Menage a Fairy (A Fairy Novel)

by Keraleigh, Anna

  “Simple. Not everyone can see them. If some humans could and some couldn’t, half the population would be in a mental institution.” She shoved a few berries in her mouth. “They could be hunted for their wings or wiped out because governments are scared of them. Humans are notorious for their cruelty.”

  “Why can’t everyone see them? What dictates who can and cannot see a fairy?” Jayn asked. She pushed her plate away, appetite vanquished. The queen hesitated. “I’m a cop, your highness. I can smell bullshit from a mile away. The truth is your best option.”

  “Jayn!” Annalise said, her tone disapproving.

  The queen lifted a brow. “Fine. Only those who are mated to a fairy can see them. I am mated to Carrick. Every human here is mated, including your girlfriend.” The queen stood, her stomach pushing against the table. It was much larger than yesterday. She looked nearly six months pregnant and there was no way she was that far along.

  Jayn stopped her internal rambling and let the words filter through her brain. Annalise. Mate. “That green-haired bastard!” Jayn shot to her feet. Anger clouded her judgment as she turned to the woman she loved. “Did you know? Is that why you kissed him? When did you plan on telling me?”

  “It’s not...I’m not his mate,” she said timidly.

  “Really? Then why can you see him? Why have you been obsessed with Wick for years? Since I meet you! Did our time together mean nothing?” Jayn placed her hands on her hips, too angry to be sad. “Were you going to stay here, live with him and just let me float away on that boat by myself?” She shook her head. Finally the rage was simmering and her emotions began to hinder her thoughts. Pain exploded in her chest. Her heart was breaking, Jayn could feel the sharp pains, as she understood the betrayal. “You love him.” The words were whispered.

  Annalise opened her mouth but Jayn held up her hand.

  “Save it.” She walked away, as she always did when a relationship took a turn for the worst. Jayn had opened her heart for the first time in years and now it was stomped into dust. Fairies, mates…this world was more fucked up than she realized.

  “Jayn!” Annalise shuffled behind her. “This is not my fault. I didn’t pick a mate, if he even is my mate. Jayn, I love you!” Annalise grabbed her shoulder and pulled her so they were face to face. “I’ve loved you since the moment our eyes met.”

  “Because you thought we were going to die,” Jayn sputtered.

  “No. Well, yes, that bank heist was so scary and I thought I’d die right there and we only had moments to live. I just...I wanted to kiss you once...”

  “We survived,” Jayn said, her ire falling.

  “And we’ve had such a good time and a fantastic relationship. I love you, Jayn, and I think we should work this, whatever this is, out.” Annalise motioned around them. “Fairies, they exist. Aren’t you curious?”

  “Not if that leads to me losing you.” She was being honest, speaking from the heart. Jayn wanted to believe the words Annalise was saying. There was a gust of wing. Jayn turned, glaring at the green hair and the barely clothed man. The anger that had tampered off began to skyrocket. “This is your fault! We were happy.”

  Wick lifted his hands, as baffled as a bug under a falling shoe.

  “I am going to cut your balls off!” Jayn roared and launched herself at him. She felt her fist connect, the sharp pain that shot up her arm, and the warm blood that splattered. Wick’s blood. She’d punched him right in the nose.

  Jayn didn’t hear the activity around her, fairies coming out, the king and queen, everyone attempting to break up the fight. Jayn would not be deterred. She went for his handsome face again. Wick blocked the attempt. He grabbed her wrist and tried to subdue her. Jayn went along with it but the moment he had her back to his chest she sprang. She stomped her boot heel on his foot, and sent an elbow to the chest to knock the air from his lungs. Jayn pulled away, her fist slamming against his stomach. She shoved him over but hadn’t expected his foot to kick out. She toppled like a bag of angry potatoes. The ground slammed against her back. Jayn looked up. Two muscular fairies stood over her. Their backdrop was a beautiful blue sky. With a huff and a frown, she showed her palms in surrender. Jayn was content to lay there and listen to Wick’s groans of pain.

