Romancing the Paranormal

by Stephanie Rowe

  He spun back around and shook his head. “Damn it, Scotty, you need to be with someone. You need to get laid.”

  Shaking his head slowly, Scotty clenched his jaw, his hands gripping the armrests. His eyes looked dull. “Why? What good does it do? I can’t have the same connection you have with Isa. I can only be with someone in body, never more. Fucking only goes so far. There’s so much more, but not for me. Leaving Faerie wasn’t enough, and it’s painfully obvious it’s never going to get better now that I see how content you are with Isa.”

  Toryn pinched the bridge of his nose. He threw his hand down, shaking his head. “There has to be a way. Fuck, there’s got to be something. Anything.”

  “Death, that’s it.”

  “Not yours. And I can’t watch you deteriorate anymore. Hold on a bit longer. There has to be another way. I’ll find it.”

  “There’s no other way, and I’m not going back to Faerie to kill her. She’d re-enslave me and torture me for running. Death is my only escape.”

  “I can’t accept that.”

  Scotty shrugged. “Don’t you think I’ve searched?”

  “Give me time. I’ll find a way.”

  He drew in a breath and stared up at the ceiling for a moment. “I don’t have much left to give.”

  Toryn slumped into his seat. There were no words.

  “What was Reance here for?” Scotty asked, his voice dull.

  He shook his head, briefly fingering the warm piece of velvet in his pocket. Answering seemed like a bad idea.

  “That’s what I thought. You make her happy. And you… she’s the one you need. Don’t let my mistakes hold you back from the woman who completes you.”

  “You’ll have your happy ending, but you’ve got to hold on.”

  He blinked back tears. “I don’t have any fight left, Toryn. I’m too far gone for meaningless fucking to work, and honestly, I don’t have the will to carry on knowing there will never be more. Never be what you have with Isa. There’s no more hope. I want an end to the torment.”

  “There’s always hope. Means I got to work faster, that’s all.”

  “Shit, Toryn, let it go. There’s nothing left to save.” Scotty stood and walked out of the room, shoulders slumped, feet heavy.

  There’s got to be a way.

  Chapter 2

  The music thrummed against Isa as she moved with Toryn on the dance floor. Tension poured off Toryn but he smiled and danced as if nothing was wrong. She knew better.

  Has he seen something? Do I need to be worried about the next crisis? Why isn’t he talking to me?

  She leaned back and met his gaze. “I need a drink. You?”

  He nodded, and followed her to the counter where Scotty sat, drinking. Toryn sighed loudly, his head jerking slightly. A million questions spun through her mind.

  Scotty had been distant lately. He showed up to events but hardly interacted. She couldn’t remember the last time he noticed a woman, any woman, even her. The flirting had dried up shortly after Toryn and Isa came back from San Francisco. She thought it was respect for her and Toryn’s relationship. Until she realized Scotty stopped flirting with everyone.

  Wrapping her arm around his broad back she sidled up next to Scotty and laid her head on his shoulder. “Hey, hon. Want to dance?”

  Without looking up from the empty tumbler cupped in his hands, he shook his head. “Think I’m going home. Another time, perhaps.”

  She glanced over at Toryn, who shrugged and averted his eyes. He looked pissed, and she knew it wasn’t from jealousy.

  “Want a ride?” she pushed gently.

  “Nah. Thanks, though.” He turned to the other side, avoiding eye contact with her, and quickly walked to the door.

  She turned to Toryn, crossing her arms over her chest. “What’s up with Scotty?”

  “Not here.”

  “Then let’s go.” She tugged him to the street and started for the Jitterhouse.

  He pulled her to a stop and she spun back to him. “What’s going on with you?” Toryn asked softly.

  “You didn’t want to talk there, and you’re starting to freak me out. I get it, it’s Scotty that’s worrying you. I want to know why.”

  Toryn started walking, dragging her with him this time. “It’s complicated.”

  “When isn’t it?” Isa asked.

  He didn’t answer.

