Gryphons Quest (20 page)

"I love you, too, and missed you so much." She kissed his temple as he snuggled his head into her shoulder.

"We're together now. That's all that matters," he breathed. "And you're mine"

He covered her body with his to keep her warm, then pulled her robe over the lower half of them. It was the most perfect bed he'd ever enjoyed. "I had a fantasy about making love to you in the woods. In a soft bed with the stars out."

She looked up at him, and they softly kissed. "Love me again."

He chuckled softly. "My pleasure. Anything you want."

He took her more slowly, savoring every inch of her form, kissing her slim thighs, running his hands down the soft length of her and feeling her stroke the muscles of his back. When her fingers skimmed over the scars formed when he fought Niall Alexander, she frowned. But he quickly kissed the frown away.

"It's nothing," he told her. "There isn't any kind of wound that hurts like those inflicted on a heart."

Tears pooled in her eyes for him. "My poor darling."

"No, my love. Don't cry for me. You're very quickly mending every wound I've ever had."

She pulled him to her, and they made love until dawn.

***

Shayla and Gwyneth silently crept through the woods so the sleeping lovers wouldn't awaken.

Gryphon's senses would alert him to danger, but as neither of the women posed such a threat, he slept on. Unconsciously, he pulled Heather more protectively into his embrace and placed a gentle kiss against her hair. Gwyneth watched with loving indulgence as her son held the sleeping woman in his arms. Her family had just increased by one.

"We'll leave the food here," Shayla pointed to a low, flat stone which could serve as a table. "I'll restart the fire for them."

Gwyneth nodded while carefully rearranging Heather's robe over them. She placed Gryphon's sword against a nearby stone, knowing that it was part of the ancient ritual that he emerge from the forest with it strapped to his side. As a finishing touch, she placed a bottle of wine on the makeshift stone table.

Shayla placed changes of clothing nearby so that Gryphon and Heather could take their time coming back to the castle.

"There now," Shayla whispered, "this is as cozy a spot as I've ever seen for a handfasting to be consummated."

Gwyneth agreed, looking around the small clearing at their handiwork. "Yes, they could easily stay until tomorrow night if they wanted. Everything they could need is here."

"Come, Gwyn. I know you're anxious to get back to James, and these two should be left to um, sort things out, so to speak."

Gwyn took one more look at her son and new daughter. Pride in them both filled her heart. "I was shocked to learn she'd given up so much to be with Gryphon. I mean...risking her life using those stones.

She must really love him. Do you think he knows what she's done?"

"I'm sure she's told him. But I'll never let those cursed stones be used again. She could have been changed into something...well, there's no use going into it. Everything has turned out far better than I expected. The woman learns fast. My people in the States tell me she's nothing short of brilliant. They've been teaching her for weeks before she arrived here. And, depending upon how she behaves in front of the Order, it'll make things much easier for the rest of the outsiders who'll follow. Every other problem of a personal nature must be worked out between the two of them. Now, come along," Shayla advised.

"Let's let them be."

Some time after the women left, Gryphon woke to a warm, brightly burning campfire. He smiled, knowing his mother had been present. Only Gwyneth would have thought to bring his sword. He glanced down, Heather snuggled closer to him to absorb some of his warmth. Resting on one elbow, Gryph began to trace a lazy finger down one of her smooth white shoulders.

That was when he noticed for the first time the Celtic marks on her arms. They exactly matched his except for being much smaller in size and more feminine. He touched them gently.

"Love," he whispered in awe, "that you would go through the pain it took to make these..."

"Mmmm, it wasn't that painful. Besides, I like them," she murmured sleepily. "Keep me warm, Gryph."

Heather smiled as she moved even closer into his chest.

He immediately pulled her beneath him and rested his weight on his arms. "I have a way to keep you flaming," he grinned mischievously.

Heather opened her eyes, smiled and brought her arms up to encircle his neck. "Then quit talking and let's see a little action."

Gryph pushed her heavy, silken hair back from her face and kissed her slowly. Heather responded by rotating her hips against his sensitive erection.

