A burst of energy surged through him. It felt good to be home after spending much time in San Francisco of the Otherworld called Earth he had been summoned to, and a sense of pride in his homeland thrummed through his veins.
Yet urgency coursed through him as well—he could not stay long as he must return to San Francisco to aid his fellow warriors in stopping the warlocks and Fomorii. But he had a task to perform here before he could leave again.
When he reached his family’s manor, he strode up the stone steps of his home. One of the many servants of the House of Cathal welcomed him as he opened the door and let Tiernan into the manor made of granite and the finest woods the Dryads would allow to be taken.
“Tiernan!” Cian’s voice came from the top of the stairs. His mother picked up her apple-green skirts just enough that she wouldn’t trip over them. White petticoats swirled around her ankles as she descended the stairs to greet him. Her hair was a pretty shade of blonde. She was of full figure and had a smile that could light up the darkest of rooms.
“Mother.” Tiernan’s heart warmed as he took her hands in his when she reached him, and he kissed each of her cheeks. As always, the faintest hint of lilacs surrounded her.
“My son. Right on time for your handfasting in two days.” She squeezed his hands. “Airell is all aflutter. I think the poor maid is having prejoining anxiety.”
Tiernan swallowed a sigh.
He had known from the time he was a child many centuries ago that the family legacy was his to bear. As a lord and the only heir to House of Cathal, he would be expected to strengthen his house with a good union and continue the line. But no suitable bride from a powerful house had been born until eighteen years ago.
His parents, too, had only married to make their houses stronger, and they had borne their first son. However, that son had been killed in one of the old battles. Therefore his parents sought to produce another son, and Tiernan was the result.
The task of bringing forth new heirs and ensuring the continuation of his family’s lineage rested squarely on his shoulders. As he had from childhood, he only wished to please his parents and live up to his many responsibilities. Duty and honor were more than words to him, more than court games or gallant speeches.
The reason for their handfasting was to produce an heir. A strange sensation jerked at his gut. He was of the same mind as Airell and had no wish to mate with her as she was so young compared to him. Merely eighteen years of age while he was centuries old. But their families expected them to join and produce a son. And that was what he would ensure they would produce, a son. No matter how many joinings it took.
The thought of a child of his own made him smile. The one thing lacking from his life, that he had always wanted, were children. A son or daughter—to him it mattered not. Even better would be two, three, or four.
However, he had never had intercourse with Airell simply because she did not wish it before their handfasting, and she preferred that he seek his pleasure elsewhere.
It was perfectly acceptable among the members of the court for lords and ladies to relieve their needs with many of the Pleasure Partners in the village whose job it was to satisfy all comers. Tiernan was no exception—his needs were great, sometimes insatiable.
His mother slipped her arm through his and he patted her hand as his thoughts returned to the moment.
“What troubles you, son?” Cian asked.
“Nothing, Mother.” Tiernan smiled as he looked down upon her. “I am simply pleased to be home.”
“Your father will be delighted to see you, of course.” Cian guided him to his father’s chambers, where the man spent most of his time when they were not entertaining.
Artan was reclining in the leather chair behind a table made from the special wood provided by the Dryads, the tree Faeries. He had contracts spread out upon the surface, and his forehead was wrinkled in concentration.
Along the walls were shelves of books, works of art, including oil paintings of the family, the House of Cathal’s shield, and a collection of swords.
It was interesting that his father collected such instruments even though he had opposed Tiernan’s decision to become a D’Danann warrior all those centuries ago, rather than a legal counselor like him. He had said he did not want to chance losing another heir to battle.
“Ah, my son.” Artan pushed his chair away from his desk. “I was just going over the contract of your impending nuptials with Airell.”
Tiernan shook hands with his father in the hand-to-elbow grasp common to his people. He smiled at his father, from whom he had inherited his blue eyes and strong features. The redheaded Artan gave Tiernan a hearty pat on the back before returning to his desk and leaning back in his chair.
“With your handfasting just two days away, you must be thrilled,” Cian said with one of her brilliant smiles. “I am so proud of you both. You will make a perfect couple and make the House of Cathal even stronger and more powerful.”
What his mother said was true. Torin and Cathal were two of the most powerful houses in all the D’Danann court. From the moment Airell was born, she had been pledged to handfast with Tiernan when she reached her eighteenth birthday. Yet he was over two thousand years old, countless lifetimes older than she.
“We will make you proud.” Tiernan looked from his mother to his father. “We will carry on the honor and integrity of both houses.”
“My son.” Cian hugged Tiernan, and he embraced her in return. When she pulled away a single tear rolled down her powdered cheek. “No matter what, just know that we shall always be proud of you, Tiernan.”
* * *
After a lunch of many portions of roasted fowl and vegetables followed by puddings and a rich fruit trifle, Tiernan left his home, intent on having a few moments alone with his betrothed. Spending time with his family, seeing the pride in his father’s and mother’s eyes had driven home the importance of carrying on both their lines.
The thought of being bedded by a man might seem distasteful to a young maid, but once they were joined he could show her the joy of such intimacy. With their hand-fasting so close, perhaps now she would be receptive to experiencing such pleasures.
