Otherworld Challenger (15 page)

Vashti had never known her mother and, although she and Stella were close in age, the knowledge the other woman cared for her in a maternal way caused a storm of new emotions. For a moment she was afraid that, if she tried to speak, she would disgrace herself and start crying. Only when she was sure she had mastered her emotions did she risk talking. “Nothing my father does surprises me anymore. Not after he escaped from me at knifepoint when we were on Spae. He would have used that knife on me if I'd tried to stop him. That was when I knew for sure how ruthless he is.”

“Trying to get Tanzi to marry the devil was a bit of a clue,” Stella pointed out.

“True. Murdering our mother wasn't exactly warm and fluffy.” Vashti sighed. “Yet, if he walked into this room right now, he would light it up in his own unique, larger-than-life way and each of us would be unable to take our eyes away from him. He has that sort of charisma. He does the most outrageous things and yet people only notice his personal charisma. That's why it's so important to find this challenger before my father romps all over this election.”

Stella regarded her in surprise. “I thought you didn't want this. That you would want to maintain the status quo.”

“I want the truth. Even if it hurts.” Vashti knew she sounded weary. “And Moncoya will make sure it hurts.”

Stella glanced across to where the three men were deep in conversation. “What about Aydan? Do you think he is the challenger?”

Aydan looked fragile in comparison to Jethro and Cal with their muscular strength. Vashti shook her head. “I think not. Jethro is unsure.”

“He seems nice.” Stella's expression was way too innocent.

“Aydan? He is.” Vashti choked back a laugh. “Hey, are you matchmaking?”

“Trying to. You need someone nice in your life.”

Vashti's lips twitched in genuine amusement. If only Stella knew.
I don't need nice. Safe won't do for me. I need someone edgy and dangerous.
She looked up in time to catch the tail end of Jethro's paint-stripping gaze on her face.
I need to be in this state of permanent arousal, knowing he wants me, too. Life with Jethro is never comfortable, but it is always exciting.

“I'm tired. Do you mind if I go up to my old room?”

“What am I thinking, keeping you talking like this when you must be exhausted?” Stella rose. “I'll show you all to your rooms. Cal, you can get things organized so the boat is ready for them to depart first thing in the morning.”

“Yes, boss.” Merlin Caledonius, the greatest sorcerer the world had ever known, the man about whom more legends had been written than any other, grinned at his wife and went away to follow her instructions.

“Separate rooms?” Jethro murmured to Vashti as they mounted the stairs in Stella's wake. His tone made the hairs on the back of her neck rise. “I'm not sure I like that idea.”

She turned her head to look up at him and encountered a scorching light in those dark eyes. “We've a long journey ahead of us. You need to rest.”

His smile was devilish. “I'll come to your room later, Princess...and show you how wrong you are.”

* * *

“You are insatiable.”

“With you I am.” Jethro's voice was husky as he pinned Vashti's arms above her head and pushed deep inside her again. Dawn was tracing lighter fingers across the sky outside and they had slept only briefly. “Although I seem to remember you calling me a few other names not so long ago.” He paused, drinking in her flushed face, her half-closed eyes, the soft sounds of her breathing. God, he loved watching her face as he tipped her over the edge. “What were they now? Ah, yes. I remember. Sanctimonious bastard. Second-rate soothsayer. Arrogant, money-grabbing mercenary.” He punctuated each syllable with a powerful thrust of his hips, driving his cock farther into her. Each movement elicited a gasp from Vashti and her whole body jerked up to meet his, her muscles clenching hard around him.

“You forgot one.” Somehow she managed to grind the words out. “Wannabe sorcerer.”

With tormented groan, Jethro released her hands and reached beneath her to grip her buttocks, lifting her so he could open her wider. Vashti wrapped her legs around his waist. His thrusts became frantic in response, pushing them both further and harder. Vashti cried out incoherently as though trying to tell him it was too much but still not enough. Jethro silenced her cries with his lips. He led her, drove her, guided her to ecstasy and claimed her, carrying her until he felt her internal muscles spasm wildly around him before finally relaxing in submission.

Jethro cried out with his own endless release before pulling out of her and dropping heavily onto her, kissing her forehead. When he had recovered his breath, he moved his weight to her side. He raised himself on his elbow, scrutinizing her face. When had watching her become his obsession? It had sneaked up on him so quickly he had barely noticed it. Vashti's eyes were slightly unfocused, her breathing still ragged. After a few minutes she turned on her side to face him.

When she spoke, her voice was shy and strangely un-Vashti-like. “I will miss this.”

