The Gazing Globe (9 page)

Only one of the Sidhe, or spirit-race, could play so enchantingly. She could feel every fiber of her body responding to the call he was giving. She wanted to run to him and be one with him. But now was the time to listen, not act.

***

"Good morning everyone," Blain smiled warmly as he entered the kitchen. As he sat at the kitchen table, he rolled up the sleeves of a brown flannel work shirt.

"Well, you're looking much better this morning," Hugh remarked and patted Blain on the shoulder.

"I do. In fact, I feel like anything is possible." He grinned broadly at his uncle.

Hugh poured them both a cup of coffee as Shayla andAftonwalked into the kitchen.Aftonwent to the refrigerator and began to place items on the kitchen counter for breakfast. Shayla sat beside Blain.

"You know, you don't have to do this every morning," Blain said toAftonas he watched her begin cooking breakfast.

"I love it."Aftonshot him a bright smile. "I cook all the time at home. My six brothers and my father need a hardy start to the day, and Shayla isn't much of a hand in the kitchen."

"Enough of that, young lady. I have other urgent business to attend rather than a family's oversized appetites. “Hugh, pour me some tea, will you?" Shayla requested.

"How many brothers did you say you had? Six?" Blain grinned. He was glad to finally seeAftonstand up to Shayla, even if only jokingly.

"Yes," she replied. "There's Gawain, Taurus, Drew, Sean, Ian and Bolt. Then there's Mother and Father, of course.

"And you're their little girl." Blain stated it as a fact.

"Yes, that's what I am, and it's the bane of my life. How did you know?"Aftonstopped her work to look at him.

"Just a hunch." He winked at the others. "You have a well-sheltered air about you."

"If you mean she's a virgin, then you'd be correct," Shayla mumbled as she sipped her tea.

"Shayla'"Aftonturned quickly and glared at her mentor. "That's no one's business. Now, eat your toast!"

Blain watched Shayla smile wickedly asAftonslammed the plate of fresh toast down onto the table.

"Temper, too." Blain shot the older woman a mischievous grin. "I'll bet she gives those brothers hell."

"I do! Now, all of you be quiet and eat. Your breakfast will get cold,"Aftonordered as she stalked back to the stove.

The rest of the breakfast went by without incident. Blain felt a little ashamed that he'd joined Shayla in teasingAfton. She was obviously sensitive about her lack of worldliness.

Somehow, he found the fact that she was a virgin refreshing. It was a sad statement of the times to admit he might never have met one. The more he thought about it, the more endearingAftonbecame. She was just a little slip of a thing, and from the things she'd said, he d suspected her brothers were probably hulking farmers or construction workers. The kind of men who would gladly mangle anyone who looked at their charming sister for more than a glance.

He once again found himself comparingAftonto Rhiannon. Rhi was dark, alluring and sophisticated, whileAftonwas sweet, warm and as inviting as sunshine. He mentally shook himself for the comparison.

Doing such a thing was like comparing two prize chickens at a county fair. Since he didn't want the same ever done to him, he redirected his thoughts.

Like a storm coming in off the ocean, something dour suddenly entered into his consciousness again. A warning of some kind that he just couldn't understand. Everything seemed perfect. The sun was up, he had friends and family around him. Why did he feel like some ominous, dark cloud was on the horizon?

Why couldn't he just be happy with what he had and forget the dreaded premonition that was constantly haunting him?

***

Aftonwalked to the field where Blain worked. His current project was fixing a pump on a stock tank.

She had his lunch in her basket and, as usual, half the livestock at her heels. She turned and laughed at their antics as they tried to keep up with her. Animals knew when there was someone in their midst who loved them. She knew they understood she could never harm a single one of them. And Hugh told her that Blain's farming instincts seemed to stop in the fields. He never butchered any of the animals he personally raised. And that fact was about as sweet a thing asAftonhad ever heard. Warrior class he might be, but it sounded as if his heart was pure honey.

Blain watchedAftonwalk toward him and laughed out loud. She'd added on a stray cat, two geese from a nearby pond and several more horses to her menagerie. As she neared, he turned and splashed cool water onto his face and bare chest.

