Chapter
One
“Get
the
thought
out
of
your
head,
girl.
He’ll
bring
you
naught
but
worry
and
pain.
It’s
nae
worth
a
moment
of
bliss
for
an
eternity
of
bein’
damned.”
Dina’s
voice
rang
in
my
ear.
It
was
coated
with
old
world
accents
and
heady
mix
of
sass.
Just
like
Dina.
“Did
you
hear
me?”
she
asked.
Dina
made
it
difficult
not
to
hear
her.
She
seemed
more
than
capable
of
projecting
her
abnormally
loud
voice
out
so
all
the
world
could
listen
in.
I
often
wondered
why
my
mother
hadn’t
employed
her
to
be
the
announcer
at
the
faerie
games.
She
could
easily
make
herself
heard
over
the
roar
of
thousands
of
immortals
without
the
use
of
magik.
I
grinned.
“You
should
really
petition
for
town
crier.”
She
made
a
hissing
noise
and
I
felt
certain
that
the
residents
of
the
neighboring
village
knew
Dina
was
not
pleased
with
me
at
the
moment.
“Quiet...
he’ll
hear
you,”
I
whispered,
glancing
towards
the
center
of
the
courtyard
to
make
sure
the
object
of
my
desire
wasn’t
looking
in
our
direction.
I
was
safe.
His
attentions
were
on
the
two
men
he
had
arrived
with.
Both
were
visions
to
behold,
but
they
paled
in
comparison
to
the
one
I’d
spent
the
greater
part
of
the
morning
spying
on.
He
was
perfect.
Tall.
Dark.
Handsome.
Unblessed.
Deadly.
I
shivered
as I
licked
my
lips.
Thick
vines
of
ivy
wrapped
through
the
iron
of
the
decorative
gate.
Red
climbing
roses
wrapped
through
almost
any
openings
they
could
find,
making
visibility
difficult.
I
wanted
a
better
view
and
was
entertaining
using
my
magik
to
get
one.
The
only
problem
was,
I’d
already
caused
the
roses
to
attack
the
castle
once
before.
Doing
so
again
would
not
only
lead
to a
rather
lengthy
lecture
about
the
proper
use
of
power,
but
the
added
embarrassment
of
everyone
knowing
I’d
done
it
again.
Though,
in
my
defense,
when
it
originally
happened
it
wasn’t
really
my
fault.
How
was
I to
know
at
age
ten,
I
could
wield
enough
power
to
turn
an
otherwise
docile
plant
into
a
man
eater?
Really,
it’s
not
as
though
that
was
marked
in
the
How
to
Be a
Faerie
Princess
Manual.
Nor
did
one
ever
assume
a
rose
bush
could
be
carnivorous.
Come
to
think
of
it,
there
wasn’t
a
manual
or
such
a
thing
as a
normal
flower
in
my
world.
Perhaps
if
there
was,
I
wouldn’t
be
left
in
awkward
situations.
Straining,
I
tried
to
listen
as
the
strangers
talked
quietly
amongst
themselves,
never
once
noticing
the
weight
of
my
stare.
Unusual
for
warriors
such
as
themselves.
They
were
either
deeply
engrossed
in
conversation
or
felt
me
to
be
no
threat.
Somehow,
I
think
it
was
the
latter
of
the
two.
Not
many
feared
me.
My
petite
size
was
misleading.
I
could
pack
a
wallop
when
need
be.
Rumor
had
it
that
the
attractive
newcomers
arrived
seeking
a
private
audience
with
Moya,
the
Queen
of
the
Blessed
Court,
about
faerie
matters.
Since
they
were
not
of
our
court
but
from
the
Unblessed,
I
was
a
bit
shocked
to
see
they
had
arrived
in
such
small
numbers.
The
war
between
the
Blessed
and
the
Unblessed
Courts
had
ended
a
little
over
a
year
ago.
Since
the
end
of
the
war,
peace
negotiations
had
been
underway.
Peace
was
a
relative
term.
Reports
of
violence
against
each
side
by
the
other
were
still
widespread
among
the
lands.
The
tension
was
thick
in
the
air,
as
it
was
any
time
an
Unblessed
dared
to
enter
the
Blessed
Court.
After
a
hundred
years
of
fighting,
peace
had
come
so
suddenly
that
adapting
to
the
change
was
more
difficult
than
fighting
the
war.
My
dear,
“loving”
mother
had
decided
the
best
way
to
ensure
peace
between
the
courts
was
to
promise
my
hand
in
marriage
to a
member
of
the
royal
Unblessed
Court.
