Soul Scorched

by Donna Grant

  She put up a hand to stop him and speared Con with her whisky-colored eyes. “Y’all have some gall.”

  “Whether you want to admit it or no’, she’s a pawn in this game,” Con stated.

  Denae rolled her eyes. “All because she was about to undo what you put in place.”

  “What we all put in place,” Kellan corrected his wife. “It wasna just Con.”

  Denae dropped her hand, shaking her head as she did. “If y’all think Darcy is just going to let you ‘take’ her, I think you’re going to be sorely mistaken. Didn’t your time with the Warriors and Druids tell you anything about the Druids?”

  “She’s got a point,” Kellan told Con.

  Con looked at the mates. “Warrick and Thorn will do what they must to keep Darcy from returning to Skye.”

  “Which makes her rely on them.” Kellan lifted a shoulder. “It could make her see us in a good light, but if she ever feels trapped, I doona think the outcome will be good.”

  “Warrick and Thorn will keep her there,” Con said again.

  Kellan harrumphed. “You obviously doona know Warrick. He’s a guardian, Con. He’ll protect her from any danger—even us.”

  “Warrick is a Dragon King. He knows how important it is to stop Ulrik. He’ll do what’s right.”

  Kellan slid his hand against Denae’s, their fingers twining. “Let’s hope you’re right. I doona want to fight the Druids as well.”

  Neither did Con. They had enough enemies, but he had to do what he had to do—regardless of who it angered.

  * * *

  “What do you mean she protected my flat only?” Darcy asked in outrage.

  Warrick looked at Thorn for help, but Thorn shrugged, telling Warrick he was on his own. Warrick turned back to Darcy who stared at him impatiently. He shifted his feet. He hated situations like this. No matter what he said, it wouldn’t be enough. If only he had a silver tongue like Rhys.

  “Hello?” Darcy said, her brows lifted.

  Warrick opened and closed his mouth. He released a breath. “I told you all I know. Rhi did it while you slept, then hid them so they couldna be used again.”

  “That’s great for my flat, but what about this place?” Darcy asked, her arms spread wide, indicating the shop.

  “Rhi left before I could ask. At least you have one place to go that you know the Fae can no’ intrude.”

  All the anger deflated right out of her. “True,” she grumbled. “I was just hoping to protect the shop as well. It sucks that I can touch dragon magic, but I can’t keep a Dark out of my space.”

  “That is rather odd,” Thorn said, his face scrunched with confusion.

  Darcy shot him a withering look. Warrick stepped between them when he saw Thorn’s grin. It was just like Thorn to want to irritate Darcy.

  “We’ll add our magic to yours,” Warrick told her. “We can keep the Dark off Dreagan. We’ll keep them out of the shop.”

  That seemed to satisfy her, and for the next thirty minutes, the three set up the spells, each overlapping the other to make them stronger.

  By the time they finished, Darcy was ready to get to her plants. Warrick didn’t follow her. He remained in the front with Thorn.

  “I doona like that there were no Dark last night,” Thorn said.

  Warrick glanced toward the back where Darcy was. “Aye. No’ a single one even scoping out the place.”

  “They know we’re here.”

  “Which means there was another hiding and watching the other night.”

  Thorn’s lips flattened. “The next attack will come soon.”

  “One of us needs to stay with Darcy at all times while the other keeps his distance.”

  “Agreed,” Thorn said. “I’ll stay close enough to help, but far enough away that the Dark willna see me.”

  Warrick was more than happy to stay close to Darcy. “Perhaps I can convince Darcy to return to her flat before dark.”

  “Good luck with that,” Thorn said with a laugh. “That woman is as stubborn as they come.”

  She was all that and more. That’s what drew Warrick to her. That and the fact he wanted to be with her. When he couldn’t stand to be with anyone for very long, that spoke volumes about her.

  “Has she mentioned returning to Skye?” Thorn asked.

  “Nay. I get the feeling she’ll go back only if she doesna have another choice.”

