Igniting the Spark

by Fleur Smith

  “I kinda thought that was the plan when you proposed.”

  “Well, yeah, but I mean we should get married soon.”

  “I think there are more pressing matters,” I said, rolling onto my side and resting my hand over my stomach. Even though there was no outward sign of my pregnancy, it was impossible to ignore the awareness I now had that it wasn’t only my life in my hands.

  Clay’s gaze followed my hand. “Like?”

  I ran a trail over my stomach. As I did, it occurred to me that I hadn’t eaten since before Mackenzie’s visit. The enchantments were probably already starting to fade. It was a reminder that I had to be careful. Although I didn’t burn through the fae enchantments quite as fast as I had when the sunbird was awake, I also wasn’t able to judge my need for them quite as well. Especially when I seemed to throw up half of what I consumed and now apparently had to factor in another entity. “Like, trying to figure out how the enchantments I have to eat to stay at the court might affect her.”

  His smile fell. “I didn’t even think of that.”

  “I hadn’t either until just now.”

  He traced a path over my cheek with his fingertips. “You need more now, don’t you?”

  Leaning into his touch, I gave a small nod. “I haven’t eaten since early this morning.”

  “Let’s get dressed and head down to get something.”

  “When are we going to tell your mom? And everyone else I guess.” From my experiences of court life, once one or two people knew any piece of information it spread rapidly through the whole court. Then all the fae commiserated or celebrated as one. No doubt the announcement that a grandchild of the queen was on the way would warrant a feast—or a dozen.

  Clay pushed himself off the bed and started picking up the clothes we’d discarded in our haste to celebrate together. “As much as I want to keep this just our little secret for the moment, how long do you think we can avoid telling people?”

  “Considering how fast Mackenzie figured it out, not long. Any of the healers will know just by brushing my aura apparently.”

  “Then, maybe we’ll tell everyone tomorrow. For the time being, to make sure the news doesn’t spread too far, why don’t you stay here, and I’ll go get something for us to eat.”

  “I am capable of—”

  He cut me off with a kiss. “More than capable, but please let me do this. I don’t think Mack will tell anyone, but the more people who know, the less we’ll be able to keep a lid on it. Can you imagine Eth’s reaction if he finds out second-hand?”

  I laughed because he was right. Ethan would be pissed. I might not have known him that well, but he was a family man through and through.

  “I’ll be right back.”

  Stretching out on the bed, I put my hands behind my back. “I’ll be right here waiting I guess.”

  His gaze trailed my body, and for a moment, I thought he was going to say screw it, but then he sighed and left.

  True to his word though, he was back in almost no time. When he returned, he had a selection of cold roast meats, fresh bread rolls, and some decadent looking chocolate cake.

  The scent of the food wafted to me, and I clutched at my mouth as a wave of nausea rolled through me. I disappeared into the bathroom to throw up, and when I came back out, Clay held his arms open for me.

  I stepped straight into them and rested my head against his shoulder.

  “She’s going to be worth it, isn’t she?” I asked as the nausea rolled again.

  “If she’s anything like you? Then yes.” He kissed my cheek. “A thousand times, yes.”

  “Suck up,” I teased with a laugh.

  He held out one of the rolls for me. “Just try this.”

  “You’d think the enchantment would help it stay down,” I muttered after finishing a bite that left my stomach roiling.

  The look on Clay’s face spoke volumes. It clearly said, “Unless it’s because it’s bad for her.”

  I gave the bread another couple of small nibbles, knowing if I didn’t the enchantments would wear off. Who knew what might happen if that occurred while I was in the court. Would the place disappear around me, leaving me to fall into the middle of the East Meadow of Central Park? Would I fall into a place between the two planes? Somewhere like the Void Fiona had mentioned. “Maybe we should talk to your Mom tomorrow and come up with a plan B on the living arrangements.”

  He frowned. “I liked knowing you were safe here.”

  “We could go back to Sweden.” The idea held some comfort. We had been safe there, after all. Only Clay’s fae family and Caelan knew about that place. It wasn’t like Clay’s family was a threat and Caelan was dead, so we’d be safe there.

  “No way. What if something happened?” He wrapped his arms around my waist. “I couldn’t stand being up there alone with you and have something go wrong with the baby.”

  “Why don’t we think about it some more. Maybe we’re overreacting. Maybe she’ll be fine even with the enchantments. We can ask Mackenzie to investigate it for us.”

  He brushed my hair off my face. “Either way, it’s a problem for tomorrow and you should probably get some sleep.”

  “Are you going to start worrying about me more now?” I asked, not sure I could take him being more protective than he already was.

  He laughed. “Evie, I always worry about your safety. It’s my job.”

  When I raised my eyebrow in question, he just laughed.

  “You know what I mean. I like taking care of you.”

  “Just so long as you know I can take care of myself,” I said, fixing him a stare.

  “Trust me; I know you’re more than capable of that.”

  After I’d finished a little bit of the food, I got ready for bed and brushed my teeth. It was amazing how oddly domestic our life had become. We could have just been any regular couple living in New York.

