The Selkie Enchantress (6 page)

“Thank you,” he said softly, wrapping his hands around the steaming bowl.

As soon as she turned her back, Owen grabbed Kelsey’s hand. “Promise me,” he mouthed.

“Okay,” she whispered, pulling her hand away and crossing her arms over her chest. Sitting back, she watched him for several moments with a puzzled expression on her face. “I promise.”

He picked up the spoon, bringing the warm sugary bite to his mouth, soothing his hunger. But his eyes strayed back to the pages of the book. He didn’t know where he was from. But he knew those creatures—
selkies
—and that world.

He scooped another piping hot bite into his mouth, savoring the sharp taste of the cinnamon on his tongue. He would figure this out. And he would get back to his home. But first he needed to figure out why all these selkies were black, when all he could remember was a cold, blinding white.

***

“Thank you for showing me around the island,” Nuala said, pausing outside the door to her rented cottage and smiling up at Liam. White caps chopped at the surface of the harbor, rocking the fishing boats docked at the pier. Seagulls soared above the rocky coastline, their solemn cries echoing over the water as they dipped and rolled with the wind. “I can see why you come back here so much. It really is beautiful.”

“It’s the most beautiful place in the world,” Liam agreed, dipping his hands in his pockets. “But showing you around is the least I could do after you saved my life.”

“Please stop saying that,” Nuala said. “Anyone would have done the same thing.”

“I’m not sure about that,” Liam countered, his eyes holding hers. “And I don’t think a walking tour quite repays what you did. Why don’t you let me take you and your son out to dinner tonight?”

“I don’t know,” Nuala said, looking out to the sea.

“What is it?”

“It’s Owen.” Nuala said softly. “He can be shy around strangers. I wouldn’t want him, or you, to get the wrong idea.”

“And what idea would that be?”

She lifted her eyes back to his. “I’m only here for a few days.”

Liam smiled and little lines fanned out from his eyes, warming them. “It’s only dinner, Nuala. Besides, there’s only the one place to eat on the island, and it’s my family’s pub so it’s not like it’ll just be the two of us. But I
can
ensure you’ll get special treatment.”

He flashed her a winning smile, and she couldn’t help but laugh. “You’re very convincing.”

“When I see something I want, I usually get my way.”

So did she, Nuala thought, holding his gaze. And nothing was going to stop her from getting what she wanted this time. “Let me run it by Owen first. But thank you. It’s been a long time since either of us got special treatment. An evening out at an island pub sounds innocent enough.”

He held her eyes for a long moment, and
innocent
was the opposite of what she saw deep in those eyes. She looked away, feigning shyness.

“Until then,” he said, turning on his heel and strolling back toward the pub.

She watched him walk away, that long, lanky build so easy on the eyes and when she heard him begin to whistle an old Irish tune, she smiled, fishing out her key and letting herself into the cottage. The cottage the redhead—
Caitlin
—had decorated. She laughed as she looked around at the small details. The ridiculous bowls of tiny broken seashells. The mismatched kitchen table chairs. The flimsy curtains that barely offered a hint of privacy.

She hadn’t expected Liam to be completely unattached. Men who looked like that didn’t go around long without a girlfriend. But she hadn’t expected her competition to be so pathetic. It was almost too good to be true.

“Owen,” she called out to her son, running her fingers over a worn brass four-leaf clover hanging above the fireplace. “Time to get up.”

When she didn’t get a response, she walked into his bedroom, and spotted the three rocks stacked on his pillow. So he hadn’t forgotten everything after all. She crossed the room, collecting the rocks and dropping them into the pocket of her long white sweater. Owen always left three rocks when he wanted her to know he’d gone out but would be back soon.

Her hands closed around the rocks and she backed out of the room. The wind rattled the windows, pushing the scent of the sea into the house. She closed her eyes, breathing it in, fighting the force that pulled her to it. Three days. She could do this. The sea spray beckoned, crashing up onto the rocky shore below. A small sliver of beach led away from the harbor, curving around the rocky coast leading up to the cliffs.

