The Hob

by Dana Marie Bell

  Life was sweet. Now, if only he could get Kael to stop his incessant bitching. “Time for your big girl panties, Kael, my dear.”

  He slowed down once they hit Locust, following the flow of traffic. It was mid-morning, plenty of time to drop some things off at the apartment and do a little sightseeing before heading to the hotel.

  “Are you going to make me sleep in the spare bedroom?”

  Robin choked on a laugh. “I give you my word, I will not steal your sleeping space.” If the spare room were truly inadequate, Robin would simply make other accommodations. Perhaps Paris? The City of Lights was beautiful this time of year. “I think we can manage.”

  Kael shot him a horrified look. “Not that I don’t think you’re attractive or anything, but my tastes tend to run more toward females.”

  Robin’s eyes widened with hurt. “You mean you don’t want me?”

  “Yes.”

  Robin laughed with outright delight at the emphasis Kael had placed on that single word. Not many would turn me down so flatly, out of fear of retribution. I was right. This will be fun. He placed a hand on his chest, the gesture far more Robin than the persona he should have been adopting. “I’m hurt, Lord Kael.”

  “No, you’re just bored.”

  Robin stopped laughing and glared at the pooka, aware a slight tinge of green had entered his eyes, but he beat it back, as he always did.

  The sad part was, Kael was right. He was bored spitless. He had left Nebraska—and the very entertaining Dunnes—behind, putting him at loose ends until Cassie arrived at his home. Nothing he did, no one he attempted to sleep with, could fill the aching void left behind by the only family that had ever wholeheartedly accepted him. But distance was necessary, lest he attempt to steal that which did not belong to him, future bondmate or no.

  Ah, sweet, loving Ruby. He missed her most of all, but she did not belong to him. It would kill her to leave her truebonded, Leo Dunne, and would devastate the Dunne family. Robin would sooner cut off his own arm than harm them.

  But it would have been sweet to taste her at least once.

  At least one good thing had come out of the fiasco at the Dunne farm last winter. Unfortunately, the White Court lost a powerful clan, the Malmaynes, to the Black.

  But the Child of Dunne had not only fulfilled his duty, he’d shown Robin the future.

  His future.

  Shane Joloun Dunne had the blood of Seers running through his veins, faint but powerful. He sculpted his visions of the future, both possible and impossible. That power had nearly been turned against him by the trickery of the Malmaynes and one of Robin’s own children. Fortunately, Shane had not only survived but found his own truebond in Akane Russo, hybrid daughter of the Seer, the last of her kind, and her dragon mate, now deceased. As one of Robin’s most trusted Blades, Akane had been assigned to guard Shane from the machinations of the Malmaynes. She had failed, but through no fault of her own. Thanks to his powerful gift, Shane had known that the prophecy of the Child of Dunne could not be fulfilled unless he was captured. The hybrid had allowed himself to be taken and had suffered greatly for it, but had declared his task complete. He had refused to explain to Robin exactly what that task had been, but Robin suspected it had to do with Cassie and the mystery surrounding her.

  Robin was fond of the young man, not least of which because he’d sculpted Robin’s future. It had been the only thing to give him the strength to leave Ruby behind, truebond or no. Robin pulled into the parking garage of the apartment complex that was his new, temporary home and remembered the first time he’d seen the sculpture.

  The sculpture Shane had created for him, and that now graced Robin’s bedroom, was a ball made out of razor sharp, mirror–like metallic strips, with bits of jagged glass dotting them. The cutting metal edges stuck randomly out into space. Through the metal strips he could see a tiny figure standing, arms raised like a supplicant, one hand to her chest, one to the sky. Shane had reached one finger in, blooding the metal, and tipped that figure over. Thanks to the way he’d constructed the ball, the inside had reflected the jagged edges of the outside over and over until there was nothing left but chaos and death. The position of the figure’s arms when standing was perfect for a figure lying on the ground as well.

  If that figure fell…

  Well. Best not think on that. Robin climbed out of the car and prayed that he found the woman in Shane’s sculpture soon, or he would slowly go mad. The dreams were tearing him apart with need.

  Kael stretched and groaned. “Gods, I’m glad I’m back.”

