Grogoch [Bedtime Stories 2] Read online

  “Good deal,” I agreed readily. I followed them, Wayland Jr. shyly ducking his head at the praise.

  I gasped as I stepped into the small workroom. Wayland Jr. was very talented to say the least! I walked around, running my hands over the finely crafted furniture.

  “How did I never know you could do this?” I asked in awe, focused on a beautiful kitchen table and chair set. “I want this but a month of help from me is not worth its value. What else are you in need of? I can trade with others in the area to make up the difference.”

  Now I was excited. I saw a whole new way to help people. I could set up trading deals and help people meet others who could use their wares.

  “We need hay badly,” Wayland Sr. hedged as he glanced at his son. “And shoes for the horses.”

  “I have someone who does that.” I smiled brightly at both of them. “What else?”

  We agreed upon a month of crop help and enough hay for that month, shoes for the horses, and Wayland Jr. would let me have the table and chairs. He would even deliver them right away.

  Maybe changing how I’d lived all these years wasn’t going to be as hard as I had thought? It gave me hope that I could lead a happy, normal life with Finbar.

  Chapter 8

  I returned home for dinner, exhausted but excited all at once. Finbar was full of questions after Wayland Jr. had showed up with the table and chairs. I brought in the meat pies I had traded for and we sat down on our new furniture to eat.

  “This is gorgeous, Cuidi,” he said with a smile, his fondness for the table apparent in his tone. “Tell me everything.”

  “Well, I traded them for this and went to the farrier to trade my services for horseshoes for the Waylands. Then I got them hay for a month from a farmer who also agreed to hay for us and to butcher one of his cows. The meat will be delivered tomorrow along with a gorgeous blanket for our bed and some baked goods.”

  “You seem happy with the deals you made today,” he said hesitantly.

  “I am. I introduced people who can now trade with each other as well as having gotten stuff we needed.” I bit my lip and decided to be completely honest with Finbar. “It’s a huge relief that things went well today. I always thought I was only good for my magic and sex but today helped me see I could be more than that.”

  “I never doubted you were more than hot sex and magic, Cuidi,” he whispered as he leaned in for a kiss. I gladly gave it to him and one for the trip back to his seat.

  “I wouldn’t have had a chance to figure that out without you. Today was more than that for me though.”

  “How so?” He reached over and started cutting into the meat pie, making sure I had a large helping before serving himself. What a sweetie!

  “I’ve never had this,” I answered, gesturing between the two of us. “I found the table and couldn’t wait to tell you about it. Then I made the deal and I was about to turn around and fill you in. I was so excited to share every aspect of my day and life with you. It’s new to me and I’m not alone anymore. I feel like I have a real home.”

  “Me too and that’s because of you.” I tilted my head, indicating for him to go on since I wasn’t sure how to take what he said. “This was just a house to me, Cuidi. My aunt’s house that I had to fix up to have a roof over my head. But with you? Us here? It’s home and I want it to be ours in every way.”

  “Sounds nice.” We ate a bit as I thought over this new development. “I never realized I was tired of living out of a bag, traveling around until I had somewhere and someone to come back to. I want to share my life with you, Finbar.” His reaction was almost comical. His hand froze, holding his fork on the way to his mouth.

  “Are you saying what I think you’re saying?” he asked hopefully, giving me the courage to say what came next.

  “Finbar, will you do me the honor of becoming my mate for the rest of our lives?”

  “Yes, my love,” he whispered, his eyes shining with joy. “I’d like nothing better than for us to be together always.” He set down his fork and scooted his chair closer. “Are you sure? This morning you wanted to wait.”

  “I’m sure if you are.” It felt so right. Knowing him four days or four years… It didn’t matter because I loved him.

  “How do we do this?” he asked excitedly.

  “After dinner I will give you my heart and swear my soul to you while we make love,” I answered with a wink. The man nodded and practically shoveled his food into his mouth. I did the same, wanting to bind us together before either of us changed our minds.

  Ten minutes later we were both nervously standing in our bedroom.

  Finbar had been adamant that it wasoursand I should stop calling it

  his.

  “Why am I so nervous?” he whispered as he plopped down on the

  bed.

  “It’s a big step and maybe you’re not ready,” I said hesitantly. I

  yelped as he pulled me onto his lap.

  “Never think that.” He kissed my neck before pulling off my shirt. “I

  love you and want you forever.”

  “I feel the same,” I admitted as my cheeks heated up. We glanced

  at each other and then it became a flurry of clothes flying in the air.

  When we were in bed and naked, Finbar between my legs as I lay on

  my back, the nerves were gone. “Take me and love me always, Finbar.

  ”

  “Gladly,” he growled as he lifted my leg and entered me. I wrapped

  my legs over his hips, my arms finding their way around his neck. “You

  are so perfect, Cuidi.” I nodded and moaned as he thrust into me

  tenderly but with great zeal.

  “I, Cuidighteach of the Grogoch Clan of the fairies, swear myself

  to you, Finbar, for the rest of my days,” I said solemnly. No one had

  ever taught me the words but it was like I knew them in my very depths

  as the pledge to bind us. “You own my heart and my soul is yours as is

  my very life.”