It no longer bothered him that she gathered animals to her. He had been raised loving them and the land.Aftonsimply had that in common with him.

Strangely, his thoughts drifted to Rhiannon again. She'd phoned earlier in the day. When he'd made excuses about needing to stay near the farm and work on the weekend, she'd become angry and refused to talk. So their contact had ended badly again. Somehow, her anger should bother him more than it did.

He tried to imagine Rhi's dark, sultry figure gathering herbs, working in the garden, feeding livestock, or bringing him lunch the wayAftondid. The picture wouldn't come, and he chided himself yet again for the comparison. It was a bad habit he was drifting into. Just like the bad habit he had of looking to the future and feeling some disastrous event looming there. By sheer force of will, he let his mind go blank and thought of only the beauty in front of him. And that made him smile.

"What are you grinning about?" Afton laughed when the cat meowed for attention, so she bent to scratch its head.

"You and the entire contents of TheArk." He took the basket from her and walked to a nearby tree for shade.

"I know. I haven't the heart to send them away. Besides, they keep me company while I explore your woods."

"And what do you find so fascinating about my woods, youngAfton?"

"Herbs. There are different kinds here than in the forests back home. And I'm not that young, young Blain," she countered.

"What are you? Nineteen, maybe twenty?" Blain opened the basket and almost drooled over the fresh bread, honey, fruit and cheese he found.

"I was twenty-three last October."Aftonplaced her hands on her hips and grinned Blain sat beneath a tree and openly stared "You look much younger, though you wear the ripe old age of twenty-three well."

"You're as bad as my family and Shay la No one takes me seriously. Well, just for that, you can eat lunch by yourself.

You're much too old for me," she joked.

She turned and made a show of dramatically flouncing off, but Blain jumped to his feet and caught her arm before she got far.

"Afton, I'm sorry. I was just teasing," he apologized.

She looked at him and tried to pretend she was upset, but she ended up laughing instead. "Well, I guess I don't mind eating with an older man. After all, it isn't as though someone your age could pose a threat to a girl. I've heard older men find it difficult to get up to anything, if you know what I mean."

"Why you little..." He laughed at the cut to his virility and made a mock pass at her.

She countered by running behind an oak tree to hide, laughing as she did so. "What's the matter, Blain?

Winded already? Maybe someone your age shouldn't exert himself so much. You might break something vital," she playfully provoked as she dodged him yet again. "Maybe you should find some older woman to chase. You know, someone who's desperate enough to let you catch her?"

"That's it! No more Mr. Nice Guy!" Blain laughed again as he faked going one direction around the oak tree. She was caught off guard, and he tackled her to the ground.

Laughing hysterically at the mock battle,Aftontried to squirm free and almost succeeded, but Blain was on her in an instant. He pinned her arms over her head and rested his weight on his elbows. His body pinned hers down.

"All right, you little minx. I promise I won't make any more remarks about your age if you don't make any about my virility. Besides," he stopped to pant and grin at her, "I'm only seven years older than you.

That's not really old now, is it?"

"No Blain. It isn't that old,"Afton's chest heaved as she looked up at him, trying to catch her own breath. "I just want people to quit treating me as though I were a child."

"You're no child." Blain gazed down into her blue eyes and felt her soft body beneath his. Suddenly, the situation turned more serious. The laughter was gone, and he was all too aware that the body beneath his was very womanly. There was nothing childish about her. Every desirable female attribute was in the exact right place.

For moments, he searched her face. His hands released her arms and moved to her soft hair. It had come loose from its fastener and lay about her in long disarray He'd never before seen it down like that, and the sunlight glowed in its depths. He felt her hands come up to his shoulders and tentatively caress them. He realized she was uncertain as to what to do, and she was searching for an answer in his gaze.

Blain knew he should leave her alone. She was an innocent and certainly not the kind of woman who usually appealed to him and his experienced needs. But need her he did. The evidence of that need lay heavy and thick within his jeans. And she was so sweet and inviting.

