Worlds of Obsession (Celtic Otherworlds) (17 page)

             
“Yes.”

             
“I’m four hundred and twenty-two.”

             
Her eyes widened in shock, but then she laughed.  “If that’s true, you could be my fifteenth great-grandfather or something.”

             
He gave her a mock frown.  “That’s not funny, and I’m not that old, really.  Carman, for one, is well over a thousand as far as anyone knows.”

             
Somehow, that wasn’t surprising.  “I can see that.  I can
feel
that about her, almost like all that time is a part of her.”  She studied her hands for a moment, then smiled.  “How long have you been living in a secret location in Glasgow?”

             
“A long time.  And that ‘secret location’ is the headquarters of the Guild in Glasgow.  We work to keep the bad guys off the streets.  If the Dark Sidhe hunters get too plentiful, it would be a massacre.  Humans wouldn’t have a chance.  It’s an honor to fight with the Guild.  It’s been my whole life, for so long now.  It’s been all I’ve had…”

             
“And now?”  Liv swallowed and looked up at him.  “What is this between us Bastien?  I’ve never felt like this before.  Tell me what’s happening.”

             
“I don’t know.  I wish I did.”  Bastien’s fingers curled into her hair, tugging gently to lift her face to his.  “I shouldn’t want so badly to kiss you”, he said softly.

             
“I want you to kiss me.  And I want even more.  I want all of you, Bastien.  I know it’s crazy, but I do.”

             
A growl escaped his throat at her words, and he buried his face in the side of her neck, his breaths coming short and fast even as his cock strained at his fly to get to her. 

A Fomoiri Demon was a creature of all things physical and carna
l, he knew this.  Fighting and sex were their two biggest vices, and frequent indulgence in one or both were their life blood, as necessary as food or water to any other corporal being.  Yet each Fomoiri had only one mate, one female that was his perfect match in every way, and once he found her, he would cleave to her and only her, craving her in a way that many other species suspected bordered on madness.  Perhaps it did.

Only his mate could accept his seed and bear hi
s young, and a demon could spend centuries searching for her, waiting for that moment of recognition; his own female to possess and protect like the rarest of treasures.  The one female he would desire above all others, who would take his heart and give him her body, which he would never, ever have enough of.  In a sense, he would become completely addicted to her, needing her above all else.

             
Bastien had found his female when he was only two hundred years old… a very young age and a very lucky thing for a Fomoiri.  She was a daughter of the Fae, an ethereal beauty with a kind heart and a quick mind.  The perfect balance of light to his natural darkness.  He had known the instant he saw her that she was his, and had gone immediately to claim her from her father, but not before a soul-searing kiss that he would remember for all of time.  Because that was one of the few he’d ever had from her.

The two hundred or so years since had been little better than hell, and though he’d fought every battle since then with a death wish, he couldn’t seem to get there, either.  And so Bastien, known throughout Anwnn and the human realm as well as
one of the fiercest, bravest, and most cunning of warriors, had lived in the darkness, devoid of any real life.  Waiting.

Until now.

What was he supposed to do now?  What
was
happening here?  Perhaps he could take just another kiss.  Maybe he had only imagined how good the first one was…  He raised his head, and then the voice called out…

“Hellllooooo!”

Bastien sprang guiltily away from Liv as if she were a red hot coal, landing in the seat next to her on the sofa just before Carman breezed into the room. 
Shit
.  Conan followed behind her, looking apologetic and a bit overwhelmed.  Carman could do that to you.

Bastien eyed her cautiously as she sat down in overstuffed chair opposite the sofa
and gave them both a brilliant smile.  “So… how are things going?”

At this point, it was more than obvious that Carman knew
exactly
how things were going, because he had already established that she was up to something.  And that something had to do with the mysterious appearance of a beautiful female and his unaccountable and earth-shattering attraction to her.  His cock was
still
hard, for fuck’s sake.  Even with Carman standing there making him feel like he’d almost been caught with his hand in the cookie jar.

“What did you do Carman”, he growled at her.  “Did you give me a potion?  Put a spell on me?  A curse?”

She looked at him, amusement sparkling in her eyes and a little smile curling her rosebud lips.  “Why?  What’s wrong Bastien dear?”  He eyes flicked to his lap before returning to his face with a look of feigned innocence.  “Ohhh…”

She knows
all right, damn her
.

He growled again and started to rise from his seat,
his eyes trained on the little Witch that had him in such misery.

She put her hands up
, and he sat back, hard, even though she hadn’t even touched him. 
Damn Witch…

             
She rolled her eyes in mock exasperation.  “Calm down Demon.  I had nothing to do with
that
.”  She flicked her hand in a gesture towards his lap.  “I only brought the female to Glasgow.  The rest is all
you
.”

             
Liv’s eyes widened at her words.  “
You
sent me that letter?  Do you know I almost got killed looking for that place on Brighton Street?  Does it even exist?”

