The Skye Trilogy: Isle of Skye, Isle of Night, and Isle of Dawn. * Bonus: Scrumptious Skye Confections Cookbook*

by Shannon Barczak

  “I vowed right then and there that one day I would kill him.” Mathias said. “I beat him to a bloody pulp and threw him out of the house. He snuck back in that night and cleaned out the safe and proceeded to collect the rents from the villagers. I didn’t care. I just wanted him gone. What he took was a drop in the bucket. Nine months later though, my life irrevocably changed.”

  “When my mother told me she was pregnant, I was horrified. I wanted nothing to do with the babe. But the night Elizabeth was born I crept in to see her. When she opened her eyes and looked up at me, I fell in love. She was perfect.”

  “Five years later my mother died and I was left to raise her. My father did come back, but I knew I could pay him off a bribe. He thought that taking Darias was some bargaining chip. What he didn’t realize was that I would’ve paid more for him to take that disturbing piece of shit for three times than what I eventually gave him.”

  “I suppose when you have been constantly pitted against someone your whole life it’s bound to leave a mark and with Darias it did. My mother and I both tried with him, but he was, as I think you once said, a chip off the old block. After they left a sense of peace finally came over the house. For the next ten years I nurtured and loved my sister but as she grew older I knew I had to hire someone to prepare her for what was to come.”

  “What was that?” I finally asked

  “She was to have her debut in town, and I wanted for her to have someone to guide her in the circles of London society.” he answered. “Jane was the Vicars daughter. His wife had died giving birth to her, and she was a kind and affable young woman. I paid her no attention but when she returned from London early into her season, I heard the whispers. She had been ruined by a high ranking member of the ton. I felt sorry for her and then honestly didn’t think about her again.”

  “A few months later I was out riding and saw her horse. I went further along the path and found her on the ground bleeding to death. I quickly summoned a doctor, and he told me that she had miscarried. The damage from it was irreversible. Over the course of the next few months, we became friends, and it was then I had a bright idea.”

  “If I married her, not only would I bring her respectability but I could also provide Elizabeth with a mentor.”

  “Did you love her?” I asked

  “I cared for her.” he said thoughtfully. “Did I love her? No.”

  “But if she couldn’t have children why would you marry her? Didn’t you want your own heir?”

  “I had no desire for children.” he answered. “Back then I thought I might pass along my father’s cruelness.”

  “That’s ridiculous.” I said

  “I know.” he smiled. “I was young and angry. The night before my wedding I went out to enjoy a few drinks and then, well, you know the rest.”

  “I’m sorry Mathias.”

  “Don’t be. At the end of the day, I had a great grandfather, an amazing mother and a wonderful sister.”

  “Did your mother teach you to use magic?”

  “She was always performing spells. I guess I picked a few things. My father was horrified, and he taught Darias to make the sign of the cross whenever she came near him by the time he was seven.”

  “That’s terrible.” I said. I tried to imagine as a mother how that must have made her feel. I can’t even begin to imagine the horrors Morgan Worthing must have endured at the hands of her husband.

  We walked in silence for a few minutes before Mathias stopped and moved aside. I looked up in absolute wonder. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but Mathias’s home blew me away.

  He had built himself a treehouse.

  This was not just any run of the mill tree house you would find in backyards across the world. I counted five different buildings set amongst the tall trees, and they were all connected by glass walled hallways.

  When Mathias jumped up to a small deck outside the one closest to me, I smiled in response to his obvious delight.

  “You sure are a lousy host.” I remarked before I teleported up in a flash

  “I’m terribly sorry my lady.” he apologized gallantly. “I wanted to make sure you could teleport. When I did the enchantments, I also used the same spell to block any Fae. I was hoping your blood that I used mixed with mine would ensure not only could you make it through but if you needed you could teleport here.”

  “Is this your definition of a safe house?”

