by Viola Grace
He was fully inside her, and when her body stopped clutching around him, he started to move again. She clutched at the bedding as he rocked into her, and he placed his hand over hers on the bed for a moment as he stroked into her with a deliberate slow grind of his hips.
She felt full and empty, energized and immobile. She wanted to be doing something, but she was surrounded by him.
His hips took up a heavier rhythm, and she grunted with the thrusts, shocked when her body bucked against him, and she moaned softly. He pressed his hand against her clit and circled it as his hips thrust into her with a jerky beat and a deep groan. Short thrusts of his hips wound their encounter to a halt.
She was breathing hard, and she asked, “Why aren’t I hungry or thirsty?”
“You are a mortal in Underhill. You don’t need it.” He kissed her shoulder. “You are a lovely mortal in Underhill.”
Petal chuckled. “Thank you. You are lovely yourself, but you know that.”
“So, was sex different than me licking you?”
The blunt question made her answer just as bluntly. “Yes. Very.”
She wondered, “Why did you enter me from behind?”
He kissed her ear. “You mentioned an issue with eye contact. There are a plethora of positions where eye contact is not necessary.”
Her heart melted. “You paid attention.”
“I did. Nothing that a couple does together should discomfort or shame one of the parties... unless that is what turns them on.”
She shifted her hips, and his erection woke up. “That was quick.”
He whispered in her ear, “I embody spring. I am eternally renewing.”
Petal whispered back, “Take it easy on me. My hormones may have more enthusiasm than sense.”
Damek kissed her ear again before he pulled her upright; he was still inside her, she was straddling his knees. Her breasts were cupped, massaged, and tweaked while he slowly began to use his grip on her breasts to lift her and lower her. He switched his grip to the backs of her thighs, and Petal reached back, forward, didn’t find anywhere to grab but his arms.
He kissed her neck, and she shook her head. “No. I don’t like this.”
He stopped and eased her to her belly, him behind her and still inside her. She breathed in deep, and he thrust into her. Her fingers flexed into the fabric, and she moaned.
He murmured, “Better?”
She moaned and muttered, “Yes. I’m sorry.”
He chuckled. “Don’t be sorry. You like what you like. If something feels unusual, you have a right to call a halt. If you want me to stop, I will stop.”
As he spoke, he stroked into her with rocking motions of his hips.
She felt hot, swollen, and her hips were moving back to meet his. He slid a hand between her and the bed, and the fingertips on her clit were sending jolts of tension through her.
Her throat was letting soft sounds out, part moans, part grunts as he coaxed her body to the edge again. She suddenly bucked back against him, and he pressed down, holding her in place as her body twitched and clasped him until she lay still.
He pressed a kiss to the side of her neck and slid into her with cumulating ferocity until he jerked into her and held still.
Damek held himself against and inside her, pressing soft kisses to her sweaty shoulder.
She sighed, he moved inside her, and she groaned. She could feel every ache and twinge that her body was alerting her to. She tried to push herself up, but his weight flattened her to the bed. Petal turned her head, and Damek kissed her with deliberate care.
He moved inside her, and she flinched.
“Sore?”
She blushed. “A little bit.”
“That I can help with.” He kissed her again, and warmth began to spiral through her, beginning at the kiss, spreading to her belly, and rippling outward. Where the warmth spread, the aches and twinges disappeared.
The slow strokes of his tongue gained her full participation, and as she turned toward him, he slid out of her, and she moved to face him.
She met his gaze, and the warmth in his green eyes was what she wanted. “How much longer do I have with you?”
He frowned. “I don’t know. There was no time limit set by Puck’s little offer. The others have said three days, but I don’t recall hearing an end time.”
“The others?”
“Winter and Autumn. They have both met and had their brides taken from them, so they are catching themselves up to the modern era.” He cocked his head as he looked down at her. “Winter said that that he would send his bride home after the last time, and Autumn made a bet with his bride that the first one to his home would be the winner, and then, he set her down on the step.”
She stroked his hair. “I don’t want to leave.”
He smiled and kissed her softly. “I don’t want you to leave either, but you can’t stay here forever. You have a life in the human world, and I have agreed to try it, provided that you are with me.”
“How did I become part of the bargain?”
He brushed his lips across her cheek. “Puck has been looking for ways to increase the connection between the magic of Underhill and the human world. I thought he was going to send humans, but the others warned me that you would most likely have fey ancestry.”
“I have what now?”
“One or both of your parents have fey ancestors somewhere back in time.”
“So, there is literally a guy out there pimping out mostly human women to some ancient fey? That is a little messed up.”
Damek slid to the side and leaned on one elbow. “You think so?”
“Sure. You know what is going on, but we are clueless, and it means that you have an advantage that is unfair.”
“You say that, but this involves our lives.”
She put her hand on his chest. “Our lives as well. This isn’t a solitary activity. This is a joint effort. If you don’t get that, you probably should not be accepting the offer.”
“I did not mean to offend you.” He put his hand over hers.
