by Michelle Fox
“What do you think, lass?” Niall watched me, his eyes shining with eagerness.
I swallowed and said, “It’s sweet and bitter.”
“Aye, that’s the truth of chocolate and life,” he said. Dashing back into the working area of the kitchen, he returned with some cups and a hot kettle. He poured steaming water into each cup. The liquid had a brown tint that reminded me of mud.
“What are you doing?” Whatever was in the cups smelled better than the cupcake. No sweetness, just a pleasant herbal scent.
“Serving the tea,” Niall replied, setting the kettle aside. “I heat the water on a stove, add the tea to brew, and then pour it out.” He pointed to a tray holding an assortment of things I didn’t recognize. “Some people like to add sugar.” He scooped up some white cubes with a spoon and dropped them into his cup. “Others prefer honey.”
Malcolm demonstrated the honey for me, swirling the amber liquid into his tea cup. Gavin pulled out a silver bottle—flask my mind whispered to me— tucked in the waistband of his black kilt and dumped a generous glug into his tea before passing it to Alec.
With a smirk, Gavin said, "Some of us like a stronger bite."
I caught a glimpse of amber liquid and an acrid smell as Alec added it to his cup, but before I could ask what it was, Niall drew my attention to a small pitcher— my mind supplied the word—in his hand.
“And cream, which comes from cows.” Niall poured a white liquid into his cup and then offered the little pitcher to me.
I shook my head. “No, thank you.” I picked up the cup, mimicking the others at the table and took a tentative sip. I liked tea, I decided. It didn’t clobber you over the head with its flavor and had an earthiness that I enjoyed. All it needed to make it perfect was some salt, which I noted had not been one of the things two-legs normally put in tea. Would it be rude to ask? I decided against asking. It would just waste time and I needed to find my sister as soon as possible.
Setting my cup down, I cleared my throat. “My sister was kidnapped, and I need to find her. You said you could help, so either help or let me go.”
Malcolm nodded and said. “Aye, we can help, but we need some help from you first, Mila. We are bound, each of us, to this castle and to our human forms by a curse.” He ran a hand from his head down to his torso. “The only way to break the curse is to find our maidens.” He gestured to Sara. “My brother Alec found his and can now shift from human to dragon with ease.”
Alec nodded his head in agreement.
His gaze found mine. “And you are Niall’s maiden.”
"That's why you were at the boat? To find me?"
The men nodded in unison as Malcolm said, "I cast a spell to draw our maidens to us since we canna leave to search them out. I felt you arrive in Inverness, and we soon realized you'd been captured by slavers."
I narrowed my eyes. "Is it possible your spell is the reason they even caught me in the first place?"
Malcolm grimaced. "I hope not, but canna promise 'tis not a possibility. The spell was only meant to be a lure, but the curse may have warped my magic. It's difficult to say for certain, but I willna lie to you. "
"What about my sister? Is that why they took her?" The idea of that made my blood hot, and a burning flush spread across my cheeks.
Malcolm shook his head. "Nay. That I'm certain of. The spell only works on maidens, no one else. Otherwise, your sister would be here in Inverness."
Somewhat mollified, I asked, “So what does it take to break this curse?” I cast a wary eye at Niall. I had some knowledge of magic and breaking curses always required more than most people wanted to give.
Malcolm started to speak, but Niall held up his hand. “We are mates, you and me. Once we bond, the curse will break.”
“Then we can help your sister.” Sara pointed to herself, then Alec followed by Niall. “We’ll all go.”
“What about the rest of you?” I looked to Malcolm and Gavin.
“We canna shift,” said Gavin, his voice harsh.
“More importantly, the curse traps us here in Inverness. We canna leave much as we would like to.” Malcolm gave an apologetic smile.
“What does bonding involve?” My gaze returned to Niall, studying his face. He had a square jaw that spoke of determination and the shock of orange hair on his head suited a man who was half dragon. Having just shifted form for the first time myself, I wondered if it felt as strange for him, or if being born to it made it as simple as breathing.
