The Skye Trilogy: Isle of Skye, Isle of Night, and Isle of Dawn. * Bonus: Scrumptious Skye Confections Cookbook* (23 page)

“As soon as we get your blood work done, you can come back and donate in a few weeks. Serena will have to come back with you. It’s important that she as your Guardian only partake in your blood for a while. That way she can establish a connection.”

“What do you mean exactly by connection?”

“Well, she won’t be able to read your mind or anything but she will have a direct link to any spike in your emotions.” Rhoswen answered as she stuck the needle in my vein.

“Oh, wow, I'm not sure if that’s such a good idea.” I said as I started freaking out

“Why?” she laughed

“I am emotional, an utter train wreck, hot mess, whatever you want to call it. There’s no way I could do that to her. She’s too nice, and I’ll totally mess her up in the head.”

“She’ll be fine.” Oliver said as he came back into the examining room.

About twenty minutes later, Serena and I headed back to the castle to start figuring out how to move my stuff to my new house. I told her my worries, and she just started laughing hysterically.

“Willa, I’m not going to feel every little emotion, usually just fear or intense joy."

“You’ll feel my profound joy?” I asked. “Is that code for orgasm?"

She just continued to laugh as we pulled up to the door. I glanced up and saw Jeremiah coming out in a hurry.

“Jeremiah was a bullfrog…” I started singing

"How long have you wanted to do that?” he smiled as he kissed both of my cheeks in greeting.

“Oh, from day one, it was a real test of restraint for me."

“I bet,” he said before looking at Serena almost formally. “Serena, it’s nice to see you.”

“Jeremiah,” she replied in turn

Hmmm, that’s odd, I thought. What was going on here?

“What are your plans for today?" Jeremiah asked as he turned his attention to me.

“Moving on up…" I started to sing again.

“Need any help?” he offered

“Nope, we’re good but thanks for asking.”

“Let me know if you need anything. I have to run to the library. The Red Hat Ladies have their monthly book meeting this afternoon, and they tend to get rowdy,” he said as he started walking to a golf cart.

“Have fun!” I yelled. I looked over at Serena, who was staring off at his retreating figure. My ass there’s been no indiscretions between vamps and gypsies.

After taking in Serena’s business like expression, I decided that this conversation was so not happening in the castle’s courtyard. Maybe I could ply her with a few drinks and sweets one night and get the skinny.

The door opened and standing there was Polly’s future husband. Riah was casually dressed in a pair of faded jeans, black long sleeve shirt, and motorcycle boots.

“Princess, you’ve made my day. Thank you for the chance to gaze upon your beauty in the morning sunlight,” he greeted

“Riah, good morning, you know I prefer Willa. Princess makes me think of the Scottish Terrier that my friend had growing up in Yuma.”
 

“You could never be confused with a dog but I will address you by anything you wish of me,” he bowed mockingly

I shook my head, “I don’t know whether to fall at your feet in adoration or
break out singing ‘Rico Suave’.”

His brow furrowed, “I’m not aware of that song.”

“I’ll download it for you. So what’s shaking?”

“I was wondering if you would do me the honor of having dinner with me this evening?”

“Are you talking to Serena?” I asked and turned to look at her. She was trying to smother her laughter with her hand over her mouth

.

“No, although she is lovely, and you are truly Serena, I was asking you,” he said

“I thought it was pretty taboo for a Guardian and Gypsy to fraternize?"

“In an intimate manner, yes but I am only asking as someone who is interested in being your friend.”

“Said the lion to the lamb, of course, no one has ever accused me of being soft or innocent.” I mused

“I swear on my life and that of my Queen that I have no nefarious intentions...yet.” he smiled wickedly

I laughed. “Sure why not? Where and when?"

“I will pick you up at seven this evening, Le Ciel Chambre?” he replied

“That sounds good and very French. I will warn you though I am not the type of girl that just eats a salad. I will eat everything on my plate and probably half of yours too.”

“I like a girl with a voracious appetite.”

“Then you’re going to love me,” I said. “Oh, you know where my house is right?"