  “This is where I want you to go if you anything happens and you find yourself in trouble.” he answered

  I nodded. “So are you going to give me a tour of the most remarkable tree house ever built?”

  He grinned and opened the door for me. My face lit up when I took in what was the living room. Mathias’s house on the Isle was very modern and impersonal. This, however, is where Mathias lived. The walls were painted a soft brown that glowed warmly in the afternoon sun that peeked through the windows. The back wall was floor to ceiling shelves that were crammed with books and knickknacks.

  I walked deeper into the room and noticed the brown leather sofa looked comfortably well worn. There was also a huge chair in the corner with an accompanying ottoman. The coffee and wooden end tables had light scratches here and there, but they seemed solid. I walked over to examine a set of drawings on the wall by the chair.

  The yellowed pages were faded, but you could make out a child’s drawing of a tree house. The first picture showed the outside and the second was a drawing of the inside complete with measurements. The third however seemed to be a list of material needed as well as the calculation of the time it would take to finish the project.

  I smiled when I saw at the bottom Mathias’s name scrawled in the corner.

  “When I was four years old I had a friend in the village named William. His father had built him a small tree house, and we used to play in it for hours.”

  “What games did you play?” I asked interrupting him

  He smiled, almost childlike, “Mostly pirates.”

  “Wow.” I said. “So were you the pirate or the Royal British Navy?”

  “I was always a pirate.” he answered. “One day I decided I wanted my own treehouse more than anything in the world. For about a week, I labored over the sketches. Finally, I gathered up the courage to ask my father. He barely glanced at them before he pushed them on the floor and told me if I wanted to do something useful I could pour him a glass of port.”

  “That was the last time I ever asked him for anything. My mother had seen the drawings later and decided to surprise me on my birthday with a treehouse, but it was never quite the same. She framed these drawings for me, and after I was turned I went back to the farm a few months later. I took these and a few other items.”

  “When is your birthday?” I asked

  “Today.” he answered

  “What?” I said loudly. “Why didn’t you tell me? I could’ve baked you a cake and got you a present.”

  He pushed his hands into my hair on either side of my face and placed a gentle kiss on my forehead before answering. “Today was my present.”

  I closed my eyes to absorb his words. “I’m trying to imagine you as a child.”

  He frowned and walked away from me. I was confused by the sudden shift in attitude. “What? What is it?”

  “I can’t give you children Willa.” he said softly. “I’ve been a vampire too long.”

  “I know.” I said perplexed. “I’ve already thought about that.”

  “Have you?” he asked. “Have you really?”

  Any woman whose biological clock was ticking would think about this issue. I think I had always thought about children as someday but when you meet the man you wanted to spend the rest of your life with those thoughts are inevitable. When that person happens to be a vampire though there are some things, you must be prepared to accept.

  “I have.” I answered. “Besides we do have options if we want a family.”

  “Like what?” he asked. His face was screwed up in confusi
on

  “Well, we could get Cupcake and Oscar to knock up some bitches. A couple dozen puppies running around should cure any ticks of a procreation clock.”

  Mathias’s mouth did twitch but he still looked concerned

  “We could adopt?” I offered. “There has got to be some Fae or even wood Nymphs around that need an excellent home. There’s also in vitro. I’m sure we could find a Fae or gypsy who would want to impregnate me.”

  Mathias hissed, and his eyes glowed red for a second. I just rolled my eyes. Did he not know how it worked?

  “I’m not talking about sex Mathias. They fertilize one of my eggs with sperm and then inject it back into me.”

  “I am not going to allow another man’s sperm inside of you.”

  “Oh good Lord,” I muttered and shook my head before grabbing his face. “It’s not like that and you know it. To be honest, this could all be a moot point. We may be dead in a few weeks. Besides, I’m not sure mixing our genes would be a good thing anyway. I can’t even imagine how our children would turn out. I have this horrible vision of a foul mouth little boy chucking me the finger every time I asked him to clean his room.”

