Retribution (57 page)

“A relationship like that is as foreign to me as the moon.”

“Ours is better.”

Dropping her gaze, she fidgeted with her skirt. “You have enough evidence to compare?”

“I don't have a backup woman, if that's what you mean.”

“It is.”

“But I’m no stranger to casual sex.”

“I know.”

He halted on her porch and swept her off her feet. “Does my past make you jealous, angel?”

“Not really. I just wish I’d found you years ago; that I was part of your past as well as your present.”

“You were. You’ve been making women jealous for years. You wiggled into my head and heart long before I had the good sense to appreciate a woman’s body, and you’ve been there since. You’re more a part of my past than any other woman I’ve been with, and you’re the only woman in my future.”

“Well when you put it that way.”

He laughed as he leaned in, brushing a soft kiss across her lips. “Now, about Travis and Phyllis.”

“Yes!” She smacked her head. “Travis and Phyllis.”

Moving his lips to her forehead, he carried her into the house and through the living room. “Let's figure it out in the morning. I promise I'll remember, and if we can't come up with something, our family will help us out.”

“Okay, but please don't let me forget. I don't know what's wrong with me, but I can't seem to keep them in my head, which is horrible. They're my friends. I'm a crappy friend, Quin.”

“I wholeheartedly disagree, Layla.”

She couldn’t help but smile as she nuzzled his neck and kissed his throat. “Of course you do.”
 

He let her play until he reached the bedroom door. Then he pulled her face from his neck and found her gaze. “Are you tired?”

She laughed as she skipped her fingers from his shoulder to his chest, sliding them along the contours of his pecs like they were on a roller coaster. “If I had my way, I’d never sleep again. So no, I’m not tired.”

“Good, close your eyes.”

“A surprise?” she asked, widening her eyes instead of closing them.

He laughed as he kissed her grin. “Yes.”

“I love your surprises.”

“That’s why I do it,” he returned, waiting for her to close her eyes. “Making you happy is my favorite thing to do.” He carried her into the bedroom. Then he lowered her feet to the floor and turned her around. After sweeping her hair aside, he kissed the back of her neck, and when her heart stuttered, so did his.

“You make me so happy, Quin.”

“I know, angel. I see it in your aura.” He moved away from her neck and wrapped one arm around her chest, pulling her back against him. “You can open your eyes now.”

She did, and her lungs emptied as she flipped her gaze around their bedroom… only, it wasn't their bedroom. It was a perfect replica of Karena's golden suite. Tears stung her eyes as she stared at the bed they bonded in. Then the moisture broke free as she turned and buried her face in his chest. “It's just like I remember. Thank you.”

Wrapping her in a warm hug, he didn’t discourage her tears or ask her to explain. “I told you I’d take you back, but I may not get the chance, so I brought the room to us. I hope that's okay.”

“It's perfect,” she assured, wiping moisture from her face. Then she smiled up at him. “When do you find time to do these things? You're always with me.”

“I have to give most of the credit to magic and family, but while you're thinking about everyone else, worrying about all the people you love, I'm selfishly thinking about myself, wondering what I can do to make your aura light up, because that's what I love, and I'm greedy.”

“Yeah right,” she smirked, scanning the best hotel room
ever
. “You're so selfish and greedy. You really need to start thinking about others.”

“No,” he refused. “Just you and me. That's it.”

She hovered to his lips and slid her fingers into his hair. “I'm okay with that.”

Hugging her close, he raised her skirt to her thighs and wrapped her legs around his waist. “I’m glad you like your suite, but we’re leaving it for a while.”

“We’re coming back, right?”

“Yes.”

“Okay. As long as I have you, I'll go anywhere. So where are we going? Somalia?”

He laughed as he carried her out of the bedroom and to the kitchen. “No, love. I won't be taking you to Somalia tonight, but if you really want to visit the area, I'll do my best to get you there when we’re less pressed for time.”

“I can think of a lot of places I'd rather see.”

“Like where?” he asked, opening the fridge.

She laid her head on his shoulder, paying no attention to what he was doing behind her. “I've always thought Australia would be fun. I've seen pictures of the Great Barrier Reef, and it looks amazing. I’d also like to see Ireland… well, Europe in general. But there are a lot of places closer to home I’d like to see.”

“Tell me about them,” he insisted, turning toward the counter.

“Let’s see…” she mumbled. “There's California, but you already know that one.”

“Yep. Where else?”

“There are a lot of places I’d like to see, Quin. Do you really want me to list them all?”

“Sure. Just the ones you can remember. Don't think about it that hard.”

“Okay. These aren't in any certain order. New England, Virginia, Yellowstone, Yosemite, the Grand Canyon, Radium Hot Springs in British Columbia, Hawaii, the Great Lakes, and I’d like to take a cruise through the Caribbean. That's the more localized list.”

“That's quite a list.”

“There's a lot I haven't seen.”

“It's a big world.”

“Have you been to any of those places?”

“Yes.”

“Which ones?”

“All of them except the cruise.”

“Are you serious?”

“Yes. Flying without a plane makes travel inexpensive and easy. We do it often.” He turned and walked to the back door. Then he breathed heat into her body before stepping onto the deck. “Is it really that big of a shock?” he asked, laughing at her stunned expression.

“Yes.”

“Why? Surely you've considered the benefits of being able to fly anywhere in the world at a moment’s notice.”

“No. Not once has it occurred to me how easy vacations would be now. I guess I've been too busy.”

He walked onto the patio's small dock then stopped at the edge, keeping her in a tight hug with her back to the pond. “You're right. You haven't gotten your fair share of downtime lately. But you're thinking about it now, so tell me, now that you can walk out of the house and fly anywhere, anytime, where’s the first place you’d go if you weren't so busy?”

