Deception (40 page)

He gave her a squeeze and a kiss on the head. Then they both looked over as the others halted in front of them.

“Excellent,” Brietta approved. “I've been waiting for this moment for years.” She flipped onto Quin’s back and wrapped him in a headlock. “You just got beat, and I enjoyed watching it.”

“You and I both,” Quin replied. “Defeat never looked so beautiful.”

Brietta flipped back in front of them and shimmied her hips, singing a song to go along with her weightless dance. “I can’t wait to tell the coven.”

Kennet, a wizard with dark hair, eyes and skin, shook away a flustered expression and pointed at Layla. “Where did you come from?”

Weylin laughed and elbowed Kennet in the side. “Didn't you hear? She fell from heaven.”

“I might have to believe that after seeing her fly.”

Kegan floated closer and hovered next to Brietta. “Are you a bonded child, Layla?”

Layla swallowed, waiting to see if Quin would cut in, but he didn’t, and she took his silence as permission to answer. “Yes.”

“No kidding?” Brynton exclaimed.

“No kidding,” she confirmed.

“Quin’s gone and found himself an equal,” Weylin laughed. “About damn time.”

“I'll never equal Layla,” Quin corrected. “She's got me beat.”

The crowd harrumphed and waved dismissive hands, taking his comment with a grain of salt as they headed toward earth. Apparently they thought Quin was just flattering his girl, which was fine with Layla. Her cheeks were on fire, and she didn’t know how much more she could take before hiding herself in Quin's chest.

Brietta smiled and winked at Layla. Then she flashed Kegan an ornery grin. “I almost beat you this time.”

“I know,” he conceded, tickling her nose with a lock of her hair, “but I'll always have the foot races.” He sobered and looked at Quin. “Were you telling the truth? About Layla surpassing you?”

Quin laughed and raised an eyebrow. “Have you ever known me to flatter a woman with lies?”

“No, but I've never seen your aura like this, and a few of your confessions today have proven just how good you are at avoiding the truth.”

“Point taken,” Quin conceded, “but I assure you, I'm telling the truth. If you don't believe me, ask Bri.”

Kegan looked at Brietta, who was looking anywhere and everywhere to avoid his stare. “Bri's been skirting the truth for a week now,” he noted.

“I had to,” she pouted. “It wasn't my place to tell you.”

“We’re dealing with an unusual situation,” Quin offered. “We can't expect you to understand since you don't know the details, but any truths Bri and I have avoided were justified. Maybe someday we’ll be able to explain ourselves, but now’s not the time.”

“Then I’ll let it go,” Kegan agreed, “but I see more than Layla in your aura, and it’s no secret your community has been on lockdown. Caitrin called on us to guard it last Friday, but he failed to mention why.” His eyes flitted to Layla then back to Quin. “We thought it was just a precaution, but now that I see your aura, it’s clearly more than that. You should consider enlisting the help of your friends.”

“No,” Quin and Layla refused.

“Thank you, Keg,” Quin added, “but there’s nothing you can do. Now let’s move on from this.”

Kegan gave a nod, so the four of them joined the others, who’d settled themselves on the ground in a haphazard circle and were passing around three jugs of wine. Quin swept Layla off her feet, making her comfortable on his lap as he sat between Brietta and Kennet. Then he took the wine Kennet offered and drank.

Layla watched, estimating he’d consumed an entire glass of wine from the jug. Then she tentatively took her turn with the beverage, bewildered by the unorthodox ways of her new world. After a couple of sips, she passed the jug to Brietta, who didn’t hesitate to tip it back.

Weylin was stacking cards into the shape of a wolf, which was astoundingly detailed, but he struggled to sit still and kept moving cards unnecessarily. Brynton flipped out a palm, destroying the cardboard creature with a gust of summoned wind, and Weylin cursed as he sent the cards flying at his assailant's face. Brynton anticipated the attack and quickly waved a hand, and the cards halted, floating into a neat stack before returning to Weylin.