  “I promise the same to you.” He kissed me deeply and I felt a

  surge of magic strong enough that we both cried out and came. When

  it was over and we were more than spent, Finbar collapsed on top of

  me. I grunted at his weight and we rolled to our sides. I knew I was

  smiling like a loon. Everything was as it should be.

  “Heavens above!” Finbar exclaimed as he slowly reached to touch

  my cheek. I didn’t know why he looked almost scared until I moved my

  hand to his chest and saw that the fur on my hand was gone. I gasped

  and quickly sat up. I studied my body. My tail was gone too! “I’m human,” I whispered and leapt out of bed. I stopped in front of

  the floor-length mirror and stared at the stranger standing before me.

  “Holy shit!” I whimpered, not sure I wanted to see Finbar’s reaction to

  the change. Gone was my brownish fur to reveal smooth, creamy skin.

  I still had hair on my head but it was like a normal human’s hair. The only thing besides my height that didn’t change was my green

  eyes.

  “Are you okay?” Finbar asked gently as he moved behind me so I

  could see him in the mirror.

  “I don’t know,” I whispered as tears filled my eyes. “Do you still

  want me?”

  “Oh, my love,” he gasped as he pulled me back against his chest.

  “I think you are just as breathtaking as you were before. Yes, you look

  different, but you’re still just as sexy to me.”

  “Really?” I wasn’t fishing for compliments, I swear I wasn’t. It was

  just my whole world had been turned upside down in the matter of a

  few moments and I wanted comfort, reassurance.

  “Yes,” he purred, rubbing his hands over my ass. “I liked the fur,

  don’t get me wrong. But your s
oft, creamy skin is driving me crazy,

  Cuidi.” Just to accentuate his point, he thrust his erection against my

  lower back. “I still see the man I love before me and I want you just as

  much as I did when you accepted me.”

  “I look human,” I said quietly, unbelieving what my eyes were

  seeing. “I can’t get over this.”

  “Are you sorry you transformed?” Finbar stopped teasing me and

  letting his hands roam over my body.

  “No, I wanted us to be bound,” I answered with a nod. “It’s just

  going to take some getting used to. Thousands of years looking as I

  did makes this quite a shock.”

  “Maybe if you got some loving in this form you’d see you’re still the

  same person,” he suggested, his voice going deep with desire. “We could try it for experimental sake,” I teased. Then I let out a

  yelp as he lifted me into his arms, turned me around, and pushed me

  against the wall. “I take it you like how I look.”

  “You were a sexy little thing before, and I might miss the tail,” he

  admitted with a shrug. His eyes glazed over with lust as he drank in my

  body. “But heavens above, Cuidi. You are so fucking perfect now that I

  might not ever let you out of my bed. You are the single most desirable

  man I’ve ever laid eyes on.”

  “Show me,” I begged and whimpered. Finbar smiled and slammed

  his huge cock into my ready ass. I cried out, arching my back against

  the wall as he plundered my body. He thrust hard and fast, desperate

  for me. I saw enough of his mind to know his words were true. He’d

  loved me before and the way I’d looked. But now, I was like a twelve to

  him on a scale of ten.

  “Love you,” he grunted as he fucked me faster. “Love you inside

  and out, Cuidi. You are perfect.”

  And once didn’t seem to be enough to prove he still wanted me

  every bit as much as before. The second time I was on my hands and

  knees on our bed and he took me so firmly that I swear I thought we

  were going to break the frame. And there was lots of spanking. “Finbar!” I screamed as I came so hard lights flashed behind my

  eyes.

  He followed me right over and when we were done we both

  collapsed on the bed, incapable of moving. I gasped for air, not even

  having the energy to smile when I heard Finbar doing the same. It took

  me about five or so minutes to even be able to roll onto my back and

  feel as if my heart wasn’t trying to jump from my chest.

  “Not that I’m complaining but what wasthatall about?” I asked, my

  head lolling to the side so I could see him.

  “I couldn’t see my handprint when you were covered with fur,” he

  mumbled. He didn’t look at me and I couldn’t tell if his cheeks were red

  from blushing or exertion. I also didn’t understand the comment for a

  minute until it suddenly hit me.

  “You got that excited fromspankingme?” I felt a wide, evil grin

  spread across my face. Well, well, well, this was interesting to say the least. “Is it the marking me with your hand or the fact that I beg for more that gets you going like that?”

  “Both. Your hole quivers when I slap you too and it’s fantastic.” “I’ll have to keep that in mind,” I said with a chuckle, rolling over so I was sprawled against him. “Any regrets?” “Only that I don’t have the energy for another round,” he teased with a yawn. Then he moved us so we were lying in a better spot, his head on the pillows and mine on his chest. “You’re all mine forever and I’m yours, Cuidi. I don’t have a single regret in the world and I love you even more than I did this morning.”

  Wow! What did someone say to that? I decided nothing could top it and simply kissed him instead. What a man!

  Chapter 9

  The next week was the best of my life. Actually, any time spent with him or since I had met Finbar was the best of my life. I didn’t know life could be this good until I knew him. Everything was perfect… Even the damn dog he’d talked me into keeping.