  Nearly an hour later, I was still staring at the wall, and judging by Clay’s breathing, he wasn’t asleep either.

  “What are you thinking?” I asked in a whisper.

  “I have a date in mind for the wedding.” I didn’t think that was the thing keeping him up, but it was clearly the only issue he was willing to raise.

  I hummed in question as I rolled over in his arms.

  “April Eighteenth.” He met my gaze and there was a confidence in his eyes that I didn’t understand.

  “That’s my birthday.” I wasn’t sure if he understood the significance of the date.

  “I know.” He lifted his lips into a small smile as he brushed loose strands of hair away from my face. “I’ve known that since we were in high school, and I researched you to find out what you were and where you might have gone.”

  He fell silent as the memories of that time in our lives washed over both of us. So much had passed between us. Good and bad. All of it led us to where we were right then.

  “Even though we’ve never been together to celebrate it, I’ve marked it every year. And I also know you haven’t had many reasons to celebrate it before, so I thought maybe this year I could give you the best present I can think of—all of my love, my heart, and my soul.” He rested one hand against my cheek. “I’m sorry that it’s all I have to offer.”

  I teared up, but it wasn’t only at his words. Clay’s thoughtfulness and desire to give himself to me as a birthday present made one terrible, selfish, and inescapable fact crystal clear. A sob shook my chest.

  The smile fell from his lips and his face grew ashen. “If you don’t want to share your birthday with our wedding, that’s okay,” he whispered in a rush. “We can pick another date if you’d prefer. Any other date you want.”

  I shook my head and waited for the worst of my sobs to pass so that I could speak.

  “That’s not it,” I was finally able to say. “I just . . . I just realized that I don’t know when your birthday is.”

  Another sob rushed from me as I admitted the dreadful truth. I knew he was around my age, we’d
been in the same classes after all, but I didn’t have a clue whether he was a few months older or younger.

  To my surprise, he chuckled. “It’s okay. I’ve never told you, and you weren’t the one obsessively investigating me. My birthday was a few months ago, February Second.”

  “I missed your birthday?” I sobbed harder. “You must think I’m a terrible, selfish person.”

  “Missed it?” he said, tilting his head in question. “You didn’t miss it, Evie. In fact, you gave me the best damn gift in the world.”

  I frowned. I hadn’t given him anything recently. Not big enough to be the best birthday gift in the world.

  “You don’t remember what happened on February second?”

  I shook my head. “Should I?”

  “You woke up,” he whispered and the elation in his voice was so clear. “You woke up and you told me that nothing had changed even though the sunbird was sleeping.”

  “That was your birthday?”

  He nodded. “That’s why I was with Mom. That was the only reason I wasn’t at your side. They couldn’t have dragged me away for anything less. And trust me, they tried.”

  “Why didn’t you tell me?”

  “I had slightly more important things on my mind.” He kissed my forehead lightly.

  “February second,” I repeated to cement the date in my mind—not that I needed to because I knew I would never forget it. Not now that I actually knew it. I kicked myself mentally for not asking him sooner. It was just one of those casualties of the war life had waged against us. It had been swept away as unimportant in the face of what we’d had to endure. No more. Now, I would ensure the smallest details of our lives were made more important than anything we might have to face.

  He gazed at me with a soft expression on his face and such emotion brimming in his eyes that I knew we’d be celebrating our upcoming nuptials and the baby at least once more that night. Did he see the same emotion printed on my face?

  “You don’t mind our wedding anniversary being on my birthday?” I asked.

  “Are you kidding me? It’s every man’s dream. It means I’ve only got to remember one date,” he joked.

  I ignored his remark. “It’s really soon though, do you think we can organize it all in time?”

  “What’s to organize? It’s not like we’re putting on a wedding of celebrity scale.” He stopped and stared at me for a second. “Unless, you want that, of course? If you do I’ll—”

  I pressed my finger to his lips. “I just want you.”

  He nuzzled against my neck. “That’s all I want too.”

  “You want you?” I teased.

  “You know what I mean,” he murmured playfully.

  “Getting you for my birthday . . . I like it,” I said.

  He pulled back to meet my gaze.

  I grinned. “Let’s do it.”

  “We’ll tell everyone tomorrow, when we tell them about the baby.”

  I chuckled. “You know Eth’s going to make some wisecrack about a shotgun wedding, don’t you?”

  “Eth can say anything he damn well likes, as far as I’m concerned, I’m getting my happily ever after.”

  I guided his lips to mine to give him his happy ending—and claim mine too.

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  “WE HAVE SOME news that we’d like to share with everyone,” I said.

  After we’d woken that morning, Clay had gone out in search of his Mom, Aiden, Mackenzie, and Louise, and had contacted Ethan to have him return to the court. Within an hour, they were all gathered in our little room. Louise hung at the back of the group, clearly still a little uncomfortable—not that I blamed her; I still wasn’t sure what to say to her half the time either. Ethan barged straight in and made himself at home on the small couch, while Clay and I sat on the bed. Everyone else milled around in the middle of the room.

  “We’ve set a date for the wedding,” I continued. It wasn’t the biggest piece of information, but we deliberately made it the first thing we shared, so that even Mackenzie would have something of a surprise.

