Powerful Magic (16 page)

          
"Kenric?"
 
Tugging on his arm, Megan swallowed.
 
"What does she mean?
 
Are you some kind of--"

          
"Enough."
 
Though he did not raise his voice, he might have shouted, so great was the command in the simple word.
 
"Sister, did you send this woman?
 
Is she some minor princess from one of the other kingdoms of Faerie?"
 
Drawing Megan closer, he put his big hand under her chin and lifted her face, his intent gaze fastened on her mouth.

          
Even to Megan, Rhiannon's laugh sounded a trifle forced. Still, it made Megan think of wind chimes tinkling in a light breeze.
 
"She is not from Faerie."
 

          
"Did you send her to my cave?"

          
Color stained the other woman's porcelain cheeks, though she held her head high.
 
"Why would I do that?"

          
Bending his head, Kenric touched Megan's lips lightly before replying.
 
Though his mouth was warm, his eyes were like ice.
 
"To tempt me."
 

          
Though she knew Kenric mocked his sister, at the touch of his mouth on hers, Megan couldn't keep her breath from catching in her throat.
 
Her heart tripped in her chest.
 
Again, color flooded her face, making her curse her pale complexion.
 

          
"She is not from my kingdom."
 
Face alight with laughter, Rhiannon shook her head.
 
Her long hair floated around her in a pale, golden cloud.
 
"As you are of my blood, you know I would prefer you take a woman of Faerie to wife."

          
Megan couldn't help it, she gasped.
 
In that simple statement, Rhiannon had answered two of her questions.
 
If Rhiannon
was
a Queen and, perhaps more importantly, a faerie to boot, then that meant Kenric was, what - a faerie also?
 
Or a half faerie?
 
She didn't know much about faeries, other than the fact they weren't supposed to exist, but if they did she imagined they would have liberal use of magic.
 

          
Regarding the woman with new interest, Megan wanted to jump up and down with excitement.
 
Magic might be exactly what she needed.
 
Perhaps Rhiannon could help her get home.
 

          
Like she sensed her enthusiasm, Rhiannon patted Megan's arm. "Not now, Megan Potter of Dallas Texas.
 
You and I will talk later."
 

          
Kenric's lip curled.
 
"So you two
do
know each other."
 

          
In the patient, loving manner of sisters everywhere,

Rhiannon gave him an indulgent smile.
 
"Nay brother, not yet.
 
But I believe Megan Potter and I will know each other very well before the day is done."

          
Frowning at his sister's ambiguous statement, Kenric shook his head like he needed to clear it.
 
"Enough of this foolishness.
 
I want to return to the real world, sister. Now."

CHAPTER SIX

          
Rhiannon's violet eyes twinkled.
 
"You cannot wish to be stuck in that dreadful blizzard again."

          
"No."
 
Megan spoke up quickly, beating Kenric to the punch.
 
There was no way she was going to pass up this opportunity to find out if this faerie woman, make that a faerie
queen
, could use her magic and help her return home.
 
Both of them stared at her with identical expressions of surprise.
 

          
"I don't want to freeze to death."
 
She told Kenric, crossing her arms in front of her chest.
 
"I want to stay here where it's warm."

          
"You don't know what you say."
 
He growled.
 
"This is not a place of reality."

          
"Just for a night."
 
Emboldened by all that had happened, Megan moved closer and laid a hand on Kenric's massive arm.
 
His skin felt warm, flushed.
 
"One night of warmth, so that we can sleep.
 
That way we'll be refreshed if we start back out tomorrow."

          
"Time does not pass normally here."
 
His gaze sharpened as he stared down into her upturned face.
 
Something flickered in his expression - anger?
 
Desire?
 
Then it was gone.
 
"One night can be a month, when you step back out of the glade."

          
Megan found this hard to believe.
 
But then, everything that had happened to her since she'd tried to meet Roger to break off her engagement was hard to believe.
 
What was one more oddity?

          
Still, she had no choice.
 
This might be her sole

opportunity to get back home.
 
"I'm willing to risk it."
 

          
He sighed, staring down at her with a shuttered expression.

          
She stared back.
 
Even angry the man was beautiful, in a ruggedly fierce, thoroughly masculine way.
 
Looking at him made her mouth water.

