Hidden Jewel (Heartfire Series) (54 page)

“
Y’all wouldn’t be trying to get drunk, would ya, Abby?” he nearly yelled, to be heard above the music. Her head shook in answer and a smile played at the corners of his mouth. “Aw, you can’t lie, darlin’. It just ain’t in ya.” Jacob’s face appeared, grinning wolfishly, and he sat down beside her, pulling her hand into his lap.

“
Y’all can’t be getting drunk here, Abby,” he laughed. “Around all these people? That ain’t such a good idea, you bein’ so beautifully innocent and all.”

“
I... can get pissed... wherever I wish it, Jacob,” Ailill answered with a nod. Turning as Micah eased down on her opposite side, she added, “I plan on gettin’ a-stoned as well. When in Rome, ye ken?” Her fingers fluttered vaguely, taking in the mass of drunkards, of heaving bodies, not all dancing. Flashing his twin a surprised look, Micah shook his head at her, the glossy black mass of his hair shimmering with the rainbow colored lights above.

“
Uh-uh, Abby. Nope. Y’all need a level head at one of these things.”

That struck her as hilarious, seeing the dilation in both man’s eyes, the complete lack of a level head in the entire room. She giggled, amused, found she liked the sound better than the music and giggled again, feeling loads better for it. “Och, how stupid do ye think I am?” she drawled, a dark glint in her eyes. “If ye wanted a chaperone whilst yon pale-faced hoor gropes and fondles ye, aye, you’d be better off askin’ me mother! I intend to have a grand auld time amongst the
rabble
o’ my father’s piddling village. How does that sound to
you
?” Taking the bottle back from Micah, she laughed aloud and sunk back into the softness of the couch, pulling them along with her. Much to Micah’s surprise, she kissed Jacob. After a thorough job of that, she wiped her mouth delicately with a fingertip and set to work on his twin. When she drew away at last, Micah and Jacob stared at one another, perplexed. It was the first time she had initiated anything since she'd gone away for two months, the first time she had really kissed Jacob of her own free will.

“
How does that make ye feel, then?” she asked, forcing them to look at her. “Did ye like it? The sharin’? ‘Tis what you’ll have to get used to... if ye want me!” When neither man answered, she scowled. “Well, and I dinna ken if I like the sharin’ o’
you
wi’ all these lassies. Radjy, every one. I dinna like blondie’s hands all o’er you, and she lookin’ to see is the whole room watchin’ ye let her do it. Where did ye go, after I went out for a bit o’ air?”

A look passed between the two, unmistakeable, and Ailill forced a laugh, hurt.

“
We didn’t leave this room, Ailill,” Jacob said, a gleam in his eyes; a half-truth.

“
Nay, ye didn't. But, o’ course ye wouldn't need to, what with the debauchery going on. Ooh, look how dark it is, Jacob. So easy to hide what is happening.” Turning to Micah, she asked, “What would inspire you to even bring a lass to such a gathering, Micah? Nor yourself, if ye are so pure as you've claimed? Not that I believed it to begin with. Nay, you’ve only given me reason not to believe a word ye say.” He shook his head, unsure how to answer. Ailill jumped to her feet, a ferocious grin on her elfin face, cheeks flushed with spirits, with feelings better ignored.

“
Come, lads,” she called, giving the hands of both a forceful tug, her own natural strength drawing them easily to their feet. “We shall dance a wee bit. I will show ye how it goes at a true
Tribal ceilidh,
ere I get a few answers as to why you’d
ever
let such an unsavory mouth as that one touch ye
there
.”

