By the Enchantment of Moonlight Read online

  “We’ll take him to my boat,” Devin announced. “It’s docked in the marina, but we can take it out into the lake. Will that be secluded enough? Can you do your sparkly voodoo and keep him safe there?”

  “Doesn’t he need a doctor, though?” Pimma asked.

  “My wife can take care of him,” he replied.

  “Your wife is a doctor?” Swift questioned.

  Devin pulled open the driver’s door on his car. He laughed.

  “No. Not a doctor. She’s a mermaid. So, you need to ride in the car with me, or can you put some kind of shield on him right here?”

  * * *

  “We can put a temporary shield on your vehicle,” Pimma offered, happy they wouldn’t have to get in the vehicle with the men. She’d had more than enough human interaction today. Enough for a lifetime.

  “Your wife is a mermaid?” Swift asked Devin.

  “She is. It’s a long story.”

  “If she is truly a mermaid,” Pimma said, “she will be telepathic. She can communicate with your unconscious friend and be able to heal him.”

  “She will,” Devin assured them. “But how long will we be safe? How long will this shield of yours last?”

  “Only until midnight of the day it is created,” Swift answered. “We’ll come to you before then and provide additional security. First we need to meet someone and hopefully get more information.”

  “More dust, too,” Pimma noted.

  “How will you find me if we’re shielded from magic?” Devin asked.

  That was a very good question. They would have to create some sort of signal, some way for them to locate him out there on that huge, great lake. But Swift had a better idea. He held something out and offered it to Devin.

  “Take this. We will find you as long as you have it.”

  Pimma almost couldn’t believe what she was seeing. “A Watcher Stone? You have a Watcher Stone? This whole time, the council has been watching us?”

  He shook his head vehemently and pulled out the counterpart to the round, black stone in his hand. “By the Skies, no. I have the other stone, not the council.”

  That meant no one had been watching them. Good. More than good. But how did Swift get his hands on both halves of a Watcher Stone? What good would that be? Surely he wasn’t watching himself.

  He must have seen the question in her eyes. “I intended to give one to you, to hide it in your pouch.”

  “You were going to spy on me?” she asked him.

  “Obviously, I changed my mind. See? Both stones. We can attach the magic for the temporary shield to Devin’s stone so that he’s covered no matter where he goes.”

  She nodded. “All right. That’s a good idea. We should be able to make the shield just big enough to surround him and cover his car or boat.”

  Devin seemed confused, but he took the stone Swift offered to him. It was just a tiny pebble in his huge, human hand. “So I just carry this with me and I’m in some kind of magical bubble?”

  “Something like that,” Pimma said.

  “And you can use that other stone to keep tabs on me?”

  “Yes. It responds to emotion. We will know if you need our assistance, if things are going well, or if you are being deceptive,” Pimma assured him. “But hopefully we will meet Amarie soon, so we won’t need to monitor you long. She claims to have friends who might be able to help keep you safe.”

  “I sure can use a few friends right now,” Devin said, shaking his head and looking sadly at Blake sprawled in his backseat, limp and listless, but breathing. “It seems there are fewer and fewer of them I can trust.”

  Pimma certainly knew that feeling. “All right. Hold out that stone.”

  He did. She glanced at Swift and he nodded. She pulled a pinch of dust out of her pouch and concentrated on her intent. Wishes worked best, but she wasn’t a Wish Fairy, so she’d had to learn to guide her magic through rational intent. She did best with rational things; that’s why she’d been made an advocate. It was a good fit for her and seldom required her to fabricate complex magic like this. Still, she’d had well-rounded training. There was no doubt she could do what needed to be done.

  The dust glittered in the smoky air as she tossed it over Devin’s outstretched hand. It fell into his palm then swirled and circled, spiraling toward the stone until it glowed with a warm, amber aura. She could feel the magic flow through her and knew the shield was set properly. She did peek over at Swift to make sure he agreed.

  He smiled at her. “Good job. The shield is steady and strong.”

  He was impressed with her, she could tell. She read it in his eyes, the admiration as well as the respect. She liked that. A lot.

  “You should go now,” he said to Devin. “Once you are out of our sight, we won’t be able to find you again without the Watcher Stone. That means Miranda won’t, either. Even if she knows about your boat, she won’t be able to find it. Get help for your friend, and good luck.”

  Devin nodded and thanked them, then got into his car and drove off. Swift checked his Watcher Stone. “It seems to be working. We can follow his progress wherever he goes. So far, so good.”

  Pimma finally felt she could relax a little. There was no sign of Miranda, but of course they couldn’t count on her staying away. It wasn’t time to get complacent yet.

  “Let’s keep an eye on Devin until he gets to his boat, then go to the lighthouse and meet Amarie,” Swift said.

  “No argument here. I want to get as far away from this place as possible before Miranda comes back.”

  “All right, then,” Swift said, reaching for her hand and giving it a tight, comforting squeeze. “Let’s go get more deeply involved in this mess.”