“Hmm?” Absently he ran a finger down the curve of her neck.

“One way or another, this will soon be over. I will miss these times when it is just the two of us.”

A frown pulled Jethro's brows together. The words jolted him out of the warmth and security he always felt after sex with her. It hadn't occurred to him the end of his mission would mean the end of this. Of them. The thought pierced something inside him. It felt like a reminder of the Sluagh slowly drawing his soul from his body.
No.
He gazed down into those endless blue eyes with their encircling ring of fire.
You don't know it yet, Princess, but it will never be over for us.

Big words for a man who didn't believe in love.
Who said anything about love?
Two voices went to war inside his head. One seemed to be insisting he should listen to his heart. But when did hearts start talking sense? The other was putting forward a reasoned argument. Vashti wasn't the sort of woman who wanted flowers and promises. She would understand and accept him for what he was. She wouldn't want the whole white-wedding thing Tanzi had. They could be grown-ups.

“Are you okay?” Vashti was regarding him with concern in her eyes. “You look intense.”

“I'm tired. You've worn me out.”

“
I've
worn
you
out?” Her voice rose in protest. “It wasn't me who woke you up three times. And it certainly wasn't me who woke you with my tongue in your...”

Laughing, he drew her into his arms, stopping her protests with a kiss. No, he couldn't do without this—without her—in his life. As for the love thing, he could shut that voice up. He was fairly sure he could.

Chapter 14

T
he early morning was damp and gray with faint rays of sunlight poking through the clouds and tendrils of mist still clinging to the lower levels of the hillside. Vashti shivered and huddled into the thick sweater she wore. The sense of foreboding hadn't left her. If anything, it was growing stronger by the minute.

They stood at the edge of the cliff, looking out over the bay. Cal pointed to a sleek, white sailboat bobbing on the gunmetal waters. “You've sailed her before, right?”

Jethro nodded. “When we took Lorcan to Spae in search of Tanzi.” He grinned. “I know my way around a boat, but I also know that's no ordinary vessel.”

“You're right. That's
Igraine
.” A faint smile touched his lips. “Named after King Arthur's mother. You won't need the sails. I've tinkered with her engines. She'll take you direct to Avalon and get you there in next to no time.”

“Tinkered?” Jethro raised a brow.

Cal grinned and Vashti thought how young and handsome he looked when he smiled. So unlike the white-bearded sorcerer of legend. “I'm good at the old tinkering.”

“Lorcan said Avalon is a magical isle. It only appears to those who are meant to see it.” Vashti thought Jethro appeared more like an old-world adventurer than ever as he spoke. He stood straight and tall, turning his face to the ocean as the breeze ruffled his hair. She could imagine him as a corsair preparing to set sail on his pirate ship or a medieval knight riding out to do battle.
This is what lack of sleep can do to a girl. It makes your imagination run wild.

Cal's face was grave. “From what we've learned, I think you, of all people,
are
meant to see it. The shape of the island looks like this.” He traced an outline in the air with his finger. “Three pointed hills resembling cathedral spires, with the tallest in the center. You won't be able to miss it.”

“No matter how much I may want to?” A corner of Jethro's mouth lifted in a smile. “Don't worry. If I can see it, I won't choose to miss it. I have a few scores to settle with Iago.” He flexed his left arm and grimaced.

Aydan had been standing to one side looking back toward the palace. “Lisbet said she would meet us.” His voice was fretful as he came to join them. “I don't know what could have happened to her.”

“Perhaps something came up and she couldn't get word to you.” Vashti did her best to hide her relief there was no sign of Lisbet. The task ahead was going to be difficult enough as it was. She was fairly sure having Lisbet along wouldn't have made her life any easier. “I'm sure she would be here if she could.”

“Unfortunately we can't wait around for her.” Jethro joined in the conversation and Aydan nodded a glum acceptance.

Cal drew Vashti slightly to one side. “I have a feeling you, more than anyone, are going to need every ounce of your personal strength during this journey.” His unusual light silver eyes probed her face. “Yet it was never meant to be your mission. Are you still sure you want to go ahead with it?”

Vashti couldn't help her gaze going to Jethro's tall, heroic-looking figure. “He needs me.”

Cal raised his brows. “Does he know?”

She laughed. “Have you met him?”

He grinned appreciatively. “Then all I can do is wish you success.” He seemed to sense her wariness of physical contact, probably because he knew of her strange, affection-starved childhood. So, instead of the requisite hug such occasions generally demanded, he took both her hands in his. “He is a lucky man, even if he doesn't know it. Or perhaps I should say, even if he will never accept it.”

