It felt like a betrayal to the memory of his late wife.
Declan grumbled under his breath and pounded the nail into the loose board on the stairs. Sweat trickled down his bare back while he made quick work of beating another nail into the creaky step. The old place had fallen into disrepair during his absence and Declan wasted no time whipping it back into shape. Maggie and Aurelia were sharing the small loft above and the last thing he wanted was for one of them to take a tumble down the steps.
Satisfied that the staircase was once again sturdy, he gathered his remaining tools and settled the wooden box on the table behind him. The large open kitchen area was clean and functional and even the brick oven fireplace was running properly again. He’d already fixed the roof and repaired the doors. He kept telling himself that once he had the house in proper shape and Aurelia was more comfortable with him, he’d take Maggie back to the human realm.
She’d be leaving. That was the way of it.
He stared out the window and a dull ache throbbed in his chest. Declan rubbed at the spot, hoping to make the pesky sensation subside, but it did nothing to quell the persistent feeling of loss at the mere idea of Maggie going back. What the devil was wrong with him? A human didn’t belong in this realm any more than he belonged in hers.
No. She had to go. One more week and then he’d take her back.
“Hello?” Maggie’s sweet voice pulled him from his pitying thoughts. “Declan? Are you coming with us? Aurelia and I—”
“Aye.”
Declan cleared his throat and when he turned around, the sight of her knocked the wind out of him. She wore a simple pink dress, the bodice clinging to and accentuating those gorgeous breasts. Her golden blonde hair was loose around her face and seemed to have gotten even lighter after being exposed to the triple suns of the fae realm. It was her smile, that damned dazzling grin, which blew him away every time she cast it in his direction.
It took him a moment to realize that her smile had faded as her glittering green eyes drifted over his bare chest. His gut tightened, right along with the rest of him, as she drank him in with one long lazy pass. Declan didn’t move because he didn’t trust himself. All he could think about was stripping that dress off her and kissing every lovely inch of her soft womanly flesh.
“I—um—I mean, Aurelia and I were going to go gather some berries.” Her cheeks pinked and she fiddled with the basket clasped in front of her long skirt. The clothes of their people suited her and he could barely recall what she used to wear. “We were hoping that you’d come with us.”
“Were ya now?” Declan slowly closed the distance between them, the spacious open first floor suddenly seeming far smaller than it had a moment ago. “And where would ya be goin’?”
“Berries,” she blurted out. Maggie swiped at the lock of hair that drifted over her forehead and looked at the basket in her hands. “Mador said that there’s a big field on the other side of the big hill. He said it’s full of all kinds of berries. I told Aurelia that we could make a pie. My mother made a delicious blueberry pie. I think I can remember the recipe. I know you’ve been busy getting the cottage fixed up but you should come with us. Aurelia would like it.” She sucked in a shuddering breath and lifted her gaze to his. “And so would I,” she said quietly.
Declan cradled her cheek with one hand and inched closer, his body easily dwarfing hers. A grin curved his lips as she leaned into his touch. Perhaps he was not the only one who missed...
“Can we go now?”
Aurelia’s little voice cut into the room and Declan dropped his hand at the same moment Maggie stepped away. The moment broken, they both turned to his adorable daughter with the impeccable timing. She stood in the doorway with a basket of her own and an expectant grin.
“It’s getting late and if we don’t hurry, we won’t have time to bake the pie.”
“Yes. We’re about to go.” Maggie let out a nervous laugh and gathered Aurelia’s hand in hers. “I just came to see if I could persuade your father into coming with us.”
Aurelia looked from Maggie to Declan and her little brow furrowed as though she was thinking about whether or not she wanted him to come.
“He’s always working in the cottage. He doesn’t like to play or have fun like Mador does.” She frowned. “He prefers to work.”
It was like getting kicked in the gut.