  Chapter Seven

  The lighthouse sat far out on a rocky breakwall, pounded by waves from the Great Lake and not very hospitable for humans. The top deck was high above it all, a narrow catwalk made for nothing more than occasional access to the bright bulb that shined inside huge reflectors atop the structure. Humans needed such things to navigate safely on the rough waters. It was no wonder they all wanted magic.

  For now, though, Pimma could put humans and danger far from her mind. She and Swift had watched from a safe distance as Devin got his engineer onto a luxurious boat in the marina, then they found their way to the lighthouse. There had been no sign of Miranda. They were safe and alone here, perched on the catwalk, warmed by the sun and the lake’s breezes.

  Pimma surveyed their surroundings and could finally breathe freely. Fairies were creatures of air, and this felt like heaven. She was happy to lean back and let the wind blow the soot from her hair and the taint of human from her skin. Oddly enough, though, the air felt unfamiliar and strange as it swept over her body and filtered through her lungs.

  She felt different. Something had changed…everything had changed. She had changed.

  She could feel the change in every part of her. It permeated her cells, it gave a brighter glow to her aura, and it filled the atmosphere around her just as tangibly as the smoke from that warehouse had done. Most important, it changed the way her senses reacted to things around her. Especially Swift.

  She was resting several inches away from him, yet she could feel him as if he were touching her. And her fingers practically itched to touch him. This must be desire. She carried it with her now. It was a part of her just as much as her eyes and her skin.

  Swift had tried to tell her that what they’d done—what she’d felt—would change her. He’d said it as if change was a bad thing. She supposed a couple weeks ago she would have agreed, but that was before everything had, well, changed. Her whole world was a different place now and she still wasn’t quite sure how she fit in it. She hoped that somehow he’d fit into it, too.

  Here they were, miles from anything she had known and she had no idea what would happen next. She was filled with emotions, everything from worry to excitement. Mostly desire. Swift had told her the passion they’d felt while trapped in Miranda’s box
had been nothing more than the effects of a strange machine running nearby, but clearly he’d been wrong. There was no strange machine here and yet that same desire burned inside her like a fever.

  Her body and soul craved Swift in a way she had never known before. She scooted closer to him and reached to lay her hand on his thigh. She hoped to the Clouds that he wouldn’t push her away.

  He didn’t. He turned to her and met her gaze with his own. Passion roared between them. Words weren’t necessary so she simply smiled into his green eyes. The heat was undeniable.

  “Amarie will be coming to meet us soon,” he said softly.

  “All the more reason to take advantage of alone time while we have it,” she replied.

  “Pimma—” he began.

  “Are you going to tell me you’re not interested?”

  “No, but I was going to remind you that there are rules and the code, and you work for the council and—”

  “The council? You mean the ones who are conspiring with humans and lying to us all the time? I’m pretty sure I quit working for them today.”

  Her fingers traced the firm contours of his taut muscles, trailing over his legs and up to begin working the fastener at his pants.

  “I can’t allow myself to put you in any greater risk.”

  “Where would you like to put me?” she asked, tipping her chin up and hoping for a kiss.

  “Somewhere safe,” he replied. “I want to keep you safe; from the council, from Miranda, and safe from me, too.”

  “You’d never hurt me, Swift. You rescued me.”

  He shook his head. “Did I? I brought you out here and got you involved in all this.”

  “All this what? Freedom? Truth? Passion? Those are things I’m happy to be involved in.”

  “But they’ll get us exiled from our Realm, Pimma. You know that. I should never have given in to what I feel for you.”

  “And what do you feel for me?”

  “All of the things that I shouldn’t.”

  The desperate tone in his voice just made her laugh. Did he really think he’d done something so terribly wrong? She’d simply have to convince him otherwise.

  She hoped he needed lots of convincing, too.

  “What are you doing?” he asked as she slid her hand into his pants and made contact with the heat of his cock.

  “I’m doing what both of us want to do, Swift,” she said, leaning closer to press her lips against his.

  His arms wrapped around her, and he pulled her tight. His kiss was not demanding, but she could feel that he struggled to maintain his control. He wanted her as badly as she wanted him.

  “Give in to it,” she urged him, her hands exploring him freely now. “We both know passion; we both know what to do. There’s nothing to keep us from having what we want now. By the Skies, I want you, and from the feel of it, you want me, too.”

  He shifted slightly as she finally managed to get his pants open. If he really didn’t want to do this he could have easily stopped her, but instead his kisses urged her on. She clutched his stiffened cock in her hand, stroking the velvet tip. Her breath caught in her chest when he groaned in pleasure. Desire flowed between them like air and she could feel his pleasure in her own body. There was nothing magical about this—it was pure desire and pure physical want.

  Now his hands were working over her body as well. She squirmed with delight when his fingers slipped inside her blouse and he began teasing her nipple. She returned the favor, fisting him tightly and gliding up and down over his hot, solid cock.

  “Careful, or I might just go off in your hand,” he warned her.

  “Oh? Is that a concern? Well, how about this, then?”

  She scooted so she could bend over. By the Skies, it had dawned on her that there were even more ways to explore and experience him than she’d discovered already. His kisses were ambrosia, but she suddenly had a strong desire to see what other parts of him tasted like.

