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“We have a lot of big wolves, Mom,” a younger voice replied.
“We do, but this lovely is huge.”
Suddenly, a young lad stood in front of Reardon’s… well, his cage. He had to accept the fact that he was detained in a cage. In all his years of fighting, he’d never been captured, never been imprisoned, never been stripped of his dignity.
He’d also never foolishly pissed off a Celtic goddess. He deserved every bit of this shaming.
The boy’s wide eyes, however, didn’t look upon him with disdain. Instead, fascination filled them.
“Whoa!” The boy kneeled, his hands resting on his knees, and tilted his head at Reardon. “And you and Parker found him in the woods last night?”
Last night.Aye. Now Reardon remembered. Two humans had found him caught in those iron jaws. Things had gotten a little foggy after that, but he definitely remembered the red-haired fairy lass who had sat by his side as sleep had overtaken him.
The same red-haired fairy lass who came to stand behind the boy now.
So beautiful.
If he couldn’t smell her flowery scent, he’d think she were merely a mirage. Some spell-induced vision meant to enchant him. Because hewasenchanted. Everything about this woman drew him in. Her thick mane of straight red hair falling about her shoulders. Her sky blue eyes regarding him now. Her pale, perfect skin.
Her lips. Her full, pink, tempting lips. Lips that smiled at him and made him want to change back to a man and increase that smile tenfold.
But he couldn’t do that. No sense in scaring the lad studying him or the woman.
“We were in the driveway,” the fairy woman began.
“After your date?” The boy’s brows lowered, his mouth a grim line. Why did that worddateupset him? What did it mean?
Something swept across the fairy woman’s features, but she quickly shook it off. “Yes. Parker and I heard a howl that didn’t sound familiar, so we investigated.”
“Why didn’t you wake me up?” The boy turned to look up at her.
She ruffled his blond hair. “Because boys need their sleep to perform their best at school.” She glanced at her wrist. “Which you will be late for if you don’t get your patoot out to the bus stop, kiddo.”
“Aw, Mom. Can’t I stay home with you today? I’ll learn a lot more hanging around here than in Mrs. Gruper’s class.”
“If you don’t learn anything in Mrs. Gruper’s class today, whose fault is that?” The fairy woman put her hands on her hips and gave the boy a stern look which reminded Reardon of the way Flidae had regarded him and his men.
“Mine,” the boy mumbled as he got to his feet. “Promise me this wolf will still be here when I get home.”
She gestured to Reardon. “He’s not going anywhere with that broken leg.”
Broken leg?
Broken bones didn’t stay broken for long on a man like Reardon. His shifting abilities allowed him to heal faster than an average human, but he now understood the hard, white material covering his leg was meant to immobilize the limb so it could mend. It was an unnecessary course of action, but if it gave him the opportunity to be around the fairy lass, he could deal with the limited maneuverability. In a day or two, the ache would be gone completely and the bones healed.
For right now though, he was safe. He was dry. He had a shelter and if his nose didn’t mislead him, he’d have food.
And he’d have this woman who had taken care of him. What else might she do?
The boy’s gaze lingered on Reardon for a few more seconds before he got to his feet and picked up a sack from the floor.
“Do you have your lunch?” the woman asked.
The boy patted his sack. “It’s right here along with my homework which I know is your next question.”
The woman ruffled the lad’s hair again. “That predictable, am I?”
“A teeny-tiny bit, Mom.” The boy held up a hand with his index finger and thumb a short distance away from each other.
