Sighing, I looked over my shoulder at him and gave him a nod. I wouldn't admit it to him, but I did miss him, too.
"Do ye think–"
"No."
Jimmy blinked in surprise but kept his eyes on the road.
"Yer not even going to hear me question?"
"Does it involve you and me?"
"Aye."
"No."
He sighed again, heavily. "Might I be askin' why?"
"Do you really want to have this conversation? Here? Now?'
"Aye."
"Because."
"Because?"
"Yes. Because, Derek. Because you left. Which I'm sure I would have gotten over and forgiven you for. You were moving with your mother. Starting over in a new country. I get that. But you left. I loved you and you went away. Fine. But you didn't write. You didn't call. You didn't tell me if you were alive, doing okay, happy, sad, rich, poor. Nothing. You didn't just leave, you walked out of my life. You were the very first person I ever fell in love with, and your actions told me I meant shit to you, so no."
"But…"
"There is no buts. You're back and you want me back. No."
"Aye. I do. But I understand. I tried to spare ya, but in truth I was sparin' meself."
"Yes. You were."
"Can I be yer friend? Can ya forgive me that much?"
I wiped the tears that had sprung from my eyes and were rolling down my cheeks. It had to have been an allergic reaction to the shellfish. I was going to write corporate about posting about food allergies on all their menus. "Friends?"
"Aye."
"Yes. We can be friends."
"Thank ya."
Jimmy reached over and rubbed my knee in a totally understanding and sympathetic gesture. I think he was afraid of me. Probably because he smelled the burning plastic. I looked down and saw I had a death grip on the arm rest of my brand-new car. It had melted in my grip.
"What's that godsawful smell?"
Jimmy looked over and saw the door. "Probably just some electrical tape on the wires in the engine. New cars often have that problem. It gets too close to the block because it wasn't harnessed right and poof, burnt rubber."
I reached down and put my hand over his to say thank you.
"Don't melt me," he whispered softly and gave me a wink.
"Oh, so you're allowed to melt my heart, but I can't melt your hand?"
He turned his hand over and gave mine a little squeeze.
"So. Ya wanna play baseball tomorrow?" Derek asked from the backseat.
"What?"
"Play baseball. That's what friends do isn't it?"
"Not when one of the friends hates sports. We can go shopping or have our nails done on Tuesday, though."
"Tuesday it is."
I chuckled as we pulled up into my driveway.
Derek opened the back door and Dar shot out of it like a streak of black lightning, stopping in the middle of the front lawn and raising his hackles.
Stay in the car.
What is it?
Danger, obviously. Let me concentrate.
"Back out of the driveway. Slowly."
"What?"
"Derek, close the door."
He did what I said without arguing. He did have some redeeming qualities.
Yuki. You home?
Yes?
Dar's outside. Says there's danger. The rest of us are in the car.
Are the wards up?
With all my preaching to the coven about maintaining shields… When the elf attacked, I never got around to putting them back up.
Oops. No.
I heard her mental sigh as the front door was pulled open in a rush. She strode out first, with Jaeren close on her heels. They formed a small semicircle with Dar and scanned each direction. The elf pulled out a blade from nothing. By nothing, I mean thin air. One second it wasn't there, the next it was, shining brightly from within. I wanted a magic sword.
"Should we let them handle it and leave?" Jimmy moved his hand to the gear shift.
"I'll pretend I didn't hear you ask that."
"You're going to go out there aren't you."
"Bet your ass I am," I said and pulled the handle on the door.
Jimmy started to do the same, but I stopped him. "This is the part where you and Derek leave."
"You don't want us to help?"
"I want you to protect yourself. And my car."
"I'm not leaving you."
"Yes. You are. Go, or no nookie for two months."
"I'll be around the corner."
"Good boy."
I shut the door and walked over to my protectors, taking position between all of them. "Do you see anything?"
No. But I can smell them.
Yuki?
Same. They smell like Jaeren, but spicier.