The words did something strange to her throat and, unable to answer, she nodded, withdrawing her hands. Stooping to pick up her bags, she raised a hand to Cal in a gesture of farewell before rejoining Jethro and Aydan. As they began to navigate the steps that were hewn into the cliff face, Cal turned and made his way back toward the palace. It seemed too final and Vashti experienced a sudden longing to run to him and beg him to—what? Turn back? Come with them? Shaking her head, she followed her companions down the precarious steps.

When they got to the beach, there was a serviceable dinghy waiting for them on the sand. Jethro tugged off his boots and rolled up his jeans before pulling the dinghy into the water. Vashti and Aydan clambered into the bobbing craft and Jethro joined them, starting the motor and sending the dinghy skimming across the waves toward the boat named after the woman who had given birth to the legendary king of the Britons.

When they reached
Igraine
, Jethro tied the dinghy up and sprang aboard, leaning down to assist Vashti. For an instant he held her close and she was grateful for his strength and warmth.

“Okay?” His dark eyes searched her face.

Before she could answer they were interrupted by a bright voice. “What kept you?”

Aydan, in the act of stepping from the dinghy to the boat was so surprised he almost lost his balance and toppled overboard. “Lisbet?”

“Were you expecting someone else?” She was standing on the deck, the weak sunlight turning her pale hair silver. Her coal-black eyes were alight with secrets.

Jethro frowned. “How did you get here?”

Lisbet's laughter was musical. “I wanted to surprise you. Now, are you all going to stand there like openmouthed statues or are we going to Avalon?”

* * *

No matter how sleek and swift
Igraine
might be, her living quarters were cramped with four people on board and Vashti soon found her nerves frayed by proximity to Lisbet. The other woman seemed to be in determinedly high spirits, a situation that was directly contrary to her usual mood.

There was only one cabin, containing a large double bed, and Jethro insisted the two women should share this. He and Aydan could sleep on the cushioned bench seats that ran on either side of the comfortable saloon. Vashti greeted the suggestion with silent horror. Share a room—and a bed—with Lisbet? Iago's leering propositions were beginning to sound preferable.

She went on deck and came to stand beside Jethro as he expertly skimmed the dainty boat across the open seas. “I suppose you have a dozen luxury yachts moored at various locations throughout the mortal realm?” Her teasing reference to his wealth reminded her of their time together on de Loix Island. It seemed so long ago. She experienced a sudden, fierce longing to be back in that beautiful, lonely setting, just the two of them, shut away from the rest of either world.

He smiled down at her and her heart flipped over with love. “Funnily enough, I don't. But
Igraine
here is such a pleasure to manage, I might have to reconsider. Since her engines are supercharged by Cal's magic, I might be disappointed by any boat I come across in the mortal realm.”

Her eyes scanned the vast expanse of empty ocean. “How long will it take us to reach Avalon?”

“By rights it should be weeks. At this rate, I reckon we'll be there in a couple of days.”

“When Tanzi and Lorcan undertook this journey to get to Valhalla, they had to pass through Prince Tibor's territory.” Vashti raised worried eyes to his face. “That would be dangerous for you.”

Jethro grinned. “Let's not mince our words. That would be certain death for me. Tibor would love to get his hands on me—or rather his teeth into me—on his own land.”

His ability to talk about what Tibor would like to do to him with such cheerfulness did nothing for Vashti's mood. “Can we avoid the Vampire Archipelago?”

“It's done. Until Tanzi and Lorcan made the journey, no one knew what the route looked like. It was all supposition and legend. But Lorcan was able to fill in the blanks on the ancient maps. Cal has plotted a route that takes us wide of any potential conflict areas. We won't encounter another soul, alive or dead, until we reach the Isles of the Aesir where Avalon is situated.” Letting go of the wheel with one hand, he drew her to him, holding her close against his side. How was it her whole “no physical contact thing” didn't apply to Jethro?
Oh, that'll be because I'm madly, hopelessly, in love with him.
Vashti snuggled close, rubbing her cheek against the hard muscles of his chest, taking comfort from his warmth. “Stop being such a worrywart.”

She looked up at him with dawning incredulity. “Because there is nothing to worry about? Is that what you are trying to tell me? We are not heading for the most dangerous island in Otherworld? There is no mad trickster and his evil sorceress grandmother waiting for us? You didn't nearly get your soul ripped from your body by the Sluagh a few days ago? They are not responsible for killing your parents? Iago didn't almost kill you in a fireball while you were at your weakest?”