  “April Eighteenth,” Clay added, twisting to give me a smoldering gaze.

  “That is only a month away,” Fiona said. “There will be a lot to organize in order to complete a joining ceremony.”

  “We just want something simple,” I said.

  “Something meaningful,” Clay added.

  “Gag!” Ethan joked from the corner. “I’m thrilled you two are loved up and happy, but did this announcement really require gathering all of us together? You couldn’t have come to see me later?”

  “There is something else.” I grinned at Clay. Mackenzie’s eyes lit up, clearly understanding what we were about to reveal.

  “Evie’s expecting,” Clay said, dragging me into his arms and kissing my cheek.

  “Expecting what?” Ethan asked, his face expressionless.

  “They are going to have a baby,” Mackenzie said.

  Ethan’s jaw fell open. “But I thought—”

  “Is that not impossible?” Aiden asked, clearly finishing Ethan’s thought.

  I glanced around the room and caught Louise staring at Clay and me, her face set into a frown. Who knew what was going through her head. If it had been only my choice, I probably wouldn’t have invited her into the announcement, but I could hardly deny Clay the chance to reconnect with his twin.

  I swallowed down my uncertainty at including her and answered Aiden’s question. “We thought so too, but Clay’s research indicated it was possible when the sunbird returns to slumber.”

  “Still, it’s a shock to us too,” Clay said.

  “This is truly wonderful,” Fiona said. She had one hand clutched against her chest, and her gaze was full of emotion. “Truly.” She moved forward and Clay and I both stood to embrace her. She came to me first and kissed my forehead. “A blessing on yourself and your child.”

  After she let me go, she grabbed Clay’s hands and clasped them between her own. “This information will bring so much joy to the court.”

  “We do have one concern,” I said, glancing between Clay and Fiona.

  Mackenzie moved closer to the three of us. “What is it that concerns you?”

  I rubbed my hand over my stomach. “How the enchantments might affect her?”

  Aiden, Mackenzie, and Fiona all looked concerned as they glanced at each other. The concern that passed between them all was palpable.

  “What is it?” I asked, even though I had a strong suspicion.

  “Do you recall what I told you regarding changelings?” Aiden asked me.

  Despite knowing the truth about their heritage, both Louise and Clay shuddered when he said the word.

  I thought back to what he’d said, back when he’d found Clay and me in Sweden. Something about less magical children and them not being able to cope with the ethereal plane. The words came to me after a moment. “Existing across multiple planes simultaneously is too much for their bodies and minds to handle.” What did that mean for our daughter? Even without specifics, I knew the answer: nothing good. “Yeah, I remember.”

  “Based on the information in the lore surrounding phoenixes and the sunbird, there is every reason to believe your child will be more like yourself than the fae.”

  I understood the implications straight away. “So no magic.”

  Aiden nodded. “Which means we cannot guarantee the effectiveness of the enchantments.”

  “Or what effect they’ll have on her,” I finished, before casting Clay a worried look. Even though neither of us had said anything, I was certain we both had the same thought. Regardless of the safety the court provided, we couldn’t stay.

  The mood in the room plummeted. I glanced around at the people who meant the most to Clay and me, and noticed Louise must have slipped out at some point while Aiden and I were discussing my child’s lack of magic. I wondered whether it was too much for her, and why. Had it brought up too many what-ifs about how her life might have been different if
she had been raised among the fae? If Clay noticed her absence, he didn’t say anything.

  One by one the rest of our guests left, each offering their congratulations and trying to alleviate our concerns.

  When we were alone, I turned to Clay. “I think that answers our question, and we need to find somewhere else to live. As soon as possible.”

  He nodded in agreement.

  AS SOON as we’d made the decision to leave the court, preparations for both the wedding and our impending move swung into full force. To ensure we could do everything we needed, Clay and I decided to divide and conquer. He’d search for a house, while I arranged the wedding.

  I was certain Clay’s plan was to ensure I stayed at the court, protected and cared for, rather than traipsing around the state trying to find a suitable place to live. Plus, he had a very specific idea of our needs. He wanted somewhere with a strategic advantage, preferably somewhere surrounded by a forest that could be readily defended, but he also didn’t want to be too far from his family.

  Even though the fairy ring network made travel instantaneous, and Fiona had the power and authority to create a ring wherever we were, we knew we might not always be able to rely on it. Ethan rarely traveled that way anyway, especially since taking shared control of the operations side of the Bayview Hotel and the New York division of the Rain. He didn’t want a stock of enchanted food at the Rain headquarters just in case it fell into the hands of someone who wanted the old ways reinstated. Someone like that could wreak havoc if they ever found their way into the court.

  One day, while Clay was off searching for our new house, Fiona approached me and offered help with the wedding planning. She had some pink fairies who were apparently itching to arrange our wedding—something about believing it would be good luck. The instant I agreed, they readily took over the planning.

  Because of how quick and efficient they were, there was very little left for me to do. In fact, because of the exuberance and military-like planning of the two fae helping, all Clay and I had to do on the day of the wedding was show up.