Heart Fortune (Celta) (4 page)

Are there foxes where we are going?
Lepid asked.

A brief wave of dizziness at the relief of being given what she wanted—the last step in the ladder of her career—washed through Glyssa, made her limp. Mixed with that was the nervy excitement of facing a completely unfamiliar experience. “I don’t know.” She was beginning to think she didn’t know far too much.

No. Don’t think of that. Despite everything, she would not fail. She’d claim her love, and write her thesis and a popular work for Camellia, and take that last step for her career.

Nothing would stop her, not even her mother’s maneuvering.

As they walked to GreatCircle Temple that evening, her parents were cheerful and Glyssa’s sister had gotten over her snit. A summer breeze cooled off the heat of the day and the sky was a soft blue with pink streamers.

The number of people who’d gathered inside the Temple to take place in the ceremony, to wish Glyssa well on her journey, surprised her. She’d expected her best friends to be there, Camellia D’Hawthorn and Tiana Mugwort, who was officiating the ritual. And she’d thought Laev, Camellia’s HeartMate would be there, too, but some of the other librarians of the main PublicLibrary and its branches attended, as well as a sprinkling of the greatest nobles in the land—the FirstFamilies. Those people descended from the colonists who funded the original space voyage.

That nearly made Glyssa giddy. Moving in such a social strata as an unequal could be dangerous. But a few of them had ties to the owners of the excavation project—the Elecampanes.

People lined up in twos, mostly married couples and HeartMates. Since Tiana stood as priestess and Lady in the center of the circle and Camellia and Laev were together, Glyssa was stuck with her thin-mouthed, damp-palmed sister.

But once the circle was joined and the energy cycled around, the pure delight of linking with others buoyed her spirits. Even her sister smiled.

And the ritual went well, the Flair and blessings sent out into the world in general, some to the PublicLibrary, most to the excavation—some draped around Glyssa, went sparkling into her blood, and transferred to her Family.

By the time of the last prayer and opening of the circle, joyful conversation and hope for more information about the starship, about
themselves
, filled the room.

Camellia had donated much of the refreshments, and the good food pumped up the atmosphere even more.

When people left, Glyssa and Camellia and Tiana stayed talking among themselves in close-friend-speak about men. Camellia was gloriously happy with Laev, Tiana remained disappointed that her HeartMate didn’t look for her, no doubt put off by the terrible scandal in her life. They both gave Glyssa personal blessings and tokens for her HeartMate search and claiming, and ordered her to link with them telepathically at least once a week to stay in touch. The three of them practiced their mental conversation until Laev came in and wanted to talk about the technical and business portion of the project—reminding Glyssa that she’d be leaving the very next morning . . . which had Lepid shooting around the room again, barking happy fox yips.

Finally they all teleported home and despite the lovely energy, Glyssa fell into bed and into sleep . . . and she rolled over and touched her lover—drawn once more into the hot bond with her HeartMate.

Four

Y
es, his skin was damp from the summer heat under her palms and he
groaned in the way that made her catch her breath as she slipped her hands down his chest. Yes, she
needed
to touch him, feel the lean but strong lines of his muscles,
know
that he was whole . . . and though this was telepathic, his body would reflect the truth.

He slept and she knelt next to him, stroking up his sides, sliding her hands over his shoulders, tracing the line of his jaw with her thumbs, feathering over his cheeks. Beautiful man. She leaned closer, attracted by his spicy smell, touched her tongue to his collarbone to taste him.

Healthy man.

Very healthy, as he caught her in his arms and rolled them over, yanked the diaphanous gown she wore open, put his hands on her breasts.

Her turn to gasp and groan. She liked the feel of him on her, the slight hair-roughness of his skin as he moved against her, tantalizing, tempting. Seducing.

Just being with him seduced her. More exciting than any man, the scent and taste and the feel of him. How his rhythm of loving matched hers.

