Finding the Magic (11 page)

“At first, there’s not much effect on the female except that the mental link gets a little stronger. But once the couple completes the bond, she would become like he is and they would remain a mated couple for the rest of their lives.”

“Wait a minute. Megan is a
shapeshifter
!?” Jayne gaped at him, astonished that her friend had hidden something so major from her. “I’m going to kill her!”

“Jayne, try to focus for a minute. Did you no’ hear any of what Ah just said?” Cameron’s accent thickened.

“You’re damn right and I can’t believe she didn’t tell me!”

“Forget that for a minute. Ah said that they would be stuck with each other for the rest of their lives. Can you imagine
bein
’ tied to somebody you
didnae
like forever? Worse, someone you still wanted to fuck even though you hated them?”

Jayne shoved Megan’s duplicity aside for the moment and considered Cameron’s words. She watched him stand. Pace. Even back at the wedding—it seemed like a lifetime ago—she had been drawn to him. Despite his attitude and, she admitted, maybe even a little because of it. In this very short time, she had begun to see the man underneath. He was intriguing, annoying, complicated, fascinating…hurt. The more she saw of him the more she wanted him and, despite his prickly
demeanor
, she suspected her feelings were returned. She could think of no one else she’d rather be stuck with forever.

“I like you just fine, Cameron. More than like you, actually.”

He sighed and stared at her from across the room, worry and a guarded hope in his eyes. “Ah…I like you, too. But it’s not as easy as that for me, Jayne. I need to be sure, so do you.”

He walked out, leaving her sitting alone in the kitchen with a thousand thoughts flying around in her head.

Chapter Nine

Cameron lay back on his bed and wondered what the hell had just happened. He didn’t know whether to be glad or worried that Jayne now knew it all. Perhaps this would be all she’d finally need to keep her distance. Only he wasn’t sure that was what he wanted anymore. She was an amazing woman. Full of fire and courage and so beautiful that she took his breath away every time he looked at her.

He had been so sure he knew what his beliefs were regarding the
Dearbh
Ceangal
but now they were all mixed up with his growing feelings for Jayne. It might be a long time before he was confident about it but he was willing to take the chance now. If there was the smallest possibility of a future with her…he wanted it. Somewhere in the last couple of days a tiny seed of hope had taken root in him, but it had taken Chris with his brutal honesty to make him see it.

Cam felt her presence in the hallway just as he had resigned himself to yet another sleepless night alone. He had to force himself not to rush to the door. He waited, not reading anything from her but a quiet resolution as she walked into the softly lit room. She stepped closer and his head spun with a dizzy relief as he took her in his arms. The energy of the mating bond washed over him and for the first time he
savored
it.

“I’ve decided.” She smiled slowly, mischief lighting her green eyes. “I hope you’re ready for this, Cameron.”

“Lass, Ah was ready the minute Ah saw you. In a church, no less. Ah was just waiting for the lightning to strike me down.”

He pulled the tie from her hair, letting it drop to the floor and swept his fingers though the long red strands. Jayne tilted her face up to his and he kissed her. A feather-soft pressure of his lips to hers that became nibbles, then demands, until she opened her mouth to him and let him devour her. Arousal flared to life, quick, hot, hard. The long-denied
Ceangal
soared in its wake, sending stronger waves of energy coursing over him, through him. Demanding, insistent,
take her
. They parted long enough for her to strip his sweater from him and run her hands over his chest. She drew back slightly, met his gaze and whispered, “Will I feel it?”

“Ah
dinnae
know.”

She nudged him back toward the bed, pushed him back onto it and pulled off her own sweater. “Let’s find out.” She took a wrapped condom from her pocket and tossed it to him. Cam caught it one-handed and smiled at her. “Should Ah be offended that you thought Ah would be this easy?” He shifted up until he lay fully on the soft mattress and watched as she unbuttoned her jeans and pushed them down and off along with her shoes. She laughed, clearly enjoying the role reversal. “I don’t think you’re easy, sweetheart, I was just being hopeful.”

When she joined him on the bed, she wore nothing but her sea foam-
colored
bra and panties. Her skin was creamy perfection but for the chocolate-brown birthmark high up on the inside of her thigh. One larger, vaguely oval, smudge orbited by four smaller ones. It marked her as his in a tangible way. He ran his fingers over it and shivered.

Take her
.

His breath shuddered in his chest as she crawled up the length of his body, fiery hair loose and tousled around her face. Pale skin luminous in the soft light of the bedside lamp. A stunning contrast against the dark, masculine furnishings of the bedroom. She smiled wickedly at him and paused to unbutton his jeans. Cam lifted his hips and allowed her to pull them down and off. His erection sprang free and he thought he might explode from excitement alone. Then she touched him. Just a brush of her fingertips at first, up and down the length of his cock while she watched his face. When she closed her fist around his swollen flesh, he gasped.

Instead of stroking him, she began to gently squeeze and release him, moving her thumb in small circles over the sensitive head. He sucked in air through gritted teeth, his whole world suddenly
centered
on her face and the pressure of her hand on his cock. He was helpless to prevent his hips from rising from the bed in an attempt to thrust against her hand. She merely moved with him, bringing him to the brink of orgasm but denying him the release he knew was a mortifyingly few strokes away. His hard-on pulsed against her palm in time with his heartbeat.

“
Ahh
, fuck me,” he groaned.

Jayne chuckled. “I intend to.” She released him, raising her hand to her lips and licked the evidence of his arousal from her thumb. He reached for her, feeling his hands tremble and not caring. She moved with a liquid grace, her green eyes hot on his, her mouth pink and swollen from his kiss. Jayne gripped his hands in hers and straddled him so that his cock nestled between the cheeks of her ass, against the silk of her panties.

Take her
.