Land had none of the liquid grace of water. It required lurching movements with nothing to catch you if you fell. What was it like to go from the land to the air? Did the currents among the clouds catch dragons like the ocean cradled me?
Nail's blue gaze captured mine, steady and strong. “We would be wed and know each other as a man and a woman do.”
My eyebrows went up while my mouth went down. Not so much in disapproval, but rather surprise. “You’re saying we,” I pointed to him and then to myself, “would have to couple?”
He gave a curt nod. “Aye.”
“That’s how it was with Alec and me,” Sara said. “It was a bit of a shock, but you’ll find the bond is a consensual one. You aren’t going to do anything you don’t want to do anyway.”
“You will be loved and cherished as the treasure you are,” Alec said, his voice a deep rumble. He pulled Sara close and she laid her head on his shoulder with a contented sigh, the love she felt for the man obvious.
I blinked. I wasn’t looking for love. My sister needed to be rescued and then I would return home to fight the slavers so they never again took one of my people. Niall didn’t fit into my plan, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t help him. “I’m not going to stay here,” I said bluntly. “No matter what happens, I must return to the ocean. The slavers need to be stopped.”
“You need us, Mila.” Malcolm leaned forward as he spoke, his expression serious.
“Your sister needs all of us,” Sara said, her voice quiet but full of authority. “I’ve seen it. You can’t do this alone."
"Seen it? What does that mean?"
"It's something I can do. I see glimpses of the future."
I looked at her in awe. "You can really see what is to come?"
She nodded and then ducked her head. "Don't look at me like that. It's not nearly as fun or easy as it sounds."
"That's why you knew to bring me clothes," I said. "That's a rare power. The last seer my tribe had was generations ago."
"Yeah, I've never met anyone like me either. Seems to be pretty unusual. And yes, I saw you coming and knew you needed us." She gave the men around her a look. "Can you believe these fire-heads didn't tell me what was up? They just left like it was a regular day. Like I wasn't going to find out."
"We dinna want to bother you," said Alec, refusing to look her in the eye.
"Bother me?" She arched an eyebrow, and her voice went sharp. "Don't try to keep secrets from me. Any of you." She wagged her finger at each of them in turn.
"What else did you see?" I asked her, eager for news of my sister and hopeful for the first time since I'd left home. "Is my sister okay?"
"Yes, for now. But it won't be easy to rescue her. There are a lot of potential futures around her. Which is why you need us. If you go it alone, they'll get you, too, and you’ll end up the same as your sister.”
The idea of being a prisoner again took my breath away. I’d had one small taste of it, and that was more than enough. I couldn’t face it again. Niall opened his mouth to speak, but I held up a finger, cutting him off. “I will break your curse, Niall MacTeine so that you can help me save my sister, but after that, I must leave.”
A broad smile blossomed on his face, and a light sparkled in his blue eyes. He lifted my hand to his mouth and kissed the back of it. “You will not regret this, lass. I swear it by my own fire.”
Sara left Alec’s side and came to where I sat, bending down to wrap me in a warm hug. “Welcome to the MacTeine clan. You’re one
of us now.”
I squeaked with panic as what I’d agreed to sank in. “You’re not saying I’m going to turn into a dragon, are you?”
She laughed and shook her head as she released me. “No, but you’re part of this crazy fiery brotherhood now.” She smiled at Alec. “It was the best thing that ever happened to me. These men have had my back since day one, and they’ll do the same for you and your sister.”
I gave her a wary look, finding her reassurances a little too pat. Sometimes sharks pretend they can’t see you, acting harmless right before they bite. To Niall, I said, “So what do we do now?”
He swallowed. “Uh, well—”
“You get married!” Sara said clapping her hands together. She gestured toward the window at the head of the kitchen table. “There’s time yet to do it today.”