  Robin chuckled quietly. “Don’t like flying, my friend?”

  Kael snorted, amused. “Hardly. The seats are too tight, I always wind up near a screaming child, and the bathrooms are laughable. And that’s before I get on the plane.”

  Oh, Robin was growing more and more fond of this one. “After you.” Robin bowed with a grin, aware of the sound of another car pulling into the parking lot. He turned and saw the most mind-searing orange Jeep Wrangler he’d ever been privileged to lay eyes on pull into the parking spot next to his. The grin faded as the engine revved twice before cutting off.

  Behind the wheel was a dainty female in hospital scrubs. She smiled over at them before reaching down to grab something off of the passenger side floor. He tilted his head, trying to get a better glimpse of the woman.

  “Robin?”

  He tilted his head the other way, staring at the tiny figure in the driver’s seat. There was something about her, something that called to him. What was it? Robin sniffed, but all he could scent of was exhaust, rubber, human and pooka.

  “Robin, we need to go.”

  Robin turned and nearly snarled at Kael, but the concern on the pooka’s face stopped him. What had he been doing, staring at a human female?

  A car door slammed shut. “Excuse me, is everything all right?” She practically bounced in place. “Hi, Kael.”

  Kael’s tense posture visibly relaxed. “Michaela. Just getting home from work?” Kael smiled sweetly at the dainty, brown-haired sprite of a female. The girl barely reached Kael’s shoulder. Robin guessed she’d be roughly chin height on him, were he in his normal form. As it was, she barely reached his shoulder as well. She was passably pretty, with a bottom lip fuller than the top and a square, soft jaw. Deep brown eyes gleamed with good humor over a larger-than-average nose. Scrubs, covered in the scent of illness and some hideous yellow bug-eyed things in brown pants and ties that grinned and capered about her person, obscured her figure. Sensible white shoes graced her feet, and her dark brown hair was bundled up in a tight ponytail. Her pale cheeks were flushed with wind and happiness.

  Dear gods above. Robin felt faint for the first time in his life.

  It was her.

  It was the woman from his dreams, and she stood before him, tiny and vulnerable and tempting as sin.

  That sweet smile turned on Robin. “You must be Kael’s friend. I’m Michaela. Pleased to meet you.” Michaela held out her hand. “I saw you standing there, looking like you were lost. Let me guess; Kael here is too much of a pain in the ass to show you where the elevator is.”

  She laughed as Kael took her hand and placed it on his arm. Robin wanted to rip Kael’s arm off and beat the pooka to death with it. “Of course I was going to show him, once he was no longer blinded by your Jeep.”

  “Hey, no mocking the Punkinator.” She wagged her finger at Kael before turning back to Robin with a sweet smile. “It took me a week to remember where it was when I first moved in.” She shifted the heavy bag on her shoulder and pointed to a concrete column. She hmph’d. “Blind, my ass.”

  Kael stared at her with something akin to awe. “He’s staying with me for a few days, and haven’t we had this discussion before? Are you sure you should be speaking to a stranger so easily?”

  The laid-back way Kael spoke to her made it clear they’d been friends for some time. His concern for the female was admirable, but still…

  Robin fo
ught off the urge as his eyes tried to shift to the green light that spelled death for any who crossed him. Kael had done nothing but be polite to the tiny woman, a friend of his to boot. Robin should have no quarrel with Kael’s actions, but the way Robin was reacting to them was startling.

  However, Kael had a point. Robin blinked down at the strange, little brown wren of a female. There was no way she could fend off two full-grown men, if they were so inclined to harm her. If Ruby had done such a thing he would have paddled her ass, mate or no. “Indeed.”

  Michaela smiled up at him serenely. “You won’t hurt me.”

  Robin blinked again. His brows rose. Apparently the woman was certifiable. On the basis of Kael’s supposed friendship, she trusted him? “Is that so?” Tempting though it was to accept her challenge, Robin was not a complete bastard. His little human was all right for the moment, but her insane belief that the world was a safe place was going to get her killed.