“You should have known that was coming,” Brynton laughed.

Weylin snatched the cards from the air. Then they disappeared as he clapped. “Anyone up for a balance challenge?”

“With or without magic?” Brietta asked.

“Without,” he answered. “You up for it?”

“Sure.” She looked at Layla. “Want to tumble with us?”

“Tumble?” Layla asked, trying not to sound nervous.

“Acrobatics,” Brietta clarified.

But Layla still didn’t understand. “What about them?”

Everyone looked at her, and Weylin laughed. “Don't they have gymnastics in heaven?”

Brietta threw him a ferocious look and waved a hand, magically yanking his t-shirt up over his head. “Layla was raised in a different environment than us, but just because she doesn't know what we're talking about, doesn't mean she won't shove her victory down your throat.”

Weylin laughed as he pulled his shirt back down. “I wasn't insulting the angel. I’d be a fool to get on the bad side of such a lovely witch, and an even bigger fool to upset the wizard holding her as though his life depends on it.” He waved a hand toward the edge of the clearing, and a wildflower floated to Layla. “Did I offend you, gorgeous?”

Layla shook her head and plucked the flower from the air. “No, but for the record, there are gymnastics where I come from. I just never considered them something to play.”

Brietta pointed to Layla's flower, and a second one appeared. “We turn everything into a game around here. We're just going to see who can do the most acrobatic feats without losing our balance or stopping. It’s just another way for Weylin to feed his need for a challenge. Quin will play. Won't you?”

Quin breathed heat into Layla’s body then pulled his face from her hair. “Sure.”

“Who else?” Weylin asked, jumping to his feet.

“I'm game,” Maeveen agreed, “but I don't know why I bother.”

“Because it's fun,” Brietta answered, rising from the ground. Then she looked at Kegan. “How about you?”

“I'd rather watch you do it,” he declined.

“I'll try not to fall,” she offered. Then she seriously added, “Unless that's what you'd like to see.”

“No, hon. I want to see you shrink Wey's big head.”

“I'll do my best. And if I don't manage it…” She reached down and pulled Layla from Quin’s lap. “…this one will.”

Layla blushed as she tried to recall if she'd agreed to this. She hadn't done any gymnastics in years and was worried she’d make a fool of herself.

“What are we doing?” Quin asked, getting to his feet.

“Let's keep it simple,” Weylin suggested. “Front flips, no hands. We'll see who can make it the farthest. I'm not counting you, Quin, so this competition is between me and the ladies.”

“We'll crush you,” Brietta taunted, pulling Layla to the tree line.

Maeveen jumped on Weylin’s back, and he held her in place as he raced Brietta to the starting point.

Layla rushed to keep up, once again using magic to seal her dress to her legs. Then they were in line and Weylin was speaking. “Front flips only, no magic, no hands, as far as you can go. On three. One . . . two . . . three.”

Layla wasn't even close to ready, and as the others took two running steps and began flipping forward, she stood frozen, her throat clogged and her stomach churning.

Quin halted after one easy flip then floated backward. “Hey,” he whispered, taking Layla’s hand.

“Hey,” she mumbled.

She was a little surprised he hadn’t already jumped in as her safety net, using his blunt and commanding honesty to excuse her from the worrisome task, but then she glanced at his aura and understood why. He had unbelievable confidence in her, and he really wanted her to play.

“Are you coming?” he asked.

Unwilling to disappoint him, she sucked in a deep breath and nodded.

“We'll go together,” he suggested. “You can beat me later.”

She smiled and exhaled. “Okay, but if I think I might fall, I'm using magic.” She wasn't sure which would be more embarrassing – falling on her face, or having to use magic so she wouldn't fall on her face. At least with the latter she’d keep a pain free face.

They both looked ahead. The others were still flipping, but they weren't halfway across the clearing yet and had slowed down. Not that it mattered. Their race went unnoticed by the spectators, who were watching Layla.

“Let's go,” she huffed, bending at the knees.