“I know. I know you didn’t mean it. But I can’t live here. I can’t eat anything. The plants don’t need tending. There is nothing for me to do here. I have a life, a short little life. Yes, it has been rough lately, but it is still mine to have and trash or thrive in. It really isn’t all about you.”
“You can’t mean that you wouldn’t be pleased to have me by your side for centuries? I am quite the catch.” He chuckled and stroked her cheek.
She was quiet for a moment, trying to think of a good exit point. “So, you are going to send me home?”
He smiled. “Certainly—”
Chapter Four
Petal set the gingerbread house on her mantlepiece. It was cute, and it had a tiny bouquet of flowers in one of the window boxes. She smiled. It would get packed away with the rest of the holiday decorations when it was over for the season, but that wasn’t quite yet.
She looked at her leg and was really happy with how well the sprain had healed from the accident on stage. The collection of canes she now had was spectacular.
She headed back to her couch and watched holiday movies for the rest of the night. Tomorrow, she would start calling the nurseries and looking for work again.
* * * *
Damek got to his feet with a roar. “Puck! Get your ass in here!”
Puck appeared in the corner of the room, leaning against the wall. “Yes, Your Highness?”
“Where is she?”
Puck shrugged. “Back in her normal human world, though you putting her in the healing pool caused a complication that I had to fix. Do you know how hard it is to alter fifty videos and the memories of twelve thousand people who have watched them? It was not easy.”
Damek grabbed him by the neck and lifted him up. “Where. Is. She?”
Puck grinned. “You sent her home. She asked, you said certainly, and then, she was gone. Don
’t worry. You have had your fun, and thanks to the compression of time, she won’t remember you. She was lucky to have you for a while, after all. You have become the least memorable first time of all time.”
Damek paused. “What?”
“Spring is all about the first moments, so out of the candidates that I found, I thought you would be best off with Petal. She did lack experience, but there is no way you didn’t notice that, right?” Puck disappeared and then flickered back to focus in the other corner.
Damek ran the words that she had given him through his head and had thought she had just had rough lovers before. Her words of caution and her hesitation were now clear. He was an idiot.
“Anyway, since she was just a toy, you don’t need to worry about it. I will find you another woman, and you can see if you can seduce her as well.” Puck snickered as Damek lunged for him. He elevated himself to the ceiling.
“Where did you put her?” Rage boiled through him. The elf that was taunting him sat on the ceiling.
“Back where I found her. If you want to apologize to her, you will have to find her, just as the kings of winter and autumn are doing. I must say, you are the only one who managed to fuck things up so far. Even Storm is doing better with his lady.”
Damek frowned. “What do I have to do to make things right?”
Puck chuckled. “You can find her for a start. That is what the learning in the winter hall is about. You need to know how to move in the modern world. If you had learned more from her while she was here, you would have had a leg up.”
He ran his hands through his hair and sat at the edge of his bed. “This is a fucking disaster.”
“Now, now. The others will help you, but first, you need to learn about her. Petal Black isn’t just a lady who likes to dance and enjoys flowers. Well, maybe she is. It isn’t my place to say.” Puck chuckled. “If you go and see the other kings, I would get dressed. You are very impressive but not my type. Don’t worry, you are a fey of Underhill; you have time.”
Puck disappeared, and Damek was left with his head in his hands.
* * * *
Petal stretched and bent to lift the next bag of potting soil. She heaved it to her shoulder and hiked it through the narrow aisles of the nursery where it was needed to top up some of the planting trays.
The heaters were blasting to keep the hoop house warm, and Petal was happy to have found something so soon after the holidays. Working in a greenhouse was one of her favourite seasonal occupations, and it guaranteed work until the middle of July. “Audra, how many more do you think you are going to need?”
Her friend smiled. “Three more. Have you been to the teashop yet?”
“No. Is it open?”
“Yeah, the new owner of the greenhouse is using the new staff as guinea pigs. He wants us each to show up at our leisure and do the tasting menu. One entire branch of the greenhouse is going to be devoted to plants and flowers for the shop.”
Petal whistled softly. “Does it bother you to have someone else in charge?”
Audra laughed. “No. I haven’t been feeling it lately. I need more oxygen and less blown air. I am heading out to where I can feel the weather again.”
“Nice. When are you going?”
“A few weeks, a month, I have no idea. It has just been a thought in my head.” She laughed. “I might come back here and beg for my job back.”
“Have you met the new owner?”
Audra nodded. “He’s nice enough if you like the golden-boy type with killer green eyes. Not my type.”
She laughed. “Yeah, sounds repulsive. So, how many more bags do you need back here?”
“Three?”
Petal laughed. “On it.”
She headed back to the stockpile, and she lifted the bags of seeding mix, hauling them back one at a time. She got two out of three and saw the bare side of the pallet. She walked to the door and saw the pallet across the muddy parking area with the seeding stock. The ruts from the previous year were too deep to use the pallet jack, so she took a deep breath and went out to get the third bag for Audra.
The new teahouse had been constructed in the last month, and it looked really tidy for something that close to the muddy mess of the parking lot.