He laughed, dropping a kiss on the top of her head. “When you put it like that...”

Her eyes narrowed. “Jethro de Loix, you are the most infuriating man I have ever met. To think I once believed it was all about money with you! You just love the danger, don't you? You'd go and stick your head in a lion's mouth if there was one available. I'm surprised you haven't decided to sail into vampire waters and thumb your nose at Tibor just for the fun of it.”

“Vashti, what the hell is this all about?” He was regarding her in astonishment. “Why are you so angry with me all of a sudden?”

“Because I...” She was so wound up, she'd have said it. If Lisbet hadn't appeared on the deck at that precise moment, she'd have blurted out, “Because I love you, you big, brave idiot.” She was glad of Lisbet's appearance, for once. Vashti didn't want to see the bemused light in Jethro's eyes change to one of pity. She didn't want to see how fast his passion for her could fade and become excuses. Jethro didn't do love. She was fairly sure that also meant he didn't want love from her. She'd gotten that message. She could have as much of that amazing body as she wanted. As long as she never asked for anything more. Could she live with that?

As Lisbet determinedly drew Jethro's attention to a barely discernible point on the horizon, Vashti moved away from his side.

She had told Cal the truth when she'd said she was here because Jethro needed her. On one level he recognized and was grateful for that. It was a physical level. She healed him. On another level, they had a sexual connection like nothing he had experienced before. She knew without him having to tell her. He could never have experienced what they shared with anyone else. It wasn't vanity that told her that. It was a fact. Just thinking about it sent a jolt of pure, molten heat searing through her. It was the reason she would never be jealous of Lisbet or any of the other women who looked at him with such blatant longing. Gratitude didn't come into that need. It was raw longing. There was another level. One Vashti understood but Jethro remained unaware of. Would Jethro ever realize his need for Vashti went deeper than that intense physical craving?
Will we live long enough to find out?
This was not the time for chasing answers. The time to deal with questions about the future would be when they knew if there was a future.

Vashti looked up, smoothing away the frown from between her brows. Jethro was still suffering the barrage of Lisbet's discourse. He caught Vashti's gaze and rolled his eyes at her. She smiled sweetly in return. It was strange how Lisbet seemed to have quickly overcome her awe of Jethro. But Lisbet
was
strange.

“Help me.” He mouthed the words silently over Lisbet's head.

In reply, she went down into the saloon, leaving him staring after her in silent frustration. Sometime later, Jethro appeared, filling the small space with his large frame. Hauling her up from the bench seat, he backed Vashti up against the paneled bulkhead.

“What the fuck do you mean by leaving me alone to listen to that drivel for another half an hour?” His voice was low as he ground the words into her ear. “I was so bored, I had to shout for Aydan to come and take the wheel.”

“I thought you liked living dangerously. Lisbet is the conversational equivalent of sticking your head in a lion's mouth.”

“I am going to enjoy making you pay for that, Princess.” His thigh was pressed up hard between her legs, his hand snaking under her sweater, already moving the cup of her bra aside.

“How?” She was panting as his finger and thumb found her nipple and tweaked it hard.

“You'll find out.” His breathing was ragged. “The hard way.” He caught hold of her hand, moving it down so she could feel his erection straining at the cloth of his jeans.

“You decided I should share the cabin with Lisbet, remember?”

Vashti thought she had never heard anyone curse so long or so fluently as Jethro did then. “I owe you.”

She locked her eyes on his, making sure he felt the erotic shudder rippling through her. “When the time is right, I'll remind you of it.”

With a groan that reverberated around the small saloon, Jethro flung away from her, kicking the table on his way up onto the deck. With shaking hands, Vashti fixed her clothing and waited for her breathing to return to something approaching normality before following him.

* * *

Sleeping on
Igraine
's deck for the last two nights had not been conducive to either Vashti's physical well-being or her mood. Lisbet, on the other hand, seemed to grow more cheerful by the minute.

“The cabin is really comfortable,” she told Vashti, pouring herself a cup of coffee. “I can't understand why you don't want to sleep in there.”

“I get seasick.” Vashti stuck to the excuse she'd used on the first day. “It's not as bad if I'm in the open air.”

Lisbet shrugged and went to sit next to Jethro, helping herself to a piece of toast from his plate. Her glaring crush on him had increased as the journey progressed. Vashti didn't like Lisbet. She wouldn't have liked her even if the other woman didn't blatantly throw herself at Jethro. Perhaps he gave off some sort of vibe that he was still available, though he made no secret of the fact he was with Vashti.
With me, but not with me.
That said it all, but it wasn't the point.