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  I wasn’t the only one who was tired and still jet-lagged. We hadn’t been out there very long before our parents retired for the night. I guess the firewater did Dad in.

  Cass and I stood for a while and clapped to the music. I was admiring McKale’s swift movements of his bow across the instrument until someone from behind tapped our shoulders.

  “Hide me from Brogan, would ya?” asked Rock in full form.

  “Hey!” Cassidy’s face lit up and she bounced on her heels.

  “Hallo again, gorgeous.”

  And with that she was mush. In all honesty I couldn’t blame her. There was something fun about being in his mischievous presence. The three of us stood there bantering at the far edge of the clearing.

  “So, what’s your real name?” I asked him. “It can’t be Rock.”

  “Nah. Pop used to say me head was full o’ rocks and just as hard.” He knocked on his skull for effect and Cassidy smiled. “The real name’s Ronan, but ‘tis far too proper.”

  When Cass giggled I rolled my eyes at her. She lifted her hands and mouthed, “What?”

  Before I could respond, a burst of magic stronger than any I’d ever felt flashed through the field. It sizzled my skin and I almost lost my balance. Cassidy fell back onto the bench. The music stopped and people ran, shouting about Fae and the Portal.

  Rock whispered something in a sneering tone under his breath and took off.

  Cassidy hurried back to my side and we grasped hands, freaked out as we stared in the direction of the field where the Clourichaun Men had arrived last night. I watched in horror as an invisible knife seemed to stab the air and slice downward to the ground, opening a dark slit between our worlds. I looked to McKale, but he simply stared at the portal like everyone else, his instrument dangling from his fingers as he stood.

  “Pssst!” A hissing call came from the woods beside us, not ten feet away. Cassidy and I looked to see Rock stick his curly head around a tree trunk and urgently wave my sister to him. She ignored my efforts to cling to her fingers, letting go and running.

  “I’ll be right back!” she whispered.

  I stayed where I was and crossed my arms, chilled to the bone. I was too terrified by the unnatural sight of the portal to worry about what Rock might be up to.

  A murmur swept through the crowd and people lowered their heads in reverent greeting as five beings came through the portal. I couldn’t make them out completely, but I was awestruck. They moved in our direction, two smaller creatures flying around them.

  Whispering stopped as they got closer, and tension filled the surrounding air. I was able to see them now—four males and one female, though the faces were still unclear from this distance. The winged creatures flew ahead of them and began to flit around above the Leprechauns, snatching off hats and dropping them on other people’s heads, even pulling hair. They had naked green bodies with fat bellies, and they cackled in high-pitched voices that hurt my ears. I heard someone near me whisper, “Bloody pixies.” Everyone looked annoyed, but nobody spoke out against the pixies’ behavior.

  A little woman sidled up next to me, seeming terrified with big eyes and hands on her cheeks.

  “Can the Fae just come and go whenever they please?” I whispered to her.

  “Aye. We cannot stop them.”

  I looked back toward the Fae, who had reached the edge of the field now, and my abdomen tightened. Each of the four men had long, shimmering hair of metallic colors that fell to their shoulders: silver, gold, bronze, and copper. Their skin gave off eerie, iridescent glows. Their bodies and faces were symmetrical to the point of being unnatural. Too sharp. Too perfect. Like life-sized animated dolls.

  It was the petite Fae girl at their side who stole my attention. Her tiny oval face was made of delicate features that would break any girl’s heart with envy. I was mesmerized by her big, almond shaped eyes of icy blue and her round, innocent flower of a mouth. Her hair was amazing: long, past her hips, straight and thick without a single hair out of place. The color was like white gold: the ultimate platinum blonde. I was utterly humbled by her beauty. All of the Chaun were on their feet now.

  Brogan stepped forward through the crowd and bowed at the waist.

  “Good evening, sires and miss. We welcome ye. To what do we owe this pleasure?”

  “This is to be a special summer for the Leprechauns.” It was the bronze-haired male who spoke. His voice reverberated with power. “Has the betrothed of your son arrived as sanctioned by Lady Martineth?”

  My stomach plummeted and for a split second I contemplated diving under the table. I hadn’t expected the Fae to show. I did not want their attention, and I suddenly yearned for my parents’ presence. The entire field was stiff. Music had stopped and everyone peered around, large-eyed, unmoving, eyes stopping on me. I looked at McKale, who stood tall. His eyes flashed to me for one seemingly paranoid second, then turned back toward the Fae, rapt. I peered toward the trees and found the faces of Cass and Rock peeking out from the shadows, watching.