When Audra’s bag had been delivered, Petal went and unloaded the pallet one industrial bag of planting mix at a time. She hiked back and forth across the parking lot and was fine until the second to last bag. Her foot twisted, and she went down, her work boots in the mud and her elbow on the ground.
The fifty pounds of soil were pressing on her head. She grunted and got up, staggered to her feet, and hoisted the bag to her shoulder. She limped to the building and tossed the bag onto the pile. Grimacing, she headed back, slowly moving and being much more careful of her footing. She paused when she saw someone coming toward her, holding the bag easily on a pristine shoulder. She blinked. “Um, I can get that.”
He tutted and moved around her, stepping easily over the potholes and bringing the last bag to the greenhouse.
Petal gripped the pallet and upended it, dragging it toward the discard pile.
A tense voice rapped out, “Leave it.”
She paused with the rough wood gripped in her hand. “I can’t. It isn’t safe to leave it here.”
He made that sound again and took it from her, throwing the pallet neatly onto the pile. “Come inside. You look like you need to wash up and have something hot to drink.”
He didn’t look back as he left her.
Petal looked at him, the greenhouse, and back again. When the sky opened and a drizzly rain washed down, it made up her mind for her.
She entered the teashop and stood, filthy, sweaty, and wet. Petal wiped her hands on her shirt, and she asked, “Where can I wash up?”
He waved her toward the restrooms, and she nodded and walked away. She didn’t look at her face until she had gotten the layers of dirt off her hands. She scrubbed her face and dried it with a towel before she looked at herself in the mirror.
Mud caked the side of her head, the side of her neck was black, her shoulder was filthy. She didn’t even want to look at her body. Petal wiped as much of the obvious dirt off, and then, she headed back to the front of the shop.
There was a low and shallow cup of tea waiting for her. She smiled. “Thanks. I am guessing that you are the new greenhouse owner?”
He turned and smiled at her. His skin was a lovely gold, his hair was radiantly blond and shaggy in an urban Tarzan sort of way. His green eyes glowed brightly as he took in her appearance. “I am. Darius Omek.”
He extended his hand to her, and she kept her own hands behind her. “Not meaning to be rude, but I am not exactly in showroom condition. Can I take a rain cheque on the handshake, sir?”
“Call me Darius.”
She nodded. “Darius. My name is Petal Black.”
“Ah, Petal. You are the one recommended by the previous owners.” He looked her up and down. “I can’t fault your work ethic.”
She blushed. “Yeah, I will try not to touch anything. The shop looks great.”
“Thank you. I thought it would be nice to show people how their favourite herbal mixes were blended. Get more interest in the herbs and flowers in the greenhouse.”
She nodded. “Very sensible.”
“Your tea is getting cold.”
She reached out and blushed at her muddy nails.
“Don’t worry about dirt. It is nice to be around a woman of the soil.”
She blinked as that echoed in her mind, and she took a sip of tea. The flowers and herbs triggered her memory, and she finished the cup quickly. She nodded her head. “Thank you for the tea.”
He looked disappointed and smiled slightly. “I am asking the employees to come in during their workday for a tea sampling. You are the only one that I have not yet met.”
She looked at him, and the polite and friendly façade faded as her gaze met his. “I am s
ure that your teas are fine and will sell well. The women will be lined up out the door. You are quite the catch, after all.”
She turned to walk out, and he rounded the counter to grip her arm.
“Petal, I cannot adequately express my regret in regards to my cavalier attitude around you. There was no insult intended.”
“It is fine. You might want to let go. You don’t want to get grimy by contact with a pathetic creature such as myself. I am sure your charming looks will help you to find as many women who meet your criteria as possible.”
“I want you. I studied the modern era for you. I came here for you.”
She looked at him and kept her soul locked. “I did not ask you to.”
His hand dropped from her arm, and she left the teashop.
She limped across the parking lot and back to the greenhouse. She bumped into Audra, who stared at her. “What happened to you?”
“A pothole jumped up and got me.”
Audra waved that off. “I mean your face. You look like someone ripped your heart out.”
Petal smiled slightly. “Yeah. It happened a very long time ago, and I was just reminded of it.”
Audra put her grimy hand on Petal’s shoulder. “Come on, we will get some coffee and talk.”
Petal shook her head and swallowed. “I will be back tomorrow. I just need peace and quiet tonight.”
She smiled and clocked out, heading for her tiny, little compact car with the gold door. She crossed her fingers as she started it, and it hiccoughed to life. She flicked her windshield wipers, put the car in gear, and drove her asthmatic little vehicle home for a hot shower and a good cry.
Petal parked the next morning with the resignation letter in her pocket. She had her feelers out for another job, and she could make it a few months on what she had saved.
She had entered the seedling area of the greenhouse when Audra grabbed her by the arm and asked, “What the hell are you doing?”
She blinked. “I am going to plant some seeds. Why?”
“Thompsons called and gloated that you were looking for a new job. She seemed to think that you were leaving the greenhouse.”