"Woman, you awaken beautifully." He felt he could drown in the cool depths of her silver gaze.

She pushed him until their positions reversed. She was now on top and wanted to watch him as she slid onto his erection. "Ah Heather, you're more lovely than a spring day on the moors," he gasped, closing his eyes and letting her soft sheath surround him.

Her hands touched, caressed, and massaged his body, lingering on the Celtic designs on his arms and moving down to those on his inner thighs. He held her firmly on him by placing his hands around her waist and her back. She rocked back and forth, slowly bringing him close to release. Gryphon suddenly sat up and moved with her. Their gazes locked, and Heather felt a wonderful pressure begin deep within her womb. The feeling was so incredibly satisfying that she feared the intensity. Gryph's breathing deepened and matched hers.

"Gryph...I can't...it's...ooooooh," Heather cried out.

"Don't stop, love. Don't..." Gryph never finished as he lost himself within her. Heather fell against his shoulder, crying out when her own climax began and went on long enough to render her completely sated.

They clung to each other as their breathing began to slow and their pulses calmed. Gryphon lay back down into the soft leather cloak beneath them and pulled her robe back over them both. "It will always be this way between us, love. Hot and intense. I love you, Heather. With all my heart and soul."

Heather raised her head to look into eyes as dark as the night. "Gryphon, my sweet, sweet warrior. I can't believe all of this is real, that you're here with me and we're finally together. I've wanted you so badly. Some nights the hurt wouldn't stop. I love you so much."

"Ah, little one, there'll be no more hurting," Gryphon promised and pulled her back into his embrace, gently rocking her. "We've both done our share of that."

She let him hold her and watched the fire burn. The silence they shared was so peaceful, and Heather never wanted it to end. Her body tensed as she heard bushes rustle several yards away.

Gryphon reached for his sword, then stopped. What he sensed was small and defenseless. No threat at all. "Who's there?"

"Just me," a small voice answered.

Heather grabbed her robe and quickly made sure she and Gryphon were modestly covered. A small girl, probably about three years of age, walked out of the bushes. She had soft golden curls trailing down her back, and her dress was a shift made from some gauzy green fabric. It sparkled in the light. Heather smiled at the little figure. She was absolutely darling.

"I was just hunting berries," she explained.

"You're Lily, aren't you?" Gryphon smiled at her.

"Uh-huh. And you're the gryphon." Lily pointed at Heather. "Everyone says she's an outsider. Is that so?"

"She came from outside, but she's one of us now," Gryphon said.

"She's pretty."

"Yes. Yes, she is." He turned to look proudly at his new mate. "Her name is Heather, and she and I were handfasted last night."

There was a gentleness in his eyes that made Heather's heart fall into her stomach. He wasn't angry or upset with the child's interruption. Just patiently explaining. The girl had obviously used the berry hunting excuse to see the outsider. For the first time, she realized how closed off these people had been. Lily had probably never been allowed out of the Shire.

"Can I watch you fly sometimes?"

Gryphon chuckled. Lily had bounced to a completely different subject. "Of course you can. Heather is a gryphon, too. And she's much more beautiful than I. You could watch us both."

Lily smiled and nodded. "Goody! I get to be the first to see you both fly. I'm gonna tell Merrybelle. She said you'd say no."

The little girl ran off to find whoever Merrybelle was, and Gryphon smiled at her tiny, retreating figure.

Heather watched him closely.

When he turned back, it was to see Heather's face with a particularly intense expression, and he immediately knew what she was thinking. His heart began to sink. So much happiness had been offered.

So many things had happened in the last day. Now, the final challenge to their relationship would come, and he wasn't sure the newly formed, sweet alliance could withstand her questions. He turned away.

"You like children," she simply stated.

"Yes," he sighed. "But they're usually afraid to be near me."

"Lily wasn't."

"Her curiosity about you overcame that."

"Gryphon?" She placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Don't, Heather. Please don't ask."

"You don't want to have children of your own?"

He swiftly turned back. "Of course I do. But I don't want a child born like me. Not if it will have to go through...never mind."