“Hmm... That's a tough question. May I think on it a while?”

“Sure,” he agreed, looking to the sky.

She looked, too, finding clouds and a blanketed moon. “No stars,” she noted.

“I got one,” he corrected, giving her a squeeze. “So Radium Hot Springs in British Columbia, huh?”

“Yeah.”

“Why?”

“My mom always wanted to go, so we planned a trip the summer before my senior year, but she got the flu the day before we were supposed to leave, and we never rescheduled. I'd done the research, looked at dozens of pictures, and gotten excited about it; now it's on my list. Why? Is it not a good place to visit?”

“It's a great place to visit. You’d love it. I was just curious why you picked that particular place. Most Americans don't even know where or what Radium Hot Springs is, so it's surprising someone from Oklahoma has it on their list.”

“Oh. Yeah, I'd never heard of the place, but mom grew up in Washington, and she'd gone to school with kids who vacationed there. She wanted to see it since she was five. I was really upset when she didn't get her chance.”

“I have no doubt.” He glanced behind her then found her eyes. “I'm sorry you didn't get there with your mom, and I'm sorry I can't promise to get you there soon. However, I've been several times and remember it clearly, so I brought a sample to you.”

Her eyebrows furrowed as she shifted in his arms and looked behind her. Then she gasped in a lungful of sulfuric steam rising from her very own hot spring.

He'd turned her pond into a mineral pool!
 

She twisted, trying to see it better. “When did you do this?”

“Just now,” he answered, turning so she could stop contorting her body.
 

She stretched out and stared into the foggy, teal water, its depths illuminated by soft, silver light that reflected in the steam like glitter. Gray boulders had replaced the shiny slabs of granite surrounding the pool, and flowing ferns had cropped up along the water’s edge.

Once she managed to close her mouth, she found Quin's eyes. “You did all that since we've been standing here?”

“Yes,” he laughed. “Why is that so shocking?”

“I didn't even know you were working magic.”
 

“Well I was, and it was easy. You could have done it in half the time. Do you like it?”

“I love it. It looks like the undeveloped springs outside the resorts... The fish,” she gasped, widening her eyes on the water. “Where are the fish?”
 

“Don't worry, love. I didn't cook them. They're in a temporary pond around the corner.”

“Oh,” she sighed. “Good, because cooking them would have been sad and ruined the whole thing.”

He urged her gaze away from his creation. “I promise I didn't kill your fish.”

“Are you sure?” she teased. “Because you're horrible with details. I mean, it wouldn't hurt you to be more thorough once in a while.”

“I’ll work on that,” he laughed, leaning in to kiss her playful grin. Then he floated from the dock and hovered over the water.

The steam rippled up their bodies, leaving proof of its journey, and soon beaded moisture rolled down shiny skin and weighty material. Vanishing the cumbersome clothes, Quin descended into the water. Then he sat on a submerged bench that reclined toward the side of the pond.

Keeping her legs at his hips, he swept her damp curls from her shoulders. “Are you comfortable?”

“Are you kidding? This is fantastic.” The mineral water was already working its magic, melting her muscles and softening her skin. She wedged her arms between them then nuzzled his throat. “I could sit like this for hours and not get bored. Thank you for bringing me a piece of Radium Hot Springs. It's perfect.”

He brushed his nose across the top of her head and slowly ran his hands down her back, like he was making sure he had all its curves memorized. “If we get the chance, I'll take you to the real Radium Hot Springs. It's a lot better than this.”

“But this is perfect.”

“I agree, but not because of our surroundings.”

She pulled away and found his eyes. “So what makes the real hot springs so much better? This looks just like the pictures I saw on the internet.”

“Pictures don't do their subjects justice,” he noted, sweeping a hand across the top of the water.

Layla looked over as a floating table appeared – a round piece of cedar softly lit by seven votive candles, which circled a small cluster of white calla lilies. After casting a spell to keep the sulfuric vapors away, Quin summoned two glasses of wine, a bowl of fruit, two lobster tails, and a two bowls of chocolate soufflé.

Layla’s jaw hung open as she stared at it. Then she closed her mouth and smiled at him. “I didn't even realize I was hungry, but now I'm starving.”

“You should be. We skipped a meal today.”

“I didn’t notice.” She grabbed two grapes. Then she fed him one while eating the other. “You were telling me what makes the real thing better than this, but then you damaged your case by serving me lobster and chocolate, so you better come up with something good.”

He grinned as he handed her a glass of wine. “I could summon you dinner there, too.”
 

“You can do anything you want, Quin. You’ve proven that again and again.”

He laughed while watching her pick through the food. Then he let her feed him as he described the natural phenomenon that inspired his creation. “I'll just tell you about my favorite springs to visit. It's not actually in Radium Hot Springs. It's north of there, and it's not easy to get to, so I've never had to share it with strangers. There are seven pools at least as big as this one, and they stair-step down a rocky incline wedged between a cliff and a steep river bank. The highest and biggest pool is also the hottest – it has a scalding waterfall that feeds all seven tiers – and the temperature gets a little cooler as you move downstream to the different levels. The lowest pool feels like a warm bath, and it has just two feet of rock between it and the freezing cold river. It's fun to start at the top and slowly work your way down through every pool. Then you can shock your body and get your adrenaline pumping by jumping in the river. After that, you're more than ready to work your way back up to the top.”

Layla had forgotten about the bite she'd taken, and barely chewed out of habit. “That sounds amazing. How long does it take to fly there?”