  “Mm-hmm.” She laughed. Laughed, as if the implied threat were nothing. She headed past the ugly concrete column, still chattering away like the perky little bird she resembled, but this time she looked up at Kael with a frown. “Oh, Kael? FYI, some new tenants moved in while you were gone. They gave me the heebee-jeebies.” She shuddered delicately.

  “Oh?” Robin exchanged a look with Kael. Perhaps they were sharing space with some Dark Court Sidhe after all. If so, it might be prudent to move their lodgings.

  Her lodgings. Robin’s instincts were telling him to get her the hell out of here, get her somewhere safe, but he couldn’t. Not now. If he was right, if she truly was his bondmate, the last thing he wanted to do was draw attention to her while at a convention full of Dark Court fae. To do so would be to court disaster on an epic scale.

  Kael’s stance became protective, hovering over Michaela. “Did they bother you?”

  “Nah.” She wrinkled her nose, that pretty smile back on her face. She was absolutely adorable, and Robin wanted her on his arm, damn it. “I let them find their own way to the elevator.”

  She looked like a stiff breeze could pick her up easier than it did a sylph, but she bounced along beside them without a care in the world.

  “You’re awfully confident for someone the size of a flea bite.”

  Robin almost laughed at the insult Kael muttered.

  Michaela did laugh. “I know, but I’ve got a few tricks up my sleeve if someone decides to get frisky.” She made some idiotic motions with her hands and feet that Robin assumed were supposed to be some form of martial arts but looked more like a squirrel having seizures. “Take that, bad guys!”

  Robin couldn’t stop himself from patting her on the head. “You’re cute.”

  She wagged her finger in the air. “And lethal. Don’t forget lethal.” She waved toward the elevator. “And here we are.”

  The amusement in her gaze let him know how seriously she was taking her own pronouncement.

  Interesting. He hadn’t been this hungry for a female since Ruby. He kept the predatory anticipation that filled him off his face, for fear he would frighten her away.

  This one was available for consumption, and he would feast for many years to come.

  But for now, he needed to earn her trust before he could claim her body. He kept his expression amused, rather than hungry. “I’m certain thousands live in fear of your mighty fists of death.” Robin pressed the button to summon the elevator.

  “Damn skippy.” The dainty little thing sniffed and stuck her nose in the air as she stepped onto the elevator with all the grace of a Queen. Or she would have if she hadn’t tripped over thin air, landing against the back of the elevator with a muffled, “Oomph.”

  “Can we keep her?” Kael stepped into the elevator and helped Michaela to her feet. “I even know what to feed her. Please?” He made puppy-dog eyes at Robin, and Robin reluctantly chuckled.

  Hell. Robin sighed, more amused than he wanted to admit. He’d let the boy live. He was far too amusing to kill.

  “Thanks.” She blew her bangs out of her eyes and turned to Robin. “I’m sorry, I’m terrible with names. What did you say your name was again?”

  Robin took her hand. “Ringo Midori, at your service, my lady.” Robin raised her hand to his lips and chastely kissed the back, but he never once broke eye contact.

  She blushed, her cheeks becoming fiery red. “I see now why you’re friends. You two are bad, bad men, aren’t you?”

  Robin cocked an eyebrow, delighted when she laughed. The sound trickled down his spine, lodging in his cock. That uninhibited, utterly happy sound had him harder than anything a lover had done for him in centuries.

  He needed to know more about her. Where she lived. Was she seeing anyone? What were her favorite foods? Was there anything she did not like a lover to do?

  For make no mistake, Robin intended to have her before the mission was done.

  The elevator dinged and Michaela sighed. “Damn. This is my floor.” She reached up and patted Robin on the cheek. “Welcome to the building. It was nice meeting you.”

  “You, as well.” Robin watched Michaela bounce her way down the hallway until the elevator doors blocked the sight. A strange silence descended as the elevator once more began to move.

  “Ringo? Really?”

  Robin shrugged. “He was my favorite Beatle.” And if Kael forgot and started to say Robin, it would be easier to slip into the new name than if he’d named himself, say, David. He would not have taken such a precaution if he had been working with an experienced Blade, but Kael would eventually learn. Robin would see to it. In the meantime, it was better to be cautious.