Cameron moaned, finding himself suddenly short of breath. He could feel the familiar prickling in his fingertips that
signaled
the
Ceangal
and struggled for control.
Take her
. When she leaned forward, letting her hair fall down around their faces and breathed against his lips, “Do it now.” When he let go, let the magic spill out of him into her, registering the sharp pain in his hands as it did.
Colors
spilled around them, from her and from him. Red, blue, brown, pink, silver, gold. They swirled together and faded and then there was only Jayne.

His
fìor
cèile
.

“It didn’t hurt,” she whispered.

He kissed her again, drawing her tongue into his mouth and letting her take his in turn. He felt her arousal, knew she wanted him with a passion
rivaling
his own. The thin silk of her panties tore easily in his hands, revealing a triangle of red pubic hair. He felt
lightheaded
, shaky but when she rocked her hips and he felt her wet heat against him, it didn’t seem to matter. He reached behind her and unfastened her bra, tossed it away and let her breasts spill free into his hands. When he stroked her nipples with his thumbs, her moans made his cock burn.

Cameron rolled, taking her with him so that he was nestled between her legs. He bent his head to her breasts, suckling at her until her hands fisted in his hair and pulled his mouth back to hers. His fingers found her wet and ready and he caressed her folds with his damp fingertips, spreading her moisture until he could push inside her with one finger, then two. Thrusting as he stroked and circled her clitoris, Jayne moaned and clung to him, kissing him as though she wanted to crawl inside him. She came in a rush, wetting his hand with her release. While she was still clenching with orgasm, he withdrew his fingers, put the condom on and entered her.

“Cameron!”

Her body gave way reluctantly to his. Slick, wet, warmth enveloped his cock, making him grit his teeth. She wrapped her legs around his hips and he felt her internal muscles tighten and release around him as she adjusted to his girth. Cam pressed his forehead against her, breath rasping in his throat as he tried to hold on. But when she rocked her hips against him, he knew he was lost. “Jayne, love. It’s been too long,
Ah’m
sorry…Ah can’t hold on.”

She tilted her head and nipped at his chin then took his hands in hers. “Don’t.”

They began to move together, hands and bodies locked together. His heart pounded and he felt the blood rushing in his ears. Driving forward as she arched back to meet him. He felt the approach of her climax in the tension of her body, heard it in the quickening of her breath. She dug her nails into his hands and held him tight to her as she cried out her release. The clench and spasm of her body tipped him over the edge and he followed her, spilling his seed.

Cameron collapsed beside her, exhausted and fought to catch his breath. He disposed of the condom, then pulled Jayne into his arms and flipped the edge of the duvet over them. The
lightheadedness
he had felt earlier returned with a vengeance now that his body was sated. He recognized it now as a side effect from starting the
Ceangal
and knew his body needed to rest. It was the last thing he wanted to do. His
fìor
cèile
was snug against his side, her head resting beneath his collarbone. She was playing with the hair on his chest, following its trail down to his abdomen. He wanted to pull her over him, explore her without the urgency of their first mating. But his body felt heavy and even as he tried to fight it, it worsened until it was all he could do to lift his arm to caress her. As he opened his mouth to explain, sleep stole over him.

Lying in his arms, Jayne felt the moment his body relaxed into slumber and smiled. It seemed that as well as finding out what besides anger deepened his Scottish accent, she had cured his insomnia. His loose-limbed sprawl took up a good portion of the huge bed. One corner of the sheet covered his sex, leaving the rest of his body gloriously displayed, his golden
coloring
contrasting sharply with the royal blue bedding. She ran her hand over the hard planes of his chest and abdomen, feeling his broad chest rising and falling as he breathed, and toyed with the fine mat of dark blond hair there. Petting him like the big cat he claimed he would become. She had been right, he definitely had a six-pack. His body was completely relaxed and she could still trace its shape. Her brow creased in a frown as she realized she could also trace his ribs.

How far would he have let himself go before giving in? Given his stubbornness and his past history, she thought he might well have gone all the way. Oh, she knew Mary would have done everything in her power to help him and Jayne suspected the woman had more training than she let on but there was only so much you could do for someone who wouldn’t—or couldn’t—eat. The thought of him locked away in this house slowly fading away was unbearable. Thankfully if what he had said was true it wouldn’t be an issue anymore.

She didn’t feel any different physically, didn’t even know if she should. It was hard to believe her whole life had changed in these last couple of hours. And it had. Even if nothing came of this “
Ceangal
”, she still believed she and this beautiful, complicated man had a connection unlike anything she had ever felt. Despite her easy acceptance, it was a fantastic story. Part of her was still waiting for someone to jump out and yell “Surprise!” But even if they did—and that would be terribly disappointing—she was exactly where she wanted to be.
This
was the magic she had been trying to find all of her life.

* * * * *

Outside in the woods Henry was praying for some magic of his own. The snow had stopped and as the sky had cleared the temperature had dropped. A bright moon lit the night, turning the snow a luminous blue-white and making the shadows under the trees where he lay thicker. He had a very bad feeling about this. This was never intended to be a surveillance mission. He had expected to go in grab the targets and go. But suddenly a man who hadn’t had a visitor in months had a houseful and he was stuck out here freezing his bollocks off.

It wasn’t his turn to be on watch but he dared not take his eyes off the house. The lights had gone off one by one until only one window was lit by a soft glow. Henry had watched through the conservatory windows as the people in the house had gathered in the kitchen. He would have sold his soul for a long-range listening device or at least some lip-reading abilities, especially when Murray and the woman had been alone together. Now the couple was in the bedroom and had been for hours. It didn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out what was going on. He hadn’t seen the telltale flare of heat yet on the thermal imager that would signify that either of them had changed and all he could do was wait.