             
“Oh, you were never in any real danger, dear.  I made sure Bastien was there in plenty of time.”

             
Now it was Bastien’s turn to give Carman an incredulous look.  “
You
were the one who called me on my cell?”

             
“Yup.”  Carman crossed her arms and looked quite pleased with herself.

             
Liv sat forward now, her eyes locked on the too-beautiful-to-be-real face across from her.  “You know who I really am, don’t you?”

             
An angry Bastien interrupted before Carman could answer.  “You brought her here?  You brought her here and dumped her in the middle of our world when
she doesn’t know the first thing about it?
  She could have been killed!  Or worse!”

             
Liv wondered what could possibly be worse than death, but quickly decided that she probably
didn’t
want to know.

             
Carman sighed as if Bastien was being dense and told him, “I gave her to
you
, my big, bad Fomoirian warrior.  I knew you would protect her.”

             
“But she knows
nothing
….” he insisted.

             
“I gave her a book”, Carman said defensively.  “It was a start…”

             
“She did”, Liv told him.  “It was called ‘The Celtic Myths and Legends’, by somebody Dreyfus, I think.  I read most of it on the plane.”

             
Bastien frowned even harder.  “You gave her a book written by a
human
?  You know how much of that shit is true?  Practically none of it!  The poor lass must have been terrified after just the first page.”

             
“Well, I was going to write some things down myself, but I’ve been
very
busy.  It was the best book I could find”, Carman said defensively.

             
“Wait”, Liv interrupted.  “All that stuff in the book… is it true or not?”

             
Carman sighed.  “Well, some of the basics are close enough, and most of it is quite realistic… from a human’s point of view.  You see, in the past, some Sidhe
may
have passed the time by appearing to humans in strange forms or playing tricks on them in one way or another.  It was fun while it lasted, but now that everyone has cell phone cameras we’ve had to lay low.  No one wants their race to be discovered, because life would never be the same after that.  You could just
forget
about ever having any privacy.”

             
Liv could just imagine the news trucks lined up, trying to capture the first image of a Kelpie or a Vampire.  She certainly understood why they would want to remain nothing more than a myth.

             
“And you led me to Glasgow?”

             
“I did.  And I was going to meet you there and fill you in on things… really, I was.  But then fate took over and you got attacked in that alley.  I love it when fate steps in like that, it’s like we’re working together!”  Carman clasped her hands together and smiled happily.

             
Liv drew her eyebrows together in confusion.  “It was my fate to get attacked in an alley?”

             
“Yes!  And then I sent Bastien to save you.  It was
perfect
.”

             
“But, why Bastien?” she asked.

Bastien narrowed his eyes. 
Why not me?
  Did she not like him?

“Why not Bastien, dear?  You need someone to show you the ropes, and Bastien
here doesn’t have anything better to do.  Besides, he’s nice to look at, don’t you think?”

Oh yes, she most certainly did…
  “So it’s true then?  I’m really not human?”

“No, you’re so much better than human, you’ll see.”

Conan appeared in the doorway, his hands behind his back and standing straight and tall, looking every bit the butler.  He politely cleared his throat.  “Ms. Carman, will you be joining us for dinner this evening?”

             
“Oh, no.  Thank you, Conan.  I really have to run.  I’m meeting some friends for drinks downtown.  Apparently they think I don’t get out enough, but things are busy, you know.  Bye, now!”

             
And then she was just…
gone
.

             
“Hey!”  Liv cried.  “She didn’t answer my question!  Gahhhh!”

Chapter 17

              Liv stared at the place Carman had been just a moment before.  “Damn.  I wanted to ask her about my parents, too.  And why I never even had a clue… and Gran…”

             
“Don’t worry.  I have a feeling we’ll be seeing her again.  She just doesn’t like to divulge too much information at once.  Not her style.”

             
“Bastien?”

             
“Yeah?”

             
“I’m really confused right now.  In fact, I’ve been really confused since Monday morning.”
              “I know baby.  It’ll get better, I promise.  Why don’t you go have a nice warm bath, then we can have some dinner.  Maybe Conan will make us a picnic and we can eat out by the water.  It will help take your mind off things for a while.”

             
“Okay.”  Hmmm… this must be nice Bastien.

             
“I’ll do that right away, Sir.”  They both turned to find Conan standing in the doorway.  “Your bath is ready, and your new clothes have arrived Miss Liv”, he told her and then gave her a wink.  “I put them all in your room for you.”

             
Liv knew she was blushing, wondering about what kind of black lacey lingerie Conan had procured for her.  She blushed even further thinking about wearing it for Bastien.  That was, if she ever got the chance.  Bastien looked at her oddly, then his eyes narrowed on Conan, but he didn’t say anything.  “I guess I’ll go have my bath then, before the water gets cold.”