It would be so easy to run down that worn path, to feel the wet sand beneath her feet, to dive into the salty waves and feel the cold ocean welcome her home.
Home
. She leaned against the frame of the door, breathing in the scent of salt and kelp. She would be there soon enough.

And everything she had ever wanted would be hers again.

She bolted the lock on the door to the cottage, in case Owen was on his way back now, and slipped into her bedroom. She dropped to her knees, cursing those flimsy lace curtains, and reached under the rug, prying the wooden floorboard loose with one of Owen’s rocks.

Pulling the carefully folded bundle from its hiding place, she ran an oiled rag lovingly over the soft seal-skin. She tucked the smaller child’s pelt back into the corner, and then pulled out a third pelt, letting the silky coat run through her hands. In three days they would return to the water.

And this time, they wouldn’t be going alone.

The man had balls. Either that or Liam O’Sullivan was the stupidest man on the planet. Standing in Caitlin’s crowded living room, Glenna took in the gorgeous blonde walking with Liam through the doorway and shook her head. What was he thinking, bringing Nuala to Caitlin’s house tonight? Even if it was a fake birthday party,
he
didn’t know that. He didn’t know they’d already celebrated Glenna’s birthday last week and patched together this last minute party to help him get his memory back.

She watched him take Nuala’s coat and hang it with his on the hook beside the door. Oh, she wanted to knock some sense into that handsome face of his. She’d been so proud of Caitlin for coming up with the idea. But it was going to take a lot more than creativity to lure Liam away from this blonde. Glenna’s fingers curled around the stem of her glass when Nuala smiled up at Liam and whispered something in his ear.
Distracted
didn’t begin to describe the way she already had him wrapped around her pretty little finger.

“You don’t like her.”

Glenna jumped at the sudden voice in her ear. Sam. Just what she needed. He was close enough that she could smell the musk of his soap and the leather of his jacket. His hair was still wet, like he’d just stepped out of the shower. It was getting longer, curling down around the collar of his shirt. Why? Why did that have to make him more attractive? And why did Caitlin insist on inviting him tonight? “No, I don’t.”

“How come?”

“Just a gut feeling.”

“I could ask her to leave,” he offered.

She turned to face him, gazing up into those whiskey-colored eyes. “How chivalrous of you.”

“What can I say?” He took a sip of bourbon. Ice clicked around in the glass. “You bring out the knight in me.”

He smiled and Glenna rolled her eyes. As much as she’d love to take this delicious man home tonight for an entirely different sort of birthday celebration, that was the problem with Sam. She’d need more than that. And then things would get complicated. As Caitlin so bluntly stated this morning, Glenna didn’t do complicated. “Thanks,” she said. “But I can manage.”

He reached out, twisting a finger around one of her long russet locks. Little shivers of pleasure danced along her skin. “You look incredible tonight. As usual.”

“And you look like you showered.” She smiled pleasantly, taking a sip of her wine. “How
is
life on the farm treating you?”

“Why don’t you come down sometime and I’ll show you.”

She lifted a winged brow. One of the guests brushed past her, jostling her, and she grabbed hold of his upper arm to steady herself. She could feel the rock-solid mass of muscle through his jacket and she drew her hand back quickly, smoothing it down her cashmere sweater. “I was there this morning, actually.”

“At Brennan’s?”

She nodded.

“Doing what?”

“Oh, just a little research.” She flipped her heavy hair back over her shoulder, out of his reach. She couldn’t have him rolling it around in his fingers like that. It was driving her crazy. “I needed to borrow some books.”

“What books?”

Glenna’s lips curved. “Wouldn’t you like to know?”

Sam leaned back against the wall. “Maybe I’ll just ask Brennan.”

