Prologue
The
girl was becoming angry at the events unfolding in front of her. Her brother stood quietly by, and she could
sense his confusion. The King and Queen
of her Kingdom stood before her in the throne room of their castle. The Queen was looking at her with hatred in
her icy blue eyes. But the girl knew no
fear. She could handle anything this
puny Queen could throw at her.
To
look at her most would have thought her poor and weak, with her homespun cotton
gown, her disheveled appearance, and her gnarled wooden staff. But she was the daughter of two of the
richest and most powerful families in Jarosh.
And her teacher and mentor had been the most skilled sorceress to ever
come west from the eastern provinces.
The girl was powerful in more ways than one.
She
noticed her mother’s long time lover standing behind the thrones with many of
his men nearby. They would enable the
escape that was inevitable now. She had
hoped for a different outcome once her mark, and her brother’s, were exposed
for all to see. She had hoped her father
was not the sniveling fool she had always feared he was. But she could see now who was really in
charge, who ran things in the capital, and throughout all the kingdom. It was the Ice Queen.
“Seize
the imposters,” the Queen screamed. Only
a handful of guards stepped toward the twins.
Her mother’s men outnumbered them three to one, and they were soon disarmed
and no longer a threat. The Queen
screamed so shrilly it was painful to the ears.
The girl could not stand the sound.
She raised her staff and cracked the bottom down hard on the marble
floor. A wave of red flame moved out
from the spot, and red sparks shot up with a crackling sound. The room became instantly silent. Even the Queen stopped mid scream.
“Are
you ready for a perfect storm, Your Grace?” the girl spit out quietly. “Because that is what you shall have.” The girl turned and walked out of the throne
room into the courtyard followed by her brother and all of her loyal men.
There
were two gryphs in the yard and a score of horses. She mounted the closest gryph along with her
mother’s lover, and the bird took off toward the northeast. She had come to love the city while she had
been living there, the beauty of it, the people who lived there. Now she would have to fight to make it hers
and her brothers. No matter, she had her
magic, and they would have almost the whole kingdom battling alongside them.
The
twins had remained in hiding for years.
Now was the time to take back what was theirs - their kingdom, their
people, and their thrones. They were the
rightful heirs of Jarosh, and even the Ice Queen did not have the power to deny
them.
The Early Years
Chapter 1
Megan
walked down off the porch and into Max’s arms.
He hugged her tightly, and then tilted her chin up so he could kiss her
long and deep.
“I
have been waiting six years to kiss you again,” he said gently.
“I
never forgot the last kiss we shared. I
knew we had a bond, a spark between us.”
“You
felt it too? The electricity between
us.”
“I
did. That feeling stayed with me and
helped me bear a marriage with no passion.
I never lost hope that I would get to have that feeling again.” He leaned some of his weight on her, and she
helped him up the steps into the cottage.
There were furs in front of the fire where Megan eased him down so he
could be comfortable. She was busying
herself fixing him something warm to eat when he heard a giggle behind
him. He turned around and saw a small
girl with black hair and fire in her green eyes.
“Well,
hello little one, what is your name?”
“Mawa.”
“Mara? That is a very pretty name for a very pretty
little lady.” He reached his hand out to
her and she came and sat beside him on the furs. He was admiring the dolly she was showing off
when he heard a yell from upstairs.
“Mawa. Mawa, come.”
Max looked at Megan and raised his eyebrows. She just smiled and nodded her head.
“We
have two, do we?”
“We
do,” she said laughing.
“We
are going to be busy. Cause, naturally,
two will not be enough.”
“O,
two will not? How many would be enough?”
“Ummm,
a dozen?” Megan shook her head. “A half dozen?” Max looked hopeful.
“Probably
not going to happen, Max.”
“All
right, then, how about two more?”
“Maybe,
you are a lot closer now.” Max ate the
warm stew slowly. He was still
recovering and had not eaten in many days.
Mast had found them now, but he was shyer and quieter than Mara, so he
stood by his mother’s knee. He just
stared at Max and would not greet him.
He looked more like Curtis. He
had red hair and his Aunt Rhiann’s soft blue eyes. The twins had an unspoken bond between them;
they even spoke words in a private language that others could not understand.
“They
are beautiful, Meg. What happened? Why are they not in the castle as they should
be?” Megan told Max her story. By the end he was so angry he was seeing red.
“How
could he……? Does he not realize what he
has done? Max took a moment to
think. “What are your hopes for them,
your plans?” he asked her in almost a whisper.
“I
will see one of them on the throne. It
was a promise I made to King Malcolm.
They will hide until the time is right, and then they will claim their
birthright. I realize it may mean war,
but that will depend on Curtis and Arianna.
I do not desire it.”
Max
told Megan what had been happening in his life the past six years. As he recounted the battle, he realized his
friends would be assuming he was dead.
He was still too weak to ride his gryph back to the Hold.
“I
must get a message to the Hold, to my friends.
I do not want them believing me dead.”
“Fern
and Sir Martin left for Sweetwater this morning. Fern penned a message to your Uncle Thorne
telling him you are alive. She will give
it to her suitor, Benjamin Lake, an animist, and he will deliver it for
her. Will that be good enough?”
“That
will be perfect.” Max relaxed now, no
longer worried about putting his friends through any grief.
“The
two of them will be gone for several days.
Will you mind helping me with the twins while they are away? Four hands are always better than two,
especially with Mara around,” Megan said laughing.
“I
can think of nothing in the world I would rather do, Meg. You know I am in love with you. I have been since before I even met you, but
once I kissed you I was ruined forever.”