Chapter Six
After tea, I found myself trudging after Niall through the green rolling hills of Scotland, watching his firm backside move under the black kilt wrapped around his lean waist. He hadn’t said much to me since we’d been shooed out of the castle by an overly enthusiastic Alec and Sara. Gavin had hung back, keeping his distance from the flurry of movement ushering us out of the castle, and glowering at us as if we were to blame for something. Malcolm had been quiet too, although I suspected since they would remain cursed while Niall and Alec flew free, they had to be at least a little jealous of their brothers. It had been hard for me to think of letting Siya go, but for them it had to be even more difficult because they had no choice.
The land was beautiful. The rich verdant color of the foliage around me was a treat. My home spun in gray blue circles, sometimes darkening to almost black. The beauty came from those of us who lived underwater; we were the color of that world. The air was humid which I appreciated since my skin didn’t like being out of water for long. Above us the sky danced with clouds that obscured the sun. I only caught a small glimpse of the daylight as it hid behind its puffy curtains.
“Where are we going?” I finally asked Niall. My legs ached, unused to having to propel my body without the buoyancy of water. Not to mention, it was my first time walking for longer than a few seconds. My hips were moving so much, the muscles around them spasmed.
“There’s a stone circle we hold sacred.” Niall pointed into the distance, but I saw nothing that looked like stone, let alone a circle. “It’s where we join with our maidens.”
“Oh,” I said with a nod. “We have places like that at home.”
“Stone circles?”
I shrugged. “Of a kind. We have old statues that stand in rings. They used to have faces, but that was generations ago. The water has wiped them clean. There are also small islands we hold sacred. Places we go to...” I trailed off, heat flushing my cheeks. Niall had his stone circle. My tribe had their island lagoons.
He followed my line of thinking and nodded. “Ah, so dragons and mermaids are not so different then.”
I stumbled and tripped, suddenly too busy fighting for balance to respond to him. Niall rushed to my side and caught me just before I hit the earth.
“You all right there, lass?” His eyes searched my face, concerned.
Embarrassed, I gave a weak smile and let him pull me up. “Yes. I’m just not used to legs.”
He set me on my feet, hands poised on either side of me in case I needed help. Which, it turned out, I did. My legs were leaden with exhaustion, and I quickly lost my balance again. The muscles around my ankles trembled while my thighs burned.
Niall caught me again. Looping his hand through mine, he said, “Lean on me, lass. I’ve got you.”
I had no choice but to do as he suggested, grateful for the strength of his shoulder and arm. Even with his help, I continued to stumble. Finally, he just scooped me up into his arms.
“I can walk,” I said, even though my words were an obvious lie. I had a sense of pride though, and being so close to Niall unnerved me. I didn’t like depending on him so much. All he’d done so far was save me. Plus, his musky scent, a mix of tea and sweetness with a hint of loamy earth was unsettling. I liked it entirely too much.
“Nay, lass. You're spent like a Scotsman on Monday.”
I cocked my head. “What does that mean?”
“It means Scotsmen tipple too much on the weekend and fumble their way into the business of the new week, walking not much better than you.”
I just shook my head, still not quite following what he meant other than he deemed me unfit for walking. My language skills did best with concrete, tangible things, not abstract ideas or euphemisms. “I can swim all day and all night,” I said. “I’m just not used to legs.”
“You havna walked much, I take it?”
“Nay,” I said. “Today was my first time.”
He smiled. “You did well. 'Tis only natural to be tired after the day you’ve had. Just let me carry you. We’re almost there.”
With a nod, I allowed myself to relax into his strength, finding the steady rhythm of his gait soothing. It reminded me of the ocean’s swaying motion.
***
The stone circle sat between two hills and was ringed with flowers. Niall's strength carried us forward, and I watched the circle, wondering about what would happen next. What he asked of me was a big commitment, no question of that.