He lowered his mouth to hers and gently wrapped one arm around her shoulders. To his surprise, she responded with all the urgency of a woman long denied. Her mouth opened to his, and their tongues explored each other, thrusting as their bodies might The soft moan which came from deep within her throat almost drove Blain crazy with desire. For someone who was untouched,AftonO'Malley responded with astonishing passion. It drove him to the edge of control, and he knew that someday someone would hold this beautiful miracle in his arms.

He recoiled at the idea. The thought was beyond unacceptable. It actually angered him He kissed her more forcefully because of that anger.

Aftonhad never believed a man like Blain would be interested in her. But there was a powerful feeling that came with the newfound knowledge that he was interested. From the first time she'd seen him, she'd been attracted to him, but she'd never thought that she would find herself in his arms and that being there could be so glorious. All the handfastings she'd seen in the Order had been nothing more than rituals to her before now. Once, she'd come across two fairies making love in the woods, but she had quickly turned away. Their passionate cries had been little more than an embarrassment, and she'd never believed she'd allow herself to lose control that way. Until now. Now she knew what she'd been missing, and she also knew that Blain was the only one who could fill the need stirring inside her.

Blain could feel the deep passion withinAfton. It was in her gaze, her touch and the way she moved beneath him. And he had never known contact with another being could be so elemental. What they were experiencing wasn't just sexual, it was a kind of spiritual joining. Every moment brought about a profound bonding as he held her closer and traced small kisses along her jaw and her neck. She arched for him beautifully as he began to caress her body. He wanted their clothes gone, and he wanted them together in some peaceful place deep in the woods. He knew of such a place, and some instinct told him how to get her there, but he had to go slow.Aftonwas new to passion and shouldn't be rushed. She had to come with him knowing they'd make love and wanting it to happen. He'd made monumental mistakes with Rhiannon by moving too fast. It wasn't going to happen this time. This was a completely different kind of relationship—one that had all the promise of the future. It deserved greater care and respect.

He used every ounce of control he had and pushed himself away fromAfton. The sudden withdrawal from her was unusually painful. It was almost as if someone had physically torn something away from him.

For a moment, he had to close his eyes against the pain. He'd never felt anything like it before.

Afton wanted Blain to hold her again, but common sense pushed itself into her consciousness. What would Shayla do to them? The Sorceress had been unusually lenient with her and highly tolerant of Blain and his circumstances. Would she continue to be so if she knew what had just happened between them?

"Afton, we'd better slow down and get a grip here. Don't think for a minute I don't want you. I sure as hell do. But it'll be better between us if we know more about each other first. I want to know everything you feel and need. What you like and don't like. I want that connection before making love with you. Call me old-fashioned, but that's the way I am."

Aftonsat up nodding. "Of course, you're right. I…I don't know what got into me."

He adamantly shook his head. "You haven't done a single damned thing wrong. I came on too fast. I'm sorry," Blain said as he pushed his hair off his forehead.

"There's no need for apologies on your part. It was just one of those things. And you're probably feeling guilty because of Rhiannon. You think you've betrayed her."Aftonquickly stood up and began to pull the grass from her hair.

"Rhiannon? How do you know about her?"

"Don't worry,"Aftonsaid, ignoring his question, "neither she nor anyone else will ever know about this.

It was just a silly game that got out of control. I would never cause problems between you and someone you care about, Blain." She felt horribly for them both. Blain could never be with Rhiannon, though he couldn't know that, and she could never be with him. Not while he held her and thought of another. And not so long as she couldn't summon the powers she was meant to control.

She walked away from him, and a strange tightness formed in her throat. For the first time in years, she wanted to cry. Friends of hers had blathered on for days about the loss of someone who wouldn't respond to some ardent gesture. She thought their behavior was silly and time consuming. Why would anyone actually cry over someone who obviously didn't reciprocate their feelings? In this case, Blain had admitted he was attracted to her, but she knew Rhiannon was his lover. Now she understood what her friends cried about. It hurt to be rejected by someone you cared for and wanted.