by Amy Cissell
Isaac considered my hypothesis for a minute. “That makes sense. And maybe that spot in Forest Park did have some kind of significance that was forgotten or hidden. That’ll be a good question for Florence.”
He went back to the map. I laid out the lunch offerings on the picnic table and went back to the cabin. He was still staring at the map. I pulled it out of his hands, folded it up carefully, and stuck it into backpack before climbing into his lap.
A spark appeared in his eyes. “This probably isn’t the best place for this,” he said, although the arms that pulled me even closer belied his hesitation.
“Yeah, the group of campers next door is a bit inhibiting,” I murmured, tracing my fingers across the stubble on his jawline and into his hair.
Isaac looked over. “You mean the group with five kids under the age of ten? The kids staring at us right now?”
“Those are the ones.” I leaned forward and kissed him softly. His arms went around me, one hand resting above my ass, the other moving lightly up and down my side. His fingers grazed the underside of my breast, and I gasped.
He kissed me harder, his tongue plunging into my mouth and his arms tightening around me, pulling me into the hard lines of his body. His interest in this diversion grew against my abdomen, and I smiled against his lips.
“Wanna head inside?” I asked. “I don’t want to get kicked out of the campground for scandalizing children.”
Isaac growled in response, then stood up, sliding his arms under my back and legs to take me with him. He strode the few steps to the cabin door and pushed it open. He walked to the larger bed in the front room and dumped me unceremoniously on the sleeping bag that had been spread out like a sheet.
“You are bad for my control, woman.” There were yellow streaks running through his eyes, and his voice was deeper than usual. I shivered appreciatively. I kicked off my shoes and pulled my tank top off, leaving me in nothing but a pair of hiking shorts and a lacy, nearly transparent bra.
In less time than it takes to blink, Isaac was on me. He pressed me back onto the bed and straddled me, holding my legs still. He moved my arms up above my head and held them there with one hand. His other reached for my bra and unhooked the front clasp, freeing my breasts.
He unbuttoned my shorts and pulled those off, too. Now I was nearly naked, and he was not.
“Too many clothes,” I gasped as he leaned in and sucked the material of my panties into his mouth. The heat of his mouth swirled through the center of my being. His hands were on my breasts, kneading and pulling my nipples into hard points. He shifted his focus down, grabbed my panties, and yanked them off. Once I was naked beneath him, he knelt between my legs and looked at me hungrily. I moaned, unable to stop myself.
“Do you want this?” he rasped.
“Oh, yes. I’ve wanted this for weeks,” I whispered. “I want you naked, too.”
He stood up and started stripping. I dipped a hand between my legs as I watched. By the time he was naked, I was about to come. Isaac pulled my hand away. “Not yet, Princess,” he said. “I have other plans for your first orgasm today.”
He resumed his position between my legs, and I reached for him. He was already hard and eager, and I wanted him in my hands or mouth or inside me. He grabbed my hand and positioned it with the other above my head. “Don’t move and don’t let go.”
“Or what?”
“Or I’ll stop.” His head disappeared between my legs. His tongue flicked up and down my clit, occasionally diving inside me until I was quivering with need and moaning non-stop. His fingers joined the game, and he slipped two, then three fingers inside me, plunging deep with the same rhythm as his mouth. He sucked my clit into his mouth over and over as his fingers brought me to the cusp of orgasm. Each time, as I was about to burst, he backed off. I was about ready to kill him when he flipped me over. He pushed me up onto my knees. Before I could figure out what was happening, he was inside me with one long stroke. He paused. “Okay?”
“God, yes. Don’t stop.”
That was all the green light he needed, and he started thrusting in and out, rapidly and rhythmically. It didn’t take long before he brought me over the edge, and I spared a thought to be thankful that my shields muffled sound as I screamed my ecstasy. As soon as I stopped spasming, Isaac pulled out.
“What are you doing?” I demanded. “We aren’t done here.”
“Clearly,” Finn said.