“House?” he asked confused

“I’m moving today. I rented a house on the point, the Lau’s old place? It’s right before Mathias’s.” I explained

“Interesting,” he said thoughtfully. “You are one surprise after another. I look forward to spending the night with you… Willa."

“See ya later Riah. Seven o’clock sharp. I hate people that aren’t punctual.” I gave him a smile as I strode past him through the door and up the stairs.

Serena was quiet as we made our way to my parent’s suite of rooms. I opened the door and went right to my room to get started

.

“Uh, Willa, do you think that’s a good idea? Going on a date with Riah?” Serena asked tentatively

"Probably not but a girl has to eat. Besides I like Riah, he interests me in a strictly nonromantic sense. I’m not attracted to him, but there's something about him that makes me want to get to know him better. He may not like to hear this, but I have a feeling we’re going to be good friends. Is that weird?"

“No, but I hope you let him down easy. So how do you want to do this?" she asked

“I think I am going to try to teleport everything.”

“Can you do that?" she asked wide eyed

“I think so, I mean, I’m not sure.” I answered truthfully

“Maybe we should see what your father is doing? It’s more of a Fae thing.” she offered

“Good thinking…,” I broke off hearing movement in the living room. “Ask and you shall receive."

“Hey dad!” I called

“What’s up Willy Dilly?” he asked before nodding to Serena in greeting

“I’m going to try to teleport this stuff to my new digs. Do you have any thoughts or suggestions?” I asked waving at my pile of luggage and boxes that were scattered around the room.

“It’s easier than trying to teleport yourself sometimes. Like anything, gather all the elements and we’ll go from there,” he explained

Nodding, I shut my eyes and gathered my energy calling out to them. I was surprised how quickly I felt each one respond to my summons. I couldn’t help but smile in contentment as they gathered around me.

“Simply astounding how quickly you can do that. Now you just need to picture where you want them to go and imagine them being sucked through time and space to get there. It may take a few minutes since you were only at the house once but…” his voice stopped.

The minute he started speaking I pictured the living room of my new house. I saw the sea glistening outside the windows, the couches that were deep brown leather and the gold, brown and red swirled rug that dominated the room. I also saw the long dining room table with its wide, high backed mission style chairs. In my mind I transported every piece of luggage, every box and every item from my iPad to my toothbrush there.

When I opened my eyes, I found my father and Serena looking around the room and gasping.

“What’s wrong?” I asked

“You did it. On your first try, every single piece is gone,” my father answered incredulously

“Cool. All right, see ya later Daddy O. I have to unpack and get ready for my date.” I walked over and gave him a kiss on the cheek. “Tell mom I love her, call you both tomorrow, I’m out."

“Yes, yes, love you too...wait, a date?" he asked stupefied

"Don’t worry. It’s just a friend thing, bye!" I grabbed Serena’s hand and pulled her out the door. “C’mon Guardian, you can help me unpack and pick out an outfit for tonight."

“Willa, I don’t think you need anyone’s help,” she said wryly

“Just a psychotherapist when I wake up from this dream." I grinned

Chapter Sixteen

My good mood was lessened slightly as Serena, and I pulled up the driveway and Leo and Mathias met us.

“What is he doing here?" I grumbled to myself as I stepped out of the golf cart

“Princess, I mean Willa, how delightful it is to see you again.” Leo said graciously

“Hi Leo, thanks for meeting me on such short notice."

“Of course, of course, now I have the keys and both leases ready to sign, shall we go inside?" he asked

“Great,” I replied, ready to get this over with as soon as possible. I just wanted to unpack my stuff and get settled.

Leo unlocked the door and gestured for us all to enter. The minute I walked over the foyer I went straight into the living room where I was greeted by the sight of all my stuff that I had teleported.

“Yes!" I yelled. “I did it!”

Serena gave me a high five as we walked over to inspect my handiwork.

“You already moved your things into the house? How did you get inside? Oh, Serena must have ‘helped’ you again?" Leo asked

“Nope, I teleported everything on my own,” I answered

“You teleported back and forth here with all your stuff?" Mathias asked

“No,” I said proudly. “I got it here in one shot. I just gathered the elements, imagined it going here and poof... or should I say ‘Whoop there it is’?”

“That’s quite an amazing feat.” Leo said in wonder.