  “Is it Saressa?”

  “Sort of?” Toryn glanced over. “She’s not here if that’s what you’re wondering. Though it would make the whole damned situation a hell of a lot easier if she were. I could kill her and be done with it.”

  “But she can’t control him here, so what’s the problem?”

  Toryn rubbed at his neck, clearly unprepared to answer.

  They stepped inside and ordered their drinks before going upstairs to their favorite perch. She faced Toryn and decided to take a stab in the dark. “Scotty doesn’t look well. I thought fae didn’t get sick.”

  Brushing his hands down his thighs, Toryn stared over the balcony. “He’s not taking care of himself. He’s purposely avoiding anything that would give him the energy he needs. His fight is gone, he wants to fade away.” His eyes closed and he shook his head.

  Her mouth fell open. “You mean if a nymph doesn’t get busy, they die?”

  Toryn snorted. “Doesn’t have to be sex. Any intimacy helps. He’s avoiding it. He’s doing this to himself.”

  “Because of Saressa?”

  Toryn pushed his fingers through his hair. “I never realized how bad it had gotten. I don’t know what to do.”

  “So he’s given up?”

  He looked at her, desperation mixed with anger in his expression. “He’s bound to a woman he despises. A woman who took his will and tried to twist him into something he abhors. While that connection is in place, he’s not free to love another. Not truly. It’s been centuries, Isa. Can you imagine what it would have been like if Remus had won and you had been trapped, a slave to him?”

  “Don’t fucking go there! You killed him, and we don’t need to go there,” she warned. Though his point was driven home.

  “Saressa is easily worse than Remus ever was. He had a use for you, he coveted you. The sick fuck would have abused you, but he would have put you on a pedestal, and attempted to reward you when you were good. Saressa—shit, Isa—she forced him to do things, had other people do things to him…” He shook his head.

  “Like rape?” she demanded.

  He nodded. “And worse. Anything he was reluctant to do, she forced, and she is a cruel bitch who loves to torment everyone. Scotty was under her thumb for over a century before escaping. And the fucked up part of it all? A piece of him loves her no matter how much he hates her.”

  “One day, I am going to kill the cunt,” she vowed.

  His hand gripped hers as he shook his head. “No. You are never going anywhere near her. You don’t know what she’s capable of, and you aren’t ready.”

  She rolled her eyes. Toryn was always protective of her so his reaction wasn’t a surprise. There was one big question floating through her mind. “What can we do?”

  Toryn shook his head. “He craves a real and loving relationship, like we have, but as long as Saressa is alive, he has no way to break the bond.”

  “Let’s go home.” After the awakening, she had access to her family’s memories. She could dig into Saressa’s and find an answer, she hoped. Delving into ancestral memories was easier while sleeping. If she could find where the problem started, she might discover a way to fix it. She hoped.

  * * * *

  Scotty stood on his porch, staring into the forest behind his house. Dark clouds loomed overhead, matching his mood. Light woods surrounded his cabin. He owned five acres of property. There was still too much city around to give him a real feel of the forest. Not that he had the energy to take a camping trip.

  Exhausted, he sank onto the steps and dropped his head into his hand as his eyes drooped shut.

/>   Wind whispered through the trees as he walked into the still waters bordering the Dark Forest, at the edge of the Water Kingdom. He’d lost a bet to Aeremaius and was now forced to take a midnight dip in the forbidden waters.

  Gritting his teeth, he walked until he was submerged chest deep. He looked around but the bastard was nowhere to be found.

  When he turned back, he locked gazes with glittering emerald eyes. Ruby spun hair flowed around her in waves. Her skin appeared to be made of crushed diamonds. Beautiful, and deadly.

  He’d always craved Saressa, but had seen her cruelty firsthand. Heartless, sadistic, and power-hungry. Regardless of reason, his body responded to her without fail. He had promised himself he would never get this close when they were alone.

  Her own brother had warned Endiscott to avoid Saressa at any cost. That she would bring him heartache. He trusted Reance with his life, and heeded the warning. The man had never been wrong.