  “That’s a lovely thought.” he remarked. “When I saw Elizabeth dead, I was so angry. I wanted to kill everything in sight.”

  “Of course you did, you were more like her father than her brother.”

  “If I saw you dead it would destroy me.”

  I sucked in my breath. I knew what he was saying. He was telling me in his own way that he loved me. My whole body felt weightless with happiness.

  “It would kill me too.” I said quietly

  We were both still for a moment before Mathias suddenly said. “Do you want to see the rest of the place?”

  I gave him a smile and nodded. He grabbed my hand, and we went through the first glass hallway and up a short flight of stairs. The kitchen had gorgeous cherry cabinets and granite countertops. I stroked my hand over the top of the gleaming surface, taking in the beige, brown, bronze and red stone. The appliances were small but top of the line.

  I let him lead me down another hallway, and I looked into a beautiful bathroom. The walk in shower took up half the room and had windows from floor to ceiling. When I spied the toilet in the corner, I cocked my eyebrow at him.

  “I put it in a few weeks ago.” he said

  “Damn.” I said. “I hate to be a sure thing.”

  “Trust me. You will never be what I call predictable.”

  I followed him out of the bathroom and spied another room down a long corridor, but Mathias seemed to determine to take me up a set of stairs. I let go of his hand and stopped. He glanced back at me in question.

  “What’s that room?” I asked

  “Nothing.” he said dismissively. “It’s just a small hobby room.”

  Hobby room? I thought. Since when did Mathias have a hobby? My curiosity was immediately aroused. I teleported down the hall, and before he could grab me, I went through the door. My mouth dropped open at the sight before me. This was not just a hobby room; this was an artist’s studio. There were three different easels set up around the room, as well as tables and shelves crammed with brushes and paints.

  I spied a large roll of canvas fabric in the corner and several pieces of wood. I walked around and saw paintings that were hung all over the twenty foot high walls. My mouth gaped open in wonder. It was then I thought back to the set of pictures in his office. I had asked about them a long time ago, and he simply said they were of his childhood home in Wales.

  “Mathias.” I said. “You’re an artist.”

  “Oh Christ.” he growled. “I’m not an artist. I dabble in art.”

  I laughed. “What’s wrong with admitting you’re an artist? Is it not manly enough?”

  He just crossed his arms and stood by the door. “Mathias, you have nothing to be embarrassed about. In fact if I was this talented I would be shouting it from the rooftops.”

  “I don’t want to shout it from any damn rooftops.” he said. “It’s a hobby and one I would like to keep private.”

  “Ok.” I said shaking my head. “You’re secret is safe with me Rembrandt.”

  I strode out of the room, and we finally ascended up the last flight of stairs. The bedroom was simply furnished with a large king size bed and two end tables. The comforter was a dark chocolate brown color. Upon closer inspection, I also saw a magnificent painting of the desert that hung over his bed.

  I walked over to the windows and opened them. I heard the gentle sound of the waves as they crashed into the shore and even could just make out the waterfall.

  “Mathias this place is amazing.” I said turning to face him. “Thank you so much for bringing me here. I have to be honest though I’m not sure I can handle all this fabulousness. So if you have a giant rock in that pocket you might want to wait or else I could very well have a heart attack.”

  “A rock?” he asked confused. Then I saw him visibly blanch. Human or vampire, a man still got all antsy when you brought up marriage.

  I laughed. “I’m kidding.”

  He walked over to me, and his expression darkened. “I wanted to bring you here because I needed to share this place with you. When we are done with all this nonsense…”

  “If we survive all this nonsense,” I interrupted him

  “When we survive this nonsense, you do realize we will have to leave,” he said. “No matter how accepting Winifred is of Robert and Katya right now, I’m afraid that won’t be the case with us.”

  “You don’t know that.” I stated

  “You’re a princess Willa. A princess of both the royal families,” Mathias said. “Our relationship will not be viewed as acceptable.”