"Gryphon, I want you to listen to me." She took a deep breath and continued. "In the future, there are going to be a lot of children born here who might or might not have the powers their parents have. They may even look different. But something tells me their parents won't care once they're holding them in their arms. It's going to happen. The Order will be extinct unless it does. What if we have children and they are gryphons? Or what if they don't have any powers at all? Would you love them any less?"

"I'd love my children no matter what," he replied with intensity. "And no one would ever hurt them.

Never."

She sighed. "Then what's your problem with having them some day? Everyone else s will be different, too. And, even in the outside world, there aren't any guarantees about how a baby will be born, what it will look like, or whether it's healthy. The best people can do is hope and pray. The Order doesn't have a monopoly on fears about their kids and what will happen to them, you know. But life goes on, and things usually work out pretty well."

He gazed into her eyes for a long moment. Something inside him finally tore away and flew free. The last of his fears. She'd broken down the final barrier, and the love he felt couldn't be more pure or strong.

"You're right," he whispered as a dozen scenarios came to mind. Sons and daughters to watch grow, and an Order full of children who tolerated each others' differences. Plans of a future he'd never thought possible flooded his brain and he smiled again. "And you'd love our children, too." It was a statement rather than a question. She'd make a wonderful mother.

"Yes, I'd love them. Just the way I love you. And, trust me on this, there's no limit to it, Gryphon. No limit and no strings attached."

In the deepest part of him, he knew she was speaking the absolute truth. Why would she have risked her life to be with him otherwise? He touched her cheek with his fingertips and softly kissed her. "I'm the luckiest man on Earth."

She moved into his embrace and held on tight. "I’m the lucky one. Now, hold me. Never let me go."

"Not even after a million lifetimes have passed, Heather.

I'll never, ever let you go."

***

"Forgive me for disturbing your work, Sorceress." The young girl curtsied as she entered the castle room where Shayla was preparing for her full moon prophecy.

Shayla looked up from the scrying bowl she had been preparing. "What is it, Lyla?"

"'The O'Connor is here to see you. He says it won't wait."

"Very well." Shayla waved a hand. "Show him in." She watched the girl walk into the hallway and heard her speak quietly to someone there.

Gryphon walked into the room and knelt before Shayla. Two of the most perfect weeks a man could ever imagine had just passed. But there were things that needed to be said, and his heart and conscience demanded that he leave Heather long enough to confront the Sorceress with his feelings.

"I expected you'd still be in the abbey with Heather. I hear things are going better than hoped," Shayla said as she looked down at the large man's bowed head. When he looked up into her eyes, she saw the face of a man whose life had been transformed. The worry, anger and defiance had left his dark gaze. In place of those emotions Shayla detected contrition, and there was a sense of deep, abiding peace. She smiled at him, motioned for him to stand and was rewarded with a winning grin.

"I'm sorry I haven't come sooner, Sorceress. My only excuse is that Heather and I have been...well, we've been quite busy."

"Whatever the reason for your visit, you've always been welcome here. And people have been saying good things about her presence in the Shire. The outside world isn't nearly so frightening to many now that she's been introduced."

His guilt increased that much more. "She loves it here."

"Of course she does. This is where her heart lives."

Gryphon knew she was speaking of him as much as anything else. He nodded and prepared himself to bare his soul. It was the only way to ease his mind, and Heather had been in full agreement with his confronting the Sorceress with his declarations. They'd spoken of it at length. So much had happened that he felt he had to make amends for his behavior.

The callous man he'd been no longer existed.

"I take it this isn't a social call?" she asked.

He shook his head. "You know it isn't. I've come to beg your forgiveness for my behavior. I've been a pain in the ass since this whole thing began."

"Oh, you were that and then some, young man." She smiled to take the condemning sting from the words. "I take it being in love has somewhat mellowed your attitude?"

Gryphon smiled and nodded in agreement. "You've still had every reason to punish me. Instead, you've made my dreams come true. I can't think why the Whip Master hasn't paid me a visit. I deserve anything you can think up in the way of punishment."