  Endiscott backed away from the woman, wondering why Aeremaius sent him here, of all places. The twisted prince of Air was in love with Saressa. He had to know what was about to happen.

  Fear twined through his soul as he slowly retreated, hoping she’d let him slip away.

  Her hands encircled his wrists, and her beautiful eyes delved into his. “Couldn’t resist me?”

  “I should go,” he answered, trying to pull from her hold. The sand turned slick and she easily tugged him against her body.

  “Stay.”

  He felt her compulsion working and tore his eyes away, fighting against her sway. “I’m going.”

  “Why won’t you give me a chance, Endiscott? I could make you a king.”

  His eyes squeezed tight, refusing to look at the woman before him. She’d always made him uneasy, but having her skin pressed against him woke his guilty desire. Equal parts lust and nausea warred within.

  “Don’t want to be king. Let me go, Saressa. You’re not the one I want.”

  “Your body tells a very different story.” She let go of his wrists as she locked her legs around his hips in the buoyant water and rubbed against his throbbing length. “You want to sink into me. Don’t resist.” One hand gripped the back of his neck as she angled his cock and took him in.

  Pleasure wrapped around him, he wanted to drive into her, thrusting until he forgot the reasons he should walk away.

  Through gritted teeth, he snarled, “A night with you isn’t worth the trouble. You are beautiful, no denying that, but I won’t have you.”

  He tried to move, to push her off him, but he was immobile, a statue as she slowly rode him, driving his need higher. No doubt a spell, because he could feel every sensation and needed more.

  Snarling, he tried to fight back the desire burning through him, but it was already too late. Though he was falling in love with another, it wasn’t enough to stifle the lust he harbored for Saressa.

  Correctly guessing the direction of his thoughts, Saressa whispered against his ear, “Imagine her, your beautiful Paineater. Pretend it’s her body welcoming your seed.”

  “Free me,” he pleaded, knowing it was useless. As a nymph, he needed release no matter who it was with. As bidden, the image of Jayde filled his head. Her body wrapped around his as she fucked him harder.

  He opened his eyes, and found her warm, golden-hued green gaze staring back, long chestnut locks against sun-bronzed skin. Reality slipped and he could swear it was Jayde’s body pressed against him as his desire came roaring to life.

  His hands gripped her firm ass as he thrust harder, faster, moving her body in perfect counterbalance to heighten the friction, driving their shared pleasure higher.

  Her urgent mouth meshed with his, tongues dueling. He closed his eyes, succumbing to the passion erupting between them.

  Power flowed around him, the chill of her water magic caressing every inch of his skin before sinking into his body, coiling around his heart.

  His control shattered as her walls rippled around him, sending him into release. He tore his head back to cry out.

  Then he saw Saressa’s evil smile. Disgusted, he shoved her away and moved to the shore.

  My mate? This can’t be!

  Once on dry land he spun around. “You tricked me!” he accused.

  “Ah, but you knew it was me. In fact, you want me now.” Her eyes dropped to the evidence of his arousal, still hard and ready to pound into her.

  He shook his head and opened his mouth but no words came out. She closed the distance, walking out of the water, and all he wanted to do was to hold her down and thrust into her with punishing force.

  The phone rang, jolting him out of his nightmare. He slid down the porch stairs to his hands and knees and heaved the scotch he’d drank at the bar.

  With no energy to check the phone, he fell back against the bottom step, letting the rain wash over him.

  Chapter 3

  Isa stood in the shower, staring at the wall. The dream left her wanting to scrub her entire body with steel wool. She’d seen what Saressa did to Scotty firsthand—or is it second?

  She shook her head. That wasn’t important. He’d been in love with another woman, and Saressa exploited that fact to get what she wanted. She’d claimed him, and Isa didn’t have a clue what exactly the then princess of the Water and Fire realms wanted from Scotty.

  What could Saressa possibly gain from a nymph?