Needless
to
say,
I
was
less
than
pleased
with
her
raison
d'être.
Her
approach
to
politics
was
simple—do
as I
say,
not
as I
do.
When
I
had
rounded
on
my
mother,
Queen
Moya,
with
my
anger
over
her
decision,
she
simply
laughed.
“Oh,
my
dear
Mackenzie,
do
not
fear,”
she
had
said.
“I
have
heard
Prince
Elwyn
is
quite
the
catch.
Many
a
Fae
female
has
tried
to
win
his
heart,
but
none
has
succeeded
until
now.”
I
didn’t
have
the
energy
to
point
out
the
obvious,
which
was
I
had
not
succeeded
in
winning
his
heart
either.
Rather
my
heart
was
bargained
off
to
him
as
honey
to
sweeten
the
deal
between
the
courts.
I’d
been
informed
I
was
to
be
his
wife.
I
was
never
asked.
Even
for
the
faerie
courts,
it
was
archaic.
We’d
been
allowed
to
marry
on
our
own
terms
for
close
to a
hundred
years
now.
It
felt
as
if
I’d
taken
a
step
back
in
time,
to a
place
when
women
had
no
rights,
and
I
didn’t
care
for
it
too
much.
I’d
been
sick
with
dread
over
meeting
my
soon-to-be
husband
for
weeks
now.
After
all,
it
was
common
knowledge
members
of
the
Unblessed
Court
were
fond
of
torture,
bondage,
multiple
sex
partners
and
dark
magik,
all
of
which
I
found
to
be
unsavory.
Well
all,
that
is,
except
for
the
multiple
partners
one.
A
girl’s
got
to
have
her
releases,
you
know.
“Mackenzie,
let’s
go
before
one
of
them
gets
a
notion
to
come
this
way.
Yer
about
to
be a
married
woman.
Someday
soon
you’ll
be
their
Queen
and
they
do
nae
need
to
be
gettin’
ideas
about
you.”
Dina’s
accent
was
heavily
laced
with
old
Gaelic.
Mine
wasn’t
free
of
the
old
language
either,
but
I’d
been
raised
with
tutors
who’d
tried
their
best
to
break
me
of
old
habits.
I
frowned
and
wished,
just
this
once,
she
wasn’t
my
best
friend.
Her
long,
curly
red
hair
was
pulled
back
into
a
braid.
That
was
the
norm
with
her
nowadays--the
uptight
look.
I
feared
she’d
lost
her
ability
to
let
herself
go
and
have
a
good
time.
She’d
been
more
than
willing
to
lose
her
inhibitions
the
night
before
last
when
we’d
run
naked
through
the
stables
trying
to
catch
the
eyes
of
the
stable
hands.
We’d
succeeded
and
the
night
had
ended
with
pleasures
that
were
much
needed
for
the
both
of
us.
Oh,
yes,
Dina
had
no
problems
with
shyness
when
she
and
I
were
together.
My
gaze
wandered
back
over
to
the
dangerous
stranger
who
had
paid
us a
visit.
He
was
spectacularly
stunning
with
his
long,
dark
brown
hair
so
close
to
black
that
I
wasn’t
sure
what
to
call
it.
It
was
sleek,
straight
and
hung
to
his
mid-back.
I
wondered
what
it
would
be
like
to
have
him
above
me
with
that
glorious
crown
of
silk
flowing
all
around
me.
I
knew
the
touch
of a
man
well.
Being
a
faerie
naturally
made
me
sexually
charged.
What
I’d
rarely
known
was
the
touch
of a
man
I
desired.
Don’t
get
me
wrong,
the
men
who
graced
my
bed
were
admirable
bedmates,
but
none
possessed
my
heart,
my
soul,
my
mind.
None
that
is
to
say,
except
for
one,
but
he
had
passed
away
over
a
year
ago.
Since
then
I
had
been
searching
for
the
one
who
would
make
my
inner
thighs
tighten
again
with
just
the
thought
of
being
near
him.
I
was
pretty
sure
I’d
finally
found
him.
The
only
problem
I
could
see
was
that
my
mother
would
lose
her
mind
if
she
found
out
I
had
bedded
a
low
level-messenger
of
the
Unblessed
Court.
A
slow
smile
moved
over
my
face
as I
toyed
with
the
idea
in
my
mind.
Risking
her
wrath
would
be
worth
the
pleasure
I
was
sure
the
stranger
could
offer.
Besides,
it
would
be
so
very
like
me
to
push
my
mother’s
limits.
The
apple
didn’t
fall
far
from
the
tree
in
terms
of
the
need
to
get
under
one
another’s
skin.
