Spellbound (13 page)

J
ane stared
at the side of the mansion. The English garden had gone wild, overtaking the exterior part of the house where Iain’s bedroom was. “Not exactly the landscaping plan I had in mind.”

Iain slid his hand onto her ass while looking at the overgrowth. “I’m changing my work order. I’d like do the whole house like this.”

Jane laughed and pushed his hand off before anyone came out. “I bet you would.”

“Ya must like having sex with me. That’s some orgasm.” Iain’s smile widened. She could practically feel the male vanity oozing off of him.

Jane tapped him on the chest. “Easy there, laddie. That head of yours gets any bigger, and I won’t be able to climb back into your bed.”

“My head is plenty big.” He glanced down at his waist meaningfully. “But I think ya can handle it, lassie.”

“There ya are!” Euann appeared around the corner. “It’s time.”

“For?” Jane looked at Iain in confusion.

“Cake-eating challenge,” Euann said. “Boys against girls. Ya called a MacGregor challenge, and it has been accepted. Terms have been set and agreed to. Now it’s time to face the cake!”

“One cake billboard coming up.” Rory appeared with Angus, Fergus, Murdoch, Raibeart and Malina. They carried the six-foot billboard sign for Stutzman Bakery and laid it on the ground.

“Shelly!” Raibeart yelled upon seeing her. “Where have ya been?”

“You stole a billboard?” Jane went to look down at it.

“What? Were we supposed to materialize cakes by the side of the road?” Malina smiled widely at Jane’s expression. She breathed heavily from the exercise.

“For ya, my love,” Raibeart declared with a pointed look at the billboard.

“Raibeart, that’s Iain’s Jane,” Murdoch said, a hint of warning in his tone. “We discussed this.”

“She’ll always be my Shelly to me,” Raibeart answered, completely unconcerned. He winked at her.

“I don’t think anyone ever told me what a
shellycoat
is,” Jane said.

“Not important,” Murdoch said. “You’re not Shelly.

“A type of bogeyman who hangs around water,” Malina answered. Then, giving a small laugh, she added, “I guess it’s kind of like your
bean nighe
cousin.”

Jane scrunched up her brow.

“I brought napkins,” Cait announced. She stopped by the billboard and looked at the giant wedding cake. “That’s larger than I imagined.”

Jane touched Iain’s arm. “They really don’t expect to eat…”

“Hey, this is your idea.” He shrugged. “A challenge is a challenge. Don’t expect me to help ya. I’m on the boy team.”

“But I was high on magick,” Jane said.

“Never an excuse in the MacGregor clan,” Euann countered.

“And MacGregors never back down from a challenge.” Margareta appeared holding a tray filled with plates and forks. She paused, looking down at the sign. “Oh, Jane, we do need to discuss your wagers. As a MacGregor, ya have the right to a family challenge, but that is a lot of cake.”

Jane stiffened. “I’m sorry, did you say I am a MacGregor?”

“Too soon? Did my son not propose yet?” Margareta gave Iain a stern look. “What are ya waiting for? Me to do it for ya? Marry this one. She saved your life. She’ll put up with ya. We want to keep her.”

“If Iain doesn’t want her, I’ll marry her for ya, Aunt Margareta,” Rory offered.

“Kiss ass,” Euann muttered.

“So, which tree exactly are we going to kill to make this challenge happen?” Fergus glanced around to a nearby box elder in contemplation.

“We don’t need to kill anything,” Malina said. “Jane is some kind of power conduit. She’s like a battery that never runs out of juice.”

“Wait, we can’t do this now.” Cait held up her hand.

Margareta also held up her hand. In unison with Cait, she turned toward the billboard on the ground. “A sign.”

Jane frowned at the obvious statement.

“Euann, Malina, go drag Erik out of Lydia’s embrace. Tell them I saw a sign. Invite Charlotte if Lydia will agree to have her veiled though I’m not sure Charlotte should have more magick done to her. We reconvene here in three hours. The rest of ya, follow me.”

“Ya do it, banshee,” Euann said to his sister. “Wait, I guess I can’t call ya that now we have Jane. Ya do it, troll, I have to get the phone.”

“Euann,” Angus scolded. A few seconds later, a ringing sounded from inside. Euann ran ahead of the others as they went into the house to leave Iain and Jane outside.

“What is happening now?” Jane was confused. “I thought we were having an eating contest?”

“Reinforcements,” Iain answered. “Or a refinement of terms. Who knows. It will keep them busy while I sneak ya back up to my room.”

She leaned into him, liking the subtle hint of his cologne. “I’m starting to worry. What happens if we don’t actually win the cake challenge?”

“Then ya pay the price, Shelly,” Iain teased. “Either way, it looks like we have a couple of hours. I can help ya work up an appetite if ya want.” He arched a brow and gave her a hopeful expression.

