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“Home?”
“Yes, dear woman. I am taking you home.”
I sigh in agreement raising my face to his. Eldred takes my face in his hands and gently kisses my forehead. It too, is enough for now. I wrap my arms around his waist and rest my head on his chest. My childhood fantasies of Sebastian Lockton cannot compare to the appeal of this stranger who I am already attached to. My love for Christian continues to burn hotter than hellfire. He is the love of my life and he always will be. However, this Erikson takes the edge off the pain and makes me feel hopeful again. Hopeful about everything.
His men move silently. They run the ship as smoothly as the water flowing around us while he stands here comforting me.
“You are gifted, Maeve. A living angel, and people will try to use you for what you are. They will want your power for themselves and will use love and lies to steal it from you. The Bloodtaker cannot see past what you have to offer him. You need to be with a man with his own strength who has no need of yours. A man who sees you for you, not what you can do for him.”
I remember when I offered to heal Christian’s father. He refused, telling me that it was his time to die. He did not want me to heal him. There was no one that he asked me to heal for him. Because he does not need my power. He has his own. I need to stop thinking about him and yearning for him. I need to stop loving him, if we are not meant to be.
“Prince.” A voice interrupts. “We have wolves to our right.”
I can make them out galloping along the riverbed keeping pace with the cruising ship. It is Nicodemus. He waves at me.
“You are always welcome in our den, Maeve Payne.” He calls. “This is your home!”
“I will miss you, Neo!” I call back. “Thank you.”
He turns and follows his pack into the forest. I have an ally. I remember Ramsay Antonov and change my figure. I have two. The Erikson brushes against me as he reaches for something. Make that three.
“You are cold and probably hungry. Come, I will show you to your cabin.”
“Will you be sharing it with me?”
I offer myself to him without a second thought. I want to share my bed with him, and maybe my life since I cannot have who I want.
“No.” He says regretfully leading the way down the hatch. “I do not bed women that I barely know. No matter how pretty they are.”
What manner of man turns down a willing woman? It is surprising and wounds my pride. Does he have someone else? Look at him, Maeve. His rejection makes me miss Christian more than I did before. It is my own fault. Why did I push myself on him so soon? Why did I not wait until he came to me? I hear my sister laugh behind a door as we pass what must be her cabin. I pause and knock on the door. She swings it open a moment later with the joyful laughter in her eyes and on her tongue.
“Little sister, come with me.”
She pulls me inside and over to the bed where the dark-haired Erikson is sitting. He might be more beautiful than his leader. These Erikson are not like any men, or beings that I have ever seen in the realm. His long hair is the color of dark wood, and his dark eyes hint at blue but could be grey. They are a combination of both, I think.
“Handsome, is he not?”
Beth-Ann’s excited voice makes me realize I am staring at him. I look away in embarrassment. Eldred laughs. The dark-haired one does not.
“This is Winn.” She introduces me to the Erikson who has drawn her in. “Is he not the bravest man you have ever seen? The way he came in there and rescued us from those evil fiends? I could absolutely swoon right now.”
I give her a confused look. What? I would laugh, but it would be calling her a liar in front of her new friend. She cuts her eyes at me in warning. The bold audacity makes it harder to contain myself. Until I think about the bravest man I know. Christian. With the Erikson coming in a strong second. Only, are they really? My mother’s husband and her daughter’s son both burned for me. They had no choice in the matter, but they did not plead and beg for their lives at the last minute. They protected them right up until the end. An end that plays out on a loop in my head. The wet slice of the executioner’s ax. The heavy plunk when it embedded itself into the bloody block. The stretch and pull of the rope before a neck snaps at the end. The sizzling sound of roasting flesh. My sister’s tortured screams. The smell of burning hair and skin...
Bile burns the bottom of my throat when I swallow it down. I wipe the sweat beading on my forehead. The Erikson puts a hand on my shoulder.
“Are you ill, Mae?” My sister knocks him aside to feel my forehead. “You are feverish. Come, let us get you in bed.” She turns to the Erikson. “Where is she sleeping?”
“Next door to you.”
“My sister is in the family way and she needs her rest. We have been through hell, she and I, but we shall persevere the way Paynes always do.”
Winn’s eyes are full of pride and lust. He wants my sister badly, and I do not think he will wait very long to have her. They cannot stop staring at each other and I cannot stop looking at them. This is how it was with Christian and me. We had to be touching in some way. If we were close enough, it would be with hands. If we could not touch with hands, it was with eyes. Our bodies craved one another because our souls are tied together by something stronger than rope or any chain. We are bound by destiny and no matter who he is with, or who I am with. He will always belong to me, and I will always belong to him.
“I will be on deck all night if you need anything.”
The Eldred’s hair hangs to his waist. I love the way it moves around his body when he walks away from me.
“You like him.” My sister observes. “This is good. We can both be Erikson.”
“He cannot marry a common human.” Winn finally speaks. “He is of royal blood.”
“My sister is a Payne.” Beth-Ann says in a snooty voice. “A high-witch. He should be honored that she has gifted him with her care.”
“My lord is an Erikson heir. There is no man, Bloodtaker, or being in a higher station than he. You will show him the respect that is due to him, and me as well, as the head of his guard.”
Winn Erikson is telling her, not asking her as her husband would have.
“It is not your place to say what my Lord should or should not do. You are below me also, and if not for your beauty, I would not look at you twice.”