  “So we arrived in time.” Thorn scratched his jaw. “Interesting.”

  Thorn saw conspiracies everywhere, so Warrick didn’t pay him any mind. “She doesna realize what kind of man Ulrik has become.”

  “Why would she? He’s done nothing to her.”

  “No’ yet.”

  Thorn’s lips twisted. “No’ until she unbinds all his magic.”

  “It’s been nearly three years since she first helped him. Why has he waited to have all of his magic released?”

  “Perhaps she can no’ do it.”

  Warrick shook his head. “Nay. If that was it, he wouldna care if the Dark took her.”

  “Then maybe he’s scaring her into helping him.”

  That was certainly a possibility, and one he didn’t like in the least. “I’ll ask her.”

  “Ask me what?” Darcy questioned as she came into the front of the store.

  Thorn leaned a shoulder against the wall. “We want to know why you’ve no’ unbound all of Ulrik’s magic yet.”

  Her fern green eyes moved from Thorn to Warrick and back to Thorn. “The first time I touched the dragon magic within Ulrik I was knocked unconscious for an entire day. The second time, it shot me across the room, banging my head against the wall.”

  “You didna stop though,” Warrick said.

  “No. I kept going. I saw flashes of dragons whenever I touched the magic, and I was intrigued. It took months and dozens of tries before I was able to touch the magic and finally help Ulrik.”

  “Then what?” Thorn pressed. “Why did you stop?”

  “Because it nearly killed me.”

  CHAPTER

  SEVENTEEN

  After Darcy’s revelation, Warrick was stopped from replying by her first client of the day. Thorn disappeared out of the back unnoticed, and Warrick quickly ducked behind the curtains to the back before the client could see him.

  The lights were dimmed in the store. Warrick kept the lights in the back shut off, and it allowed him to watch Darcy throughout the day.

  She was warm and friendly to everyone who walked into her shop whether they were regulars or people off the street. Darcy had a way about her that set others at ease instantly.

  He was captivated by her. By the way she tilted her head as she listened to her customers, by the way she gently ran her fingers over their palms, and how her forehead furrowed slightly when she saw something in her readings she didn’t like.

  Not that she told her clients. That’s the first thing Warrick noticed. Darcy was careful never to spill too much information. She kept things vague, letting the customers decide what step to take next in their lives.

  Some of her clients were easier than others. Warrick saw her shoulders tighten with two different customers. After the first one left, Darcy rested her head on her arms on the table. After a moment, she rose and walked to the back with him. She opened the small fridge she had tucked next to her desk, the light from within illuminating her haggard expression.

  “What is it?” Warrick asked.

  Darcy drank the entire bottle of water before she turned to him, clicking on the desk light. “I saw an accident coming soon. It’ll claim her life.”

  When it happened again, Warrick didn’t bother to ask. He knew Darcy saw something terrible. It affected her deeply, and he couldn’t imagine how hard it was for her not to tell them. When the last client left, he decided to ask her. He came out of the back as she locked the front door and flipped over the sign so it showed CLOSED.

  “Why do you no’ tell them what you see?”

  Darcy pushed away from
the door and returned to the table where she put away the stack of tarot cards. “I made that mistake once. I thought it was my job to help people and steer them away from danger.”

  “And it’s no’?” he asked, confused.

  “No.”

  “Then why do you think you have the ability to read their palms?”

  She sat heavily in her chair and shook her head. “I don’t know. I’ve asked myself that thousands of times. The first time I told someone they were going to die, they averted disaster on multiple occasions. Every time they would return to me and want me to read their palm again so I could see what was coming next.”

  “Did you?”

  “Yes,” she replied softly. “It got so bad that the person wouldn’t leave the house until I did a reading. Eventually, death comes for all of us. And it did for this person as well, no matter how hard they tried to divert it.”

  Warrick didn’t know what alerted him that the person had been someone close to her. “You knew this person well, didn’t you?”