  “If my family is who I think they are, then I’m sure after the shock, they will get over it and be cool.”

  Mathias shook his head. “I highly doubt that.”

  “We’ll deal with that when the time comes.” I shrugged, “Besides my father already knows about us.”

  “What?” Mathias practically shouted

  “He figured it out.” I answered. “It’s all good in the hood.”

  Mathias shut his eyes briefly. “And if they’re not?”

  “Then we’ll leave.” I replied. “We’ll travel and see the world.”

  “Can you really leave your family Willa?”

  I walked over and wrapped my arms around his neck. “You’re asking like I have a choice. If my family doesn’t love or respect me enough to accept us then so be it. “

  Mathias leaned down and roughly placed his mouth on mine. I responded back eagerly. Considering the only affection he displayed all day was by holding my hand; I was primed and ready from the moment his lips touched mine. I didn’t even realize I was naked until I felt his hands run all over my body.

  We rolled around on the bed, kissing and fondling each other. Both of us tried to take control, but it wasn’t until Mathias sunk his fangs into my thigh that I finally let him take over. Later as I drifted off to sleep, draped over his stomach, I let out a sigh.

  “Happy Birthday,” I whispered before I finally let myself be sucked into dreamland

  Chapter Sixteen

  “Wake up sleepyhead.” Mathias said softly. I grunted and buried myself deeper into the covers. I tried to swat him away as he started placing soft kisses on my shoulder, but he didn’t seem to take the hint. I shrieked when the covers were ripped off of me, and I was being hauled off naked out of bed.

  “Put me down Wolfie.” I yelled. Mathias ignored me and out the window he flew. I held on to his neck for dear life as we flew over the treetops. When I heard the waterfall I only had a split second to take in my surroundings before he dropped me into the water.

  Even though, the water was pleasantly warm I still was pretty pissed off at Mathias. When he swam up next to me and grinned, I smiled sweetly before summoning the air and pushing him across the water. I was swimming to the edge when I felt him grab me and pull me under the
water. I kicked out at his body, but he held tight.

  When I felt like my lungs were burning, we finally broke through the surface near the cascading falls. I pushed my wet hair out of my face. “Are you freaking insane?” I shouted

  “You wouldn’t get out of bed.” he answered innocently. “I also wanted you to be able to enjoy the pool before we left.”

  “Well, you know last night when I was awake would have been a better time.”

  He ignored me and pulled me over to the edge away from the path. He helped me up and over some rocks before setting me down in a small steaming hot pool of water.

  “Wow, it’s like a natural hot tub.” I said as I eased down into the water deeper. The early morning air made the steam from the water extra thick. The fog curled swirled around us like a blanket.

  “I’m still mad at you though.” I said a few minutes later

  “I’m sure you are.” he retorted. “More often than not you portray that emotion towards me.”

  “That is not true.” I said defensively. “I didn’t get mad at you once all day yesterday.”

  “That’s not a good start to our relationship if we have to keep daily tallies of our arguments or lack thereof.”

  “Well, maybe you should try to behave more.” I replied primly

  Mathias threw back his head and laughed. I was so shocked I just stared at him for a moment. I had only ever heard him laugh one time before, and it threw me off guard.

  “If that’s not the pot calling the kettle black.” he finally said

  I swam over and settled myself on his lap. I felt him harden almost instantly. “You’ve been a bad boy Mathias.” I said in my most seductive voice

  “Did you really just say that?” he smirked

  “Oh, screw you.” I said as I tried to untangle myself from his body. He clamped down on my waist and held me against him.

  “Now you’re talking.” he said as he lifted me up and settled me on his cock. I sank down and moaned with pleasure. Our mouths converged as I began to move. His hands trailed down my back and landed on my bum. He grasped me tighter, and I started to move quicker. I tore my mouth from his and threw my head back as I came in a rush. Vibrations of my desire shuddered through me, and I rode him harder.