“I
think I have loved you too, from that first kiss. My path was being determined for me, so there
was nothing I could do about it. Then.”
“And
now?”
“Now,
I intend to make you mine, Max Harcourt.
Mine forever.” She sat beside him
on the furs and kissed him softly on the lips.
They could feel the passion spreading through them like a wave. He kissed her eyes, her neck, the tip of her
nose. He drank in her smell, roses,
lavender, and a hint of garlic from the stew.
He had never smelled anything better.
“I
love your smell, Max. It is warm and
natural, forests and flowers. It makes
me feel safe and relaxed. Come, we must
get the children ready for bed. After
they eat we will bathe them. Then, you
can read them a story while I take a bath.
Once they are asleep, I will help you take a bath. I am sure you would like to wash some of that
dried blood off.”
“Taking
a bath with you is number two on my list of favorite things to do.”
“Number
two, is it? What would number one be?”
“Pleasing
you for hours until you beg me to quit.”
“What
if I never beg you to quit?” Megan whispered breathily.
“Even
better,” Max said with a grin. After
Mara’s bath much of the water in the wooden tub was on the floor of the
kitchen. Megan passed her wet squirming
little body to Max wrapped in a towel.
As she lay on the furs Max attempted to figure out how to put a diaper
on her. After a few minutes, he held the
rectangular cloth up with a confused look on his face. Megan laughed.
“I
will show you how to do it, then you can put Mast’s diaper on him.” Max watched intently. When it was Mast’s turn he spent many minutes
working, and eventually got the diaper on correctly. Both children lay on the furs with Max
looking at a picture book. Mara could
tell him what all of the animals in the book were and the sounds they made. Mast just looked at the book and at Max with
curiosity.
“She
is a smart one, Meg.”
“She
is. Mast still just drinks everything
in. He knows as much as Mara does, but
he will not say it.” Megan was in the
tub now, lathering herself with the rose scented soap. Max could not help but try to sneak a peek at
her beautiful body. Both children fell
asleep on the furs, and Megan took them upstairs one at a time while Max eased
himself into the tub. His face contorted
as his wound entered the soapy water.
Megan
returned and with soapy hands rubbed Max’s back.
“Does
it hurt?” she whispered in his ear.
“My
leg? Yes, it hurts. But your touch makes me forget all about
it.” Max took Megan’s hand and moved it
down between his legs. She pulled back,
nervous from inexperience.
“Did
you and Curtis never….?” Max asked skeptically.
“I
told you about Curtis’s idea of making love to his wife.”
“I
guess I cannot believe he treated you so coldly. Well, let us take it slowly then. I want you to be comfortable.” She helped him out of the tub and then dried
him off. She could not help but stare at
the hardness between his legs.
“I
am sorry, Meg. I want you, and I cannot
hide it.”
“It
is not that, Max. It is so different
from his. I mean it is…large.” She said with a nervous giggle.
“So
I have been told. Let me use it to
please you, my love.” They lay together
on the soft furs in front of a roaring fire.
“Just
relax. I will not do anything that would
ever hurt you. Do you trust me?” asked
Max in her ear.
“I
do,” she whispered back. Max kissed her
forehead gently, then her eyelids, her cheeks, and the tip of her nose. Then he rested his lips gently on hers. He slipped his tongue between her parted lips
and entwined it with hers. He could feel
her relaxing as she moved her arm up to grasp his neck and her kisses became
more urgent.
“I
want to explore every inch of you, and let you explore every inch of me,”
whispered Max as he moved his hand to her creamy breasts.
“Yes,”
was all Megan could get out. Is this how it was supposed to be? Did Curtis really rob me of so much? Max caressed her breasts and ran his
thumb over her nipples making them stand up.
Then as he moved to kiss her breasts his hand moved down her abdomen toward
her mound of silky hair below. Max slid
his fingers over Megan’s most private spots gently, allowing her body to react
to him. He slipped his finger inside
her, finally finding her wetness. Megan
was whimpering quietly, all her defenses down.
She was completely and fully his.
Max moved lower and put his mouth on Megan using his tongue to make her
gasp and feel pleasure she had never imagined.
As her body climaxed for the first time ever, tears of joy slid down her
cheeks.
He
kissed his way slowly back up to her breasts, as he took her hand and moved it
toward his hardness. This time she
willingly stroked him and then asked him to enter her, to take her and make
their two bodies one. With his injury,
Max knew he would have to be inventive, so he lay on his back and helped Megan
straddle him. Understanding his
situation, she placed his hardness inside her and moved herself up and down
riding him, hands entwined, until both climaxed. She fell onto the furs beside him smiling and
satisfied.
She
wanted him to know how she was feeling, but she did not have words for it. Now Megan was finally feeling the intimacy,
the bonding she had always craved. Lying
in Max’s arms as he stroked her arm, she realized she had never felt closer to
another being.
“I
love you, Max, I really love you. The
things I want to tell you, I do not even know how. I hope you understand.”
“I
love you, Meg, and I understand perfectly.”
It was not long before they were coupling again. I could
never get enough of this, they were both thinking simultaneously. Finally, Megan got up to check on the
toddlers and go to her bed. Max stood up
with her.
“Will
you help me to our bed?” Megan looked at
him, and she was smiling while the happy tears rolled down her cheeks again.
“Of
course. Our bed? I like the sound of that.”
“Anytime
we are in the same place for the rest of our lives, I will share a bed with
you. Whether we marry, or no, whatever
the future may hold, you are my woman and I will share everything with you
forever.”