She’d
arranged
a
marriage
I’d
surely
hate
and
I’d
bed
a
man
she’d
loathe.
I
headed
straight
for
the
tall,
dark-haired
stranger.
I
heard
Dina’s
cries
for
me
to
stop,
and
blocked
them
out.
She
wasn’t
the
one
being
auctioned
off
for
the
sake
of
peace.
She
had
her
freedom
to
select
a
husband
of
her
choosing.
I
didn’t.
When
I
was
within
two
feet
of
him,
he
stopped
speaking
to
his
friends
and
looked
at
me.
His
dark
chocolate
gaze
scanned
me
slowly,
heating
every
spot
it
landed.
It
stopped
to
linger
over
my
thin
white
gown
and
to
stare
at
my
more
than
ample
chest.
I
blushed
slightly.
This
caught
me
off
guard.
I
was
never
embarrassed
or
ashamed.
What
power
was
it
this
man
possessed?
Yes,
he
was
a
gift
from
the
Goddess
herself,
but
still
that
shouldn’t
cause
me
to
turn
into
a
silly
fledgling
at
the
very
sight
of
him.
I
was
better
than
that.
A
noble.
A
princess.
Staring
at
his
chiseled
face,
I
couldn’t
remember
a
time
when
I
had
seen
a
faerie
with
skin
as
bronzed
as
his.
More
often
than
not,
we
faeries
ran
a
bit
on
the
pale
side.
Some
of
us
did,
however,
break
the
mold.
He
clearly
was
one
of
these
exceptions
to
the
rule.
“I’m
Mackenzie.
And
you
are?”
He
stopped
staring
at
my
chest
and
directed
his
attention
towards
my
face.
He
looked
as
though
he
wanted
to
ravish
me.
“I
am
Rowan.
So,
you
are
the
lovely
Princess
Mackenzie.
I
have
heard
much
about
you.
I
fear
my
informants
have
understated
just
how
magnificent
you
truly
are.”
“What,
may
I
ask,
have
you
heard
of
me?”
I
wasn’t
sure
I
wanted
to
know,
but
the
thought
of
not
hearing
that
deep
rich
voice
again
made
me
shudder.
He
held
out
his
hand
to
me.
I
took
it.
His
fingers
were
rough.
He
was
most
certainly
a
warrior.
Men
of
wealth
and
honor
rarely
had
coarse
hands.
I’d
found
that
most
of
the
men
I’d
bedded
were
as
silky
smooth
as
myself.
Rowan
was
a
refreshing
change.
“My
dear
Princess,
your
beauty
is
known
throughout
the
lands.
Lesser
beings
talk
of
your
hair,
as
gold
as
the
sun
with
streaks
as
white
as
snow,
of
your
eyes,
as
green
as
newly
formed
leaves,
and
of
your
body,
which
is
rivaled
only
by
the
goddesses
themselves.”
My
pulse
quickened.
Many
men
had
made
futile
attempts
at
flattery
with
me,
but
this
one
was
different.
This
man
called
Rowan
made
me
want
to
prove
him
right.
He
made
me
want
to
show
him
how
much
more
I
could
really
be.
“I
dare
say
you
flatter
me
so
with
your
kind
remarks.”
I
gave
a
small
curtsy.
“Am
I to
assume
what
you’ve
heard
about
me
is
true?”
His
dark
eyes
lit.
“Oh
no,
I
think
that
words
cannot
possibly
do
you
justice.”
“Then
how
do
you
plan
on
telling
Prince
Elwyn
of
me?
It
would
have
been
so
much
easier
for
him
to
come
personally
to
see
me.
I
requested
this,
but
of
course,
he
never
responded.
Just
like
an
Unblessed,
thinking
they
don’t
have
to
answer
to
anyone
but
themselves...
Are
you
to
house
an
image
of
me
in
an
orb?”
My
obsession
with
human
culture
almost
caused
me
to
slip
and
say
photograph.
I
was
pleased
that
I
caught
myself.
Orb
images
were
livelier
than
a
two
dimensional
photograph,
but
dated
all
the
same.
I’d
not
yet
received
one
of
the
Prince.
I
was
flying
blind
as
to
what
he
looked
like.
I’d
impressed
my
image
into
an
orb
on
the
off
chance
he’d
request
it,
but
he
had
not.
Rowan
looked
amused
by
my
comments.
“I
take
it
from
your
tone
you’re
not
pleased
with
the
current
arrangement.”
I
tossed
my
hand
in
the
air
and
laughed,
sounding
anything
but
content.
“Oh,
please.