 
           
"Please."
 
Leaning in closer to him, she unconsciously licked her lips, remembering his kiss.
 
"One night."

          
He watched her the way a hawk watched an unsuspecting mouse. This time she knew it was desire that darkened his arrogant gaze.
 
To test her theory, she moistened her lips again.
        

          
He caught his breath.

          
She held hers.
 
In a second, he would kiss her.
 

          
Behind them, Rhiannon laughed, the light tinkling sound making them both jump.
 
Megan realized she'd managed to forget all about Kenric's sister.

          
"Come now."
 
Rhiannon chided, her beautiful face alight with merriment.
 
"There will be time for that later.
 
For now, come with me."

          
Without waiting for an answer, Rhiannon spun on her heel.
 
Lightly stroking Lancelot's thick neck as she passed, she led the way, the huge war horse following her, as docile as a newborn colt.
 

          
Megan slipped her hand into Kenric's large one, loving the way his enveloped hers.
 
He started, but did not pull his fingers away.

          
"Come on, let's go."
 
She urged.

          
Rhiannon and Lancelot disappeared around a curve in the path.

          
"My horse."
 
Kenric muttered under his breath.
 
With a muffled oath he allowed Megan to lead him after his sister.

#

          
Kenric tamped down his fury.
 
How had he let it come to this?
 
The one thing he sought to avoid all his waking hours - contact with the world of faerie - had happened.
 
And right in the middle of one of his simpler quests - finding the fair maiden Megan's betrothed.
 
A more perfect endeavor he couldn't have found, for it involved no bloodshed, no fighting, no greed or avarice or any of the other human passions that he, despite his wish to be only human,
 
so abhorred.
 
This detachment was part of his elfin heritage, he supposed.
 
Part of him, though he tried mightily to forget it, to pretend he was all human, all man.
 

          
Like the magic that simmered always, just underneath his skin.
 
Tempting him with its power, letting him know that if he were to use it, but once, he might have anything and everything his heart desired.
 

          
For this reason alone, Kenric had vowed he would never use it.
 
It was too strong, too dangerous, to enticing a lure.
 
He knew not what he might become were he to let it loose in the world of men.

          
But he knew one thing - he would no longer be a mere man.

          
God's teeth.
 
He ran a shaking hand through his hair - his left hand, since his right was currently wrapped around Megan's small, soft-skinned one.
 
He had not returned to Rune since his tenth summer, by choice.
 

          
How had he let things get to this point?

          
Megan tugged on him, urging him to hurry.
 
With a sigh, he quickened his steps, allowing the tiny maid to drag him along after her like her personal pet.
 
Now he knew how Lancelot - no,
not
Lancelot - his unnamed war horse must feel.
 

          
He clenched his jaw.
 
He'd rather face a blizzard, nay, a thousand blizzards than face what he knew was to come.
 
It had been a long time since he'd seen his sister's family, so long that he didn't even think of them as part of his family.
 
His
family, his beloved human father and stepmother, human half-brother's and sisters, lay dead and buried in the hard, frozen ground.
 
Gone.
 
And the ache inside of him would never go away until he secured his land and produced some heirs - human heirs - to continue the line and lay his father's ghost to rest.
 

          
No matter what Rhiannon wanted from him, he knew this duty came first, above all others.
 
For this he had fought in wars whose causes he had forgotten.
 
He had fought faceless enemies for pay, killed and bloodied until he knew he could bear no more.
 
All for the land.
 
Still, he had not amassed quite enough gold to purchase the kind of land he wanted.
 

          
So fate had sent him Megan Potter of Dallas Texas, and with her, a much easier task.
 
With it, a reward that was what he had always sought.
 
So close, for once.
 
So close he might reach out and touch it.

          
And into this, his time of certain peace, of near-achievement of his goal, came his mischievous, fey sister.
 
Hellbent, he supposed, on stirring up some sort of trouble.
 

          
He would not, he decided, let her.
 
Squaring his

shoulders, he matched his stride to Megan's smaller one, and followed the winding path into the heart of his sister's kingdom.
 
Into Rune, in the enchanted land of Faerie.

          
"Kenric!"
 
Megan gasped, stopping so quickly he nearly mowed her over.
 
Her small fingers dug into his.