Immortal Rapture: Immortal Heart (20 page)

Kyra shook her finger at her dad. “Proper young ladies don’t
growl at a tea party.”

Makyle chuckled. “You are so very right. Proper young ladies have manners while at a tea party.”

Bain sighed, and then looked back to Kyra. “I’m sorry, little one.”

“That’s okay,
Daddy, like Izzy says, we learn something new every day.”

Izzy smiled. “That’s right, now you boys enjoy your tea party. I’ll have some lunch brought out in a little bit.”

Makyle chuckled, his head shaking as he headed off towards his room.

“Should I set you a seat, Isabelle? Will you be joining us?” Kyra asked in her most proper tone.

Izzy curtsied. “I would love to join you.”

“Wonderful, and what about you, Aunty Marie?”

Marie grinned, her gaze falling to a makeup-clad Uriah, who beamed at her. “I, too, would love to join you.”

“Great, I will set a place for you and Makiah.”

Kyra smiled brightly, her purple-flecked eyes shining happily and her curls bouncing as she moved around the table.

Marie smiled as she wiped at Uriah’s face. The golden bronzer that had been expertly applied was refusing to come clean of his skin. “I don’t know what kind of makeup they gave her, but it does not want to come off.”

Uriah groaned. “I believe it was Kat’s makeup. She was feeling a little evil this morning. She seems to take pleasure in waking us early after we drink too much the night before.”

“You make a habit of drinking too much?”

“Not usually. It’s been a weird few days.”

Marie tilted her head. “Weird, huh?”

Uriah smiled. “Weird and amazing.”

“Amazing sounds about right.”
She agreed,

“It does.”

Marie smiled. “Well, as amazing as it has all been, you better go take a shower and scrub your face.”

Uriah wagged his brows at her. “You gonna join me?”

She narrowed her eyes coyly. “I might.”

He arched a brow at her. “You might?”

She laughed, placing her hands on her hips. “Convince me.”

Uriah reached for her and kissed her deeply. “I missed you last night… And if you join me in the shower, I will convince you multiple times.”

She smiled. “Mmmm, that does sound good, and I missed you too.”

She looked from Uriah’s heated gaze to Makiah happily resting in his swing.

Kyra had provided lots of stimulation for him today. She had already decided that she and Makiah would be best friends and when he was older, they would play all the time. She had a way with him already and was able bring out new expressions and noises that no one else could.

“He’ll be fine, Marie. Probably be sleeping within a few minutes
,” Uriah murmured against her neck as he pressed his lips to her sensitive skin.

She nodded. “I know… and still I find it hard to let him out of my sight.”

“I get it, it’s motherly instinct, but he’s safe here.”

She turned to face him, a wistful smile on her face. “I know everyone in this castle will protect him without question,
but I just want to be the one to do it. I already love him as if he were my own.”

Uriah wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her to him. “And it is clear that he has bonded and loves you… just as I do,
little nymph.”

“I love you too… both of you
,” she said before cupping his face and kissing him passionately. “Now, let’s go get that makeup off your stunning face. You make a much better looking man than woman.”

Uriah shook his head. “I feel slightly insulted.”

“Don’t be.” She winked. “I’m not into chicks.”

Uriah lifted her into his arms and headed into the bathroom, flicking two fingers to gently swing the door closed.

“Leave it cracked,” she whispered.

Uriah shook his head and opened the door about an inch before he started undressing her.

Makiah’s binky slipped from his lips and hit the small rug beneath his swing. As he geared up to wail his anger at the loss, the binky lifted from the ground and his chubby little hands guided it back to his lips. Within a few moments he was sound asleep , swaying gently in the jungle-themed swing Holly had conjured for him.

****

Lady Esperanza stalked the halls of the Dark castle. She felt better, her strength returning after taking a break from Darion’s feeding. He needed her, but she couldn’t give him all of her. True mate or not, her interest
was for herself, but a small part of her dark heart cared for the man who had barely left his bed since the battle. She yearned for the power that used to radiate from Darion’s very presence.

With a deep breath, she
calmed her anger at their situation. She had provided the vampires what they needed to make their way into the Light lands and capture what she desired. What she needed to fix her mate. The slick, black magic cloaks would help hide them while shielding them from the sun. One day she would find out how that bastard Evan, and even Holly, managed to walk in the sunlight. For now, it was of no importance. Instead of contemplating what did not affect her, she marveled at her own genius in providing them with a weapon to help subdue those who got in the way. Normally, she would have told them to kill anyone that hindered their path, but she needed them to succeed. She didn’t have time for their deaths.

Soon, very soon
, she would have what she needed. Once Darion was well again, they would rule together and even the Dark would cower.

Pushing open the doors to Darion’s chamber
, she was met with his gaze… he looked better. There was color in his cheeks and life in his glowing eyes.

“Feeling better?”
she asked as she moved to one of the armchairs near the bed.

Darion smiled at her. “Ardea has been a good girl
,” he said, looking down his naked body to the Magma’s head in between his thighs.

Esperanza
cool gaze narrowed. “Has she?”

He smiled and reached his hand out towards her. “She isn’t without skill… but you know that, Essie.”

“Indeed.”

Esperanza stood from the chair and walked to the
bed, taking Darion’s hand. He reached for the back of her neck and pulled her to him. “And still I’m hungry,” he said on a low growl.

“Then she isn’t as good as you believe, if you find you are still hungry as she services you.”

He grinned. “Perhaps I need my true mate to show her how it is done.”

“Perhaps,” she said, pulling back and undressing.