Under different circumstances, I would have refused, but my sister needed me, and that meant I needed Niall. I even liked him. He'd been kind and strong and his kisses had burned me in ways I'd never felt before. There was something about this dragon man. Something fated. Something that pulled us together.
At the stone circle, he stepped between two stones, each one taller and wider than his impressive bulk and set me gently down in the grass. The sun graced us with its brightness for a fleeting moment. When it disappeared again, I shivered at the change in temperature. It was almost the cold season here, I could tell from the way the wind brought not heat, just a cool chill. In water, I could swim far north without any worries, but on land, the open air blew off heat instead of conserving it.
Niall disappeared for a second and then returned, his arms full of white flowers. I plucked one from his hands and sniffed it, finding the fragrance reminiscent of the tea I’d had earlier.
“What is it?” I put one to my mouth, wanting to taste it, but Niall quickly put a hand on my wrist to stop me.
“It’s heather, a flower that grows here. Our maidens always wear a wreath of it in their hair.”
“So not food?” I looked at the flower with regret as my stomach grumbled.
“Are you hungry, lass?” He settled down on the ground beside me, his fingers quickly weaving the white flowers together.
I lifted one shoulder. “Yes, sorry.”
“You dinna like the cupcake.”
“There’s not much sweetness in the sea,” I said. “But I liked the tea. Would it be awful if I put salt in it?”
His eyebrows went up and his hands went still, pausing mid-weave. “If you want salt, you will have salt.”
“It wouldn’t be rude?” I rubbed my hands over the fabric covering my legs and looked away, unsure of the answer to my question.
“Nay. Strange, but not rude. If anyone gives you trouble over it, they will have me to deal with.” He thumped his chest with a fist, his eyes narrowing into a glower.
The tension in my shoulders eased. “I wasna sure.”
“I’ll make you a cup when we return to the castle and put the salt in myself.” He resumed working with the flowers. “Tell me what you would like to eat, and I’ll make it.”
“I don’t know,” I said. “I’ve never eaten two leg food.”
“So just seaweed and fish? Is that it?”
“Pretty much.”
He thought for a moment, focusing on the flowers in his hands. “Sushi might work.”
My mind gave me a vague translation of what sushi was, and once I puzzled it out, I clapped my hands with delight. “Sushi would be amazing, Niall.”
“It
would?”
“Where do you think sushi comes from? We taught the Japanese centuries ago.” I waved my hand to mark the passage of time.
He scratched his head. “So where do you find rice in the ocean? And what about the wasabi paste?”
“We don’t. The Japanese make a two leg version of sushi. We only eat seaweed and fish.”
“I think we can find something that will suit your taste buds then.” He jumped to his feet, holding the now completed wreath of flowers in one hand. He offered his other hand to me and pulled me up once again.
My feet and legs were stronger now, having benefited from the break. I stood still as Niall lowered the crown of flowers onto my head. Stepping back, he smiled.
“You're a beautiful woman, Mila.”
Heat burned under my flesh, but I swallowed back my nerves. “Thank you, Niall. You're a handsome man.”
“You think? My brothers always say I look like there’s a fire burning on my head.” He ran a hand through his shock of orange hair.
“They should try living in the sea, then. There’s very little color, just grays, blues and black. Anything bright is valued. It’s one of the reasons why most of us live among the coral reefs. It’s our garden.”
“Well, I suppose that makes sense.” He offered me his elbow, but before I took it, I reached up and touched his hair.
“You’re just like some fish I know—bright in spirit and strong in the current.”
He caught my hand and tucked it into his. “Thank you, Mila. Those are kind words. And you say the sea is plain, but before me, I see a woman with wild blue hair and eyes the color of amethysts in the sun. I never thought my maiden would be found among the waves, but I canna say I am disappointed.”
“You know I canna stay,” I said. “This joining between us canna last.”
He guided me to the center of the stone circle. “Let the future decide itself. Right now, we are together.”