“You could,” Glenna said slowly. “But I doubt he paid any mind to what I took.”

“You enjoy this, don’t you?” Sam’s eyes held hers, the little flecks of gold in them warming like the first snapping sparks of a fire. “Making me wonder what you’re up to.”

“I’m always up to something, Sam.” She smiled, turning on her heel. “Now if you’ll excuse me.”

The jumble of conversation ebbed and flowed. Wax candles flickered in tiny glass jars nestled in black sand. More guests streamed through the front door and winter winds swirled into the room in sharp, biting gusts. Sam continued to lean against the wall, watching Glenna saunter away. “Seems like a long way to walk for a couple books when I could have brought them to the pub. Met you halfway.”

Glenna looked over her shoulder. That simple statement went way beyond a couple of books. He was trying to get her to open up, to talk to him after she’d been shutting him out for the past few months. But she couldn’t. She needed him to live his life so she could live hers. There was so much he didn’t know. So much the people on this island still had to go through. And she had to keep her focus. She couldn’t afford to slip up. Not once. And certainly not for some man. “I like to walk.”

“Then come back tomorrow.” Sam pushed off the wall, closing the distance between them.

“For what?”

“To say hello,” he said. “What you should have done today.”

Glenna lifted a shoulder. “I didn’t think of it, at the time.”

Sam smiled and Glenna took another sip of wine. Of course they both knew that was a total lie. She could barely be within a mile of this man without sensing him, without feeling his presence and wanting him. But that didn’t mean she needed to act on it. She had incredible willpower when it came to men. Especially ones who couldn’t be trusted. And there was no doubt in her mind, despite everything that happened this summer, Sam was not to be trusted.

“I’ll keep an eye out for you next time,” Sam offered, that fire still burning in his eyes. “I’d like to show you around so you can see what I’ve done.”

“I’m sure that would be a riveting tour,” Glenna replied, her fingers curling around the stem of her wine glass to keep them from creeping up the folds of that worn leather jacket and tangling into those sun-streaked curls. “Seeing all the fences you’ve mended.”

Sam’s lips curved. He held out his hand, and she noted the new calluses forming on his wide palms. “I’ve got farmer hands now.”

Glenna’s mouth went dry. God, she wanted those hands on her, on every surface of her.

“You seem flushed,” Sam commented after several long moments. “Are you hot?”

“I’m fine,” she said quickly.

He fished an ice cube from his drink and cupped it in his palm, holding it out to her. “Maybe this will help.

“What do you want me to do with that?”

He grinned. “I can think of so many things.”

***

Dominic threaded his way through the crowd gathered in Caitlin’s living room. A cozy peat fire snapped in the hearth and a steady bubble of conversation followed him into the connected kitchen, where he found her peeling the foil off a plate of herbed potatoes. “Can I help with anything?”

She tossed the foil into the trash and carried the steaming plate over to the table where the rest of the food was laid out. “I think I’ve got it under control.” She wiped her hands on a dish towel and folded it back over the handle of the oven. “But thanks.”

Dominic leaned back against the counter, taking in the subtle changes throughout the room.  Vanilla and cinnamon-scented pillar candles burned in the windowsills, wax dripping down their fat stems. Tea lights flickered over the coffee table, illuminating an impressive collection of fairy tale books laid out with their beautifully-illustrated covers in full display.

“I didn’t know you had all those,” Dominic commented, watching Kelsey choose one from the table and pull it into her lap. He stiffened when the newcomer’s child, Owen, climbed up onto the sofa beside her.

“I’ve had them for years,” Caitlin said, twisting the top off a Harp and handing it to him.

Dominic took the bottle, his hand wrapping around the cold glass, but his gaze lingered on Owen as he edged closer to Kelsey, peering over her shoulder at the pages of the book. A strange, unsettling feeling took root in his gut as he thought back to the brief conversation he’d had with Nuala when she’d walked in with Liam an hour ago.