  He still wore too many clothes for her liking, though, so she’d have to remedy that. The task turned out to be easier than expected, considering that he was more than willing to help with it. But it did come with a cost, though.

  “I’ll take off mine if you take off yours,” he said.

  She was already sliding out of her blouse, slipping it off of her shoulders and over her wings. His shirt came off just as easily, but right now it was the pants she was primarily interested in. While her skirt had hardly enough material to require any effort, his pants had to be maneuvered over his taut muscles, long limbs, and that prominent, wonderful organ.

  Dedication made quick work of it. Wind from the lake sprayed over them, practically sizzling on her heated skin. High atop this lighthouse as they were, reveling in sun and desire, the sight of Swift’s hard, naked form before her was nearly all it took to toss her into the throes of a climax.

  She wasn’t about to rush any of this, though. Her eyes took in the sight, her hands ran over his skin and wondered at his perfection, and his green, earthy scent tantalized as she leaned in to kiss his neck, then his chest, then the hard line drawing her toward her goal.

  “I can’t get enough of you,” he murmured, his voice nearly lost as he nuzzled her and grazed her body with his hot, eager hands.

  “We’ll just have to keep at this until we do get enough,” she said.

  His cock jumped when she pressed her lips on it. He tasted spicy and warm. Her body tingled as if a fine mist of Fairy Dust had settled over her. She let desire and instinct lead the way, taking him tentatively between her lips and finding the sensation quite remarkable.

  He shifted, his hips rising up to give her complete access. She curled up next to him and took his hot shaft deeper into her mouth. He cradled her, running his hands over her until he reached her most sensitive spot. Now it was her turn to groan. She drew gentle pressure on his cock as his fingers pressed into her yearning mound.

  Together they adored each other’s body, he stroking her core, tasting her skin with kisses, and she suckling at his straining cock. Desire filled the air around them and they breathed it in. Pimma gave up on maintaining control. Giving pleasure to Swift and feeling her own response to him was all that mattered now. They were safe and free and belonged entirely to passion.

  “You’re so hot for me,” he breathed into her ear. “I need to be inside you.”

  “I thought you were,” she said, rising up to give him a wicked grin.

  “And I absolutely appreciate it,” he said. Her hands were still working him over, so his voice was husky and constrained. “But I want to watch you as you climax, see the glow of your aura and the smile on your face when I make you come.”

  It was an offer she couldn’t refuse. “If that’s what will make you happy…”

  “It will.”

  He hardly waited a heartbeat for her to shift position. His arms were around her, and he had her laid out on the smooth, sun-warmed surface of the nook where they rested. She settled easily as he loomed over her, pressing kisses everywhere and clearly enjoying himself very much. It seemed he was even more interested in exploring her body than she was his, and that was a lot.

  “You’re so soft, so beautiful,” he commented. “I’ll never get enough of just looking at you.”

  “I hope you want to do more than just look at me right now,” she said.

  He gave her a sly smile. “Much, much more.”

  She wrapped her arms and legs around him as he came to her. Her wings were spread out beneath her and his wings folded down to wrap them both. His cock was hot and hard, yet soft and smooth. Her body greeted him like a part of her own. He slid into her with a passionate moan.

  “You’re perfect,” he murmured.

  “And you fill every part of me,” she replied.

  He thrust gently, then pulled slightly away. She clung to him, allowing her body to take over. He pressed himself deeper into her and she groaned.

  Over and over their bodies accommodated each other. He thrust in
to her, his muscles rippling as she dug her fingers into his shoulders, his back, his firm butt. She tightened around him, drawing him in and begging for more.

  He gave all that she needed. She was panting, calling his name as he drove into her again and again. Waves of sensation rolled around her, carrying her higher and higher on this tumult of desire, until it seemed like the world would explode around her. She clutched Swift, holding him as her body rocked under his. The passion was almost too much to take.

  It overcame her at last. He plunged into her core, his huge cock throbbing inside her and igniting every one of her senses. She cried out as her body spasmed around him. The flood seemed to have no end as her climax raged over and over again.

  She was gasping and panting when it finally abated and she could slowly release him. He held her tight as her legs and her arms went limp with exhaustion. She crumpled, feeling as if she’d melted into little more than a pile of very, very contented jelly.

  He lay beside her, cradling her gently. He kissed her head, traced his fingertips over her shoulder, and made her feel as if she truly were the most precious thing in the world.

  “I think this definitively proves that we don’t need any magical, mysterious machinery to make me want you, Swift,” she said, leaning in and trusting herself to him completely.

  He chuckled. “I’d say it’s even better without it.”

  She summoned enough strength to roll in his arms so she could smile up at him. His classical features and brilliant green eyes were the most beautiful thing she could imagine, especially since they were touched by an undeniable expression of love. She rested her head on his arm and traced her finger over the delicious contours of his chest.

  “Passion has been inside of me all along. I just never knew it until I knew you.”

  “Is it really so simple?” he asked, stroking her hair and toying with the tips of her wings. “Are we really so much like humans that this is normal for us?”