When he reached Airell’s family’s mansion, he was informed by a servant that Lady Airell had gone for a walk in the forest. The servant gestured in the direction his betrothed had taken. Tiernan bowed his thanks and followed the tree-lined path.
A sense of peace filled him at being in his own world once again. He breathed in the forest smells of rich earth and of the trees tended by the Dryads. No breeze stirred the air, yet he caught the scent of something familiar, something that did not belong. A powdery perfume. He sniffed. Airell’s, of course. She had come this way.
Nary a leaf crunched under his boots as he made his way through the forest. Sunlight slanted through the trees and he felt the warmth on his arms whenever he came out of shadow into the sunlight.
He began to wonder how far the maid had traveled when he heard voices coming from behind a line of towering bushes ahead. Knowing the forest so well he could map every tree and stone if required, he knew there was a small grassy clearing on the other side of the bushes.
Airell’s laughter rang clear through the forest. With a smile he started toward the clearing. He reached a gap in the bushes and came to a full stop.
Blood rushed in his ears. He could not move.
Airell was on her back, her blonde locks splayed across the thick grass. Her bodice had been pulled below her breasts so they were exposed. Her long blue dress was pushed all the way up to her waist.
Lowering himself between her fair-skinned thighs was Urien, a brown-haired, brown-eyed young D’Dannan that Tiernan knew to be of Airell’s age. His breeches were untied and he lowered himself closer to Airell. Her expression and words of encouragement to Urien told Tiernan this wasn’t the first time she had enjoyed sex.
Heat rose up within Tiernan and he ground his teeth. No wonder Airell had insisted he enjoy the
women at the Pleasure Houses. Despite the fact she had claimed to not want to be touched by any man, she had been taking one of the lesser members of the court.
Hands fisted at his sides, he prepared to make himself known. Arranged marriage or no, Airell was his betrothed.
Just as Tiernan was about to step forward, Airell’s body shuddered and she cried out, “I love you, Urien!”
“Gods, but I love you, too,” Urien said as he stared into Airell’s eyes while she trembled.
The two were tightly entwined when Tiernan strode into the clearing. “Get up!” he ordered, his voice bellowing through the forest.
Airell screamed and scrambled to yank her bodice up and Urien jerked her dress down to cover her. The young man pushed himself to his feet. He hurried to tie the lacings on his breeches before taking Airell by the hand and drawing her up with him.
Red blossomed on Airell’s cheeks and Urien’s face was flushed. She clung to Urien, her head turned away from Tiernan as if afraid of what he might do. Leaves and grass clung to her hair and her dress was wrinkled.
It took all Tiernan’s control not to slam his fist into the younger man’s face.
“Look at me,” Tiernan demanded, his gaze moving from Urien to Airell. As she slowly turned her head, her bright blue eyes met his, and he saw her cheeks stained with tears.
Godsdamn. Why did she have to cry? He could not bear it when a woman cried.
“Please do not tell my parents.” Airell’s lips trembled. “And the court. Please do not tell the court,” she added in a hoarse whisper. “I would be marked, thrown from my home and all that I know and love. None of the Fae would aid me in any way.”
She looked up at her lover who still held her close to him, his stance rigid. “And Urien—he would be sent to serve those horrible Dark Elves, forever banished below ground.”
Tiernan took a deep breath. “Go home.” His voice was still sharp as his eyes rested solely on Airell. “We will discuss this when I am finished with Urien. Await me at your house.”
Her grip on Urien’s arm tightened. “Do not hurt him. Please, Lord Tiernan.”
He let out a low growl. “Go home now.”
Airell did not look at either of them as she pulled leaves from her hair and ran past Tiernan. The sound of a sob reached him and he almost sighed.
Damn women.
He focused directly on Urien. The young warrior stood with his back rigid, his hands clenched at his sides, a spark to his brown eyes, his mouth in a tight line, and his chin high.
No matter how hot the blood surged through Tiernan’s veins, no matter how much he desired to slam his fist against Urien’s jaw, he would not.
“Have you no sense of honor or pride?” Tiernan took a step forward, his hands also fisted at his sides.
Urien cleared his throat. “Airell and I are in love.”
“That matters not.” Tiernan ground his teeth. “It is I she will be wedded to in two days’ time.”
Urien’s chin rose a notch at the growl in Tiernan’s voice. “I am the one she wishes to handfast with.”
“As I said, it matters not.”
“She doesn’t want to.” Urien’s throat worked as he spoke. “She only does so because her family promised her to you.”
“Exactly.” Tiernan took a step forward, so close to Urien that he could see sweat beading on the younger man’s forehead. “You cannot dally with a lady of the court when she is promised to another. You can fuck all the women that you wish to in one of the Pleasure Houses.”
Urien’s shoulders shook despite his bravado. “She is allowed to seek her pleasure with a man from a Pleasure House, but she chooses me.”
“It is not allowed and she is my betrothed,” Tiernan said. “And what if you were to impregnate her?”
Sweat rolled freely down Urien’s forehead. “We have gone by the moon cycles. We have been very careful.”
Tiernan let out a low, menacing growl. “This is something you have done many times?”