Maybe they had tacos for dinner?
"They're unseleighe," Jaeren said.
"What?"
"Dark elves."
"I know what the hell they are, why the hell are they here?"
"I do not know," he answered honestly.
Green light rocketed at us from the roof of the house across the street. I threw up a hastily erected shield and it exploded in green fireworks.
"Are they using roman candles?"
"Elf-shot. That was a test shot to gauge our defenses."
"What is elf-shot?"
"Not something you want to get hit with. Or touched by."
"Got it. Elf-shot bad. Hear that guys?"
Quit teasing him. Dar still sounded amused.
But it's so easy…
The sky lit up and turned green. No less than ten arrows, flaming like they had been lit with phosphorous, hurled at us. No shield was going to stop them, either.
I dropped to the ground and sang to the earth, slamming my hands against it and pouring as much power as I had behind it. Rough jagged pillars of sandstone shot out from my front yard in a staggered circle. Most of the arrows exploded in brilliant showers of green, one got through. It was about to hit Jaeren when Yuki spun and plucked it out of the air.
"My thanks."
"No problem."
We were in the middle of an earthen cylinder. We could still see out between the columns, but them shooting us from afar was no longer a worry.
"What do we do now?" Yuki was on edge, wanting something to slice with her claws.
Dar settled on the ground, sitting. We wait.
"For what?" The frustration dripped from Yuki's question.
"To see if they retreat or attack," I answered for Dar.
"There are too many of them to seek them out." Jaeren sighed.
"What are they doing here in the first place?" I moved closer to the pillars.
"Probably looking for me," Jaeren said with a sad sigh.
The rest of us turned and looked at him. "Why?"
"To barter with. They would, no doubt, love to have a royal hostage."
"Oh. That makes sense. Would you care to elaborate on that a little, you pointy eared monkey?" My anger flared. I spun on him, both hands on my hips.
"I planned on telling you."
"When?"
"When we reached my elfhame."
"Oh, by the way, Dot. I'm king?"
"I am not. I am my father's second son. I am merely a prince."
"Oh. Is that all."
"Yes, I am afraid."
Sarcasm eluded him. He hurt my head. I turned to the others. "Do you hear or see anything? Smell?"
"No. I think they left. You should dump the earth walls before the neighbors call code enforcement," Yuki said appreciatively.
Do not yet.
"I must say. I am impressed by your earth magic." Jaeren ran his hand over one of the columns.
"Me, too. First time I've ever done anything like that. Holes are a lot easier than walls."
"I just pray you have not done further damage to my kingdom."
Oops.
"I doubt it," I said after thinking about it. "T
hey're only about twenty feet tall. The hellmouth went all the way to hell."
Gehenna.
Shut up. Hell sounds way more impressive.
We'd been standing there for five minutes. There was no sign of attack.
Want me to scout it out?
I looked down at Yuki and nodded. "First sign of pointy ears and you hightail it out of there."
"Yes, Lady."
She slipped between the columns of earth and I heard the wind blast from her taking off in the direction the arrows had come from. She was back a moment later.
"Um. One of them is standing across the street. Unarmed."
"That's my cue. Keep Princey safe."
She nodded and I slipped out from the pillars, Dar right behind me. As soon as we were clear, he shifted into his hellhound form. Guess he wouldn't have fit going through.
"Where are the rest of your people?"
"I have sent them away. We were at an impasse, so I would propose an end to the stalemate."
"What stalemate? You attacked us and I defended. I still have plenty of power left."
Don't tease the bad guy, Dar chided.
You're no fun sometimes.
"We wish you no harm."
"Care to explain the exploding arrows?"
"They were merely an attempt to separate you from your guardians."
"Me?" That was kind of a shock. Apparently, Jaeren wasn't as hot of a commodity as he thought. I couldn't wait to rub it in his face. If I lived.