  ****

  “I am so sorry!” Annalise rushed into the room where Wick lay. “This is all my mistake.” Her eyes roamed the plain white interior before looking at the floor in shame.

  “It wasn’t your fist,” Wick mumbled as he sat up.

  “I can’t...I can’t seem to choose between the two of you.” She took a deep breath. “Jayn has been there for me through the good and bad. I love her with all my heart, Wick.”

  He nodded solemnly.

  “But...I have been searching all my life for you.” Annalise sat beside him on the bed. “I feel this connection with you, and if what Queen Brook says is true, we’re mated.”

  “We are.” Wick whispered, “But I will not force it. If you love another all I can do is wish you happiness.” He stood. His green wings fluttered as he brushed the hair from her face.

  “That’s why it’s my fault. I have to pick and I can’t seem to do it. I want you both too badly.”

  He turned slowly. The mischievous light in his eyes seemed to be reawakened. “You want me.”

  Annalise blushed. How could she not. Wick was half-naked and looking down at her as if she was his savior. “Of course.” She bit her bottom lip. “You’re gorgeous.”

  Wick grinned and sat beside her on the bed. “Go on.”

  Annalise smiled. “Funny, strong, brave, and I always did like the color green.” She fingered the dyed strip of green hair. “Jayn is so much like you. You should both be getting along famously. At least as friends, but again, my fault. I’m leading you both on and I don’t know what to do.” Annalise buried her head in her hands, distraught. She had thought for hours trying to make a decision, but each time she made a choice, her heart ached for the person she was giving up. It wasn’t fair. She shouldn’t have to choose between them!

  Wick placed a hand on her shoulder. The warmth of his hand was decadent and she tried to hold the tremor his touch caused. “I think it’s time Jayn and I spoke.”

  “What? That didn’t work out so well last time.” Annalise lifted a brow. Jayn had attacked him and there was blood and mayhem. She didn’t want to ever see that again. Both of them held a piece of her heart, damn it. How could she be stuck in this situation, loving two people? She was ready to protest but Wick was on his feet and heading toward the open balcony doors. “Wait. What will you say? How will this talk help?”

  Wick turned toward her and his beautiful green eyes captured Annalise. Her breath caught and her heart beat loudly in her ears. Wick was reaching out, his palm against her cheek. “I think we both want you to be happy. If she truly loves you, we will sit down and speak properly.” Wick grinned. “No hitting.”

  Annalise smiled. “You promise?”

  “I have never hit a female...” He gazed off into the distance. “Okay once, but it was a banshee and she was trying to cut my head off.”

  “Oh.” Annalise’s eyes went wide.

  “My...lower head.” The corner of his lips lifted.

  “Oh.” Heat of another blush crept up her face. “That would be a shame.” Hell, did she just say that aloud?

  “Yes, yes, it would.” Wick leaned closer, his lips parting and pressing ever so gently against hers. He then pulled away and flew off into the sky in search of the woman she loved.

  ****

  Jayn stood on the edge of the cliff. Below her was the kingdom of the fairies. She could hardly believe her eyes but the proof was right there. This wasn’t some dream, some accident-induced vision. She took a deep breath. After spending several hours alone, she had come to a painful conclusion. Jayn would leave. Annalise had been searching for this world, for that fairy, for years and Jayn would not be the one to break that. She had asked the king permission to leave, gathered som
e supplies in a leather pouch, and taken off. Thame had offered to escort her but she refused. With the trolls no longer a threat, she just wanted to be alone. Jayn planned to head to the boat and sail away, find the nearest port and then an airport. All she wanted to do was go home to noisy New York.

  After the long trek to the top, she couldn’t help but turn and stare. Annalise would be happy here. This place could use her warmth and bright spirit. Jayn knew it would take a long time for her own heart to mend, but it was the right decision. It was time to go home, alone.