“You like me for my looks?” Beth-Ann demands angrily.
“Do you not like me for mine?” His smile makes her blush. “You are no damsel in distress, Elizabeth-Ann. But it amuses myself and your sister when you pretend to be.”
I turn my face to hide my laughter. I like this Erikson. His honesty is refreshing.
“It is not the only thing that I like about you, Winn.”
“The correct title is, my Lord Winn to lessers. When we are married, you may call me husband, or my Lord husband. Until then, it is my Lord Winn. To call me anything else is a disrespect.”
“Married?” Beth-Ann perks up. “Do you think we should wed?”
“I do.”
“What do you know about me?”
“What do you know about me?” He counters.
“Not much.” She admits.
“If that bothers you, we can wait a while to decide if we hate each other or not. In fact, I think that it is best. Your beauty dampens my common sense.”
“As your handsomeness does mine.”
“See to your sister.” He waves her off. “I will wait here for you.”
We both watch him lay back on the bed with his hands behind his head. Sweet baby Jesus. Who are his parents?
“Do not dawdle, woman. I have work awaiting me.”
“You are rude.” Beth-Ann accuses. “I am not sure if I like you after-all.”
“You like me.” Winn says arrogantly. “And, you will care for your sister and return to me.”
“Maybe I will stay the night with her.”
“Or, you can spend the night with me.” He says. “It is your choice, my pet.”
“Come along, Mae.” She says like I am six years old again. “It is past your bedtime.”
I smile at her back as I follow her out. It is like old times again when she lays out a night shirt that she finds in a trunk and begins brushing my hair.
“I have been a terrible sister, Mae.” Beth-Ann comes right out with it. “I fear that I have changed since I was burned, and I am trying to find the woman that I was before. I ask for your patience and forgiveness as we begin our new life. These Eriksons are wild and outrageously wealthy. You chose your rescuer well. They will not forsake us.”
“I apologize also for not coming forward that day.”
“Hush.” She tells me. “It was our duty to protect you. We only did what had to be done. You are my sister and a healer. I will never lose sight of that again. And this child, half-Beaumont or not, is my niece or nephew.”
“This child is his heir.” I say quietly. “Should anything happen to Christian, my child could ascend the throne. It is why the church wants me dead.”
“I never considered that.” Beth-Ann whispers. “Your baby is a Prince or Princess. How utterly exciting! Not the dead part, of course. But the idea of a Payne sitting on the Christian throne!”
“It is dangerous. I believe that is why Christian did not come for me when I was with Sebastian. He believes I am safer with my own people.”
“Why run away when Sebastian wanted to marry you?”
“He was marrying me to keep me close.” Why did I not marry Sebastian? “He treated me terribly, Elizabeth-Ann. Bash was afraid that I would leave with the Antonovs or be taken by Christians. He wants to build an army of my children.”
“The Antonov is absolutely perfect.” She muses. “Handsome, charming, powerful. I would be his wife had he shown me any interest. Did he say anything to you?”
“Yes.” I smile warmly. “He asked me to be his wife.”
“But why?” Beth-Ann is confused. “The Antonov can have any woman he wants.”
“Am I so repugnant, that a handsome man should not want me?” I ask her quietly.
“That is not what I said.” She colors prettily.
“But it is what you meant, is it not? My skin is not bright like yours, so what could he possibly see in me, right? Besides using me to heal people?”
“You are taking this all wrong.” Beth-Ann tries to sugarcoat her insult. “You are pretty.”
“Not pretty enough for the Antonov?” I frown.
“Stop putting words in my mouth, Mae. I am finished with this discussion.” She slams down the brush, helps me out of my dress, and yanks the bed shirt on over my head. “I am the pretty sister, but you were always everyone’s favorite. You have aura about you, Mae. Even as a child, people were drawn to you.”
“It is my curse that makes them like me.”
“Curse?” She laughs. “You are a gift! A precious gift that I must protect and will do so with my life. I burned for you once, sister. And I will burn for you a hundred times.”
We hug for a long minute before she lets me go to pull back the cover on the comfortable-looking bed.
“Into bed with you.” She says wiping her eyes. “We are growing a Princess in there.”
“I am hoping for a girl.” I admit. “A girl cannot be king.”
“No.” Beth-Ann agrees. “However, she will be like you, which is more of a threat to them. Either way, they will come, and we need to be ready.”
She pulls the blanket up to my chin and kisses my forehead the way she did when I was young.
“Sleep well, you.” Her smile is welcome and reminds me of home. “We will talk tomorrow.”
“You are hot for Winn and cannot stay away another minute.” I tease her.
“It is true.” Beth-Ann smiles. “He is wonderfully handsome, is he not?”
“Not as handsome as the Erikson, but your Winn is a fine man.”
“If you marry the Erikson, we will be together forever.”
“You heard Winn. The Erikson cannot marry below his station.”
“Do not underestimate your charms, Maeve my love. I have seen the way he looks at you. He is already smitten.”
“The man turned down my offer to share my bed. He does not desire me.”
“Silly girl.” She laughs. “The Erikson is too much of a gentleman to use you like a whore. He knows how special you are. I like him already. Now sleep and dream of your Christian, the Erikson or whichever of your suitors you dream about.”
“Thank you, Beth-Ann.”
“Never thank me for being your sister.”
She turns down the lantern and leaves me in the dim cabin alone.
