Page 18 of The Mage’s Rake (Catkin Trilogy #2)

Hugh

E very fiber of my being screamed at me to flip Alan over and bury myself within him.

I wanted him in my arms. I wanted to drive the surge of pleasure that arced through us, passing from skin to skin.

Yet, at the same time, there was something mind-blowing about seeing Alan take control, ride himself to the edge of pleasure. My fingers curled into the sheets.

Beneath his touch, as his fingers ran along my chest, I arced upward, seeking his touch. I didn’t intend to, but I wanted more—more of Alan. More of him than ever before. Alan’s scent combined with mine, creating a delicious mix of apple trees and the faint scent of air before the rains.

Then, Alan finished chanting, and an explosion of light burst from his skin, circling about us, spreading through my body.

Alan’s rhythm sped up as he drove himself to a glorious climax.

His face was suffused with light and joy.

In response, the pleasure that had filled me spilled over.

Every muscle within me contracted, spasmed in delight as I gave myself to the moment.

I shouted and my hands moved to his thighs as I came, finding completion in a hazy world of passion and desire.

For a second, I felt as though I were flying, carried away from my body, until my soul suddenly returned to the land of the living, of sense and sight and sound.

I came to and discovered Alan still sitting on me, but slumped forward a little.

Lifting his silvery white hair that had fallen about his face, I cupped his cheek. He felt cool to the touch, oddly so.

Worry suddenly pierced my heart. Had something gone wrong?

Carefully, I turned on the bed, cradling his slender frame.

With him now lying on the soft quilt of his bed, I drew the edge of the blanket up and over him.

I turned and looked beyond the open door.

The fire had been snuffed out as if by magic.

The patter of Aileen’s drum had ended. Silence reigned.

All that remained was smoke, the scent of our desire, and the faint tinge of magic in the air.

I focused back on Alan, pushing the sweaty tendrils away from his angular face.

Here, with him lying quietly in my arms as if asleep, I could study the hard lines of his face, now revealed without his over-sized spectacles blocking the view—and notice how young Alan truly was.

His high, sharp cheekbones ran down to the hard line of his jaw that met in a pointy, almost elfin chin.

Alan was not very muscled, nor did he carry much weight.

Now, more than ever, I was struck by how slight he was.

My fingers brushed against his right temple up over the edge of his gently arching white eyebrows. Then down, over his eyelids and his thick white lashes… down to the slender lines of his neck. Beneath my thumb, his heartbeat thrummed slow and faint. Too faint.

I gently laid Alan on the pillow, cleaned the two of us up, and then wrapped him up in his thick blankets.

Now clothed in my red robe, I went in search of Aileen, only to discover her returning with a servant in tow and a trolley of food.

At the sight of me, Aileen took control of the trolley and shooed the servant away.

“You’re lookin’ fairly fit, all things considered,” Aileen said. “Fair bursting with magic, I shouldn’t wonder. Alan really did give it his all.”

“He’s… Aileen, he’s not waking up.”

Aileen frowned. I fairly pushed her into the room and hovered as she checked Alan’s vitals.

Leaning back, Aileen hummed a few soft words.

With a soft moan, Alan’s eyelashes fluttered, and then his violet eyes focused on Aileen and me.

A soft smile graced his lips fleetingly, falling away as sadness flitted across his face.

“It didn’t work,” he said.

Aileen caught Alan’s gaze, and an undecipherable look passed between them. Then she turned, looked at me, and nodded slowly.

“He’s bursting with magic, but, aye, the curse is still there.”

Alan rolled over and then sat up, drawing his blankets around his shoulders. There was a droop to the lines of his posture as he huddled in the center of his bed. Without thinking twice, I crawled onto the bed and drew him into a huge embrace which surprised a squawk out of him.

“Alan.” I breathed a sigh of relief. “You have no idea how much you scared me—not waking up like that! I’m just glad you are still here… even if it didn’t work.”

Alan didn’t reply for a moment and then he sagged back into my arms, allowing himself to rest against me.

“We won’t give up, Hugh,” he finally said. “I promise. We’ll fix it.”

“I know we will.” I rested my head against his and reveled in the feel of his soft white hair against my cheek. “We will be unstoppable. You’ll see.”