"Unless there is another red-haired high priestess with unusual familiars who closed the portal to Gehenna that I should be aware of…"
We'd finally gotten close enough to talk at normal volume levels and for me to see him clearly. My vampiric vision only worked in dark conditions. The streetlights above us rendered it rather…useless. "Why are you looking for me?"
"We, the Unseleighe Court of Willowmere, wish to retain you."
I was expecting a monster. Tales of the unseleighe sidhe were passed down from time immemorial. When Ireland was just an island of tribes, living in tents, and drinking lots and lots. They were supposed to be fearsome creatures of the night. The one standing before me looked like an…elf. His skin was a little paler than Jaeren's, and he was dressed entirely in black leather. He was kind of hot. "Restrain me? Sounds kinky."
He said retain, dolt.
I know he did. I'm playing dumb.
Choose the role for which you need little practice. Very wise.
The headlights of a car turned onto my street, illuminating all of us in a flare of halogen. I backed out of the road, not wanting to get run over. The bad elf stayed on his side of the street. I was expecting the car to screech to a halt to figure out what the hell was going on in my front yard, not pull into my driveway. The three of us watched him get out of his car, walk up to the front door with a white plastic bag, and ring the doorbell.
Josie answered it, slapped some cash in his hand and took the bag. The driver, without so much as a head scratch, got back in his car, backed out, and drove away.
What just happened?
I believe your roommate ordered takeout.
Oh. That must be your dinner.
He sniffed the air. Chinese?
I don't know. Whatever Josie ordered.
Could you hurry this up? I'm hungry.
My apologies, my canine friend.
"I glamoured the humans mind so he would not see your little construct or us."
"Thanks… What is your name?"
"Delron."
"That's it? No Delron the Black? Delron the Merciless?"
"Just…Delron."
"Alright. Well my familiar is very hungry. Could we speed this up a bit? What is it exactly you want to retain me for?"
"Marriage."
"Um, excuse me?"
"Our Queen wishes to pass on. She is ancient to the eldest of us but refuses to pass the crown to the prince unless he is wed and with heir. Our court…is not what it once was. There is little place for elves in this world and our attempts at coaxing brides from other courts has met with utter failure. We even petitioned the elves of Elfhame Autumn Glade for a bride. They turned us down and killed all but one of our diplomatic entourage. The treacherous bastards."
"They sound like a big bag of dicks."
He blinked in confusion. "Yes. They are."
"Unfortunately, Delron. I am already in a committed relationship. Several of them. Marriage, at this time, is not an option for me. I'm sorry."
"Would you at least pay us a visit and hear the proposal formally?"
"It would be a waste of time and you just tried to shoot me…"
"The shots were meant for your underlings. The archers faced pain of death if you were hurt in any way."
"That's some incentive not to miss."
"We find that to be very true."
"Look, Delron. I was already commanded by the goddess to go to Faerie. I was leaving tomorrow. Let me check out this elfhame like she–" His face went from pale to translucent. "Are you okay?"
"The goddess? You have spoken with her?"
"Yes?"
He bowed. Not like a Yuki bow, either. Like, dropped to the ground on one knee and lowered his face to the ground kind of bow. I didn't know it was possible. The elf was pretty limber…
"So. As I was saying. I have to go to the elfhame tomorrow. How about we talk after that?"
He reached behind him and pulled out an arrow. Dar immediately started growling. "I merely wish to give you this. Will you accept it?"
I nodded.
He crossed the street and held it out in front of him, handing it to me across both of his open palms. "What am I supposed to do with it?"
"When you wish to speak to me, launch the arrow into the air. I will come."
"You will? That's a pretty exciting arrow." I chuckled. "Does it vibrate?"
"Vibrate? No. It will send a song for my ears to hear." He didn't get my joke. Shocker.
"Oh. Cool. Well, okay then. Have a good night."
"You as well, Lady." He bowed again and jogged away.
Hey, Dar?
Yes?
That was fucking weird, right?
Very much so.