At that Urien’s face went from red to a paler shade. “We are in love.”
“You are a D’Danann warrior, and you sacrifice your honor.” Tiernan shook his head. “You do not have the means to raise your house high enough in the court to be allowed to wed her,” Tiernan said. “The House of Brend would need much gold.”
Urien lowered his eyes and his voice cracked as he said, “True. I will never have the means to marry Airell.”
“Look at me,” Tiernan demanded, and Urien’s gaze snapped back to meet Tiernan’s. “You will no longer have relations with my betrothed—unless you intend to lower your status altogether, leave the D’Danann, and become a Pleasure Partner.”
Urien’s jaw clenched and unclenched, but he said nothing.
Tiernan narrowed his brows. “Return to your work before I take out any punishment that is my due.”
Urien gave a bow from his shoulders. “Yes, my lord,” he said before walking past Tiernan and into the forest.
Tiernan raised his face to the sky, closed his eyes, and took a deep breath, trying to relax the tension from his shoulders and neck. He opened his eyes and leveled his gaze on the trunk of an ancient tree near him. He raised his fist to slam it into the tree but jerked his arm back when a face, then a body melted from the aged wood.
“Hit me or any tree and pay the consequences,” the Dryad said as she stepped fully from the tree. “As you know, the consequences are dear, indeed.”
Tiernan lowered his fist and gave a low bow from the shoulders. “My apologies, Simone.”
The Dryad cocked her head, her chestnut-brown hair flowing around her shoulders with the movement. Her bare skin was the color of dark brown silk, and her eyes were a shade of warm oak. “You choose to keep these lovers separated.”
He ground his teeth. “There are no choices. These decisions were made long ago. It is up to Airell and me to carry on the honor and tradition of our houses.”
“Honor and tradition.” Simone’s voice had a mocking edge to it. “Is that all that matters to you?”
“Is there anything else?” Tiernan said.
“Love.” The Dryad’s word carried on the wind like a single sweet chime from a bell.
“Love has nothing to do with such matters.” He kept the scowl from his face and bowed at the shoulders again. “I must leave to discuss this matter with my betrothed.”
Simone smiled. “Of course. But remember, there are always choices. Destiny is what we make of it.”
Tiernan ignored her last comment. He gave a brief nod, strode away from the clearing, and headed back to the House of Torin to confront Airell.
He barely took in the beauty of Airell’s family manor as he arrived. The House of Torin was reminiscent of the palaces of ancient Roman times, yet it still managed to blend in with the other great manors of the court.
The same servant who had given Tiernan the whereabouts of Airell earlier opened the great doors. When he asked for her, the young servant led him through the enormous mansion with its great columns and sheer, colorful drapes that gently billowed as a breeze swept through.
Tiernan and the servant reached the open doors that led to the gardens. In the distance he saw Airell from the back. She perched on a marble bench by a fountain. The servant bowed and retreated as Tiernan walked outside and into the gardens.
Airell had changed clothing, and now wore a pink gown. Her shimmering blonde hair had been pinned in a conservative knot at the base of her slender neck.
He finally reached her and studied the young woman, who refused to look at him.
Beside them the fountain made of dancing marble Faeries bubbled musically and the smell of fresh cut grass and flowers drifted in the balmy air from the enormous gardens surrounding them.
Without waiting for an invitation, Tiernan sat next to Airell on the marble bench. Her rose-pink gown shifted with a light wind and a tendril of her hair escaped.
“Look at me.” His tone was commanding. This was no time for gentl
eness. He must deal with the situation and be done with it.
Airell shifted on the bench to meet his gaze. Her blue eyes looked glossy, almost as if she were ready to burst into tears again.
Not tears. Not the godsdamn tears again.
He kept his gaze focused on hers. With her blue eyes and blonde hair, they would possibly have children of the same looks as Airell. Yet, he could not imagine having a child with her. She was too young, too frail-looking.
But definitely not too innocent.
At that thought he ground his teeth. Finally he said, “Your dallying with Urien needs to be dealt with at once.”
Airell’s lower lip trembled and he saw the tears threaten to trickle from her eyes.
Shit.
He wanted to look away from the tears that were surely about to fall, but he needed to keep his features stern so that she would be clear on his intentions and on his words.
“If you do not wish to engage in sex with me at this time, then you can choose a Pleasure Partner from the village or you may abstain. I will not risk your getting with child with Urien.”
The tears started rolling down Airell’s cheeks, but he did his best to ignore them. “When we are handfasted, we will attempt to produce an heir, no matter how many times we must join. After that you may have sex with any Pleasure Partner you wish to, but you will not dally with Urien or any other man of the court for that matter.”
“I am with child.” The words came so softly from Airell’s lips that at first he thought he had misheard her. When it sank in, his body went rigid with shock. Her tears continued to run in rivers and all Tiernan could do was stare. A babe? Urien’s child?
Airell looked away from Tiernan and down to her belly where her hands were now clenched. “I have not told him.”
“A child.” Tiernan spoke harshly as his temper flared. He had always wanted children, yes, but he did not want to raise another man’s child, knowing that he was not the true father. “Godsdamn, Airell.”
The Seduced Page 5