Of Water and Madness (4 page)

The night air was calm and comfortingly still. Music drifted lazily around the courtyard, soothing piano mixed temptingly with bluesy guitar, graced by a voice that was nothing short of timeless. Round white paper lanterns floated in the air over the dance floor, glowing with silvery light, and the stars in the sky glittered amorously, as if shining at their best and brightest just for this night.

For it was a night of romance, a night to celebrate love and laughter and joy. And while the moon shone full and alluringly bright in the sky, down below, the lovers swayed.

Liam held Rhiannon close, pressing her body against his as he brushed her cheek with his own, the woodsy sage scent of her intoxicating. He could feel her heart beating against his chest, and hear her breathing, slow and even. He knew she was just as mesmerized by the song and the mood of the evening as he was; just as seduced and blissfully entranced.

The music and the words seemed to float along beside them, as if through a smooth wave of cream, speaking of a woman as sweet as tupelo honey…

Pressing his lips to the smooth skin of her throat just under her ear, he murmured his love for her over and over, needing her to remember, needing her to understand just how much his heart yearned for her.

And when she held him closer and he could feel her lips curve against his collar bone, could hear her whisper the words in return, he thanked God for it.

As the song ended and another began, he pulled away from her to frame her face in his hands and kiss her.

“So beautiful.” He grinned, kissing her again and again. She pushed him back slyly, her eyes darkening and her lips curving into a sultry smirk. He thought she looked like a woman who had just discovered the power of seduction and was thrilled by it.

“I bet you tell all the girls that,” Rhiannon mused, letting him spin her around and bring her in close again, her heart jolting at the movement. He had that look in his eyes again, the one that still unnerved her with its outright and shameless intensity.

“No one compares to you,” he told her, his hands cruising along her cream colored silk dress that dipped deliciously low in the back and came up to tie at her neck. “I’m the luckiest man here.”

Rhiannon laughed, knowing that it was she who was lucky, not him. “My father’s watching us, Liam, and you look like you want to devour me in one bite. It’s not appropriate.”

He grinned at her, chuckling at her carefully ingrained modesty. “If it makes him uncomfortable then he can look away.”

She giggled as he spun her around again and the sound of it was sweeter than the bells of the angels.

“You look so beautiful, Rhiannon,” Capri said as she approached them suddenly with Rian at her side, her eyes misty and sentimental.

Liam and Rhiannon parted, and she hugged Capri close and sighed.

“It’s you who glows tonight, Capri,” she murmured, pulling away to eye Capri with joy and feminine envy. The flowing silver gown she wore glittered in the soft light, and the pearls that graced the bodice and her neck and ears suited her delicacy perfectly. Her waves of pale blonde hair had been pulled back into a smooth, elegant up do, with tendrils escaping to surround her slender face. Beside her, Rian nodded to both Liam and Rhiannon, and his mouth seemed to be fixed into a permanent, satisfied smile.

When Liam turned to Capri, he pretended to look astonished. “I think an angel has been dropped into our midst from Heaven itself. Don’t you think?” He winked at Rian as he pulled Capri in for a hug as she blushed and giggled.

“Please, it’s just plain old me.” Capri broke away and brushed at the loose strands of hair near her face, feeling embarrassed but pleased by the compliment. “Are you guys having a good time?”

“Of course,” Rhiannon replied, her eyes warming. “I can’t believe that in a few short weeks you two will be husband and wife. It’s…oh.” She felt her eyes watering and her throat tightening so she turned away, letting Liam pull her against him.

“She’s been sentimental about this ever since you told us,” he explained as Rhiannon straightened her back and cleared her throat.

“I’m fine,” she managed. “Gosh, look at Blythe’s dress, isn’t it just stunning?”

Knowing she wanted to distract both herself and the others from her tears, Liam held her closer and followed her gaze as Blythe and Jax came to the dance floor, hand-in-hand.

He had to admit, she did look stunning.