Reaching down, she fisted Ardea’s thick hair and pulled her from Darion’s throbbing cock. “Watch and learn,” she snarled, throwing her to the ground.

Ardea dipped her chin. “Yes,
My Lady,” she murmured, taking the seat Esperanza had just vacated.

Esperanza straddled Darion, his hands falling to her hips as she took him deep inside of her. “I’ll help you,
My Lord.”

She smiled as she rode him. Knowing when the vampires returned he would be healed, thanks to her… She would demand payment for this kindness.

Marie stood before the lake, a smile spread across her face as she glanced to her left, finding the path to the hot springs tucked in the trees. Looking back to the lake, she stepped to the water’s edge. Slipping her shoes from her feet, she dipped her toes into the chilly water.

The snow was gone and the water lapped lightly, having broken free of the ice that held it still over the past months. She sighed and closed her eyes, feeling her body connect with the water. Her magic
reached out to the element before her. It was the first moment she’d found herself alone since the fated moment she’d knocked on Izzy’s door to find Uriah healing in her sister’s home. Her life had new meaning. She’d been thrust into a world of fantasy and there was nowhere else she wanted to be, or with any other group of individuals. It had taken a lot of begging to get Holly to drop her off at the lake when she left to do her sweep of the eastern border.

“Twenty minutes
,” Holly had reiterated as she took flight.

The guys were already out, Uriah was napping with Makiah…
She had strongly considered just sitting there and watching them. It was a heartwarming sight to see Uriah with his son. He had finally found his rhythm as a father. Now he was no longer nervous about doing the wrong thing where Makiah was concerned.

Kat had gone to the Human
World to see someone named Jake and his seer girlfriend. Kat hoped she could help provide some answers. That left Izzy, who was with Kyra. It was her only chance at solitude.

It wasn’t that she wanted solitude, but she wanted to see what her new powers meant without flooding Uriah’s bathroom
, possibly the bedroom, and castle for that matter. Plus something about the lake called to her; it had the night Uriah brought her to its icy edge.

With a deep breath
, Marie clutched the hem of her dress and wrapped it tight around her thighs, and stepped into the water, allowing the cool liquid to lap against her bare legs. The water caressed her skin. She bent down and swirled her fingers through the water before cupping the liquid and, lifting her hand to her face, she blew against the small pool in her palm and watched it turn to ice. She arched her brow and imagined it thawing. Once in liquid form again, she imagined it lifting from her palm and floating around her. She found that her limitation with the element was merely bound by her imagination. More balls of water joined the first and moved rapidly around her before she imagined them shooting out into the lake like deadly bullets.

With a
smile, she thought about her favorite sea creatures. They began to rise from the pool in watery, translucent forms. Dolphins and a whale leapt and returned to the lake in a brilliant dance before her. With a quick glance around her, Marie was secure in the fact that she was alone. She lifted her dress over her head, tossed it to the shore, and then dove into the water. Her hair floated around her as she dove deeper and deeper into the lake.

The water surrounded her. She reached back to her hairline
, near her ear, where a small slit had formed with a thin layer of skin that opened and closed. Her lungs felt relief as her gills allowed her the time to explore the water. Opening her eyes, she blinked a few times. Thin, clear lids closed over her blue eyes as she pushed through the cool, nearly clear water. She watched as schools of fish gravitated towards her. Their coloring reminded her of some of the tropical fish in the Human World. Two otters found her and swam circles around her, making chattering noises that she seemed to somehow understand. Not specific words, but a general meaning. They were playful and excited to have someone swimming with them. The months during the freeze that everyone spoke about had to have been hard on the creatures that connected with the Fae of the Light lands.

Marie also noticed other aquatic life in the depths of the lake, but none were like anything she’d ever seen before. A magical creature the size of a small dog swam up to her and gave what she considered to be his version of a smile. The top half of his body looked a bit like a cocker spaniel with soft fur like a beaver and barely noticeable human features.
His bottom half looked more like that of a sea horse. His long, blue hair flowed around him. He swam next to her for a while before brushing against her then taking off. Marie breached the surface, taking a deep breath to fill her lungs.

Turning back toward the lake’s edge, she saw Holly standing there, with her dress in hand and an arched brow. Marie laughed and swam back to the shore. She stepped from the water, wringing her hair out and smiled sheepishly.

“I kept my bra and panties on.”

“It’s a good
thing; there are Fae who call the lake home.”

Marie nodded. “I gathered as much.” She took her dress from Holly,
and then turned to look back at the lake. “I saw a weird little creature—” Marie’s words were cut off as Holly was flung forward and slammed into Marie’s side, a dart sticking out of her back. “Holly? Holly?” Marie screamed her name as she attempted to hold Holly’s weight.

Marie lifted her hand, reaching up to her own neck as a sharp sting bit against her skin.
Her vision went blurry as she looked down to see only the whites visible in Holly’s eyes and then up to the four figures that appeared next to them, fully shrouded in slick, black-hooded cloaks.

***
*

Uriah woke to a gurgling Makiah as he tugged on Uriah’s hair. He smiled down at the wiggling little buddle next to him.

“Well good afternoon, little man.” Uriah pried Makiah’s fingers from his hair and leaned in to kiss his forehead. He caught the sharp stench of a dirty diaper and sighed. “Come on, let’s get you cleaned up.”

Uriah struggled with Makiah’s diaper.
For some reason, every time he tried to change him, Makiah would kick and laugh. Finding humor, Uriah supposed, in the fact that his father had to change him. Still, even with the stench and the kicking child, Uriah reveled in the fact that he was given the opportunity to have these moments with his son.