Fae Lord Avenged
Marina Maddix
Contents
About This Book
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
About the Author
About This Book
He wanted revenge, but he gets so much more...
For generations, the four branches of the Oberon family have lived under a dark cloud of scandal. As outcasts in the fae world, they've suffered indignities and humiliations galore, and Dain Oberon is sick of the status quo. When all four exiled clan leaders are invited to a wedding at Othercross, Dain sees his chance to avenge his family name. Nothing--not even the objections of his cousins—will stop him.
Now he only needs to find a female to seduce... But not just any female—only one from the enemy clan will do. When he lays eyes on the sensual, beautiful and curvaceous Galwyn Murphy, he knows he's found his target. There's just one small problem: She's his fated mate. Now Dain must decide which he wants more: sweet, sweet revenge or the woman of his dreams at his side forever.
Because he can't have both.
* * *
Fae Lord Avenged is the first book in a new series of four fae romances set in the Real Men of Othercross world. If you like fated mates, you'll love this quick, steamy enemies-to-lovers romance!
Don't miss the next book in the series, Fae Lord Seduced!
* * *
REAL MEN OF OTHERCROSS
Vampire Seduction
Vampire Claim
Vampire Temptation
Vampire Reunion
Fae Lord Avenged
Fae Lord Seduced
Fae Lord Redeemed
Fae Lord Bewitched
Chapter One
In hindsight, Guildcrest Hall might not have been the best choice for a reception. Then again, it would have served well enough if Kiki and Thayne Nicolaides had been allowed to cull the guest list. As it stood, Aquaria Murphy—who was in no way related to either the bride or the groom but had somehow finagled her way in helping to plan the wedding—had done what she always did: taken over. That meant everyone she had ever smiled at was afforded an invitation.
And, unfortunately for the overcrowded Guildcrest, almost nobody had had the good taste to refuse. Least of all Dain Oberon and his three cousins. Dain couldn’t speak for the others, but he’d traveled the great distance from Hellgrim out of spite more than anything else.
“Would you look at that?” Kellen whistled through his teeth, nodding his mop of long, flaming red hair toward a pretty blonde witch dancing closer and closer to their table. As the youngest Oberon in attendance, it was no wonder he was more interested in simply having a good time.
“So?” Dain was unimpressed. If she wasn’t a member of the Murphy clan—and she wasn’t, since she was a witch, not a fae—she wasn’t going to fit into his plans. “Who is she?”
“Kelly Holloway,” Radagast said, wincing slightly under the raised eyebrows of his younger cousins. “What? I tried to learn who everybody was before we came.”
“A noble pastime,” Dain sniffed. “I don’t suppose you can tell me which of the available ones are Murphys?”
The other three Oberon men fell silent and exchanged concerned glances. After a beat, Rad leaned forward on his elbows, a strand of black hair falling across his ridiculously perceptive electric blue eyes.
“Any particular reason you want to know, cousin?”
“Call it curiosity.”
“Don’t give us that shit,” Kellen said with a hard smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes. “We know you better than that. You sit there glowering all night, then suddenly decide to just ‘make conversation’ about the family that put ours to shame? Yeah, I don’t think so. What gives?”
With a heavy sigh, Dain leaned back in his chair and glanced around for anyone close enough to eavesdrop. Nobody but the dancing witch, and she was far more interested in shaking her booty than listening in on their conversation.
“You got me,” he said, waving his cousins in closer with a conspiratorial smirk. “I’m thinking about a little revenge.”
“Oh lord, no,” Eldan sighed, nudging his glasses up the bridge of his nose. “We didn’t come here to start some kind of fight, Dain. I’m in no mood for such nonsense. And quite honestly, the bride and groom deserve better than for us to cause a ruckus at their wedding reception.”
“Who said anything about fighting? Besides, we don’t even know the happy couple, so don’t pretend you give a shit about their feelings.”
“Okay,” Kellen said, his pumpkin-colored eyes flashing neon orange. “No fighting. But you can’t just drop the word ‘revenge’ out there and expect us to let it slide.”
“I’m not looking to start any kind of fight. Quite the opposite, actually.”
The other three looked at him like he’d lost his mind. Maybe he had. Then again, maybe his plan was pure genius.
“If I could just get one of those Murphy gals alone,” he explained, “maybe a revenge fuck would be in order. Whaddya think?”
“Oh lord,” Eldan sighed again, revulsion pouring from his golden-eyed glare.
“Come on, Dain,” Kellen said, his tone incredulous. “Are you telling me you twisted our arms into traveling from the far corners to attend this shindig just so you could even up the score?”
“Why not? They’ve all been treating us like black sheep since we showed up anyway.”
“That’s because we are the black sheep,” Rad reminded him with a smirk. “How else would you expect them to treat us?”
How could they all just roll over like that? “I don’t know about you guys, but it’s about time we got a little freaking respect in this godforsaken place.”
As always, Dain’s bitter attitude about the past raised a kind of weary amusement from the other three. Also as always, Kellen was the only one who took the bait.