I scrambled to my knees and then turned around, pulling the sleeping bag around me. Finn was leaning against a wall and staring. The look in his eyes was heated, but it wasn’t the fire of lust. It looked more like rage. He saw me notice and looked away. When he turned back towards me, there was nothing in his eyes but boredom. Now the only rage I could sense was coming from me.
“Get the fuck out, Finn!” I said.
“You’re not going to ask me to join in?”
“No. No, I’m not. Go.” I looked up at Isaac, hoping he wasn’t starting to wolf out, but he seemed content to let me handle it. He did move slightly, so that Finn’s view of me was completely blocked, and all he’d be able to see was a tight, black ass.
“You don’t need to hide her from view,” Finn said. “I’ve seen it, and tasted it, all before.”
“Out Finn. Now.”
He laughed and strolled out of the cabin, slamming the door.
“Well,” Isaac said. “That was interesting.”
“I’m going to have to handle this, aren’t I?”
“Unless you’re looking for some regular cockblocking, I’d say yes.”
“That isn’t my primary goal.”
“Then you’ll need to talk to him.”
“Dammit.” I rolled out from under Isaac and started dressing. He watched me for a while before gathering up his own clothes. “Not today, though.”
“Soon, Eleanor.”
I sighed. “Soon.”
Finn was sitting at the picnic table drinking a Coke and polishing off the last crappy sandwich. I grabbed a bag of chips and sat next to him so I wouldn’t have to see his face.
“What’s next on the agenda?” I asked around a mouthful of chips.
“Finishing school for you,” Isaac groused. “You need to learn some table manners.”
I kicked him under the table.
“We need more supplies. We can’t live on these plasticky sandwiches. Ellie’s sandwiches are better than this.”
“You’re an asshole,” I said. My skin prickled a warning and I made a conscious effort to suppress my temper.
“Speaking of supplies, we need more camping gear. We only have two sleeping bags right now.”
“And I’m not touching them,” Finn muttered.
Isaac ignored him. “And I’ll need to take a couple of days off next week.”
I stared at him. “Take a couple days off? Do you have any vacation time banked? Have you put in a formal request? Wait…do I have vacation time, too?”
He punched me lightly in the shoulder. “It’s the full moon next week. I don’t have to shift at the full moon, but it’s harder to stay human. I’d rather not accidentally turn into a wolf while we’re in a confined space.”
“Where will you go?” I asked.
“Ordinarily, I’d petition the local pack to see if I could spend the three days of the full moon with them, but in this case, I’m going to skip that request. If what Florence said about their leadership and the effect I’ve already had on their pack is true, my showing up to run with them on the full moon might cause an irreparable schism. I’ll head east. It’s empty out there, and I can probably run for miles without encountering anything but some unlucky jackrabbits.”
“There’s nothing to worry about, right?” I had a bad feeling about this.
He looked towards me, not meeting my eyes, and said, “Not a thing, Princess. Not a thing.”
Chapter Thirteen
ISAAC AND FINN took off a short time later, leaving me alone for the first time in weeks. I reveled in my tempor
ary freedom for all of five minutes before getting bored. Finn had left instructions for my alone time, and I went and sat on the ground beside the cabin to restore my connection with the earth, refuel my shields, and work on moving air currents around. I got a little carried away and created a tiny tornado inside my shields. Before I could stop it, it ripped through my clothing and sliced my abdomen. I gasped in pain and barely held onto enough concentration to finish dismantling my whirlwind. It was obviously an effective weapon if I managed to send it against an enemy instead of myself. Who knew air could be so sharp?
That thought stuck in my head. I started forming a picture of a sword in my mind. I made the edges almost impossibly thin. I held it carefully in my right hand and reached out with my left. I touched the invisible edge carefully and quickly stuck my bleeding fingers in my mouth.
The minute I let go of my concentration, the sword disappeared. Sticking to steel would probably be more reliable.
I was sweating from the effort of maintaining my shields and creating my air weapons. I dropped everything but the simplest of shields and breathed. My stomach burned with hundreds of little cuts, but the bleeding stopped, and they began to knit closed right in front of my eyes. I guess one of the perks of having access to Fae magic was accelerated healing.
