Page 55 of A Kiss from the Fae (Mistress of Magic #2)

‘I’m fine, I’m fine!’ Faye felt tears in her eyes and wiped them away. They were happy tears; she’d missed Annie so much. ‘It’s so good to see you.’

‘Stop it, ye’ll make me start,’ Annie chided.

‘Gabriel’s been a huge help.’ Faye smiled at Ruby and Gabriel hugging; they’d clearly missed each other.

‘He’s looking a lot better.’ Susie nodded. ‘You were kind to let him stay. It’s clearly done him the world of good.’

‘Honestly, it’s as good for me as him. I think if he hadn’t appeared on the beach that day, I dunno…I don’t think I’d have coped alone.’ Faye kissed Alasdair’s head as he fussed a little. ‘Gabriel was in a real state when he got here. But he seems to have turned a corner.’

‘Aye, well, the air’s good up here.’ Annie looked away, pretending to study the buffet.

‘What?’ Faye found Annie so easy to read after all these years; something was up.

‘Oh, nothin’. Just…’ Annie sighed. ‘Ah dunno, Faye. I’ve been away twice when ye needed me. It isnae right, that’s all.’

Susie hugged Annie.

‘Come on, babe, we’ve talked about this,’ she said kindly. ‘Faye’s a grown-up.’

‘I am,’ Faye agreed. ‘It’s okay, Annie. You’ve waited so long to get a job like Coven of Love .

You’ve got a life in London. We’ll still see each other.

’ She held Annie’s hand, squeezing it. She would never tell Annie how much she missed her; that selfishly, she would love it if Annie came back to Abercolme.

She wouldn’t tell her, because she loved Annie, and when you love people, you do what is best for them.

There was a pile of presents on the end of the table nearest to her, and Faye’s eye was suddenly drawn to a strange little woven basket sitting on top. Instinctively, she let go of Annie’s hand and picked it up.

Cradling Alasdair with one hand, Faye put the box down on the table so that she could lift the lid with her other hand.

Inside, there was a note.

Blessings on his naming day to my grandson. A baby without a name is forever in danger , the note read. It was written in a spiky, unusual script, in a dark brown ink on thick parchment. My grandson. Faye stared at the words in shock.

There was only one person this could be from.

Under the note, a small necklace of black tourmaline beads sat among red, gold and yellow autumnal leaves. Lyr.

The air caught in Faye’s throat and panic overwhelmed her.

She caught Gabriel’s eye across the garden. He read her expression and hurried over.

‘What is it?’

She showed him the note, unable to speak, cradling Alasdair closer to her.

Gabriel picked the box up and took it inside the house without a word.

Faye tried to rearrange her face into a happy expression as her friends laughed and chatted.

She drained her glass of champagne. Alasdair seemed unaffected by her tension and gurgled at her; she kissed his cheeks and felt some of her poise returning.

Gabriel returned in a few moments, his hands empty.

‘Where did you put it?’ she asked quietly. The fact that Lyr – or one of his fae minions – had been here, in her house, put her on edge.

‘It’s all right. It’s just a gift,’ he murmured, rearranging some bowls of salad.

‘But it means…he can get to us. That they can all get to us.’ Faye’s heart fluttered like a bird against Alasdair’s soft weight.

‘I don’t think so. Or, whatever protection it is, perhaps it’s not so much that they can’t get to you. It’s just protection from anything harmful. A gift isn’t harmful,’ Gabriel reassured her.

‘How do you know?’ she whispered, hugging the baby to her.

‘I don’t. But what else can we do? Hope, that’s all.

’ Gabriel smiled at Muriel as she set a huge white-iced celebration cake down on the trestle table.

On it, she had iced: Welcome, Alasdair Morgan .

Faye was glad he had a name, and that they were making it plain to whoever was watching.

Lyr’s message was right: a baby without a name was in danger from the faerie realm, and that was something she was determined Alasdair would never be.

She swallowed down her apprehension. If Lyr’s gift was genuine, then she had nothing to fear.

If it was some kind of threat, Morgana would hear about it.

And Faye would renew the magical protections around the house until she, Gabriel and Alasdair were safe inside a crystal castle of their own.

Nobody would ever threaten her or her baby again.

The minister cleared his throat.

‘Shall we begin?’ he asked, smiling, and the adults stood in a rough semicircle around Faye. Alasdair gurgled happily in her arms, reaching up to the leaves that fell from the trees around them like a slow magic.

Faye nodded and folded the soft white blanket away from her son’s cheek.

He had his father’s eyes.

***

If you were gripped by the magic, mystery and faerie lore of A Kiss from the Fae, you’ll love The Cottage by the Loch .

Zelda Hicks has just lost her mother and she’s hoping a break in the tiny, highland village of Loch Cameron will help her heal, until she uncovers a secret that could change everything…

Get it here or keep reading for an exclusive extract.