Declan had been a fool. A damned fool. This entire week he had been hiding and using the work in the cottage as an excuse to avoid the one job that meant anything. In that moment he realized it was because he was terrified of not being able to care for the girl, to fix what had been broken. A door and staircase he could manage to repair easily enough. The harder task was how to make it right with his daughter.
He had already failed her mother... what if he failed her as well?
“You’re wrong, girl.” Declan bent at the knees so he was eye to eye with his wee daughter. “I’m tryin’ to...I want ya to have a fine home. We can’t have the place fallin’ in around ya. I want ya to be happy.”
“Then come pick berries with us,” she said brightly. Aurelia wrapped one little hand around his and tugged him toward the door. “Come on, Declan.”
His heart sank every time she used his name instead of calling him Papa. Could he blame her? Dyanna had been right. He was a stranger to her and it was about damn time he changed that.
“Yeah,” Maggie said through a soft laugh. “Come on, Declan.”
“Alright, then.” He rose to his feet and grabbed his shirt off the back of the chair before pulling it on over his head. “Who am I to say no to such a fine invitation? Lead the way, ladies.”
As he followed Maggie and Aurelia into the sunshine, he prayed he would be able to repair his relationship with his daughter as easily as he’d fixed the blasted steps.
***
Sitting beneath the massive tree, Maggie laughed and ate another raspberry from her basket while she watched Declan hoist Aurelia onto his shoulders for the third time. The suns shone brightly and the warmth was surprisingly comfortable. She’d thought for certain this world would be blazing hot, especially in these long dresses the women wore, but it was actually perfect.
Not too hot. Not too cold. Perfection.
“I could get used to this,” she said out loud to no one in particular.
“You shouldn’t.”
The young man’s voice drifted over her shoulder and made her jump. Maggie let out a nervous laugh as Mador moved in next to her with his serious gaze pinned to Aurelia and Declan on the crest of the hill.
“Mador,” she said breathlessly. “I didn’t hear you there. You startled me.”
“Apologies,” he said flatly, not really seeming to mean it. “But you have to know that you shouldn’t stay. The queen will be furious when she hears of it but it’s not only that.”
“Why?” Maggie rose to her feet and smoothed the long skirt. “I mean, I’m leaving soon anyway. I don’t understand what the big deal is.”
Her heart sank at the mere idea of leaving but at the moment she was more interested in Mador’s sudden concern.
“Aurelia is getting attached to you.” He folded his hands in front of him but kept that intense stare on Aurelia and Declan. “The longer you stay, the harder it will be for her. Besides, you aren’t her mother.”
“No, I’m not,” Maggie, said quietly. “With all due respect, Anastasia is gone.”
“Yes. Because of him,” Mador seethed. He spun around and got right in Maggie’s face. “And now he’s back and wants to just step right into Aurelia’s life after all this time.”
“He’s her father,” Maggie said firmly. “He is exactly where he should be.”
“He doesn’t belong here with her and neither do you,” Mador seethed.
His narrow shoulders shook with fury. Before Maggie could utter a word, he spun on his heels and ran toward the village. He vanished over the crest of the hill and it was a few minutes before Maggie stopped shaking. Wh
en she turned around, Declan and Aurelia were walking hand in hand toward her. The big smiles on their faces immediately put her at ease. It looked like father and daughter were starting to get to know each other after all
Mador was right about one thing.
Maggie didn’t belong here. She wasn’t Aurelia’s mother. She wasn’t fae or leprechaun. She was just plain old Maggie O’Malley... and it was time to go home.
***
“She’s finally asleep,” Maggie whispered. She crept down the steps quietly and to Declan’s delight, not a single floorboard creaked. “I think all that berry picking, baking, and pie eating wore her out.”
“Aye,” Declan said quietly. He pulled off his boots and placed them by the fireplace before leaning back in the chair. “Ya are wonderful with her, Maggie. She’s taken a shine to ya... not that I can blame her.”
“Well, the feeling’s mutual. She’s a great kid. Actually, she’s more like a tiny little adult. I’ve never met a child her age who is so...observant.” She sat on the bottom step and pulled her knees to her chest before resting her chin on them. Her green eyes peered at him intently. “May I ask you a question?”