  Kael chuckled, then leaned back against the elevator wall. “She’s single. And hot. I’ve thought about asking her out.”

  For a split second Kael’s life hung in the balance. Rage filled Robin at the thought of Kael with Michaela, stroking that peaches and cream flesh. Wrapping that bouncing ponytail around his wrist as he rode her.

  Robin took a deep breath and stared at the elevator numbers flashing above him. He was a split-second away from killing a man he had every intention of recruiting into the Blades, all over a fantasy. That was a reaction he would have to explore later. Much later. Alas, finding the young prince took precedence over Robin’s reaction to the delectable little human.

  Kael led the way to his apartment and opened the door. “It’s not much, but it’s home.”

  Robin looked around, curious as to why Kael lived in such a place when he was, at least technically, a member of Gloriana’s family.

  It was a fairly standard city apartment, with a galley kitchen, small dining area and slightly larger living area. The bedrooms were side by side toward the back. The entire thing couldn’t be bigger than a thousand square feet. Already Robin felt stifled, boxed in. He missed his six-thousand-square-foot home in the mountains.

  He would go insane if forced to live here indefinitely.

  He struggled to find something nice to say about the place. “I like the furniture.”

  He did. It was what he might have picked if forced to live in such a small space. A pale cream sofa and glass tables lined one wall, cream-on-cream wallpaper in a harlequin pattern creating a focal point behind them. By the entryway, a large mirror leaning against the wall kept the small room light and airy. Two accent chairs in bright blue sat by the big window, a glass end table between them. Across from the sofa was an electric console fireplace with a large, flat-screen television perched atop it. In the tiny dining area a glass table for four created the illusion of space. Outside on the terrace dark wicker furniture with cream cushions dominated the space. Robin would be able to sit out and enjoy the city lights in comfort.

  It was small, far smaller than he preferred, but Robin would live with it. For now. At least the pooka had good taste.

  Kael frowned and stared at the large mirror. “Where’s Oberon’s mirror?”

  Robin shook his head. The boy would learn. The mirror would be in the most obvious spot, but on
ly those of the Gray would be able to use it. The mirror would recognize no other. “Follow me.”

  Robin led the way to the master bedroom. There, next to a very nice queen-size bed, was an ornately decorated mirror. Symbols etched in silver and gold graced the black frame, twining around it in a pattern only another fae would recognize. The mirror itself looked antique, the glass clouded.

  “Oh. My room.” Kael coughed, and Robin wondered if he feared the entire Gray Court traipsing about his apartment willy-nilly. “Well, then. In that case, let’s unpack and settle in for the night.”

  “Good idea.” The delegates had already arrived, but Robin knew they would not be getting together formally until tomorrow. The thought had crossed his mind to scout out the hotel ahead of time, but he was weary. He allowed Kael to show him to his room and stripped himself down, the lure of the soft bed far too strong.

  Robin collapsed on top of the comforter and slipped quickly into sleep, thoughts of Michaela chasing him into his dreams.

  Robin heard a giggle, a warm sound that filled him with eagerness. She was here somewhere, in Robin’s house, sneaking about as if she could hide herself from the Hobgoblin.

  “Come and find me.”

  So his beloved wished to play hide and seek, did she? Robin was more than willing to oblige. He ghosted through the house, fully aware she could not sense his approach. He would take her, claim her, soothe her fears and make her sing for him.

  But first, he had to find her.

  She was not in the great pool she’d come to love so much, nor in the gardens where she sat for hours and admired the mountains. She wasn’t in the kitchen, badgering his staff and earning cookies with her huge eyes and gamine smile.

  Would she hide there? In so obvious a place?

  Robin snuck into his bedroom, and pondered anew the changes he’d made since he’d first dreamed of her. Where once his walls had been deep purple, his bed, a place of unbridled lust, she had taken it and made it a place that both appeased the beast within him and inflamed his desire. His walls were now painted a purplish-gray, still dark and decadent, but much calmer. For her, he had replaced the black satin sheets, the dark curtains, bringing light into the room with pale, cream sheets and curtains. Even the carpeting was lighter, a few shades off from the walls, creating a place she loved to roll around with him when he was feeling particularly frisky.