  “Why, y-yes, she has arrived,” Brogan confirmed. “’Tis a special time, indeed. We hope the binding will commence soon.”

  “Very well. We bring goodwill from our realm, Brogan of the Leprechaun.”

  “Oh, thank ye.” Brogan bowed again. “We are very much obliged.”

  “Should there not be music and dancing on this momentous occasion? Please, commence the festivities.”

  The bronze-haired man snapped his fingers and the pixies flew to him. He looked toward the Faerie girl, as if seeking her approval, but her freaky eyes were busy scanning the Chaun people. Brogan signaled the musicians who exchanged glances before raising their instruments. All except McKale, who had moved further into the clearing away from the musicians, appearing dumbfounded and dazzled. He’d left his fiddle next to the stump. The other musicians began a song.

  Watching McKale, a knot slowly formed in my stomach. I followed his stare to the Faerie girl who was intently watching him in return. The knot grew larger and curled inside of me.

  The four Fae men dispersed as the music began and the girl drifted seamlessly through the clearing, straight toward my betrothed. I watched, frozen, as she approached and stopped in front of him, not ten feet away from me.

  “It has been too long, McKale of the Chaun.” Her voice was a soft caress.

  He bowed his head and said, “Indeed, Khalistah.”

  She held out a dainty hand and McKale hesitated. When he took her fingers in his palm, he shuddered and closed his eyes, but it wasn’t pain he was experiencing. His expression was euphoric. The knot in my stomach exploded like hot lightening. Warning sirens blared in my head. Every cell in my body desperately wanted to get him away from her. She gave the smallest smile of satisfaction before releasing his hand.

  The Fae girl, Khalistah, looked past him to where I stood. Her lips tightened as her eyes took in every detail, from my flip-flops to the top of my head, which surely had stray hairs and frizz.

  “This is her?”

  McKale, who didn’t seem to want to take his entranced attention from the Fae girl, turned enough to verify that I stood there, and confirmed who I was with a nod.

  “Wait,” he said, blinking when she stepped around him and moved closer to me. A small crowd formed, their faces worried.

  Khalistah’s eyes reached the top of my tall frame.

  “I didn’t realize human women could grow so large.” There were a few gasps from the crowd as Khalistah laid down the ultimate insult by Leprechaun standards. I already felt like a gigantic oaf here, so the smack-talk was unnecessary. She continued to speak to McKale about me, right to my face.

  “You will bind with her?” she asked in a distasteful way.

  I looked to McKale, imploring, but he appeared dazed. He blinked again and swallowed hard.

  “I will do my duty for the clan,” he said quietly. Bile rose in my throat.

  “Hmph,” Khalistah breathed.

  Yeah. I didn’t like
her. And I wasn’t his biggest fan right now either.

  I clamped my teeth down hard. As visions of violence danced in my head, I had to remind myself that this Fae witch had the power to curse my family and me.

  I didn’t feel so good.

  “Excuse me,” I said. With a humble bow of my head, I turned on my heels, and pressed my way through the crowd. I heard the tinkle of her laughter behind me. Onlookers gawked as I passed, picking up speed as I headed toward our bungalow. I contemplated going to my parents, but decided I’d tell them everything in the morning. Right now I needed to be alone to think this through.

  Something was going on with my betrothed and a beautiful, cruel Faerie. I wouldn’t go so far as to say he was in love with her. It looked more like infatuation. He’d better not be in love with her. Infatuations were bad enough.

  Could she be the reason he’d brought up our binding the way he did this morning?

  Acid burned the back of my throat. How was I supposed to compete with that?

  Wait, compete? I didn’t want to compete for a guy! It went against my basic morals. If a guy didn’t want me, then screw him. But this was different. I couldn’t just walk away from this like some silly crush in high school. My family’s lives depended on McKale and I together. If this binding didn’t work out, the Fae wouldn’t care about the reasons.

  I walked into my bungalow and shut the door a little too hard. I kicked my flip-flops across the dark room. Then I pushed down my shorts and yanked off my blouse, throwing them to the floor and falling into the squishy bed in my tank top and panties. I curled up small, and my bra dug into my sides, but I was too ticked to move. I willed the bile back down to my stomach.

