin that I couldn’t, that I wanted him as much as he wanted me.

  The door to the washroom opened, and I knew the moment Storm entered my personal space. He brought heat and his intoxicating scent. I didn’t turn around.

  “What were they hauling in those barrels and trunks?” I asked.

  “Grain, preserved meat, and ale.” His voice was husky and close. “A few gilded trinkets but no bloody heads.”

  I smiled, but my breath stilled when he brushed against my legs. I still didn’t turn even when he stood behind me and braced himself on the edge of the window with one hand and stroked my arm with the other. His touch was light, exciting.
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  He had beautiful hands. Long. Strong. Scarred. He was a violent man from a violent world, yet he could be so gentle. Maybe I could forgive the kidnapping if I understood him and his world better. I’d learned very little from the books and the few islanders I’d interacted with.

  Slowly, as though memorizing the texture of my skin with the tips of his fingers, Storm moved down to my wrist. My muscles tensed. The way I reacted to his touch didn’t surprise me. When he went around my wrist and stroked the inner sensitive skin, I closed my eyes and held my breath. My fingers curled as though to trap his, but the bandages made that impossible. He retraced his movement, leaving tingling sensations in its wake.

  I tried to focus and act rational. “So the raid was successful?”

  “Very.”

  “How many dead?”

  “None. Our fight was not with the farmers working on those islands. It was with Tullius. We caught the people unaware because we often raid at dawn or twilight, and this was in broad daylight. And we started with an island farther south. We cleared their storage of goods bound for Hy’Brasil but didn’t touch their personal stashes. We made sure no one got hurt. We tend to go easy on the farmers because most of them are just trying to earn a living. We also go easy on the crews of his ships. Most are forced to come after us. That’s why we offer them sanctuary.”

  “Are you saying you are an honorable pirate?”

  “No.” He stroked the curve of my neck. “When someone kills one of my own, I chop off the heads of those responsible. I don’t care how many they are.”

  I shivered at the hardness in his voice. Like I’d said, he was a product of his environment. I turned and my eyes landed on his stomach. A very naked and scrumptious six-pack. My eyes went down, following corded muscles to the waist of his pants.

  He had a body most men would kill for. A body meant… To be what? Touched? Kissed? My mind should not go there. He chuckled, and my gaze flew up to his eyes, which stared at me with such hunger it shocked me. I swallowed.

  “You paint a gruesome picture,” I said.

  Storm didn’t answer. Instead, he appeared to have developed a fascination with my face. The hand that had stroked my arm lifted to my face, stopped before making contact, and dropped.

  “Come sit down. We’ll talk while we eat.” He pulled out a chair. When he stayed behind me after I sat, I glanced over my shoulder at him. His eyes were on my cleavage.

  Face warm, I tugged the gathered neckline of my blouse, which made him chuckle. The stern look I gave him was wasted on him. He slid into his chair.

  “You could cover your body to your chin, muh’Lexi, but I’d still love what I see.”

  “Then you better unlove it because we need to talk, and it’s not going to happen while you look at me like that.”

  His eyebrows shot up. “Like what?”

  Like he couldn’t wait to devour me. Of course, I wasn’t going to tell him that. “Like I’m some weird mystery you plan to solve.”

  “You are a mystery. What were your plans once we left the island?”

  “Dive off the ship when the crew wasn’t watching and head for the port, stowaway on another ship or beg a captain to take me across the Veil.”

  “No captain is insane enough to incur my wrath.”

  “Oh. I didn’t know ‘Storm’s Property’ was engraved on my forehead.”

  “Lass,” he corrected, grinning. “You could never be anyone else’s property. And the words do not need to be written on you. Everyone at Port Vaarda knows about my violet-eyed Tuh’ren. Islanders love to talk, and word spreads fast. Other islanders knew I’d been searching for you, and by now, I’m sure they know I found you and what you look like.”

  What could a girl say or do in response to that? Nothing, except stuff her face. And that was what I did. I started with the bread. Storm served himself and poured ale into a tumbler for him and water for me. We ate in silence. He ate like he did everything else. Like a force of nature. He kissed and touched me the same way, completely taking over.

  Okay, that was not something to think about now when I was staring at his chest. It was his fault for not wearing a shirt. My eyes kept straying to his chest and arms. He was lean and hard eye candy. A beefcake.

  “Do you want some beef?” he asked, and heat rushed to my face.

  I nodded and ate the spicy beef without complaining. “How often do you fight Tullius?”

  “It depends. When he gets cocky and does something stupid, like attack our ships, we defend ourselves and leave him alone until he gets the itch to test us again. But when we have casualties, we retaliate.” He leaned forward and studied me. “Are you ever going to stop trying to escape, Lexi?”