I rebuilt my shields and practiced pushing them out again, enveloping a larger and larger area. It was much easier to keep them within a five-foot radius. Once they stretched out to room size, I could feel them getting thin and fragile in places. All it would take would be a concerted magical or mental attack at a weak point to breach them. I pulled them back in so that they sat just outside my aura and worked on making them more solid. I wanted to see if I could get them to repel a physical attack. I made them as solid as I could, even though I knew they were no longer transparent. Since I didn’t have anyone to offer a physical attack, I released them again before they could drain me.
I worked with my air tornado again and managed to avoid cutting myself this time. It was hard to maintain my magical weaponry on the outside of my shields, but after a solid thirty minutes of practice, I managed to keep both up at the same time. I let go of the cyclone and let my shields collapse back into me, keeping up the bare minimum to hinder psychic intrusion. I leaned back against the cabin, completely exhausted. I was feeling less than alert and more than a little hungry.
I heard a car pull up. I peered around the corner and saw Isaac getting out of a large, dirty Jeep 4x4. I skipped over to him and threw my arms around his neck. I reached up to kiss him, but his hands on my shoulders stopped me mere inches from his lips. He looked into my eyes, and I noticed his were streaked with yellow again. My heart skipped a beat and a pulse started pounding low and hot in my center. He licked his lips, and I nearly moaned with anticipation. I’d never met anyone who had this effect on my libido. This man drove me crazy. It was hard to believe we’d only known each other for a few weeks.
“Can I kiss you?” I asked breathily, twining my hands around his neck and trying to tug him closer.
“Princess,” he started. “Eleanor, there are things I should tell you.”
I moved a hand from his neck to his lips. “Please don’t tell me today. Kiss me. I’m having an ordinary afternoon and kissing you would make it an extraordinary afternoon.”
He sighed, but then did as I requested and pulled me into him. The kiss started soft and gentle. It soon deepened, and he plunged his tongue into my mouth. He tasted wild and rich and a little like an Irish coffee. I opened my eyes and saw him staring back at me. In his eyes, I saw more than I’d wanted to see. His gaze was intense and full of promise, but I wasn’t sure I was ready for that promise to be made. I broke off the kiss.
“Eleanor,” he said, but I interrupted.
“Why are you suddenly calling me Eleanor?” I asked, feeling a wee bit suspicious, even though he’d called me Princess a few minutes ago.
“It’s rude to call you a name I originally intended as mockery now that we’ve become friends.”
I walked over to the cooler and pulled out a beer. I tilted it towards him, and he nodded. I grabbed a second and popped the tops off. I passed over his beer, careful to keep my distance.
“Eleanor,” he started again. This time, I let him continue, but I remained on guard to nip any uncomfortable conversations in the bud. “There are things I need to tell you, but I can’t yet. Not because I don’t trust you, but because I don’t trust us. I need you to promise not to hesitate to strike me down if I ever threaten you, because if it gets to that point, I can’t be saved. I would rather die than harm you.”
I stared at him. This conversation was not going in the direction that I’d expected. “What the hell are you talking about?” My voice was too loud, but I didn’t care. “Why are you going to hurt me? Why on earth would I agree to hurt you?”
“Not hurt, Eleanor. Kill.”
He reached into the Jeep and handed me the box he retrieved. I looked inside and saw four beautiful throwing knives in arm sheaths.
“These are gorgeous!” I gasped. I reached in and felt the magic running through them. I pulled them out and realized as I did so that they were solid, sharpened silver. I looked at him. He’d given me weapons I could use to kill him.
“I can’t.” I started to hand them to him. He moved back quickly, avoiding the knives.
“I’m not that far gone yet. I’d rather not touch them.”
“Even touching them would hurt?”
“Silver burns and wounds caused by silver heal slowly and are more often fatal than wounds caused by steel.
