Capri's Fate (26 page)

"This is my hiding place. I have never brought another here. When I am tired, I retreat here and rest. We may speak. No one will hear us." Xyno sat on the nearest boulder.

Thall glanced around at the damp rock walls. "When I was younger, our cousin, Botta described something to me. I thought he was trying to scare me. When I told Lachesis, she looked afraid."

"Afraid? Fates fear nothing."

"Botta said," Thall glanced at his hands then raised his gaze to his sister's. "Xyno, is it possible to kill a Fate?"

Chapter Twenty-Three

Capri
stood next to the bright red, rental car and watched the time draw seconds closer to 5:00. "Ten, nine, eight, seve—"

"Six
, five, four, three, two, one." Thall slurred the numbers as he breathed across her ear. "I'm deeply crushed that you thought I'd be late after having waited a small eternity for this moment."

A tingle danced in her belly. She turned and snuggled into his arms. "I'll make it up to you this evening."

"Pinky swear?" He kissed the tip of her nose.

Capri
tightened her grip, squeezing their bodies together. She ground her hips against his. "Pinky swear."

He glanced around the rental agency parking lot. "So, this is
Michigan?"

"No, this is a parking lot at the airport. Get in the car. I'll show you
Michigan." Capri slammed her car door shut and turned the key in the ignition.

"How was the flight?" Thall locked his restraint.

"How every flight I've ever flown on has been. Horrible." Capri drove to the airport exits and merged into the traffic. "How was your time at home?"

"Interesting."

"That's it? One word. Interesting."

"Because of us, the Fates had a bitch fight."

Capri glanced at Thall with raised eyebrows then refocused on her driving.

"It seems Atropos and Clotho aren't happy about you being human."

"Well excuse-fucking-me."

"Anyway, there's a test and if we pass, we can be together."

Capri gripped the steering wheel. "They don't have the right to decide if we can be together or not. I'm an adult and you're six thousand years old. I'd say we're both capable of making that decision on our own.

"No Bill of Rights when ruled by a Fate. And as far as I can figure there's no overthrowing the monarchy."

Taking a few calming breaths, Capri tempered her tone. "What kind of a test?"

"I can't tell you."

"What the fuck!"

"Still a little edgy from the flight?"

"Ya think? We hit turbulence over Lake Erie. I hate turbulence. It makes planes shake and fall down." She shuddered.

Thall watched the green fields of hay and corn pass by the car window. "So where are we going?"

Capri straightened her back and smiled. "Fox Ridge Lake. My parents' vineyard is twenty minutes away from the lake. Mom knew she wouldn't get dad far from the winery, so she settled for a cottage nearby. There's a big fireplace and a rope swing."

"Have you told your parents about us? Meaning mostly me."

"I told them I was bringing a friend."

Thall chuckled. "A hot, sexy stud friend?"

Capri tossed a sideways glance at him. "When I wasn't thinking about throwing up or dying during the flight, I figured out what to tell them about how we met."

"Uh, is this where I should mention Fates are not very good at lying?"

"It's not a lie. It's just not the total truth. We met at a convention. My parents'll assume it's some work related thing and move on. Suggestion, if the conversation lags, my dad loves to talk about the winery, boats and fishing."

"Winery. Boats. Fishing. Got it. Tell me something about the winery so I don’t sound stupid."

Capri hit the turn signal, moved to the turn lane and left the main highway for a country road. "Wine making 101. Grow grapes. Harvest grapes. Mash grapes. Ferment. Voilà, wine."

"Grow. Harvest. Mash. I'm getting quite an education."

She turned to face him. "I'm really happy you're here. I've just noticed how much I missed you for the six hours we were apart."

"I'm happy that you're happy. And to me, it was
, in your terms, months." Thall leaned back on his seat. "Ready for more wine learning. What else you got?"

"Ahem. In my best tour guide voice
." She smiled. "Little Fox Winery was founded in 1928 by Harold P. Gray. You know, I never knew what the P stood for."

"Is that part of the tour speech?"

Capri rolled her eyes. "Anyway, they make a great Cabernet and a Zinfandel. Ooh and a really nice dry Riesling. But my favorite is the Chardonnay. It's blended with our grapes and the ones from the vineyard across the river, Walnut Tree."

"I think I'm going to enjoy this. Lots and lots of wine to sample."

"As kids I think we drank more wine than soda. If dad could figure out a vintage that would work in coffee, he'd pour it into his morning cuppa joe." She checked for traffic and slowed the car at the top of a knoll. The view before them was acres of grapevines strung up in parallel rows.

She pointed to the right. "That's
Little Fox there and you can just see the river. On the other side is Walnut Tree. We'll be at the cottage soon."

Pressing the gas, she inhaled and released a deep breath. "Okay, I'm calmer now. Let's talk about this test you can't tell me about."

"Short version. Lachesis, Clotho and Atropos had a discussion. Bitch fight would be more accurate. Atropos stormed off in a snit. Clotho laid out the rules. Rule actually, I'm not allowed to tell you what the test is. If you…no, make that when you pass then there's a second part."

"Yeah, loving the concept. Let's see if I have this right, if I pass both, we can remain together? A lot of pressure on me."

"Hey." Thall waved his hand. "I'm about to meet your parents. You want to know how many Fates, in all of time, have had to meet the parents?"

As they crested another small hill, a lake appeared in the clearing.
Capri sighed. "Fox Lake. We're here."

"Glad I'm not human. I think I'd be nervous."

"They're going to be so happy to meet you."

"Hope you're right."

Capri turned off the road onto a smaller dirt lane. The car jostled on the uneven pavement. She pulled into the driveway of a two-story white cottage, parked the car and honked.