“Aye.” Declan’s legs sprawled open and he settled both hands on the arms of the chair, bracing himself for whatever she might throw at him. “Ya may, indeed.”
“Why have you been avoiding your daughter?” Her tone was quiet and edged with strength. “Don’t try to deny it because until today, you’ve barely spent five minutes with her. It’s like... you’re afraid of her or something.”
“Och,” he scoffed. “What are ya goin’ on about? I was out in the blazin’ sun all day pokin’ through pricker bushes for every damned berry she wanted. Hours of berry pickin’, mind ya. Which followed bakin’ and eatin’ and listenin’ to her tell ya about her magic lessons with Mador. Who it seems can do no wrong.”
Jealously edged his voice. He knew it and didn’t even try to hide it.
“True,” Maggie said slowly. “She’s known Mador all of her life and if you want her to get to know you, then maybe you should try talking to her. I mean, come on, Declan, you barely speak to her.”
Declan ran both hands over his face and let out a sound of frustration. Tension filled him, along with an overwhelming sense of failure and for a moment he thought he might drown in the surge. However, when a pair of warm hands settled on his knees, a wave of relief fired through him, along with a flicker of desire. Declan opened his eyes to find Maggie kneeling between his legs and studying him closely with that glittering green gaze.
“Come on, leprechaun,” she settled both elbows on his knees and narrowed her gaze, “spit it out. Tell me what you’re afraid of.”
Declan let out a slow breath and let his gaze wander over the curves of her lovely face. He gathered a lock of her hair between his fingers and rubbed the silky golden strands while he tried to muster the courage to admit to her what he’d barely admitted to himself.
“Seems my girl isn’t the only one who’s observant,” he whispered.
“No changing the subject.” She tapped his leg playfully. “Come on. Cough it up.”
“I—I don’t want to lose her like I lost her mother,” he said gruffly.
“What do you mean?” A look of confusion washed over Maggie’s face. “I thought she died in childbirth, Declan?”
“Aye and I could do nothin’ to save her,” he rasped. “She was love of my life and she died in my arms. All I could do was watch.”
Maggie flinched almost imperceptibly but she held his stare with more seriousness than he’d ever seen. She sucked in a shuddering breath and dropped her hands to her lap.
“You’re not God.” The gentleness in her voice was matched by the tenderness in her gaze. “You may be a leprechaun with a magical amulet but as far as I know, that doesn’t include bringing people back from the dead. Does it?”
He shook his head and said nothing.
“You can, however, love. And that has a magic all its own. I’ve seen it,” she said in a shaky whisper. “I know you love your daughter. I see it in the way you look at her every minute of every day, the way you’ve carefully and meticulously repaired this cottage so she’ll have a home of her own.” Her lips quivered and those gorgeous eyes of hers glistened with tears. “So... instead of worrying about what might happen or what you can’t do, how about if you start focusing on what you can do?”
“I—I don’t have the foggiest notion what to say to the girl.”
“Sure you do.” Maggie let out short laugh before rising to her feet and moving away from him. She swiped at her eyes quickly and lifted one shoulder. “Love.”
Maggie went to the steps and glanced at him with an expression that hovered between wistful and sad. She settled her hand on the smooth banister and looked up the stairs toward the loft his daughter slept in.
“Tell her about her mother... about how much you loved her. I used to adore it when my dad told me how he and my mom met and fell in love.” A slow sigh escaped her lips. “I’d always hoped to find that myself someday. Have a man love me as desperately as I loved him...have a family of my own.”
She started to go upstairs and in that instant it dawned on Declan what a bloody ass he had been. Anastasia was long dead but Maggie and Aurelia were right her in front of him.