Her movements were fluid, graceful, the steps unlike anything either young man had ever seen before, almost primal; her dance was most unusual, absolutely sensual, and in the heat of the packed room, Ailill gave way to the inducement of spirits, mainly her own, showing her true nature completely and without apology as she shed her heavier garments like the others; the pale silken slip-dress she had worn beneath the darker blouse and overskirt fit her like a glove, sparked the attraction of both men to the point where neither could keep away, eyes directed solely on her lush form, her beautiful face; hands reaching for her beneath the flickering light came up empty nearly every time. She gave herself up completely to the rhythms, drawing close to the twin men, pulling away just enough to be out of reach, evading them until neither could stand anymore, each one forcing her still for a kiss before she moved away again, nearly crushing her between them at one point, the heat of long fingers, of large callused hands startling against her already heated flesh. When she tired of the dance, of the feelings she was intentionally bringing out in the two, Ailill spun away, disappearing into the shadows with a husky laugh, trailed by the flames of her fiery hair before either even knew she was gone.

They found her lounging on the couch where she had been earlier, the rest of the forgotten bottle of whiskey disappearing in thirsty gulps. Excepting the way her head seemed to sway to a different beat than the one playing, she seemed quite sober; the fact that she was far from it very well concealed from those dark, searching eyes.

“
Ain’t y’all dancing anymore, darlin’?” Sitting down to her left, Micah flashed Ailill a pleased grin and lay a large hand on her thigh, a question obvious in the light touch.

“
Nay. I’ve teased you long enough. Both of you,” she burred slowly, looking up at Jacob, sidelong. “In fact, I’m ready to go.” The deep hued eyes of both widened at that, their surprise evident.

“
Go? Go where?”

“
Hidden Jewel, o’ course,” said Ailill. “Snow flies even now, lads. I don't care to trek up the mount in a blizzard.” Unconcerned, both heads shook in unison. Micah’s fingers clamped into the smooth flesh of her thigh, bringing her to an awareness of things she had not given any serious thought to. When he leaned in to kiss her, Ailill turned her head, his lips catching the sharp line of her cheekbone.

“
Come on, Abby. It’s too early to go. We’ve only been here a couple hours,” Jacob said, displeasure clear in his tone. “I don’t wanna leave, and neither does Micah.” He took a seat, pulling her hand into his lap. She could see his jaw clenching and unclenching in the dim light as his gaze scanned the room.

“
Stay for just awhile longer... a few more dances, then we’ll take you home,” Micah drawled, his voice smooth, coaxing, fingers tracing a circular pattern up her thigh.

Shaking him off, she stood, then wished she hadn’t for the way both pair of eyes swept over her. She shook her head and sat back down. “You are unbelievable, you know that?” she stated clearly. “And if it keeps snowing... what then? Did you plan to keep me here? Amongst the rudest people I’ve ever seen? I do not wish to be stuck in this...this, mphmm, bawdyhouse, throughout a snowstorm, nor through the night. Some strange lad already tried to gag me with his slimy tongue. I can only imagine what else might be forced upon me, the way people look at me.” Glancing about the room, still amoil with heaving bodies, less on the dance floor than on the couches, the floor, even some of the tables, Ailill groaned.

“
Oh, aye. I’d wish to be
here
,” she growled, feeling a bit ill. “Shall we disappear into yon alcove as you did with the blondie? Perhaps she might wish to join us there, give me a few pointers on
ceann-là
, or even
dàirich
, as I am supposedly so innocent! Or did you wish to take me right out in the open, just like all those other lasses are doing?” Ailill gestured emphatically nearby, the increasingly irritating strobe-light making the rhythmic movements of the closest couple seem oddly slow, almost comical. When she turned back she was not smiling. “Well you can fuck that idea, the both o’ you, and you can go fuck yourselves. Or better yet, how ‘bout any o’ the dozen lasses who were a-frothin’ at the mouths when you walked in! It's a certainty you’d have your pick there, as many as you’d like, but it will not be
me
.” Jumping up, she stalked away, retrieving her things as she passed the table she had tossed them onto. She had to literally tug her capuchin out from under a couple in the hallway, the fact making her angry enough to scream though she held back, cursing a long-winded stream in Gaelic that earned her more than a few curious looks, the eyes of all those strangers ugly to her, plain grays and browns.