“Thanks. So what and where do I need to sign?"

Leo put his briefcase on top of the dining room table and pulled out two separate manila files.

“The first one is for the bakery. Your grandmother has agreed to do a lease on the property for three years at one hundred pounds a month. After the three years, she will then sell you the building for one pound if you should be so inclined.”

“That’s more than reasonable.” I said as I pulled out my check book.

“She was rather upset you didn’t accept it outright.” Leo remarked

"That’s not my style. Besides if the business is a bust in three years, I’ll buy it for a pound and rent it out to Uncle Cuddy. I’ll make a nice little profit every month and live the life of leisure.” I said as I tore off the check and handed it to Leo

“Wait a minute,” he said as he glanced down at the check. “This is for entirely too much."

“I would prefer to pay the entire three years’ lease outright."

“However you wish,” Leo said raising his eyebrows slightly

I laughed to myself. A few weeks ago I would’ve had a heart attack for writing a check out for that amount. When I arrived, my father sat me down and gave me paperwork for my new bank account that he had opened with the Isle of Skye Bank. Apparently Cormac had been a busy little bee all these years, setting up and investing quite a trust fund for me since the day I was born.

Now growing up, of course, I realized my parents were comfortably well off financially. Any girl that gets a new car the day she passes her driver’s license test is clued in pretty quick. The thing is though they never were flashy about it. I now know it's because they never wanted to attract undue attention to themselves.

I signed my name in the appropriate places and Leo handed me an envelope with the keys. I glanced at them quickly, and a feeling of joy came over me. I was going to continue doing something I loved. Opening another bakery gave me the opportunity to bleed some of my old life into my new one. A sense of comfort and familiarity was truly a blessing right now, and I couldn’t wait to get started.

Leo and I went over the lease for the house while Serena and Mathias talked quietly in the corner. Again I signed my name and handed over a check for my new home. I held out my hand for the keys, but Leo just put the papers back in his briefcase and zipped it up quickly.

“Mathias has the keys and he will be walking you through setting up the security and keypads.” Leo said.

“Oh, ok, well thanks again Leo for coming out and for procuring everything for me quickly and efficiently. I'm having a party next week on Christmas Eve. A housewarming, holiday get together. I would love for you to come and please bring a guest.” I offered warmly

“You want me to come to your housewarming?" he asked in amazement

“Of course, you're like only one of a handful of people I know. I don’t want to be a loser with only a few party guests.” I joked

“I would be honored Willa. My wife Elsa and I would love to come, thank you,” he said

“Great, I was thinking around six o’clock. Would that work or do you have plans?"

“We are free and now I must leave. I want go home and tell my wife we will be attending a private party at the new Princesses house.” he said excitedly

He gave Mathias and Serena a quick goodbye as he left whistling.

“All right Wolfie, let’s get rolling, I got me a date tonight.” I announced.

“Excuse me?" his eyes narrowed

“I have a date with a person of the opposite sex, so I need to get unpacked and dig out my LBD.” I replied, smiling with childish glee. It was small and petty, but there was a part of me that wanted to piss Mathias off a little.

"LBD, is that code for something?" he growled

“Little Black Dress,” Serena answered but shrunk back under Mathias’s dirty look.

“With whom are you going to wear this little black dress with?" he said

I cleared my throat before answering, relishing and dreading the moment all at once, “Riah."

Mathias continued to stare at me for a moment before I heard in my head his voice. “
Are you fucking kidding me? What the HELL do you think you are doing?”

“Oh for goodness sake Mathias, he’s my friend. In case you didn’t know, which you probably don’t since you don’t have any, friends get together and break bread. It’s part of this little thing I like to call socializing."

“
You have nothing to worry about Mathias. I fully intend to act appropriately. Besides, Riah is meant to be my friend, my good friend.”
I said silently, as I figured out how to reach into his mind.

“Stay out of my head and out of Riah’s bed,”
he added silently

“
Can we get this over with, please? I heard you loud and clear.” I said exasperatedly

“All right, that was freaky. Were you talking to each other, like, telepathically?" Serena asked confused

“Serena, thank you for escorting Willa here, I think she’ll be good for now.” Mathias said

“Sure, no problem, I’ll see you tomorrow?" she asked me with a curious look on her face

“Bright and early,” I smiled. “It’s time to educate you in Bakery 101.”