  “It was my mother.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  Darcy shrugged and tossed the empty bottle in the recycling container. “It was a hard lessoned learned.”

  “Is that why you left Skye?”

  “One of several reasons. I couldn’t lie to my family, but neither could I keep to myself if I saw bad things coming for them.”

  Warrick felt the uncontrollable need to pull her into his arms. It wasn’t something he did. Ever. Showing affection was something he saw people do, but never did himself. “I’m sorry.”

  As soon as the words left his mouth, he heard how meaningless they were.

  Darcy met his gaze and attempted a smile. “Thank you.”

  “You carry a great burden, and yet you face it every day by having this shop. Why?”

  She took a deep breath, some of the tension releasing from her shoulders. “Because I help people. Sure I see their deaths or their significant others cheating. I can nudge them in the right direction without coming straight out and telling them.”

  He’d seen proof of that earlier. “Mortals come here for answers.”

  “No, they don’t,” she said with a laugh. “They think they want them, but trust me, they really don’t. If I told my first client today that her husband was cheating on her and she would walk in on him in a week’s time, she would be outraged.”

  “But she asked you specifically if her husband was faithful.”

  “The fact she’s asking means that she already suspects, but she’s hoping she’s wrong. She doesn’t want to be right, and she was praying I tell her differently.”

  Now Warrick understood. “So you don’t tell her definitively either way.”

  “Exactly. With enough clues, she’ll figure it out and find him with her neighbor. So it all works out in the end.”

  “Amazing.”

  A pleased smile pulled at her lips. It wasn’t every day that he caused someone to smile, so Warrick enjoyed the moment.

  There was a nudge against his mind from Thorn. Warrick immediately opened the link. “Aye?”

  “We’ve trouble. The Dark kind.”

  Damn. Warrick was hoping they would stay away for good. “Where? How many?”

  “I’m moving around to the back now, hang on.” A moment later, Thorn said, “Shite. The bastards have a plan this time. There are ten of them, War. They’ve surrounded the shop.”

  “We can take ten.”

  Thorn’s grunt was loud. “And who is going to watch Darcy? We’re no’ at her flat. Our spells are strong, but between Darcy and trying to keep the humans from discovering our battle in the middle of the streets—”

  “I know,” Warrick interrupted. “Our spells should keep the Dark out of the shop. Do you think we could get Darcy to the flat?”

  There was another pause before Thorn let loose a string of curses. “No’ likely. It looks as if they’ve set up on the route she uses to walk home. Just in case we get past the ones at the shop, we’ll have more waiting for us.”

  “Which means they’re probably at the flat as well.”

  “That’s my guess. I can call more Kings.”

  “No’ a good idea. If the Dark see that many of us, they could possibly start a war right on the streets of Edinburgh.”

  Thorn growled low in his throat. “We should’ve ran those assholes out when we had the chance. If we doona want to make a run for it or call more Kings, then our only other option is to remain here.”

  “And hope they doona try to test our spells.”

  “I’ll keep watch out here.”

  Warrick frowned, because he knew Thorn too well. “Doona be an idiot and try to fight them on your own.”

  “I wouldna dream of it,” came the sarcastic reply.

  “Thorn!”

  “I’m no’ daft, War. I’ll curb my need to spill Dark blood and watch the fuckers tonight.”

  In other words, Thorn couldn’t guarantee the same once dawn came. Warrick closed the link and focused on Darcy.

  “Where did you go?” she asked. “You looked by turns concerned then angry, and I know you weren’t listening to me because I called your name twice.”

  Warrick walked past her to the conservatory and clicked off the lights. He checked the spells, making sure they were all still in place.

  “You’re freaking me out,” Darcy said from behind him.

  He faced her then. “Have you slept here before?”

  One auburn brow rose. “No. Why are you asking?”

  “We have a wee bit of a problem.”

  “A wee bit?” she repeated. “It can’t be wee if it means I can’t leave the shop, and that’s exactly what you’re implying, isn’t it?”