I wasn’t sure if it was entirely true, but I didn’t care.

Even if my days were counted in a matter of weeks, I would treasure the night I had shared with Alan forever.

Seeing him dancing, surrounded by the glory of his magic and aura, would remain with me to the end of my days.

Having Alan there was all I wanted. I just wanted him in my arms. The rest would sort itself out eventually.

Alan was here. That was all that mattered.

If I had my way, Alan and I would have spent the night cuddling together beneath his thick blankets.

Aileen, however, was determined to feed Alan and ensure that he had “proper rest.” She said the last while giving me a sharp look, as though I would have kept Alan up all night for some reason or another.

I knew better than to protest. After we sat and ate the light meal that Aileen had rustled up for us, I retired to my own rooms.

I always hated returning to my bed alone. This was no exception. That night, it took me hours to finally drift off to sleep. When my dreams took me, they were filled with a soft glow swirling around a slender white-haired tomcat with amethyst eyes.

When I woke the next morning, I still felt the invigoration of Alan’s spell work.

It manifested as a sense of warmth within my chest and body, and the air was filled with a hint of tangy incense.

Closing my eyes and imagining Alan beside me was remarkably easy, but when I looked around the room, he was decidedly absent. I decided to fix that right away.

Thankfully, Alan was still worried about my health, so he made an appearance at breakfast. To check on me, he said, but judging by the warmth in his usually cool gaze, I figured he was just as anxious to seek my company.

“Did you wish to join me on my investigation today?” I asked, hoping that he would say yes.

“About the missing hedge witch?” asked Alan.

When I nodded, Alan agreed instantly. A couple of hours after we finished our castle-bound duties, we met in the main hall dressed for yet another adventure beyond the castle walls.

Alan seemed more excited than usual. No sooner had he caught sight of me, he was out the doors and mounting his docile mare. Chuckling to myself, I followed suit.

“I’m just worried,” he admitted after I asked him about his curious mood. “I have a bad feeling. No amount of scrying would give me any sense of location, so I cast a few stones today, and it seems as though Fate has other plans for our quarry…”

“You think their fortunes have turned?”

“For the worse,” Alan said. “They may be dead.”

“Gods, I hope not.” I flicked my reins and slowly rode alongside Alan past the castle gates. “I had hoped to have a talk with her… about a great many things.” I winked at Alan. “You know how the ladies can’t say no to me.”

Alan rolled his eyes. He actually rolled his eyes and huffed. It was so informal, that I was startled a little. Laughter bubbled up as I realized that Alan was truly beginning to melt under the infamous warmth of the Starr charisma.

Or perhaps I was exaggerating. Nevertheless, the time it took us to return to the nearby village where we had last searched for the mysterious potion maker passed by all too easily.

I told Alan about the most recent messages and reports I had received from my soldiers.

After scouring for the past couple of days for the potion maker, my scouts and soldiers had new leads to follow.

There was hope that the potion maker might be located soon.

When we arrived in the miserable little village, the laborers, farmers, and housewives moved about quietly, scowling at us from under their hoods and caps.

There was a distinct lack of welcome in the air, but Alan and I moved from door to door, knocking and asking questions about the potion maker with a bit more force than before.

Few answered. Most balked and spoke what I could only assume were lies, based on their ludicrous nature. Others muttered under their breath.

No matter how much Alan assured them that the old crone would not be troubled or even taken away, we got scant responses from the villagers.

The one elderly tom who spoke with us hinted at various hideouts in the forests that might house a wandering soul—lean-tos and deer blinds set up for poachers.

That was exactly what my soldiers had learned.

The castle’s soldiers had spread throughout the forest.

After two hours of huddling in smoky parlors and outdoors in front of pitiful fires, Alan and I were exhausted, but Alan refused to rest. He urged me to make contact with the captain, who I had stationed further up the road.

Captain Tam, a feisty molly who had spent many years working at the castle, knew the surrounding environs like the back of her hand.

She had already set up a barricade to cut off any attempt to escape by the one main road that wound through the forest.

As we approached the wooden barriers and the groups of soldiers that had gathered about on both sides of the muddy, snow-packed road, Captain Tam detached herself from what looked like a group of scouts.