"Sounds fun, Guardian Worthing, Willa,” she said before she walked out of the house quickly

“Alrighty...,” I started.

“Willa, I’m absolutely against you and Riah, establishing a friendship of any kind,” he interrupted

“Noted,” I said curtly as I turned towards the door to the basement.

Luckily he took the hint and dropped the subject. “First you need to pick a twenty five digit code."

I pushed his hand away and punched in the code I thought of earlier, “Done.”

“You have to tell me what it is,” he added

“Why? You’re not my Guardian. Serena has been assigned that arduous task.”

“The only two people who are going to have this code are you and me,” he said

“Why not Serena?” I asked incredulously

“That’s how I want it,” he held his hand up as I began to protest. “It’s less likely that I will ever be captured or tortured. Serena is fantastic, but she is young and you are different.”

“Fine,” I sighed. There was no point in arguing with him. I didn’t exactly agree but since I dropped the date bomb, I figured I would let him have this one.

We went through the palm print lock and the retinal scan, I still thought this was excessive but I will admit, it made me feel safe. Before I could even blink, Mathias was upstairs and had grabbed my luggage to bring it down to my new bedroom.

“Thanks,” I said softly

“It’s nothing,” he said properly. “Have fun on your date."

With that he was gone, leaving me alone for the first time in days, I fell on my new bed and let out a big sigh while I wished like hell my date was with him.

The next week flew by so fast I could hardly catch my breath. My date with Riah had gone great. We laughed and flirted outrageously with each other. I found myself genuinely liking Riah when he lost his whole cheesy suave attitude. He and Serena were quickly becoming daily fixtures in my life, and I enjoyed being with them both immensely.

My mother and I had not only tackled the bakery the day after I signed the lease, but we also worked in a few Caster training sessions during our breaks. I had heard through the grapevine that Winifred was happy with my progress. My father was also giving us a hand with the ordering of equipment and dealing with suppliers. Even Uncle Cuddy was slightly mollified when I had asked for his help with the interior design of the business.

The only person I had not seen or heard from was Mathias. I sent everyone an email inviting them to my housewarming party and my only response from him was a short ‘yes’. I welcomed Christmas Eve, the day of my party, with a quick walk on the beach in front of my house.

I had tried to plan a menu with both humans and vampire palettes in mind. The Gypsies would be dining on our family’s traditional meal, red and green, lasagna and salad or antipasto to be more precise. For the vampires, I bought a gorgeous beef tenderloin and had braised it before throwing it the oven to slow roast. Baby potatoes rounded out the simple fare for my guests, but the real star was going to be the desserts.

I had something to prove in that department, especially to my grandmother. I wanted to make sure everyone knew, that I not only could run a bakery, but I could also bake my ass off with the best of them.

I started the day before with my red velvet whoopie pies. They were filled with light, fluffy filling and these delectable little cookie cakes not only screamed Christmas but were extremely decadent. Next I made my Chocolate Mascarpone cups, hell to make, but delicious to taste as Polly called them. I whipped up my chocolate ganache frosting and using an artist’s brush I painstakingly stroked it on the miniature paper muffin cups. When that was finished, I chilled them in the fridge for a few hours before taking them out and filling them carefully with a mascarpone filling made with a hint of milk chocolate.

Next up was my lemon tarts, with a rich, buttery, pastry dough and tart lemon curd. I painstakingly cut fresh strawberries into tiny slivers, forming a perfect fan design on top.

The jewel in my cap though, the one I was banking on was my cannoli’s. I had met the castle chef, John, when I went pillaging the freezer for strawberries, and he told me with his charming cockney accent that Winifred loved a good cannoli.

To make cannoli shells are a pain in the butt, and it embarrassingly took me a few tries but I finally was able to do. After a quick run to my new friend Mary’s store, The Kitchen Magician, I found not only everything I was looking for but several hundred dollars’ worth of other things. All in all, I was feeling pretty good about tonight and was looking forward to celebrating with my new family and friends.