A Place Beyond (17 page)

“Look at me,” he whispered against my mouth.

My eyelids fluttered open and he held my gaze as he lifted the tank top over my head, tossing it aside.

We were both breathing hard as he dipped his fingers under the waistband of my pants, peeling them slowly down my hips. He supported my weight with one hand as he pushed the fabric over my knees and repeated the process on the other side.

Once the pants hit the floor, he pushed me onto the bed so I lay flat on my back. His eyes were on my stomach and burned a trail from my navel up my ribcage past the swell of my heaving chest. With a moment of hesitation, he placed his hand on my side, looking up to meet my eyes.

He leaned in, not breaking eye contact. Feeling the warmth of his breath on my skin, I watched his brow furrow. “Is this okay?”

I nodded and he tentatively pressed his lips to the base of my sternum. With his hands still at my waist, he moved onto his knees, trailing his mouth up over the cups of my plain white bra. I breathed in a shaky breath and his eyes darted to mine.

I swallowed and put my hands in his hair again to keep him from pulling away. I felt wild and eager, like nothing I’d experienced before.

He continued to explore my shoulders and neck with his hands and lips until I didn’t know how much more I could take before I combusted.

When he brought his face up, his smile was secretive before his lips crashed into mine. One hand came down my side, over my hip to my knee pushing it to the side.

I trembled as he brushed his fingers up my inner thigh to a place no one had touched before. On contact, my entire body tightened and a sound came from my mouth that should have embarrassed me, but it just made me pull him closer. It was too much. I was rising, up and up until the coil within me sprung free and a burst of color exploded behind my eyelids.

Ethan pulled back, looking me straight in the eyes with the smug expression of someone who has done his job well.

I laughed, feeling boneless, almost giddy. He lowered himself down beside me and pulled my head into his chest, kissing the top of my head.

“Mission accomplished,” I said softly.

“Hmm?”

“Consider me thoroughly distracted.”

I woke up with Ethan snuggled against my back. His hand was flat against my hip and my head was nestled in the crook of his shoulder.

I’m spooning with Ethan Magliaro
, I thought.

I wriggled out of his embrace and turned over so I could look at him. His dark lashes shadowed his cheeks, he was incredibly peaceful. Barely making contact, I smoothed my finger from his temple to his chin.

Never would I have believed we’d be together like this. Years of wanting him could’ve never prepared me for how it would feel to actually wake up with his breath warm in my hair.

Without opening his eyes, his lips stretched into a smile. “What are you doing?”

“Watching you sleep, obviously,” I teased.

He opened one eye. “That’s not creepy,” he said, a smile in his voice.

I wiggled my eyebrows. “I couldn’t help myself. You looked so innocent.”

He chuckled. “Sounds about right.”

I got up and picked up my discarded clothing from the floor. I caught him frowning at me.

“What?” I said.

“Do you have to put those back on?” he asked, giving me puppy dog eyes.

I let out a dry laugh. “I don’t think my father would appreciate me coming to breakfast in my undies.”

“No? Well, I would.”

“Come on, lazy bones. Let’s go find out how Samantha is.”

The table in the dining hall was occupied by some Danaan I knew and a few I didn’t. Saoirse and Deaghlan held their spots at either end of the table. Aodhan and Niamh sat side by side next to Saoirse.

Ethan and I took the two empty seats next to Aodhan. Liam wasn’t at the table, I noticed.

Niamh smiled at us, but her smile was a little off.

“Good morning,” she said.

Saoirse sat calmly observing. “Did you sleep well?”

“Yes,” I said. “We slept fine. How is Samantha this morning?”

Saoirse’s expression didn’t falter. Her smile could have belonged to the Mona Lisa for all she gave away. “She is recovering remarkably well. She woke up this morning angry as a hornet.”

I laughed. “Is Liam with her?”

“Yes,” Niamh said. “He’s been awake since before dawn.”

“He’s anxious to go home, I bet.”

“Ah, there he is,” Saoirse said, looking at the entry as Liam walked in. “Just in time.”

I turned and Liam walked over, behind my chair and raised a curious brow. “What am I in time for?”

Deaghlan stood. “We have an announcement. It would be nice not to have to repeat it too many times.”

My eyes widened. This was the Deaghlan I knew. Irritating and superior.

Saoirse stood, drawing the attention of the entire table. She smiled, gazing at each of us.

“The time has come,” she began. “Deaghlan and I must make the journey over the Aimsirean Sea to be joined with the kings and queens who ruled before us.”

I glanced at Niamh, but her expression was carefully blank. No one made a sound as we waited for her to continue.

“There are several unprecedented occurrences with our passing. For one, Niamh will be the first unbonded queen in the history of our people. This may come as a shock to some, but the worlds are changing. Even here, we must grow and adapt.”

The Danaan I didn’t know exchanged uncertain glances, but nobody spoke out.