“Hey, Jane,” Euann came out of the house holding his cell phone toward her. “It’s for ya.”

“On your phone?” Jane shook her head. “I don’t—”

“House phone goes to Euann. He’s the only one who will bother to answer it,” Iain said. “I put this as your contact for the hospital.”

Euann didn’t cross the distance to her as he said, “They want me to tell ya that Sean is stabilized and sleeping.”

A pang of regret filled Jane at the news. She lifted her hand to indicate she heard him. Euann nodded and disappeared back into the house.

“Could you take me to the hospital? I know there’s not much I can do, but I feel like I should check on Sean.”

Iain instantly turned serious. “Let the doctors handle it. Ya have done all ya can for him. He tried to have ya killed, Jane.”

“I can take myself. You don’t have to go with me. I know what he did. I know what kind of a man he is.” She didn’t blame Iain for his anger. He cared about her. If the roles were reversed, she wouldn’t want him going to see the person who’d tried to have him killed.

Iain took a deep breath. “I’ll drive ya. But if he even looks at ya in a way I don’t like…”

“I think maybe you should wait for me in the car.” Jane threaded her arm into his. “If he tries anything, I’ll go
bean nighe
on his ass and finish the job my mom started.”

S
ean glared
at Jane from his hospital bed as the nurse left them alone. The thinning hairline and newly wrinkled skin aged him in such a way as to take what little power of charm he’d had. She’d witnessed it firsthand with the nurse. The boyish smile he flashed her showed yellow-stained teeth and ended up looking inappropriately creepy rather than charming and playful.

“Are you happy now?” he demanded. “You’ve taken everything from me. Have you come to kill me off and take my inheritance too?”

Jane stiffened at the unwarranted attack. Before she could stop herself, she quipped, “I came to give you a bill for the tomatoes you stole and gave to Mrs. Callister.”

“I see. You’ve come to tarnish my good name by calling me a thief.” Sean snarled. He looked like he wanted to get out of the bed, but he didn’t move.

“Would you prefer I call you an attempted murderer? Kidnapper?” Jane kept her voice soft. She didn’t want the nurse to come back because the staff thought she was attacking their patient.

“Go away. Why are you even here?” Sean closed his eyes.

“I shouldn’t have come.” Jane tried to control her anger. She swallowed it into the pit of her stomach. “My ride is waiting outside. Get well soon, Sean.” She walked toward the open door.

“Don’t feel the need to come back, sis,” he yelled after her. “You’ve done enough!”

Jane strode out of the room only to be stopped by the nurse. “Are you Sean’s sister, Jane Turner, by chance?”

Jane frowned and thought about denying any connection. Finally, she sighed and nodded. “Yes, I’m his sister.”

“He listed you as his contact person when he was admitted,” the nurse said.

“Let me guess, he told you to give me the bill?”

The nurse reached over and pulled Sean’s hospital room door closed. “You can’t take his anger personally. We have set up a consultation with our Mental Health Services to help him through this transition. He’s going to need family support.”

“Transition?” Jane glanced toward the door. She hoped Sean had enough presence of mind to not rant about having his youth sucked away by a supernatural creature. “You mean because he’s depressed? His mother recently passed and he hasn’t been coping well. I’m sure that has something to do with his tiredness.”

“I’m afraid it might be a little more serious than that. Depression definitely can be one cause of extreme fatigue, but taking into account the muscle degeneration, there are numerous potentially serious medical conditions we are concerned about. Have you talked with his doctor?”

Jane shook her head in denial and concentrated on the dark purple sleeve of the nurse’s scrubs.

“We are keeping him for a workup since this may be a symptom of some medical concern.” The nurse placed a hand on Jane’s arm. “But I don’t want you to worry. He’s under the best care. The doctor has ordered a comprehensive workup.”

Jane didn’t know how to respond. She really couldn’t say Sean had been attacked by a
bean nighe.

“Jane?” Iain appeared behind her, startling her. “What happened? I know ya asked me to stay in the car, but I was worried about ya.”

The nurse looked expectantly at Iain as he joined them.

“It’s ok. This is my, ah…”

“I’m her fiancé,” Iain stated as if it was the most natural assertion in the world. Jane inhaled sharply and looked up at him. Iain smiled and put his arm around her.

“So Sean’s muscles are bad?” Jane asked, glad to have Iain’s comfort. “You don’t think he’ll recover?”

“His symptoms could be caused by Guillain-Barré syndrome, multiple sclerosis or a subdural hematoma due to a head injury. He indicated he fell.” The nurse tilted her head, pausing as she forced Jane to look at her. “He is going to need a wheelchair, at the very least in the short term. He’s also going to need care. We have people you can talk to as you make preparations.”

“Care?” Jane shook her head in denial. If this was some kind of cosmic test, she was about to fail. Jane held up her hand. “I don’t think—”

“We’ll see to it he has the best care,” Iain interrupted. He lifted his hand and made a small gesture. “Thank ya, nurse.”