“Maggie, wait—”
“No.” She shook her head but refused to look at him. “It’s fine, Declan, really. I’ve stayed too long as it is. In fact, I think my presence here has done more harm than good. You should be able to get to know your daughter without me being in the way. I’m a distraction. Besides, you kept your end of the bargain. Tomorrow morning I’ll go home.”
Before he could utter another word, she vanished upstairs and into the loft with his sleeping daughter. Declan stood downstairs alone for what felt like hours and wondered how he had managed to cock everything up so damned badly.
Chapter Eleven
Declan laid in his bed staring at the ceiling for hours. He couldn’t stop thinking about Maggie and that wounded look on her face when he’d spoken of Anastasia. A growl rumbled in his chest and he tossed his arm over his eyes wishing he could go back and fix that moment in time. It was true that Anastasia had been the love of his life. He never dreamed he’d love another woman—until he found Maggie.
The creaking of a floorboard captured his attention and sent his senses on high alert. A moment later, he heard the door to his room opening and his first thought was that it might be Aurelia. Perhaps the child had a nightmare? Declan pushed himself to a sitting position, the thin cotton sheet covering his nakedness. He never wore nightclothes but it dawned on him that perhaps he should now that he had his daughter in the house.
Every coherent thought vanished from his mind when he saw a familiar silhouette in the doorway.
Maggie.
She wore long white night gown and her hair was loose around her face, just the way he liked it. The door clicked shut behind her and she leaned against it briefly before stepping forward and pulling the flimsy fabric over her head. Declan’s mouth went dry as she tossed the dressing gown to the floor and strode to the bed completely nude. Her curvy feminine form was lit up by pale lavender light spilling in the window from the twin moons.
“Don’t say anything,” she whispered. “And don’t move.”
That was fine with him. Declan was relatively sure that all the blood rushed from his head to other parts of his anatomy and he was currently incapable of speech. The mattress dipped as she crawled onto the bed toward him. Her breasts swayed and the gold amulet glinted against her fair skin but long tendrils of her hair drifted down, partially obscuring his view. He clenched the sheet, his hands curling into fists as his body tightened in response to her surprise visit.
His cock throbbed with need as she remained perched on all fours and brought her face precariously close to his. Even though he was desperate to touch her, it was clear to him that she wanted to retain control and he was happy to
give her that. It was a massive turn on to have her come to him this way, slipping into his room, rife with erotic intention.
“I know I’m leaving tomorrow.” Warm breath fanned over his cheek and he fought for control as she brushed her lips over his. Her musky feminine scent filled his head, making Declan crazy with need. He was almost dizzy from it. “But I want one more night in your bed and in your arms before I go.”
She settled both hands on his shoulders and in one swift move, straddled him. The heat of her sex settled over his rock hard cock and only the thin sheet separated them. Declan groaned and gripped her hips as she bucked against him with slow erotic pulses.
“Are ya tryin’ to kill me, lass?”
“Kill you? No.” Maggie leaned closer, her hands drifting up and cradling his face as she rolled her hips again in one wicked pass. “Torture you? Maybe.”
Declan sat up swiftly and tangled his hands in her hair, grabbing fistfuls of her silky tresses. He held her there, his mouth a scant inch from hers and the thick length of his erection pressed between them. Her breathing increased, and he took note of the way the heated flesh of her breasts pressed against his chest, expanding and contracting with each breath. Maggie wrapped her legs around his waist and her hands settled on his shoulders again. They remained that way for what seemed like forever, their bodies taut with need and desire, but neither moving.
“One more night?” He murmured. Declan tightened his hold on her hair and pulled her closer still. “That’s all ya desire?”
“You,” she whispered. Maggie’s fingertips dug deeper into the bulging muscles of his shoulders. “I desire you, Declan. All of you. Inside me. Around me. Above and beneath.” She flicked her tongue over his lips. “Everywhere... anywhere. One last time.”
On a curse, his mouth slammed over hers. Declan groaned when she opened to him, her tongue lashed along hers with swift furious strokes. They devoured each other and the kiss was filled with passionate desperation.
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