Okay. Just checking. I'm starting to be a bad judge of what's weird anymore.
I live to serve.
Could you run around the corner and bark at Jimmy to bring my car back?
I will have the vampire do it. I doubt your boyfriend would understand the implications of my bark. He would probably think Timmy was stuck in a well.
You really need to quit watching so much television.
I refuse to watch soap operas. And your remote wasn't exactly made for doggy paws.
You can watch television in your humanoid appearance. Want me to get you some clothes?
If you would. And you are out of beer.
Chapter 12
"I'm sorry. If I'd known how strongly you felt, I wouldn't have invited him."
I gave Jimmy a small smile. "I know. Don't worry about it. Honestly, when he came back, I was so excited to see him. But the longer I had to think about it, the angrier I got. I meant what I said. I don't trust him, not anymore."
"I know. Now."
"You're a good boy."
He barked.
I wish I had my phone to take a picture of the look Dar shot him. I nearly spit my coffee. Setting it down, I wandered over to the fridge. I hadn't eaten since dinner, and I wanted some toast. With copious amounts of Nutella. I hated toast, but it was hard to pick Nutella up and eat it. Especially in public. And Josie called me an addict the last time she had caught me with the jar and a spoon.
"Want some toast?"
He groggily wiped his face and sipped his coffee. He'd spent the night and with as much power as I'd thrown into the earth erecting the wall, I'd pretty much passed after the dark elf left. I'm surprised he wasn't cranky from lack of nubbins.
"Tell you what. How about instead of toast, I'll make you crepes?"<
br />
"You can do that?"
"I can."
"Here?"
"Yes."
I can put Nutella on those! "Sure. I'll try them."
"So you say, but your face says you just had a little O."
"O?"
"Gasm."
"Oh."
"Gasm."
"Yes. I get it."
"Ask me nicely…" He was grinning from ear to ear.
"For an orgasm?"
"No. You never need to beg for those. For the crepes you desperately want."
"What? I mean… I'll eat 'em if you cook 'em, but I'm not a super huge fan."
"Oh. Well, then you might as well eat toast."
"Don't get me wrong. I have Nutella. I could probably pour some on a bumper and eat it. But I'm not a fan of toast. Crepes might be a little better."
"I could probably be persuaded…"
"Never mind. I'll make toast."
"What?'
"I was going to try your crepes. But, if you're gonna make me work for it..."
"All I wanted was a kiss and a please. Sheesh."
I looked at him dubiously. "And where did you want me to kiss you?"
He started rooting around in my cupboards, pulling down flour, sugar, and vanilla. "Right here in the kitchen."
"Uh huh." I snuck up behind him and grabbed two handfuls of ass. "Gonna tell me the truth?"
"You can't handle the truth."
I chuckled. "Oh. I don't think there's anything I can't handle." I squeezed his boxer-covered buttocks.
"You better knock that off if you want to eat."
"Pléisiúr," I whispered, letting the trickle of power flow through my hands, directly into his glutei maximi.
I had to practically support his weight until he got a firm grip on the counter. Luckily, the flour was sealed tightly. "Dot!"
"Yes, Jimmy?" I chuckled softly, waiting for him to give in.
"Don't."
"Don't what, Jimmy?"
"Stop. I'm almost…there!"
I amped up the power and he shuddered and fell to the kitchen floor, quivering and smiling up at me. "There is something wrong with you!" I couldn't help but laugh.
"That was awesome!" He was smiling up at me, which was quite the picture in his T-shirt and boxers. Especially, since he was sticking out of the front of them, straight, hard, and proud.
"Put that away."
"But I didn't finish…"
"You can finish after you feed me."
"I knew you wanted me for my crepes."
I turned around and saw Candace standing there, staring curiously at the front of Jimmy's underpants. "Sorry, Candace," I said and laughed. "Jimmy's making breakfast, want some?"
Fourth Rite: A Reverse Harem Tale (Lovin' the Coven Book 4) Page 11