  Jayn turned, looking over her shoulder, and then walked toward the forest. The grass was turning brighter. There were more patches of green with spring arriving. The air was crisp, filled with a warm breeze that ruffled Jayn’s short hair.

  “Does she know you left?” Wick’s voice sounded from the sky. He hovered over the ground, a frown on his face.

  “There’s a note. I made the choice so she wouldn’t have to.” Jayn turned to him. “If you break her heart, I’ll break you.” With those parting words, she walked on. Giving up on the woman she spent the last four years falling in love with.

  “She loves you.”

  Was he following her? What more could the bastard want? He had already taken all she held dear. “Is there a reason you’re bothering me?”

  “If you leave, she will not be pleased.”

  “The world isn’t cupcakes and candy canes,” Jayn said. She worked all her life in the real world with murderers and rapists. She had been shot twice and nearly killed by a biker with a pipe. Jayn was a survivor. “Goodbye, Wick.” She walked on, but he followed. It was really starting to piss her off. She had given Annalise up and now he was irritating her.

  “We should talk,” he offered, hovering beside her.

  “We should part ways before I feel the urge to kick your ass again.”

  “I think you just wanted an excuse to touch me,” he said with a glint in his eye.

  “Oh, get real. Unless you have a pussy underneath that loincloth, I am not interested.”

  Wick grinned.

  Was he enjoying this? Jayn stopped, ready to let lose another fist on him when a sound penetrated her anger. It wasn’t loud. A distant tapping. No, hammering. She ignored the fairy before her and glanced around. It sounded closer, like it was moving, but who the hell would be hammering in the woods? “Do you...” She glanced at Wick’s face before she finished the question.

  Wick’s eyes went wide, his hand shifted to his sword, and he spread his legs to a more prepared stance.

  “Trolls?” Jayn was eager to get out some of her frustration.

  “Worse. Lú Chorpain.”

  She lifted a brow and scrunched her forehead. “A what?”

  “Come here. We’re flying. Now.”

  “Absolutely not. I’ll fight whatever it is. I’m not a wimp.”

  “Damn it, woman.” Wick sounded frustrated. He pulled his sword free. “We must flee.”

  “Maybe if you tell me what it is.” Jayn pulled out her gun. She wasn’t cocky enough to be stupid but the panic in his voice was not helping her confidence.

  “The English word is...um...leprechaun.”

  Jayn lowered her gun and spun around. “Like pot of gold at the end of a rainbow?”

  Wick snorted. “There’s a reason no one ever gets that pot.”

  The hammering sounded closer. “I thought all you myth things liked each other.”

  “Once, yes, but the younger leprechauns are much more...” He stopped, his eyes focused over Jayn’s shoulder.

  She spun, her gun aimed...on the little man staring at her. The stranger must have been two feet tall. He was carrying a mini hammer made of wood and a shoe with the sole torn. He had a long beard to his stomach in various shades of grey and pointed ears. He didn’t exactly look dangerous but her job taught her not to judge any book by its cover.

  Wick rustled with something behind her and a coin flew from his hand. It landed at the leprechaun’s feet. The things big eyes blinked, then stared down at the gift. It smiled but that evil grin sure as hell didn’t do anything for Jayn’s trust. Wick said something in Irish and the little thing titled his head. His mouth opened wider and Jayn was struck by how sweet he looked. Almost like her grandfather but much shorter. She still didn’t lower the gun but her finger shifted off the trigger. Wick spoke again, louder. Apparently, their little leprechaun wasn’t listening. Its big pupils were focused solely on her.

  Wick stepped closer. Jayn could feel the heat from his body and the musky sent of his skin. “Back up slowly,” he whispered.

  Jayn took one step and the leprechaun disappeared.

  “Fook!” Wick spun around. “Hurry, we must take to the sky!”

  “He’s gone.” Jayn turned toward him. The leprechaun appeared on their left side. His shoe and hammer were gone. His small palms were spread as he did this strange dance. Wick’s hand wrapped around her but she refused to grab hold. No one had ever saved her and he would not be the first.