“And you think bagging some Murphy chick is going to make generations of weirdness just evaporate?”
“It wouldn’t be just anyone getting it on with one of the Murphys.” Dain’s blood was up now. “It would be an Oberon. Think about it. The whole reason everyone looks down on us is because great-grandma Libby was taken advantage of by Ewan Murphy, and we’ve been living with the shame of it ever since.”
“Great-great-grandma,” Rad chimed in. “If you want to be accurate about it.”
“See?” Dain threw his hands up, as if his point had just been proven. “That’s…what?” He counted out on his fingers. “Five generations?”
“Four,” Eldan corrected as he took a sip of his honey-lavender beer.
“Whatever. That’s still a long time for us to be living under the shadow of an ancient scandal. Even after all this time, everyone still looks at us like we’re insane for having the audacity to show up to a wedding reception. Did you see the look on Aquaria’s face when we walked in?”
“She did invite us,” Rad said.
“Yeah, but she didn’t expect us to accept. Besides, take a look around. She invited everybody.”
“Fair enough,” Kellen said, but he frowned at his older cousin. “Even so, you’re not really going to do this, are you?”
“I say shaming their side would make everything pretty damn equal.” Nobody seemed to agree, which only burned Dain even more. “You’re telling me you’re cool with us carrying the family shame for all eternity?”
“No, I’m telling you that you really should let go of the past and enjoy the party,” Rad said as he stood, clearly ready to take his own advice.
“You’re
the family historian, Rad. Seems strange that you’re the one telling me to let it go.”
“Meh. I’m a sucker for history, what can I say? Everybody loves a good story.” He looked to the others. “I’m going for a drink. Anyone want to join me?”
Eldan stood up, looking thoroughly relieved to have an exit strategy, and the two drifted into the crowd. That left Kellen to enjoy a private chuckle at his fuming cousin.
“You’re not seriously thinking about this, are you?”
“It’s all I’m thinking about.”
And Dain meant it. It seemed his thoughts had turned to revenge more and more over the last decade or so. Maybe it was coming into adulthood that made him feel the shame his family bore more keenly. What had always been a vague sort of discomfort had sharpened into an outright obsession.
“What if someone did that to Wren?” Kellen asked.
Dain froze at the mention of his younger sister. At just eighteen, Wren knew nothing of the outside world. After their parents had died several years earlier, he’d not only inherited the responsibilities of running the Hellgrim clan, but also of raising his little sister. And Dain took all of his responsibilities very seriously, which meant protecting Wren from as many threats as possible, including lecherous males.
“I’d kill him,” Dain finally replied, his upper lip twitching in a snarl. “But this is different.”
Kellen sighed. “Man, look around. The party is in full swing. The booze is free, the food is great, and there are more pretty bridesmaids than I can count on both hands. It must be hard work to be so grouchy in the middle of all this.”
As much as Dain refused to admit it, Kellen was probably right. Even if Aquaria had only invited them out of obligation (or, more likely, vanity), the point was, they had been invited. Funnily enough, Dain wasn’t sure if he would have resented being left off the guest list. He’d lived most of his adult life just looking for the snub. Of course with that kind of attitude, he nearly always found one.
“Whatever, dude.” Kellen stood and raked his gaze around the hall. “If all you’re going to do is sit here and brood, I’m going to leave you to it. Besides, now that I’ve mentioned all those pretty bridesmaids, they seem to be calling my name. I’m going to take a lap.”
As he made his way around the table, he clapped his hands on Dain’s shoulders. “If you ask me, the only reason people look at us like outcasts is because we let them. Plus, it doesn’t help that you’re so damn grumpy all the time. That gives them plenty to stare at.”
Dain watched the ease in Kellen’s step as he sauntered away and disappeared into the gyrating mass of bodies. How was it that his cousins could be so casual about it all? It was as if they were looking at their history of family shame under glass, while Dain lived it every day. This wasn’t some age-old story for him. Not in the slightest.
Prying his elbows off the table, Dain leaned back in his chair to survey the rest of the party. Even he had to admit that nobody seemed to be taking notice of him at all. Well, almost nobody. When he turned to glance over his shoulder, Kelly what’s-her-name was hurriedly walking away as if caught. Had she been eavesdropping?
Not that he fucking cared, really. What was some University-level witch going to do about it, anyway? Exactly nothing.
Scanning the room, he’d thoroughly lost track of his cousins, and it settled on him that he’d been summarily ditched. What’s worse than being in a group of outcasts? Being the outcast among the outcasts. He ground his teeth into the thought.
In the whole scope of his life, Dain had never found a situation that he couldn’t see the downside of. Not to say he never had fun—under the right circumstances, he could be a blast. But being in Othercross, surrounded by the fae elite who had banished his entire family line, always put him in a foul mood. Any time there was a chance he might be able to brush the chip off his shoulder, the old memories bubbled up and tacked that chip firmly in place.
Well, at last he had a plan to settle things up for good. Getting to his feet, he decided to set out and find the perfect victim to bring it all into place. He wasn’t going to have any luck hooking up with a Murphy just sitting on his ass, was he?