Her dress was rich gold silk, cut short just above her knees with a layered skirt and heart shaped bodice. Against the warm ivory of her skin and the deep red curls of hair that barely graced her shoulders, she looked like a candle burning fiery and hot. Beside her, Jax was dressed in jeans and a casual suit jacket, open in the front with no tie, just a vivid red shirt beneath it. He noticed that they both wore matching black leather cowboy boots, and he couldn’t help but laugh.

“Are you going to go ride the range after the party or something?” Liam joked as they approached, earning a bold smile from Blythe.

“Well, duh.” She winked and smiled at the others. “We gonna get this party started, or what?”

Within minutes, the music had been switched from soothingly romantic to rough and tumble, melody blasting country, complete with line dancing and a shuffling feet rhythm that made Liam feel like a complete fool on the dance floor. He was having the time of his life.

Brooks and Dunn rang out as a big group of them attempted to learn the moves, with Blythe leading the way. Clearly country dancing had become her latest obsession since her trip down to Texas and she was more than willing to share it. And Jax looked just right beside her as the two of them shuffled along and kicked together to the steel guitar and catchy drumbeat.

Liam imagined the only way things could be better was if they were in some dingy southwestern bar with smoke hanging in the air and a live band pumping out the music. Maybe he’d take Rhiannon to a place like that someday, just so she could see what it was all about. Just watching her attempt to learn the moves, mess up and laugh with him as they both struggled and had a good time made him extraordinarily optimistic for the future.

Maybe Dante had only been bluffing and nothing would happen after all. It just didn’t seem possible that one man could destroy everything that his family had built, everything they had worked for and loved. Not when they were being so vigilant and cautious, and when they were standing as united and strong as ever. Sure, there were a few loose ends, like Rohan and Brock, but that could hardly pose a threat compared to how stable everything else seemed to be now.

When the song came to a close and a slower country beat replaced it, Liam noticed Rohan approaching.

With a polite nod, he turned toward the older man. Beside him, Rhiannon smiled warmly up at her father, pleased when he leaned in to kiss her cheek.

“Rhiannon, Liam.” He pulled away and reached out a hand to shake Liam’s hand, pleasure and pride in his eyes. Liam accepted the handshake, a bit confused but delighted all the same. “I just wanted to let you know that I am proud of both of you for finally coming together this way. You can’t know just how happy it makes me to see it.”

“Thank you, sir.” Liam grinned, turning to look at Rhiannon. “It makes me happy, too.”

Rhiannon flushed, embarrassed to have the two men in her life eyeing her. “Maybe we should go get some champagne,” she suggested, beginning to edge away from them both. Her father reached out to stop her.

“I was actually hoping I could have this dance with you, Rhiannon. It’s been so long since we’ve danced together.”

Rhiannon looked momentarily astonished, but Liam merely smiled and pressed a quick kiss to her forehead.

“Great idea. My dad looks lonely, anyway. I’ll go keep him company.” With a wink at them both, Liam slipped away and left them, the image of Rohan’s warm pride burned into his memory. For so long he had waited for that man’s acceptance, knowing it was key to Rhiannon’s freedom. And now he had it, at last.

Grinning, he plopped into the chair beside his father, who had been sipping champagne and reading a novel under the table. Lucian looked up guiltily, only to see it was his son and smile instead.

“Tired of dancing, boyo?” he asked with a wink.

“For now.” Liam snatched the book his father had been reading, examining the cover. “Dickens? Really? We’re having a party and you’d rather sit here and read boring old Dickens?”

Lucian straightened defensively and slipped the book out of Liam’s hands, setting it on the table. “It was either that or watch your mother doting on Serendipity.”

Because it was obvious he hadn’t meant to say the words, Lucian sighed and took a deep sip of his champagne, silently cursing himself.

“What’s this?” Liam asked, glancing over to where the Muses were sitting and spotting his mother and Serendipity both watching Rohan with hurt expressions. “I see…it upsets you that she isn’t on your side?”