  The leprechaun disappeared and a sound made her gasp. It was a snap, small and inconsequential. It was so near though, beneath her feet. She glanced down and between her legs laid the leprechaun. He had a lecherous grin and waved at her with tiny hands.

  Then the ground caved in.

  Jayn didn’t even have time to holler as she was swallowed into the dirt along with Wick. For a moment, she was panicked about being buried alive, but the dirt only passed by her face. They fell through some sort of hole and landed in a heap in the dark. She really wished the landing had knocked her out because Wick was above her. The hard curves of his body pressed into her soft ones. She could feel his erection, something that hadn’t gotten her excited in years. However, here she was with a fairy she hated and his boner was making her body come alive. Jayn shoved him aside, disgusted at her sexual reaction.

  “Fook! Damn it, woman, why didn’t you listen to me!” Wick was complaining like all men do when the world doesn’t spin their way.

  “It’s just a cave in.” Jayn decided to stay positive despite being stuck in a hole with this particular asshole of a fairy. Hey, maybe she could pass the time by shooting his kneecaps.

  “This is not just a cave in. This, Jayn, is a leprechaun hole.”

  Chapter Five

  Annalise paced the room with the note in her hand. She could hardly believe the words that she’d read nearly a dozen times. A tear slid down her cheek and she wiped it away angrily. How could Jayn just leave her like that? Annalise wanted to strangle her, but at the same time she truly understood. Spending years with Jayn had taught her a few things, including how much Jayn loved her. This was so Annalise didn’t have to choose but she was not ready to give up on Jayn just yet.

  Annalise rushed from the room. She fumbled down the hallway, nearly breaking a vase of flowers, before taking the steps faster than she should. Her feet tripped up, her knee buckled, and she was most definitely going to make an ass of herself. She threw her hands up so she wouldn’t land on her face and someone caught her. Annalise smiled. She should have known Wick would never let her fall. A glance up revealed another’s face and her smile faltered.

  “You’re welcome.” The golden fairy gave a subtle smile.

  “Oh, yes, I’m sorry. Thank you very much.” She watched his wings flutter as they untangled themselves. “Have you seen Wick?”

  Thame nodded. “He went to speak to your woman. They were walking along the ridge last I saw.”

  “Oh...” How the heck was she going to get up there?

  “Did you need a ride?” he asked.

  “Yes, please. Thank you!” Annalise followed Thame out into the fading daylight and fidgeted when she wrapped her arms around him.

  “Have you made your decision?” he mumbled as they took off from the ground. The wind rushed past her face, nearly taking her breath away. “Which mate will you chose?”

  Did everyone know? Two people’s happiness depended on her and she was going to take her swe
et time figuring out whom she’d pick. If she’d pick. This wasn’t exactly easy. “I’m not sure.”

  “Indecision can make the heart heavy.” Thame hovered over the ground. The cliffs beside them were menacing from this height. “But love can make the heart fly.”

  “Apparently so can wings.” Someone said in a voice Annalise didn’t know and she grabbed Thame’s arm in surprise.

  “Easy little one,” Thame said with a grin. “This is our resident shadow, Whisper.”

  “Um, hello,” Annalise tried but she couldn’t quite see where to aim the greeting.

  “And what brings the freak to this side of the sun?” Thame joked.

  “Listen,” Whisper said quietly.

  Annalise held her breath, doing just as the hidden fairy suggested. She couldn’t hear anything other than a few creatures stirring in the sunset. Wait, there. Was that a drum of some sort? Thame’s eyes went wide just before he wrapped his arms around Annalise. They shot into the sky like a rocket and she had to wrap her legs around one of his to keep from slipping. “What...is...it?” she said over the wind.

  Thame didn’t answer. They flew lower, making their way back to the palace doors.

  Annalise never did get a response. An alarm sounded, a low bell, and suddenly fairies were coming out of the palace and the resident humans were with them. “What is going on?”

  “Get the humans inside,” the king ordered.