The nurse smiled and instantly left.

“I guess he can stay with me,” Jane said, hating the words, but what else could she do? Before Iain could say anything, she went back into Sean’s room. She felt Iain follow her.

“What do you want?” Sean demanded as Jane entered. “I thought I told you to leave.”

“Sean, stop. I’m not here to fight with you.” Jane glanced back at Iain. He crossed his arms over his chest but nodded at her in support. To her brother, she continued, “I shouldn’t have yelled earlier. I came to check on you to make sure you’re all right.”

“Let’s see. A banshee ate my mother’s spirit after most likely killing her, then tried to kill me, and all because you ran away from your responsibilities.” Sean hit his hand down on this thigh. “And now I’m in this bed and you’re here, looking healthier than ever. How is that fair? You’re supposed to be the sick one. I was doing you a favor coming here and helping you.”

“Help me? By guilting me? Scaring me? Sacrificing me?” Jane shook her head in disbelief.

“Just go.” Sean turned his head in dismissal. “Take your manwhore with you.”

“Say what ya like about me, but speak to your sister with respect. I don’t see anyone else coming to visit ya,” Iain pointed out.

“The nurse said you’re going to need home health care, at the very least in the short term. For better or worse, you are family. You can come stay with me while you heal,” Jane offered. Sean might not deserve her consideration, but she had to try. “We’ll figure something out. Whatever happens, you don’t have to go through it alone.”

“I know what you want. You want the money mother left me. You’re mad that your father loved her more than you and left her everything.” Sean became rigid. “I would rather burn in the fiery pits of hell than stay another minute in your presence. It should be you in this bed.”

Jane saw the anger and hatred in him. She witnessed the undeserving entitlement. His words stung, but they also freed her. She couldn’t help someone who didn’t want her help. Sean had come into her life and disrupted it, not the other way around. She hadn’t invited him. She hadn’t asked for it. Taking a deep breath, she said, “Goodbye, Sean. I hope you heal.”

Iain guided his arm behind her back as she left the room as if to protect her from the angry vibes shooting off Sean’s very being.

As they made it down the hall, she said, “I’m surprised you didn’t try to stop me from offering.”

“Ya don’t seem to appreciate it when I try to tell ya what to do. I may have some overprotective qualities, but I’m trainable.” He gave her a small smile.

His light teasing worked. Jane returned the look and wrapped her arm around his waist as they walked.

Iain hooked his arm around her shoulders. “My family donates to several facilities. We’ll make sure Sean gets treatment as long as ya wish.”

“Thank you—oh, man, that woman is like a bad penny that keeps turning up.” Jane tried to change direction as she saw Mrs. Callister at the front desk. Iain didn’t let her. “What does she do? Make the rounds to see who has what illness?”

“One second.” Iain let her go and strode to the woman. Mrs. Callister blinked in surprise at his sudden approach. With a devil-may-care smile and a slightly thickened accent, he inquired, “Ya still have that book ya carry around?”

Mrs. Callister appeared confused but slowly nodded.

“Write this down,” Iain instructed. Mrs. Callister pulled the notepad and pencil out of her purse. “Jane is going to marry me. I’m going to try to convince her to have twelve children and a dog. And her tomatoes cost three dollars and fifty cents a pound.”

Mrs. Callister’s pencil didn’t move.

“Have a nice day.” Iain tilted his head before offering his arm to Jane to walk her out of the hospital.

“Did you just include Mrs. Callister in your marriage proposal to me?” Jane asked as they walked the long sidewalk through the manicured lawn to the parking lot.

“Technically, the nurse. Ya didn’t protest when I called myself your fiancé so that counts as an agreement and I’m holding ya to it. And if ya want quibble over details, my ma is already doing the wedding plans, and ya didn’t protest that.” Iain grabbed her hand and stopped walking, pulling her out of her forward momentum and into his chest.

“I thought that was Erik’s wedding,” Jane said.

“Ya are everything to me, Jane. Even if ya don’t ever walk down that aisle to be my wife, I belong to ya. It’s that simple, and I don’t care who knows it.”

Jane kissed him. Love and happiness filled her. And then there was hope. Hope in a future. Hope in a life without sickness. Hope in a fate greater and bigger than she’d ever imagined.

Iain held her tightly in the safety of his embrace. Without looking to see what was happening, she felt his magick surging through her, radiating from them to bloom flowers and lengthen the grass. Finally, when she pulled away, she looked up into his loving eyes. She could spend an eternity with him, and it wouldn’t be enough.

“Let’s go home.” He tried to continue walking down the sidewalk, but she held him tighter.

“Iain,” she whispered. “I have to tell you something important.”

“What is it, love?” His expression fell in concern.

“My tomatoes are only two dollars a pound.”