  Completely blindsided by his question, I stared at him with round eyes. If the opportunity arose, I would definitely attempt it because Tommy still needed me. But a traitorous part of me was ready to give up and get up close and personal with him. See? This was the problem with allowing a man to rock your world. You became a walking mass of contradictions.

  “Muh’Lexi,” he asked, studying me intently.

  “Never. Only losers quit.”

  He laughed. “That’s one thing I love about you. Your honesty and determination, and utter belief in yourself.”

  He loved me? Really? Or was that a figure of speech?

  “I guess the rest is up to me,” he said, stretching and scratching his chest.

  My gaze followed his hand and dipped. Now he was deliberately showing off his masculine perfection and distracting me. How would he like it if I stood and stripped too? I shook my head to rattle my brain from stupidity to common sense.

  “I don’t understand,” I said.

  “I need to give you a reason to stay, lass. What would it take to make you stay instead of trying to escape every time I turn by back?”

  Something shifted in my chest. I studied his expression to see if he was serious, but he didn’t give anything away. Please, let him be serious.

  “I want to be able to take care of my brother.”

  Storm pursed his lips and nodded. “How old is he?”

  What did that nod mean? He agreed with me? “Thirteen.”

  “That’s young. Was he a baby when your mother died?”

  “No, Tommy is my half brother. I have a stepmother.”

  “Why can’t she take care of him? It’s her job as his mother.”

  “I know, but it’s also mine as his sister. He’s paralyzed from the waist down and in pain all the time.” Tears rushed to my eyes and I blinked, lifting my chin to stop them from flowing. “I had a chance to get him an…” My voice shook a little. I cleared it before continuing. “I have a chance to get him an operation, but now that I’m here, I can’t.”

  Storm frowned and leaned forward. “Explain, please.”

  I told him the doctor’s prognosis if Tommy didn’t get an operation. Then I moved on to the offer from the university and the deal I’d made with Mr. Sinclair.

  “Dad asked me to look out for him and I did—until that night. I was trying too hard and didn’t know when to let go.”

  I didn’t realize I was crying until Storm got up, pulled me into his arms, sat on the window seat, and tucked me under his chin. For the first time since I’d arrived on Vaarda, I didn’t fight him.

  “I don’t like to see you cry, Lexi.” Storm wiped the wetness from my cheeks. “Fight me, curse me out, and chuck things at me, but please, don’t cry.”

  “You could let me go home to help Tommy. Then I can come back,” I whispered.

  “I can’t, lass.”

  I created space between us until I could see his face. “Don’t you mean you won’t?”

  “We have rules. The Undine Court makes sure we don’t break them. And once broken, there’s no going back.”

  Deflated, I leaned against him and chewed on my lower lip. What did the nod mean? I was going to stress about it until he explained.

  “What happened to your brother to land him in a wh
eelchair?” Storm asked, his breath warm against my temple. It felt nice.

  “A bunch of his friends threw a party at a lake near our town, but I told him he couldn’t go. He hadn’t done his chores or something ridiculous like that, and I had just gotten home from the Sinclairs’ and was tired and irritable. I snapped at him over nothing and grounded him.”

  I plucked a string on the window seat cushion, regret tightening my chest. I couldn’t even remember, now, why I’d grounded him.

  “The girl he liked was going to be there, so he sneaked out. By the time I found out, he was long gone. Luckily, I knew where the party was. Someone had tied a rope on a tree, and they were daring each other to swing on it and jump into the lake. Tommy saw me and decided to prove something. Whether it was to the girl he liked or to me, I don’t know. He jumped, landed in the lake, and didn’t come up. His friends were too chicken to go in, so I did.” Two years and I still remembered how pissed I’d been at his friends. At myself. At the world.

  Storm stroked my cheek. “If it is too painful, you don’t have to tell me now.”

  “It’s okay. I want to. He hit a boulder and dislodged it. It crushed him, and his back twisted at a weird angle.”

  “How old were you when he had the accident?”

  “Sixteen. That was two years ago.”

  “Where was his mother?”

  “At work. We never told her the truth about what happened that night, so she blames me for Tommy’s accident. She believes I was the one who’d gone to the party and taken him with me.” I found myself opening up about my stepmother and our strained relationship, taking care of Tommy, and the Sinclairs. “I tried so hard to take care of him like I’d promised Dad, but I failed.”

  Storm cupped my face. “No, you didn’t. You took care of him just like you promised your father you would. Tommy didn’t listen to you and got hurt. That’s not on you, Lexi.”

  I wanted so badly to believe him, but I couldn’t let go of the worry and guilt.

  “Does his mother love him?” he asked.

  “Yes.”

  “Then she’ll step up. Mothers always go the extra mile to protect their children, especially the ones they feel are most vulnerable.”