Don’t
tell
me
for
a
minute
if
you
were
me
you’d
be
pleased
marrying
that
barbaric
beast!”
Rowan
and
his
two
friends
burst
into
laughter.
The
blond
one
actually
clutched
his
gut
as
he
leaned
over,
snorting
like
a
rutting
beast.
I
wanted
to
smack
him
square
in
the
back
of
his
head,
but
resisted.
“Barbaric
beast?
What
makes
you
think
the
Prince
is a
barbarian?”
“Oh,
that’s
simple.
He
is
to
be
King
of
the
Unblessed
Court
one
day,
what
else
could
he
be?
I
hardly
think
they
have
kind
gentleman
roaming
about
to
lead
an
army
of
demons.
No
thanks,
I’d
rather
marry
a
Goblin
and
that’s
not
saying
much,
is
it?”
Rowan’s
grip
on
my
hand
tightened.
I
had
offended
him.
I
didn’t
care.
I’d
spoken
the
truth
and
that’s
all
that
mattered.
His
loyalty
to
his
Prince
was
respectable,
but
even
he
had
to
admit
that
someone
who
would
one
day
rule
the
Unblessed
Court
had
to
be a
scoundrel.
His
dark
gaze
raked
over
me,
appearing
even
more
heated
than
it
had
been
prior
to
me
upsetting
him.
My
body
burned
and
my
breathing
hitched
at
the
idea
of
being
taken
by a
man
possessing
so
much
passion.
It
was
clear
he
wanted
me
and
I
wanted
him
so
there
was
no
point
in
pussyfooting
around
matters.
“The
Prince
is
not
who
I
want
to
be
focused
on
at
the
moment,”
I
said,
as I
took
a
step
towards
him.
He
leaned
closer.
“And,
who
exactly
is
it
you
are
interested
in
focusing
on?”
I
stood
on
my
tiptoes
to
be
near
his
ear
and
whispered.
“Why
you,
of
course.”
His
laughter
bellowed
out
and
around
me.
I
felt
as
though
I
could
wrap
his
deep
voice
around
me,
and
it
alone
would
be
enough
to
bring
me
pleasure.
He
turned
and
looked
at
the
men
who
had
accompanied
him
on
his
journey.
Without
question,
they
walked
away,
leaving
the
two
of
us
standing
near
one
another.
“So
tell
me,
Mackenzie,
now
that
you
have
my
undivided
attention,
what
do
you
plan
to
do
with
it?”
I
smiled
before
pressing
my
lips
to
his.
It
was
a
bold
move
but
I
was
known
for
nothing
less.
I
pushed
my
tongue
into
his
receptive
mouth
and
inched
it
around.
We
explored
the
deep
recesses
of
the
other
feverishly.
A
tiny
moan
escaped
him.
All
would
have
been
perfect
if
it
wasn’t
for
a
minute
tingling
sensation
that
started
on
my
arm.
Someone’s
negative
energy
pressed
down
on
me.
Reluctantly,
I
pulled
away
from
Rowan,
and
turned
to
find
Dina
glaring
at
me.
“Dina?”
She
stomped
her
foot
on
the
ground
and
crossed
her
arms
over
her
chest.
It
was
her
way
of
taking
a
stance.
Ignoring
her,
I
turned
back
to
Rowan.
There
was
no
way
I’d
let
my
chance
with
him
be
spoiled.
I
grabbed
hold
of
his
hand.
“Come.”
Without
question,
he
followed
me
as I
pulled
him
through
the
courtyard
gates
and
down
the
winding
stone
path
towards
the
river.
Halfway
down,
I
veered
off
the
path
and
pulled
him
through
a
seemingly
endless
tangle
of
vines.
He
never
complained,
he
simply
held
tight
to
my
hand
and
let
me
lead
him.
I
knew
every
inch
of
the
Blessed
Court’s
grounds.
I’d
never
been
allowed
off
of
them
growing
up,
so
this
gave
me
plenty
of
time
to
explore
every
nook
and
cranny.
My
destination
was
within
sight.
A
moment
later,
we
broke
through
the
tangled
mess
and
stood
in a
small
clearing
on
the
edge
of
the
river.
“I’m
impressed,”
Rowan
said
from
behind
me.
I
reached
down
and
began
pulling
my
long
gown
over
my
head.
I
lifted
it
slowly
up
my
body,
knowing
he
would
watch
me
and
wanting
to
put
on a
good
show.
I
pulled
it
over
my
waistline,
exposing
the
thin
patch
of
blonde
curls
that
lay
nestled
between
my
thighs.
He
drew
in a
deep
breath
and
I
continued.