The cabin door swung open at the same time as
Capri's car door. She hopped out and raced over to greet her parents, Thall lagged behind at a slower pace.

Capri
reached back, grabbed Thall's hand and pulled him beside her. "Mom. Dad. This is Thall."

"Hall?" Her mother raised an eyebrow.

"No, ma'am. Thhhhal. It's an ancient name. My parents were into really old things."

"Nice to meet you, Thhhhal. I'm Donald Gray, but everyone calls me Bud." He held out his hand.

Thall grasped and shook it. "Bud? Like in…no that's a beer. Never mind."

Bud tossed back his head, laughed, pulled Thall closer and slapped him on the back. "Speaking of beer. Want a tall cold one?"

"Please. Long drive. Throat's parched."

"I'm Tiffany. And I'm a hugger." She squeezed Thall in a tight embrace then turned to her daughter. "I so want to hear everything about this new friend. Come inside, both of you. Bud, get the poor man a drink."

"I'll just get the bags. Be right back." Thall turned and hurried to the car.

Capri
's mother leaned close. "He's gorgeous. When Zoe and Elana catch sight of him…stand back."

"Are my charming sisters-in-law going to be dropping by?"

"Haven't had a chance to call anyone. Thought we might just make you a surprise."

The cabin door banged
as Thall entered. Tiffany looked up. "You're room is ready, hon. Show Thall around and meet us in the living room."

Capri
moved toward the stairs. "Follow me. I want to change into a tank, some shorts and flip-flops."

~ * * ~

When they entered the living room, Bud handed Thall a cold beer. He chugged several mouthfuls. "Thank you. What a spectacular cottage you have. When Capri suggested coming up here, I envisioned a one-room cabin, outhouse and a rowboat. I wasn't expecting a satellite dish, hot tub and a Lake Cruiser 250D parked out by the dock."

Bud raised his eyebrows and grinned. "You like boats?"

Thall nodded. "What is it? Thirty? Thirty five feet?"

"Forty. Twin GM Detroit Diesel Inboard Engines. Come on down. Have a looksee."

"Now Bud." Tiffany shook her finger at him. "They just got here."

"The man flew half way across the country. Then drove here with
Capri. He could use some man chatter."

"Let them go, Mom. We can make supper. I'm kind of hungry. Didn't eat much on the plane."

"Turbulence?"

Capri
nodded and followed her mother into the kitchen.

As Thall finished his second piece of lemon meringue pie, he moaned something about it being
heaven on earth.
Tiffany and Capri cleared the table and returned with a steaming pot of tea. Capri's mother filled three teacups. She handed one to her husband and one to Capri. "You sure you don't want any tea, Thall?"

He shook his head. "Not a tea drinker. But I am willing to finish off the last of this Zinfandel. Excellent vintage."

Bud grinned as he poured the last of the wine into Thall's' empty glass. "We keep the extra special wines for family."

Tiffany sipped her tea and settled back on her chair. "So, how did you two meet?"

Capri glanced at Thall. "At a convention."

"To be more precise." Thall swallowed a mouthful of wine. "A sex toy convention.
Capri's friend, Kat, dragged her to the show."

Capri
eased the grip on her teacup before she snapped the handle off.

"And what were you doing there?" Her mother raised one eyebrow and smiled at Thall.

"Checking out the latest gadget's. Got to keep up to date. Fifty shades of interesting and all that."

Bud placed his cup on the table. "Did you purchase anything?"

Thall shook his head. "I didn't. But she did." He tilted his head toward Capri. "Almost maxed out her credit card."

Capri
reached over, grabbed his glass and gulped the last of Thall's wine.

Her mother tapped her arm. "Good for you, dear. Keep the excitement alive. Now why don't you two go for a stroll along the beach? Bud and I can clean this up. Go, get some fresh air and stretch your legs after traveling all day."

Thall scooted back his chair, stood and held out his hand. Capri grabbed it, rose, then led him out of the cabin and to the water's edge. She kicked her sandals off and placed them on the edge of the dock. Thall took off his shoes and socks and rolled up his pants.

Capri
reached out her hand. He intertwined his fingers in hers as he fell in step beside her. Their feet crunched through the sand as they made their way across the beach to the edge of the lake. The sun had started its slow descent and cast fading rays on the lake's surface. The sunset's colors bobbed as the waves jostled the light.

He wadded in to ankle deep. "How can you stand being here, if you are so afraid of the water?"

She kicked at the sand. "Water is not really the problem. It's boats. I'm not in control when I'm on a boat and that scares me which makes me sick. Same with flying."

He stepped out of the water and drew her close. "
So how do you get on a plane?"

"I lie." She snuggled in, feeling the warmth of his body pressed against her side. "I tell myself it's a limousine or a train. And I don't look out the window after takeoff."

Thall opened his mouth to speak, but stopped and started again. "I don't know which thought to start with." Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed a log on the sand and led her to it. When they settled on the log, he picked up her hand and stroked the back of it. "So, you're saying that when I put the plane down on that little runway in Indonesia you were pretty much—"

"Panicked. Freaking out. Hysterical." She squeezed his hand. "But only on the inside. A corporate VP can't be seen losing her cool. Or decorum, as I should say."

A fish jumped and splashed back into the water. A boat jostled against the dock.

Capri
leaned her head on his shoulder. "When you told me to go back and lock everything down, I was fine. I had something to focus on. But when I seat belted myself in, I almost threw up. It hit me then what was happening and there was nothing I could do about it. I hate not being in control."

He released her hand, moved, placed his arm around her and pulled her close. "I'm so sorry."