Page 20 of Basket Case

“Gran said her grandmother heard you.”

I woke for less than an hour. She was frightened and ran from the room.

“That must have been awful.”

Being abandoned by a screaming woman is rarely pleasant. And I'd had such high hopes.

I rubbed my thumb across the strand around my wrist. “I meant going back to sleep.”

The wicker softened beneath my touch. Yes.

Nobody had asked Aonghus whether he wanted to hide inside the creel. Jessie and her mother had saved him, but the spell they used had taken away his freedom. Since then, my family had filled him with vegetables, carried him around and shoved him into pantries whenever he became inconvenient.

I had done exactly that within minutes of arriving. I felt so sorry for him.

“You said names have power. Could your real name help?”

Perhaps.

Better than nothing.

“Will you tell me?”

The leaves covering his handle closed around themselves. He had given me orgasms, tied me to the bed and allowed me to handle every part of him, but apparently his name required serious consideration.

“I’m not going to use it against you.”

Every human who uses a fae name says that.

“That seems unfair. I didn’t even know faeries existed until last night.”

You also called me an ugly basket.

“I didn’t say that to your face. And I was overreacting.”

I could still hear you.

That was unfortunate. I had said several unkind things about his appearance, including the suggestion that he should become part of nature again. Oops.

I stroked the wicker handle. “I’m sorry.”

The strand around my wrist moved into my palm and threaded between my fingers.

Aonghus.

The name filled my head in his deep voice. I knew at once that it belonged to him. It had weight in a way Creel didn’t, carrying an image of wet woodland, dark hair and green leaves. I committed it to memory.

“Aonghus,” I whispered.

Every strand on the bed tightened at once.

FIVE

His cock grew so quickly that the tip struck the underside of the duvet. I pulled my knees apart to stop it becoming trapped between them.

“That was quite a reaction.”

You spoke my name.