  His parents were both wood nymphs. Yes, they were nobles in the Earth realm, but with her innate power, and her standing in her own kingdoms, she didn’t need his authority. He wasn’t a warrior, wasn’t a man of influence. Sure, Scotty was gorgeous, and Isa would have gladly taken a chance on him if she wasn’t so in love with Toryn, one of his closest friends, from the moment she set eyes on him.

  Was sex enough to force a bond? To twist someone into loving them?

  No, Saressa had used magic.

  But how?

  Scotty thought he loved Saressa, but it was sick, twisted, and forced by that bond. Before the moment she brought him to climax it had been reluctant desire. His love wasn’t real, but a byproduct of magic. The bond was an elaborate spell made to trick the prey into believing a true bond had formed. What you believe becomes your reality. Saressa had to make him think she was who he really wanted in order to make the corrupted bond spell work.

  Moments of Scotty and Saressa’s time together flashed through her head. It wasn’t love, not really. He hated her as much as he thought he loved her, and he warred with himself over the conflicting emotions.

  The answer started to develop, but water magic wasn’t something she was truly comfortable with. Not yet. She needed more time to formulate a plan.

  Completely lost in thought, she jumped when hands wrapped around her waist, then relaxed into Toryn’s embrace.

  “Couldn’t sleep, Princess?” he murmured against her ear.

  Isa shook her head. She had an idea but wasn’t sure how she felt about it. If she broached the theory, but then couldn’t go through with it, hope died. And if Toryn shut her down, well that ended the discussion too. Question was, could they do this and not have everything change between the three of them?

  She sighed. “Too much on my mind.”

  “Like what?”

  “As soon as I figure it out, I’ll let you know.” She turned around with a smile and wound her arms around his neck. “Maybe you can take my mind off everything I can’t fix and remind me how much you love me?”

  His grin washed out the questions spiraling through her head. For the moment there were no worries, no problems. It was just the two of them, no one else. He reached behind her to turn off the water. “I’ll wear you out properly, then maybe you’ll sleep the rest of the night.”

  “My knight to the rescue.” She giggled as he grabbed her thighs, urging her to wrap her legs around him. Willingly, she complied and let him carry her to the counter, where he dried her.

  * * * *

  Toryn knew Isa wanted to help Scotty. Knew he could ask her to
seduce him. Scotty was right though, casual encounters were not enough. It would be about as effective as stitches in a festering wound, the infection would still eat at him.

  He forced thoughts of their friend out of his mind and carried Isa to bed. He laid her out and climbed in beside her. Her body naturally molded to his, her fingers trailing a path up his side, along his shoulder, then into his hair where she pulled him in for a deep kiss.

  He drew her leg over his and rubbed his crown through her slick folds, taking his time to tease her clit. The desperate whimpers spurred him on. He wanted to sink into her again and again until he could become a part of her.

  She broke the kiss, panting. “Don’t tease. Make me yours.”

  “Always mine. Never letting you go for anything.”

  “Then make love to me before you drive me crazy.”

  He drove into her, and her leg tightened around him, her body undulating as he thrust slow and deep.

  She kissed and nibbled up his neck before sucking his ear between her lips. The passion built, a slow burn rolling through her.

  He sucked his finger and she wondered why until his hand caressed down her back. One finger trailed over her asshole before pressing in. Her walls tightened with the extra pressure. Stars winked through her vision. Sensation rocked through her, pushing her to the edge.

  “Mmm, so damned good, you always know exactly what I need.”

  She rocked against him harder as he took the pace faster, seemingly forever while the pleasure spread like wildfire. Finally, everything exploded in bliss, washing through every pore.

  “Oh fuck, yes!” she cried.

  He pulled her tight as his release followed hers.

  Isa curled into his embrace. “Now I can go back to sleep.”

  A smile pulled at his lips as her eyes slid shut.

  Chapter 4

  Big sad brown eyes pulled at Isa’s heartstrings. Two days since she last saw Scotty, and he looked noticeably worse.