  Warrick walked to her and gently grasped her arm to guide her back into her office area. Once there, he reluctantly released her. “The Dark are here.”

  “Here?” she asked in a voice that wobbled slightly. “We put up spells.”

  “Aye, and it should keep them out.”

  “But I can’t get home, to the one place I know they can’t reach me.”

  “I’m afraid so.”

  “How many are there?”

  Warrick knew where she was headed with the question. “Too many. There are ten surrounding this building, and there are more on the way to your flat. We’d never make it.”

  “They are persistent.”

  Her quip didn’t hide the fear he saw in her fern green eyes. Warrick didn’t want her frightened. He wished to see her smile back, to see her gaze alight with mischief.

  “I guess it’s good I didn’t eat all of my sandwich for lunch,” she said with a tight laugh. “I’ll split what’s left with you.”

  Warrick waved away her words. “There’s no need. I’ll be fine.”

  “And if we’re here for days?”

  “No’ going to happen,” he promised.

  That made her relax. “Good to know. So. What do we do?”

  “Anything you want other than going outside.”

  “Just when I was looking forward to a hot bath and my bed,” she said with a grin.

  Warrick looked at her mouth at the mention of her bed, his balls tightening as he recalled how close they’d come to kissing. If only Rhi hadn’t arrived, he would know how sweet Darcy tasted.

  “How did you know about the Dark outside?” she asked.

  Warrick tamped down his desires and focused on her words. “The Kings have a mental link. We can converse that way.”

  “Do you get tired of always having someone in your head?”

  “We have the ability to keep our minds shut, and only allow another in if we want.”

  “Nice,” she said with wide eyes. “Do you have the ability to know who is trying to talk to you?”

  Warrick found it hard to believe that he not only didn’t mind talking to Darcy, but that he wanted it to continue. He enjoyed her responses, and liked trying to figure out how she might respond to something. The fact that sh
e kept surprising him was only a bonus.

  “Aye,” he answered. “All dragons spoke mentally until the Kings were able to shift.”

  “It’s all so fascinating. A little scary, but intriguing.”

  His spirits dampened a bit. “So I frighten you?”

  She stared at him a moment before she gave a shake of her head. “The idea of the Dragon Kings, a wee bit,” she said, using his words from earlier. “But not you.”

  They were just two steps apart, each on a side of the tiny office. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d wooed a woman. When he wanted to fulfill the needs of his body, he visited a brothel.

  Darcy was unlike any human he’d ever encountered. She was smart, vivacious, and considerate. She smiled at him, laughed with him, and didn’t so much as bat an eye when he grew uncomfortable trying to find the right words.

  She was obstinate, tenacious, compassionate, and sexy as hell.

  It wasn’t just her beauty that captivated him, it was her mind and her conversation. She had charmed him from the first moment they spoke, and he hadn’t been able to look away since.

  He wanted her. Desperately.

  He craved, he hungered.

  He yearned.

  All for her.

  Their gazes were locked, the air thick with desire. Warrick closed the distance between them. He rested one hand on her waist and the other around her back.

  Her lips parted slightly as her hands came to rest on his chest. He lowered his head slowly, her eyes drifting shut just before their lips met.

  CHAPTER

  EIGHTEEN

  Warrick bit back a groan of pleasure when her tongue skimmed against his lips. He tilted his head and deepened the kiss, their tongues dueling, mating.

  Her taste was more tempting than he thought possible. He had to have more. His arms tightened as the kiss intensified, sizzling and burning him until he was aching to have his way with her. He groaned when her hands slid into his hair, her nails lightly scraping his scalp as she pressed her body closer.

  Warrick pressed her against the wall of cabinets and ground his throbbing cock against her. She was panting, her hand clinging to him as she rocked her hips in response.

  It was his undoing.

  Need pounded through him, demanding he fill her. He tried to pull back¸ to clear his head some, but she wouldn’t release him.