“
And of course, not one pair of lovely bejeweled eyes anywhere in this whole horny throng!” she snarled, literally growling aloud at a half-dressed couple nearest to the exit. Slamming through the heavy doors, at last, she breathed deeply through her nose to rid it of the smells inside, trying in vain to remember the single word, the key, to lock the mental door once again because it
was
snowing, just as she had said.

“
Oh, aye, a fuckin’ blizzard.” Muttering to herself, she set off without a backward glance, taking the back way, through Wilderdeep, because it was the shortest distance from this end of the village. Her intention was to leave the brothers far behind, to hole up in her room at the ranch with only herself, a few books, and a cozy fire until the storm blew its last breath. That plan lasted as long as it took to reach the mountain trail, the snow falling so heavy, so fast that she swore half a foot had already covered her tracks; the wind swirled icy tendrils up under her warm clothes so that she cursed the lads once more for talking her into going with them, for looking good enough that she could not have said no had she tried. Head down, she watched her feet sinking deeper in the wintry mess with each step, the wind nearly bowling her over a few times when it gusted against her small form, howling in her ears beneath her hood, through the swaying pine trees turning white before her very eyes. A sound pulled her attention up from the ground, familiar, oddly distant, and she turned, sure she was only imagining it.

“
What the hell?” Squinting, Ailill could just make out two dark forms in the whiteout, Micah and Jacob, dark hair flying on the wind, following not fifty yards behind. Another blast of cold up her skirts unbalanced her and she fell face first into the snow, gasping for breath even before she attempted to right herself. Her nose felt ice-burnt, eyes watering as she wiped away the frosty wetness. Strong hands hauled her to her feet, patted the clumped snow from her cloak with a brusqueness that made her jaw ache.

“
This is the stupidest thing y’all ever did, Ailill,” Micah barked angrily. “Stepping out in a blizzard like this... Do you wanna die?”

“
Oh, aye, Micah. I wanted to kill myself over your lack of self-control! This was the best way I could think to accomplish it. And you should talk about steppin’ out, ye fucking fool.” Her eyes blazed furiously and she turned away, trudging through the now knee-deep snow with an effort that made tiny beads of perspiration pop out on her forehead, trying once again to remember the word that would sober her up instantly, her mind coming up blank, as blank as the landscape. They kept pace with her as she moved, both men yanking her forcibly up the path that led not to the ranch, a good hour-long hike away in this weather, but toward the small cabin in the wood.

“
We’ll shelter here for the night,” Micah ordered, shoving her up onto the porch with a jerk, yanking her around to face him before she got away. “And in the morning, long as it ain’t still blowing, we’ll make sure you get home safe and sound. When you’re ready to be a little more sociable, a little more accepting of the people who live around here, you’ll know where to find us.” He pushed her then, toward the darkened doorway, clearly not meaning to be so forceful by the look she saw in his eyes after she fell backwards, landing on her rear with a thump that made her bite her tongue. It didn’t matter. The hand he held out to her was slapped away, her gaze icy when it lit on his own stony aspect. She spat a copious glob of blood-tinged saliva into the snow at his feet, the sight infuriating the tiny woman. Moving quickly, Ailill rolled to her feet, hunched her shoulders, and sprang forward, knocking him backwards into the snow, the breath stolen from his lungs with a muffled  “
Oomf
”.

Her face reddened with the cold, with the hurt anger he and his twin had caused, Ailill stood over him. “I will
never
be accepting o’ my father’s people, Micah!” she exclaimed harshly. “And if you believe your threats to keep away from me will sway what knowledge I have about a great many of them, you are sadly mistaken, for I care naught if you choose to stay away from me. You have got a lot of nerve, making me out to be the antagonist here. It wasn't me who chose to go off with a woman that has whore written all over her, to try to hide the fact that she gave ye
both
a blowjob in less than fifteen minutes time! Don’t you dare speak at me of being sociable, Micah, because at least
I
have limits.”