Chapter Twenty-Eight
AS THEY HEADED southtoward Dupplin Moor, he and Chloe's latest revelation about the Ring of Brodgar kept him unsettled. Though they’d discussed it with Tiernan and Julie, they had come to no real conclusions other than their destiny was most definitely tied in with the Stonehenge. Something his ghostly great-granda pondered with a grave expression as he sort of half walked half drifted alongside them.
“I had just passed away,” Grant grumbled. “But I suspect if your parents didnae sense it or even Adlin, then I probably wouldnae have either.” He shook his head. “Though I ken your reasons for not telling your parents, I wish you had, lad. I wish they knew your magic had increased at the Stonehenge and not in the courtyard later that day.”
As it so happened, and of little consequence until now, Aidan’s magic wasn’t at its peak at birth. Though born a wizard with magic, the unique power that made him an arch-wizard, ignited for the first time at the Brodgar Stonehenge. Something he didn't mention at the time not only because he got in trouble for wandering off but because he’d been with Chloe.
His best kept secret.
In truth, coming into his fullest power had been quite peaceful. Something he would never forget but cherish. For it had allowed him to finally see Chloe in all her splendor. She had only ever been dressed like a medieval Scotswoman, something she did to make him feel comfortable, but in reality, she wore a beautiful gown of spun gold. A lovely dress that, as the years wore on, sometimes shifted colors slightly or even hugged her curves differently.
“That dress drove me mad once I was old enough to appreciate it,” he had murmured in her ear earlier, wanting to be inside her again despite having had her twice that morn. “Until the day I could finally remove it.”
It was also remarkably similar to the lovely gowns Étaín had dressed her in at Edinburgh Castle then after she was stolen by a possessed warrior. They realized now that the goddess was trying to make her remember while at the same time instilling her with renewed confidence.
“What’s stranger still,” Grant went on, pulling Aidan back to the here and now. “Is that no one felt your arch-wizard magic spark for the first time. ‘Tis a thing that!” He shook his head. “Your parents should have most certainly felt it and without doubt, Adlin.”
“’Tis neither here nor there now,” he began, but Grant cut him off.
“But ‘tis, my lad!” He passed through a tree then reappeared. “Not only did it spark without them knowing, but it happened with a faery in a Stonehenge that we now know is connected to so much.” His gaze landed on Aidan. “That isstillconnected to you and your faery!” He looked at Chloe kindly, marveling at the idea she had been around his clan for so long. Around him when he was still alive. “Or should I say human witch this time around with Fae blood?”
Much like Adlin, Grant had taken to switching subjects in a flash and did so now.
“Chloe, you mentioned the sun setting when Étaín gave you the choice to return to being a faery.” Grant eyed her curiously. “Is it safe to say the sun had you on some sort of time limit?”
He knew Grant asked because the sun was obviously part of all this. It had been a countdown of sorts on Tiernan and Julie's adventure.
“Yes, definitely,” Chloe replied to Grant. “The setting sun was a deadline.” She shook her head, clearly trying to remember. “I’m just not sure why. All I know is it's connected to Étaín somehow.”
“And Étaín is connected to the Irish Stonehenge,” Grant murmured. He pondered it but came to no solid conclusion. “’Twill bear watching as all this continues.”
Aidan nodded in agreement.
Grant once again switched topics.
“’Tis curious I never sensed you, Chloe,” he mused. “Which makes one wonder how many other faeries are flitting about without us being the wiser.”
He started to say more, but wind gusted through the forest with the incoming storm, and he blew away, dissipating into thin air.
“Faeries flitting about mankind is not a common occurrence,” Chloe said softly. “They prefer to keep to the trees.”
She cozied back against him, forever keeping him erect. He longed for the moment they stopped, and he had her alone.
“In fact, I never came across another faery obsessed with a human.” She spoke softer still, her arousal clear in the octave of her voice. “I certainly never came across another who had fallen in love with one.”
Though the weather had been dreary as they traveled, it more often than not felt like the sun shined down on them. Being with her made him happy. He enjoyed talking with her, their conversations endless and varied. While he liked lasses plenty, he had never enjoyed spending time with one as much as he did her and knew it would always be like that.
He already envisioned her cozy in his bed, back at his castle. The idea of her warming his bed every eve and waking up in his arms each morn made him eager to put all this behind them and start their life together. He looked forward to her becoming part of his clan. Giving him advice over the years. Being there to counsel and question him with her curious mind as their little one cuddled between them.
He looked forward to that most of all.
Seeing her belly swell with his bairn and watching their child grow. Filling the castle with children who would laugh and play with their great-great-ghostly-granda Grant and whoever else was about. He looked forward to growing old with her. Enjoying their grandchildren. There were so many good years ahead. So much joy. Never once did it occur to him that she might not stay until she made a random comment about the future during one of their chats.
While he knew she wanted a life with him, it wasn’t something they had spoken about and probably should. So when they were alone later that eve, he finally said what he’d held back ever since he overheard her thoughts about marriage.
“Though ‘tis a lot to ask, I dinnae want you to leave when this is all over, lass.” He cupped her cheek, never more serious. “You know that, aye? The life I want for us?” He traced the soft contours of her jawline with his finger, unable to stop his thickening brogue. “Ye know I loved ye in my last life then again in this one when ye were a faery,” he said softly. “But I hope ye ken that I’ve fallen in love with ye all over again these past few days.” He shook his head. “That I cannae imagine my life without ye.”
And he couldn’t. So much so that if she wanted to remain in the future, he would go.