             
When she opened the door to her room, the closet was open and she could see the neat rows of clothing hanging there.  It was way more than she needed… just how long was she expected to stay here, anyway?  And there on the bed, much to her chagrin, was a black lace bra and panty set, along with a pair of jeans and a pretty silk top.  She couldn’t help giggling to herself as she stripped down for her bath.  Why did Conan… no she wasn’t even going to go there.

             
The bath was warm and bubbly and scented with lavender, but she found she couldn’t relax for long.  She was far too restless and excited.  A half hour later, she was out and dressed in the clothes Conan had left, black lace included.  She found a pair of sandals in the recently over-stocked closet and slipped them on before practically skipping down the stairs to find Bastien.  Somehow, being near Bastien always felt kind of like Christmas morning.

He was in the kitchen talking to Conan, and when he saw her,
he smiled at her uncertainly and grabbed a basket of food that was waiting on the table.  “Come on, before the light goes.”

             
They walked outside into the fresh, crisp evening and Liv inhaled deeply.  The air was different here somehow, lighter, sweeter.  Bastien walked ahead of her, and she hurried to catch up.  He seemed to know exactly where he was going.  When he stopped on a grassy outcrop that overlooked a wide expanse of glistening sea with the sun hanging above it, just beginning to glow red as it began its descent, she drew in a reverent breath.

             
They both sank down into the lush grass, and Bastien began to unpack the food.

             
“I can see why you chose this place for a picnic.  It’s beautiful.”

             
Bastien shrugged.  “The whole isle is beautiful.  As is all of Scotia.”  He handed her a sandwich and she peeked between the slices of bread, hoping it would be something she recognized, but not knowing quite what to expect.

             
“Ham and cheese”, he told her with a little smile.  “Okay?”

             
“Yeah.”  Relieved, she took a bite and chewed slowly while she took in the view.  “Thank you, for bringing me here.  And for, you know, watching out for me.”

             
Bastien was looking rather uncomfortable, and his brow was creased into an uneasy frown.

“What’s wrong
?”  Liv reached out to touch his arm, but he flinched back, away from her.

He sighed and shook his head a little. 
“Look, we obviously need to talk, but I just don’t know exactly what to say.  I… I’ve been thinking.”  He shoved a hand through his hair and looked up at her with dark, troubled eyes.  “Obviously there’s some kind of attraction between us, but… I shouldn’t have kissed you.  Nothing can happen here”, he gestured between the two of them, “and I think it’s best if we just forget we ever kissed.”

             
Liv was stunned for a moment.  This was
not
what she had expected.  She had thought maybe they were making progress.  This was supposed to be a romantic picnic, and she had worn the back lace… but obviously she had misread everything.  “You want to forget we ever kissed?” Her voice sounded small, disbelieving.  She couldn’t forget that kiss, it would be impossible.

             
He nodded.  “Yeah.  It’s for the best, baby.  You’re no good for me, and I’m definitely no good for you.  I hunt and I kill, Liv.  That’s all I know how to do anymore, all I
should
be doing, and whatever this is, it’s just getting in the way of me doing my job.  I’ve got guys on the case right now, and as soon as we get the all clear, I’ll bring you back to Glasgow and we can go our separate ways before this shit gets over our heads.  Okay?”

             
Liv slowly stood, and looking down at Bastien for a long moment.  He didn’t look happy, in fact he looked kind of tormented, but right now she didn’t care what he was feeling.  He had basically just slammed her down on the mat, and hurt her pride in the process.  Here she was with her silly crush, dreaming about being with Bastien like a fawning teenager, and he didn’t want anything to do with her.  Bastard!  She flung her half-eaten sandwich at him in an uncharacteristic pique of temper.  “Yeah.  Okay.  Just great”, she mumbled, frustrated that she couldn’t think of anything really clever to say.  Then she turned and stalked back towards the house before he could see the tears that threatened to fall at any moment.  “Asshole.”

              Bastien sighed and looked out at the ever-changing water.  He had done the right thing.  He knew he had.  It would be wrong on so many levels for him to even try to become involved with Liv.  But damn, this whole situation
sucked
.  He felt like he had just torn his own fucking heart out of his chest and stomped on it.  He put his head down between his knees, feeling almost physically sick.  The look on her face… he had hurt her, she had obviously wanted
more
from him.  The
more
he couldn’t give her, as much as he might want to. 

And
now he was completely messed up and beyond irritable.  Extreme sexual frustration would do that to a Demon on the best of days.  Which was why their sex drive shut down when their mate died, giving them just enough time to get their affairs in order before
fucking following their female to the realm of the dead
.  Not sitting around two hundred years later with a hard-on that could cut steel, and being
still fucking alive and damned confused as hell! 
Bastien threaded his fingers through his hair and pulled, growling in frustration.  He thought briefly about writhing in emotional and physical agony, but that creepy Elf might still be around, watching.  So he just sat there, miserable.  A couple of hours after darkness had fallen, he packed up the rest of the mostly uneaten food and went to find his bed.