In fact, this was his favorite part—the hunt. Weaving through the crowd, he was grateful that the dance floor and the strong drinks lent him a bit of anonymity. For a moment, he felt like he could be just about anyone. It was exactly the sensation he’d always craved.
Not to be just like everyone else. Simply to feel like he wasn’t always being looked down on. And if he could find the right girl, no one could look down on him again.
Chapter Two
“Kiki looks beautiful, doesn’t she?”
Galwyn Murphy nodded her head toward the bride, radiant in her white gown. Her skin glowed with an almost flushed vitality. Considering how pale Galwyn’s own skin always was, she felt just a twinge of jealousy that someone could shine like that—even on their wedding day.
Evie La Croix smiled, then cut a pair of sly green eyes over to her friend. “They both look ridiculously gorgeous. But then I’ve always had a soft spot for boys like Thayne.” With a quick wiggle of her eyebrows, the brunette stole another glance at the happy couple and sighed with resignation. “Not that I can do anything about it.”
“I hear ya, sister.” Galwyn snorted and wrapped an arm around her friend’s waist. It was all she could reach, considering their height difference.
For a moment, Galwyn considered how many years there were between them. Despite having almost ten years on Evie’s twenty-four, everyone assumed Galwyn was younger. But that was one of the perks of being fae—she’d keep her youthful looks for a long, long time.
For all the good it was going to do her.
Before she could let herself get too maudlin over all the plans her family had laid out for her, Kelly materialized beside them. She had the same expression she always wore, as though she were keeping a secret and was bored by it all at the same time.
“Finally,” Ms. Social Butterfly said as she joined them, flicking her blonde locks over her shoulder. “Some real company.”
“No luck out there?” Galwyn asked, readjusting her glasses. If she couldn’t pick a man for herself, at least she could live vicariously through her friends.
“Meh.” Kelly gave a shrug and looked back across the packed hall. “It’s hard to get too worked up over the same old crowd.”
“Is that so?” Evie narrowed her emerald gaze at her oldest friend, as though she could almost read her mind.
“What? What is it?” Galwyn always seemed to be on the outside of all the fun. Even the hint of some sort of intrigue made her burn to be included.
“Oh, nothing.” Kelly put on her too-cool face and feigned interest in something on a nearby table. “Nothing but a table full of fae lords. They were new to me.”
“I knew it!” Evie said with a laugh. “I knew you were holding back.”
Kelly laughed. “Sue me.”
The thought of new fae faces among the crowd prickled Galwyn all the way down to her core, and she couldn’t help but perk up. The world could get to feeling pretty small in Othercross, so any chance to expand her horizons was always welcome. Especially if those horizons included powerful, good-looking men.
“Where are they?” She craned her neck, but the mass of bodies made it impossible to focus on anyone more than five feet away.
“Around. You don’t want to mess with them anyway.”
Something in the way Kelly said it caught Galwyn in the chest.
“Why’s that?”
Kelly shrugged. “Seemed like jerks to me, is all.”
Before Galwyn could dig deeper, Evie went utterly still and shot her a look. A look Galwyn knew all too well.
“Where?” she whispered through her teeth, not daring to glance around.
“Three o’clock. Closing fast.”
Galwyn’s stomach dropped into her too-tight, too-tall shoes, and she could feel Lord Rutherford getting closer.
In a sudden flash of inspiration, she held her empty glass up to the light.
“Oh, no!” She even put a hand to her cheek like she was in some lousy melodrama. “I’m all out. Let’s go get some fresh drinks.”
With that, she practically dragged her friends around the perimeter of the dance floor. It didn’t even matter whether they were heading toward the bar or not.
“Did we lose him?” she asked, breathless when they had made it to the opposite side of the hall.
Eagle-eyed Evie searched behind them, then nodded with relief. “For now.”
Kelly gaped at Galwyn. “You’re not still tied to that old geezer, are you? I thought you’d put a stop to all of that bullshit.”
“Auntie has other ideas.”
“Oh, geez.” Kelly rubbed a hand across her brow. “Does Aquaria really have to have her finger in every damn pie?”
Galwyn dropped her eyes to the floor. “She’s insisting. She keeps going on about ‘the bloodline,’ as if I’m some kind of racehorse ripe for breeding or something. It’s miserable.”
“Yeah,” Evie said as she and Kelly exchanged an amused glance. “The agonies of coming from fae royalty.”
“Oh, what must it be like,” Kelly joined in. “The trials and tribulations of the upper classes…”
“Cut it out!” Galwyn flushed and scrunched down into her shoulders, fidgeting with her glasses. As much as she tried to keep her family line out of things, her friends took a special kind of joy in teasing her about it. Which was the last thing she needed at the moment.
Kelly gave her hand a squeeze. “Come on. Aquaria can’t be serious. He’s got to be your father’s age.”
“Try her grandfather’s,” Evie said with a pointed look. “Even if all you fae age more slowly, he looks like he’s a hundred.”
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