Quin did the same as he gave her hand a squeeze. Then he let go and counted to three.

They took two long strides into the first leap, and Layla’s stomach flipped as her heart raced and her chest fluttered. The sensations were similar to those she experienced the first day of her first gymnastics class, and they were dangerous. A front flip required commitment; self-doubt could crush both spirit and body, but there were ways to overcome the fear. As a four-year-old, she used a trampoline. Now she had the confidence of magic, so she remained calm, tucked, then followed through. The balls of her feet found soft grass for a successful landing, and it all came rushing back. Without missing a beat, she swung her arms back and pushed off again, reaching for the sky then tucking into chilly air.
Wow
. She’d forgotten how good it felt to challenge her body and nerve with hexless, physical feats. And she’d forgotten how good it felt to succeed. She could have gone faster and added more difficult spins, but Quin stayed by her side, so she stayed by his, surpassing the others with ease.

Upon reaching the opposite tree line, they flipped one more time, checked their balance then straightened. “That felt amazing,” she breathed, finding his eyes.

He smiled as he wrapped his arm around her shoulders and looked at the other competitors. Maeveen had given up and joined the spectators, but Brietta and Weylin continued to battle.

“Give up,” Weylin demanded.

“No,” Brietta yelled, taking a tiny break before jumping into another spin.

They seemed evenly matched and equally determined, but Weylin’s size eventually gave Brietta the edge. She gained two flips on him, and he ceded, shaking his head as he stopped and stretched. He clearly had no plans to let her know she’d won and just grinned while watching her struggle through a few more flips.

When she glanced over her shoulder to find he’d stopped, she breathlessly fell to the ground and pointed. “Ha! I got you, big boy.”

He laughed as he closed the distance between them and pulled her from the grass. “You damn near had a heart attack doing it.”

“This?” she replied, motioning to her heaving chest. “This is my victory breathing exercise.” She floated from the ground and leaned on his shoulder. “Keeps the adrenaline pumping; reminds me that
you . . .
” She gave his beard a tug “. . . lost.”

He laughed and shifted her onto his back, and her worn out muscles melted, leaving her no choice but to let him carry her back to the circle of magicians.

Layla laughed as she looked at Quin, who gave a wink before releasing her shoulders. Her hair fluttered as he took off running. Then her heart lurched when he jumped into a double-flip with a twist. He executed the landing without the tiniest hop or sway. Then he grinned at Layla and raised his eyebrows – an obvious challenge.

She smirked as she narrowed her gaze on him, pretending the others weren’t there to maintain her nerve. Then she got a running start and copied his trick, throwing an extra flip and another half-twist onto the end. She landed facing away from everyone and grinned at the forest, a tingle of accomplishment skipping down her spine. Then Quin was at her ear, whispering and hugging her waist.

“That was beautiful. And a huge turn-on.” He softly nibbled her earlobe. Then he swept her off her feet and carried her to the others.

Brietta was leaning on Kegan and still trying to catch her breath. “Well, Keg, I about died doing it, but I beat Wey just for you.”

“And you looked sexy as hell doing it,” Kegan praised, wrapping his arm around her shoulders.

“Don't let it go to your head,” Weylin insisted. “I'm scattered this week.”

“What has you scattered?” Brietta laughed.

“It's a full moon tomorrow night,” he answered, leaning back on his elbows. “My blood's heating up.” He looked at the clouds, relaxing for the first time since Layla met him. “Anyone up for howling at the skies tonight?”

Everyone committed save for Layla and Quin, who earned a mischievous glare from Weylin. “What do you think, Quin?” he urged. “Want to join us in our quest to get rip-roaring drunk and howl at the moon?”

“No,” Quin answered.

Weylin's eyes narrowed as his grin widened. “How about you, gorgeous? Want to leave Quin behind and come party with the animals?”

Quin quietly laughed as Layla answered. “Not even a little bit.”

“I like that answer,” Quin approved. “You and I can have our own howling contest if you'd like.”