“Obviously.” Lucian’s lips pursed in annoyance, something Liam was not at all used to seeing on his serene father’s face. “But I don’t want to worry you with my troubles, Liam. Go dance with that lovely girl of yours.”

“Dad, I’m not a kid anymore, I can handle the truth. Do you want me to go talk to her?”

“Absolutely not. I won’t have you getting involved in this. You have such a tentative relationship with her as it is, I would hate to see you destroy that. She and I will work it out, in time.”

Liam’s eyes narrowed as he glanced over again at his mother, who was whispering something to Serendipity, clearly soothing and placating to her. It boiled his blood to see it. Did she not remember the harsh words Serendipity had for both himself and his father? The criticism that had been so poorly placed, so brashly exposed with carelessness and utter disgust? But apparently those degrading words had been forgotten, replaced instead by a need to cater to a woman who he felt did not deserve an ounce of sympathy.

Turning back to his father, he patted his arm supportively. “This will all blow over. Maybe she just doesn’t know you’re upset about it.”

“Perhaps,” Lucian mused, barely able to hide the cynicism in his voice. The truth was, she knew his feelings perfectly well as they had discussed the whole situation in detail only hours earlier. But he didn’t want to trouble his only son with that information. “Rhiannon looks pretty tonight.”

“Yeah, she could make a paper bag look sexy,” Liam replied, elbowing his father in the side with a grin. “C’mon, I know you’re happy for me, old man.”

Lucian chuckled and swung an arm around his son’s shoulders before leaning into him, his eyes twinkling. “She’s a treasure, boyo. Make sure you hold on to her.”

“I will. Trust me.” Liam looked over to where she was slow dancing with her father, and his smile softened. “I don’t think I could ever let her go now.”

“I don’t think you ever could, period.” Lucian leaned back to sip his champagne casually, enjoying himself. “I used to wonder if you were ever going to get over her. You’ve always been persistent, but I wasn’t sure she’d come around. I’m glad to see that she finally has.”

“You didn’t like her for a long time,” Liam remembered, eyeing his father sadly. “That used to make me so mad, that you couldn’t see what I could see. She’s not just pretty on the outside, dad.”

“You’re right, I didn’t see it.” Lucian’s eyes drifted over to watch his old friend dancing with the girl. “Things weren’t easy for her for a very long time, or for Rohan. I’m glad to see them both smiling for once.”

“You mean he wasn’t always so stuffy?” Liam joked, though his father was completely serious.

“No, he had humor once and he used to smile. Granted, he’s never been good with expressing his emotions, but I wouldn’t call him stuffy. But Serendipity changed him, and her influence over Rhiannon was, in my eyes, very much like a poison.”

“But none of you intervened to try and stop it?” Liam asked, though he knew in his heart that nothing like that was ever easy.

“There wasn’t much we could do. With the feud that formed between Rohan and Brock, we Dryads were divided. Clynn and I tried to hold things together for a time, but even we became disillusioned. Rohan made it expressly clear to us that we were not to interfere with his marriage to Serendipity, so we stayed back. I had no idea just how bad it would scar their child.” Lucian downed the rest of his champagne bitterly and let out a heavy sigh.

Liam reached for a glass himself and sipped, lost in thought. “Well, it’s over now, at least. Rhia and Rohan are both better, and I could care less what happens to that cold, frigid bitch.”

To his surprise, his father laughed.

“My sentiments exactly.”

Liam smiled, but it didn’t quite reach his eyes as he looked over to his mother again, his little sister Cilla sitting with her. How long had his own family been divided by his mother’s insistence to keep a safe, emotional distance from both him and his father? She committed herself to her duty as a Muse, and played the part of wife and mother, but clearly she was nothing but aloof.

As if she could sense he was thinking about her, she looked up and met his eyes. It was cool, clear green into his rich blue, and he felt his lips curve into a smirk as he raised his glass to her in acknowledgement. She smiled back, bowing her head slightly, before turning back to Serendipity. Beside her, Cilla glanced over to look at Liam as well, only to blush and turn away.