He murmured nonsense words and she put her mouth on his and he opened his lips and rubbed his tongue against hers. His hands clamped around her butt and she welcomed the squeeze, the familiarity of him mingling with the innate knowledge that they belonged together. She yearned, and even her body understood that soon they would join in more than dreams. Yes.

Their tongues tangled, stroked and the flavor of him—
his
energy—mixing, matching, mingling with hers until desire held a scent and a promise of fulfillment.

He thrust into her, filled her, and she clamped her arms around him, arched with him, to the beat of the fast sex. Yes. Yes. Yes!

* * *

J
ace awoke near dawn. He’d had another sex dream, and while it had
been great, he had to use some energy to cleanse himself and his bedding, which was getting tedious. He sniffed deeply, but his tent didn’t smell bad . . . in fact, his nostrils strained to capture Glyssa’s remembered fragrance, even though his mind knew she hadn’t truly been present. In the dreams he could smell her, the perfume she used, lilac, he thought, and woman. And womanly lust. That was the best.

He grabbed a robe and headed toward the showers. Spell cleansing was all well and good, but he liked the feel of cool water sluicing down his body. Plenty of water in the area. Plenty humidity . . . from the huge inland Deep Blue Sea and the nearby Fish Story lake.

As he passed by Andic’s tent, Funa emerged, stretching. Her silkeen robe was a lot thinner than his own sturdy thick cotton. She sent him a sleepy and sexually satisfied smile that yet had a come-hither look, and he forced himself to curve his mouth and gave her a casual wave. Would have been good to have had a real woman in his arms last night, though even the in-person sex with Funa hadn’t been as good as what he’d had with Glyssa Licorice.

Despite himself, and the nature of flings, he’d remembered more than her name. GrandMistrys Glyssa Licorice, second daughter of GrandLord and GrandLady Licorice, of the PublicLibrary Licorices, an ancestral heritage of duty, obligation, and being trapped in a Family . . . this one not the little-f bad family like his, but a
Family,
with big expectations.

Since Glyssa had gone wild in Jace’s arms, he figured that most of her life being a slave to Family tradition and duty and whatever had made her repress her passions. He’d liked the effect in bed, but didn’t think they’d have much in common otherwise.

A tiny wisp of an idea snuck into his mind about HeartMates. Could Glyssa—
No!
Stop now. He
wouldn’t
think of HeartMates.

He wasn’t ready for a HeartMate, didn’t think he’d ever be ready for those ties. Didn’t really believe in HeartMates, anyway, just legend . . . despite seeing the lovey-dovey Elecampanes.

Husband-wife love really didn’t exist and families were traps.

Raz Cherry Elecampane was an actor and had acted himself into believing in HeartMates, and had worn down his more hardheaded wife.

And, yeah, Jace had felt those bonding dreams during the dreamquests that freed his Flair-psi-magic. He’d even made a HeartMate token, but still didn’t believe in real love between couples.

Lady and Lord knew he hadn’t seen loving between his own parents . . . his father’s adoration of a selfish woman who gave and withheld affection and sex wasn’t love.

Nope, he wasn’t going down that road. No permanent woman who would make him beg. Or do the opposite, cling to him. Not happening.

He stepped into the shower tent, dropped his robe, and let the cool water pound the stupid idea of HeartMates back into a tiny part of his brain . . . or sense into his emotions. He didn’t care where he’d stashed the notion before, but he wanted it
gone.

Along with the tiny bud of yearning for loving and being loved. Another legend. People used each other in marriage. Loving was just a damn lie.

DRUIDA CITY,

The Same Morning

After TransitionBell and before dawn, Laev and Camellia Hawthorn picked Glyssa up at the Licorice house.

Laev’s sleek new glider held three easily and sped through the night to Southern Airpark. Lepid slept in a basket over Glyssa’s arm. He’d worn himself out running around the library “looking at secrets before we go.” Hopefully not chasing the cats. Though if he had, Glyssa wouldn’t hear about it because her Family had retired before she and the fox had gone to bed. Not that she’d slept well.