“I didn’t give these to you to only use against me. These should be effective against vampires, although you’d need a perfect heart shot for that to be fatal. And, as your Fae magic comes more and more to the forefront, they might be more comfortable for you to use as most full-blooded Fae can’t handle iron.”
Even though I would never kill Isaac, they were handy for all the reasons he’d pointed out. I took off my arm sheaths and replaced them with my new weaponry. I made sure there was no silver peeking out and then stepped forward into Isaac’s embrace.
I reached up and pulled his mouth down to me again. I was grateful we weren’t having a talk about feelings. I kissed him, gently. “Thank you,” I whispered against his mouth. “I won’t promise to kill you, but I will wear these and stay alert.” I pressed my body into his and kissed him again. I might be unwilling to swap “L” words with anyone, but there were other things I wanted to exchange with Isaac. He kept the kiss from going any further though, stepping back to leave a fraction of space between us. Other than jumping on him, I wasn’t sure how to advance things, so I didn’t. He wrapped his arms around me and rested his chin on my head.
I don’t know how long we stayed like that, but we hadn’t moved for a while when Finn cleared his throat. “Food’s here,” he said. There was an edge to his voice that I couldn’t identify. So, like I was doing with all the emotional stuff right now, I ignored it.
I rolled over when the rising sun cut a swath of light across my face and tried to pull a pillow over my head. The instant I moved, all the pillows and covers were swept from the bed.
“Rise and shine, Princess,” Isaac said.
“Weren’t you going to start calling me Eleanor?”
“I was, but then realized that since you already rule my body and my heart, I might as well continue to address you formally.”
I sat up and glared at him. “You’re in much too good a mood for this early in the morning.”
“You’d be in a good mood, too, if you were having an iced Americano from your favorite coffee shop in Portland.”
“Where? Why?”
Isaac opened his mouth to answer, but I waved my hands. “Never mind. I never question miracles.”
I hopped out of bed, grabbed my arm sheaths off the bedside table and strapped them on. My sword remained where it was; no need to alarm my fellow campers. Once I was fully clothed, I went outside.
Finn was sitting out there with two coffees. He handed me one. “Iced hazelnut latte.”
My eyes with pleasure at the first sip of delicious coffee. I didn’t care where Finn had obtained my beverage; it was delicious.
The caffeine flooded my system and my eyes opened. “If you could’ve been fetching me delicious coffees this whole time, why have I been drinking Sanka?”
“It’s exhausting, so I don’t waste my energy fetching drinks. However, since we’re not doing anything today but driving around, I have the energy to spare. Plus, you’re easier to get along with when you’re happy and good coffee makes you happy.”
“Thank you.”
After breakfast, we piled into the Jeep. Isaac drove, I sat shotgun, and Finn sat in the backseat with his chin on the back of the bench seat between me and Isaac.
Although I was reasonably certain the gate was in the vicinity of Harney Peak—the tallest mountain in the Black Hills—we decided to check out a few other areas. I wanted to get the most out of my mandatory Great American Road Trip.
We drove into Sturgis in early afternoon. It was run-down and desolate looking now that the bikers had cleared out. When Isaac turned on to Main Street, something grabbed my attention. It wasn’t the gate, but something was pulling me. I gave Isaac directions, although my internal GPS was slower than Apple Maps, and we ended up doing a lot of U-turns.
Finally, we were there—wherever “there” was. We pulled to a stop in front of a strip mall. This one held one of the ubiquitous video lottery shops, a liquor store, a Subway, and a tattoo parlor. I hesitated briefly, then walked into the tattoo parlor. It was empty, but for the proprietor. As soon as I saw him, I realized he was Fae.
He studied me and Finn before his gaze settled on Isaac. “How can I help you? Need some ink to commemorate your time at the Rally?”
“Actually,” I said, “I’m the one who wants some ink.”
Finn and Isaac both looked at me askance while the artist eyed me speculatively. Since I was as surprised as anyone at my pronouncement, I stayed quiet and thought about why I suddenly wanted a tattoo.