“Also, we have decided to take our youngest daughter, Aoife to Magh Mell with us. She will not survive long here or in the human realm, but it is our hope she may be healed by the ancient magic of Danu.”

I swallowed. “She won’t be able to come back though, right?”

Deaghlan smirked. “No, Allison. You and your prince will have your happily ever after, not to worry.”

Anger whipped through me and I balled my hands into fists. Just as I opened my mouth to let him know what I thought, both Liam and Ethan put their hands on my shoulders.

“Let it go, Al,” Ethan whispered.

I swallowed, tears of frustration building behind my eyes. Of course Deaghlan wouldn’t care that so many people had been hurt and even died. God knew I wouldn’t be able to change his mind.

I turned to Liam. “Can we go see Samantha?”

He nodded, his jaw working. “She was asking for you,” he said to me, but his eyes were still on Deaghlan.

Liam told us how to get to her room. When Ethan and I left, I was relieved to be away from that discussion. Once I knew Samantha was okay, the only thing I wanted was to go home. Things would never be the same, but I looked forward to many things to come.

We went past the entrance to the bathing pools and through a maze of halls and staircases to the room where Samantha was staying. It was down a quiet, dimly lit corridor beside the room Ethan and Liam had been in when they’d needed healing.

Ciarán stood in the entryway as we approached, his eyes stormy. His face relaxed when he saw it was just Ethan and me and he stood to the side.

Samantha lay on the bed, sideways. She didn’t look like much of a patient with her head hanging off the side of the bed, singing as her feet kicked up and down in the air.

“What the heck are you doing?” I asked, laughing.

She looked at me, upside down. She stopped singing and flipped onto her stomach, spreading her arms out to her sides.

“Oh, thank god you’re here. I am so bored.”

I took a step toward her, shaking my head at her quirkiness. “I guess you’re feeling a little better.”

“I feel fine, never better. When can we leave?”

“Gods, Sam. We can leave whenever we want,” Ciarán said, leaning his head back against the wall and gazing at the ceiling.

I glanced at Ethan, shrugging. They were bickering like nothing had even happened to them.

“Will you be going back to Thunder Bay right away?” I asked.

Ciarán’s features hardened. “We haven’t decided yet. The only thing keeping me there was Sam. And my brother.”

His brother Finn. Who was now dead. I didn’t think he and Finn had much of a relationship, other than being in a band together. Finn had been involved in dozens of human murders, which Ciarán wanted no part of.

“The queen said she would give me Aoife’s house outside the city, if I wanted it. But that place gives me the creeps, I don’t see myself living there,” Samantha said, sitting up.

“No, you won’t be living there. Too many horrible things have been done there.”

Samantha glanced at Ciarán sidelong. “Oh, okay Dad.”

Annoyance flared in his hazel eyes, but he didn’t respond.

“You’re both welcome to stay with me whenever you’d like,” Liam said from the doorway.

Samantha’s eyes lit up when she saw Liam. Her adoptive parents were never around for her while she grew up and I had a feeling she was starving for a family bond. She didn’t really look much like Liam, she was a petite version of Aoife. But where Aoife’s eyes were full of hostility, Sam’s face was open and wistful.

“Are you ready to go?” I asked my father.

He coughed, just a slight clearing of his throat. “It’s my impression that Saoirse would like us to stay for Niamh’s accession this evening.”

“It’s happening
today
?” I asked, incredulous.

“Deaghlan wants to take Aoife straight away. She is barely hanging on.”

Samantha looked down at her hands. “What if she doesn’t make it?”

Liam sighed. “I really don’t know. And you shouldn’t worry yourself over that. The woman nearly killed you.”

Ciarán nodded, a fierce expression on his chiseled face. “Exactly.”

“I know, I know,” Samantha said. “But she did save my life in the end. That sort of cancels it out, doesn’t it?”

I gaped. “It most certainly does not.”

She nodded, looking down again. “Yeah, I guess you’re right.”

“So we just stay a few more hours, then we’re done with this place for good?” I said.

Liam glanced at me, a brightness in his eyes I hadn’t noticed before. “We may not be done with Tír na n’Óg forever, but hopefully for a long, long time.”

I smiled. “I can handle that.”

“Has your geis been broken yet, Liam?” Samantha asked.

He tipped his head down, grinning. “It has. I still can’t believe it, but it has.”

“I can’t even imagine what it’s going to be like for us when we get home,” I said, a giddy feeling spreading through my chest.

“Is your grandmother going to freak when your mom just starts acting normal again?” Samantha said. Her candor was one of the things I liked most about her. She didn’t hold anything back.

“You know, I’m not really sure how it’ll be,” I said, shrugging.

“We’ll probably have to ease her into it, don’t you think?” I asked Liam.

“Certainly,” he said, a slow smile lighting up his face. “I haven’t even allowed myself to think that far ahead.”

Part of me wondered how it would play out, but, like Liam, I was trying to take it one step at a time.