They exited the glider into the night and walked to the waiting airship that had a cockpit for two and a long fuselage for storage. It looked fast. Faster than the fat, ungainly ships she and her Family occasionally took to check out the Gael City Libraries under their direction.

Glyssa’s steps lagged as she headed toward the open cockpit door, glass wrapped around the whole front of the airship. She swallowed, steadied her nerves. She didn’t like heights, but she
would
do this.

Her friends hugged her before Laev helped her with the long step up and into the zoom-ship. She shivered and told herself she was chilled, though the night was warm.

Laev patted the side of the portal. “This baby will get you to the excavation in half a day. Fast and serviceable.” He looked at the pilot. “All the equipment on board?”

She lifted a brow at him. “A non-Flaired transport came from
Nuada’s Sword
with a lot of items. Everything is fine and stowed safely.” The pilot glanced at Glyssa in her traveling clothes, short tunic and narrow-legged trous. No extra material. “Also a giant duffle gear bag from Outside Outfitters.”

Taking Glyssa’s hand to kiss it, Laev said, “The very latest in camping gear for you.”

“What?” Glyssa knew her eyes rounded.

“He had a great time choosing and buying everything,” Camellia said. “There’s also furniture, the new miniaturized sort that becomes full-sized when activated by a Flair spellword.” Camellia sounded disapproving. But then all three of the friends liked beautifully worked furnishings. “So the chairs and tables, cabinets, et cetera, aren’t very sturdy.” She stepped into the airship to hug Glyssa tightly. “Be safe, and—” Camellia switched to mindspeech.
Let me know when you are there and all is fine.

Glyssa hugged her friend back. Doubts spun through her mind and she squashed them. Concentrate on the adventure of it all!

I will
, she replied telepathically. Thank the Lady and Lord that mental bonds had no distance limits . . . at least on Celta.

Camellia fixed the harness over Glyssa and the basket holding her new Fam, then placed a huge hamper of food and drink “for the trip” in the spacious area around Glyssa’s feet. As Camellia hopped back down, she narrowed a look at her husband. “You did keep the idea of safety uppermost in your mind, didn’t you, for Glyssa’s tent? Didn’t just choose what was the latest and looked the best?”

He put on an offended expression. “Of course I chose the most secure option.”

“Time to go,” said the pilot.

“Keep in touch!” the Hawthorns said in unison, then grinned at each other in delight, leaned in to kiss, Glyssa’s last sight of them as the airship door thunked shut and the airship rose.

It reassured her that she was doing the absolutely right thing in going after her HeartMate—finding adventure herself.

Septhours later, they landed without a bump at a cleared area the pilot said was designated for airships.

Glyssa and the pilot off-loaded her supplies while most of the people milled around the back end of the airship and storage area, moving the equipment from
Nuada’s Sword
with great care under the gazes of the Elecampanes.

Suddenly, a shriek came to her ears. “No! Catch that FoxFam!”

Glyssa whirled, her chest constricting, as she saw Lepid heading for a hole in the ground. “Lepid!” she yelled. He didn’t listen.

* * *

J
ace had been sauntering to the airship like the others in camp when the
woman stepped out of the cockpit. He stared, stunned. Rumor had it that this ship brought brand-new tech for communications over a long distance developed by the sentient starship
Nuada’s Sword
, in Druida City. And an Important Personage.

He stopped, tucked his thumbs in his belt, and stared as he recognized Glyssa Licorice. The librarian he’d been having sex dreams about. A person who he’d never thought would be caught in the wilds of Celta.

A small animal dashed by him, then a scream came from behind him and he spun in time to see a fluffy foxtail wave as it started down the beam. A young FamFox. Great.

“Lepid!” Glyssa shouted.

Swearing and chanting the best damn spellshields to protect himself that he knew, he bounded toward the girder, running fast enough that he felt his hair lift and the sweat on his scalp dry. He got to the beam angling into the ground just in time to see the small fox stop and look over its back, mouth open and tongue loose in a smile.

“Wait!” Jace yelled.