  That didn’t stop me from naming him Twit though. Okay, so we named him Thumper since the ground practically shook when the dog thumped his tail. But I still called him Twit when Finbar wasn’t listening. It was a nickname of love though because the big guy was growing on me. If only he’d stop slobbering on me though.

  The first day we had him we’d tried training him to poop on the crops so they’d grow crazy big. Except he trampled them in the process. Then we tried the fruit trees Finbar had on the back of the property. No such luck since Thumper didn’t like having to go on an angle. Fair enough, I guess. So we ended up throwing down an old blanket next to the barn and that was his spot. He went number two there and we collected it for our crops.

  After a couple of days it got to be where Finbar and I agreed that if we used any more of the pixie dust, our crops might overrun us. So instead we started bagging the stuff up to take to the castle next time I went. Gross, yes, but it’s not like it smelled and it was magic after all so it seemed wrong to waste it. Pun intended. And with the amount of food

  Thumper ate there was a lot of it. That dog couldeat!

  I was returning home from Margaret’s where I dropped off a bunch of fruit in the hopes she’d turn it into pies for us. I was disheartened when I saw how bad her health had gotten in less than a week and talked her into calling a doctor. Worst case, I knew I could talk to the king about having her moved to the infirmary they had in the castle. Normally it was reserved for those elderly of royal blood, but I knew the king would make an exception for me.

  When I popped back I made sure to go by the barn, figuring Finbar would be there. Sure enough, he was and I raced right into his arms. “Cuidi, what’s wrong?” he asked me gently as he held me tight. “Margaret,” I sniffled, clutching onto him as if the only solid thing I

  had in this world. “I think she’s dying, Finbar. She’s been hiding it from me but today I saw it’s bad. She let me call the doctor and he’s there with her now but I’m scared it’s her time.”

  “I’m so sorry, my love.” He kissed my hair and comforted me. I was so wrapped up in my grief that I didn’t realize someone else was there until I heard a throat clear. I turned around quickly, connecting my head with Finbar’s. Ouch! “We have company.”

  “Kelvin? What are you doing here?” The captain of the guard was sitting on a bench in the barn, watching us as if he was seeing a ghost.

  “H–He called y–you Cuidi,” he stuttered and I understood now. I’d been having this problem all week with people freaked out that I didn’t look like they saw me before. He stood up slowly as if scared to move too fast.

  “I am Cuidi, my old friend.” I walked over to him and away from Finbar, making sure to move slowly so I didn’t add to his being freaked out. “I fell in love and have a human body now. But you can see my eyes and hear my voice, which have not changed.”

  Kelvin nodded and studied me. “No tail, huh?” I shook my head, smiling at him. “I’m going to miss the tail but you’re really fucking hot, Cuidi.”

  “I said the same thing,” Finbar admitted with a snicker. What a couple of characters I had here, I swear.

  I realized something then. I’d never seen Kelvin outside of the castle and it worried me that he was here now. “Kelvin, why are you here? Is the king okay?”

  “It’s the queen,” he admitted sadly. “I’ve been riding all night to find you. Luckily I saw Barry and he told me where you were now. The queen is gravely ill, Cuidi, and the king begs you come at once.”

  “Of course but I can’t prevent death, Kelvin,” I said gently. It wasn’t the first time someone asked it of me though. There just wasn’t a damn thing
I could do. If I could, I would still be at Margaret’s.

  “The king can explain what’s happened better than I can.” Kelvin shrugged. He was not one for medicine and most of the healing practices confused him.

  “Finbar, is it okay with you if I pop right over to the castle?” I asked him as I turned to him and moved into his arms. “You and Kelvin can follow with haste and bring Thumper and what we’ve saved for them. Travis can watch the farm.”

  “You don’t want to go by yourself to have fun at the castle?” he replied after searching my eyes. I didn’t take offense. I knew he was worried he wouldn’t be enough to please me but that couldn’t be further from the truth.

  “I’m yours now and I’m faithful,” I said gently, reaching up and cupping his cheek. “That doesn’t mean I don’t want you with me at the castle and we might have some fun together. But that’s not why I want you to come. I want to introduce you to court and the noble king as my mate.”

  “You’ve mated!” Kelvin gasped. “You’re his! Why not mine?” I glanced over my shoulder at him, shocked that this was his reaction.

  “You never even remotely insinuated that you wanted me permanently, Kelvin,” I replied, not hiding the shock I was feeling. “Besides, Finbar saw me completely after only a few days. He’s the one for me.”

  “Oh, okay,” he mumbled, staring down at his feet. I couldn’t get over his reaction. I stepped away from Finbar, not wanting to see my old friend upset. When he still wouldn’t look at me I placed my hands on his chest.

  “I never thought you would have this reaction, Kelvin. Talk to me, please. I cannot stand to see you distraught. You never said you wanted me as yours.”

  “I don’t know if I did or not,” he admitted as he covered my hands with his large ones. “I would have wanted the chance to see if more was there but you were always so closed off to the idea. But you knew I wanted more, Cuidi. How often did I beg you to stay longer, to stay with me?”