  I wanted to go home.

  I regretted leaving Cassidy in the trees with Rock, and I hoped she’d come to me soon. I felt stupid and out of place here. I needed my sister.

  The memory of McKale kissing the Faerie’s hand kept resurfacing, making me ill and something else—something bitter. Jealousy. He’d seemed so… overwhelmed or something.

  After seeing that, I felt apprehensive of what else I might find out about McKale. I was scared of his possible secrets and past. But getting to know him was the only chance I had in this battle. Khalistah had taken the first round, but I wouldn’t go down without a fight.

  Unfortunately, I had a feeling Faeries wouldn’t fight fair.

  I HADN’T FULLY CALMED yet when I heard voices and the door swooshed opened.

  “Robyn!”

  I exhaled with relief at the sound of Mom’s voice.

  “It’s so dark,” Cassidy whispered. “Robyn? Are you in here?”

  “I’m here,” I replied. I wiggled around until I was able to push myself up on the bed with my legs crossed. Cassidy stumbled through the dark and sat next to me while my mom found the oil lamp and turned it on. She wore flannel pajama pants and a pullover fleece. Her face was tight with worry as she came and sat next to me. Having both of them was a comfort, a balm for my agitation.

  “Why didn’t you wake me? Cassidy says there were Fae about? I was so hard asleep I didn’t even sense them. Did they hurt you?”

  “Not exactly. But… I think there’s something going on with one of them and McKale.”

  My mom sucked in a shocked breath. “No.”

  “Freaky Fae girl,” Cassidy brooded. “What did she say to you? I couldn’t hear but I could tell it was something bitchy.”

  Mom glared at her and Cassidy amended. “I mean something not nice. I wanted to run after you, but Rock held me back—”

  “Rock was there?” Mom asked.

  “Yeah, he was hiding, though.” Cass looked at me. “I’m sorry I didn’t come right away. I really wanted to, but Rock made me wait until the Fae left.”

  I shook my head. “It’s okay. It was smart of him not to let you draw attention to yourself.”

  Even Mom agreed. “What else happened?”

  The last thing I wanted to do was rile up my mom and sister. I wouldn’t tell them about how Khalistah called me “large,” but they did need to know the basics of what was going on, and what I was up against if I was going to attempt to build a healthy relationship with McKale.

  “She asked if McKale really intended to bind with me and he said he had to do his duty for the clan.”

  Cassidy’s eyebrows flew together. “He called you a duty? Ouch.”

  “That’s what this is, Cass,” I reminded her. “It’s a duty for both of us.”

  “Yeah, but look at you. He should be happy and honored that he gets to bind with a hottie like you. I’d just hoped… you know.”

  We were all quiet. My parents’ marriage had been arranged, but they’d met first as teens and got to know each other through letters. What started as a duty became a joy they both shared.

  “This is dangerous territory, girls,” Mom said. “Where the Fae are involved, one can never be too cautious. Tomorrow we will sit down with Brogan and McKale, and have a family discussion. McKale is only human, no matter how ancient his magical blood may be. The touch of a Fae manipulates the human mind. A single kiss from her could make McKale obsess. If a human fully gives themselves to a Fae, they are lost to anything but that Faerie. They become mindless slaves. We need to find out what we’re dealing with.”

  I trembled inside remembering how McKale reacted to such a small touch from her.

  “I don’t think he’s, like, done anything with her,” I said. “I don’t know. He seemed pretty normal until she showed up.”

  “Yeah, and then he couldn’t take his eyes off her,” Cassidy added.

  “Faeries can be mesmerizing,” Mom said. “But don’t jump to any conclusions yet. Let’s hope they’ve done nothing more than share simple touches, though even those are dangerous.” She sighed. “They’re capable of ruining our lives with no thought or remorse, so do not say a word to the Fair Folk unless you are politely responding. Use great care. Especially you, Cassidy.”

  “But—”

  “No buts!” Mom’s voice boomed and her face was fierce. “You don’t tangle with them, child. Ever. I don’t care if they anger you. Bite your tongue off if you have to. Understand?”

  “Fine, okay, but McKale better get his act together because I will give him a piece of my mind.”

  “I’ll handle McKale,” I said.

  Cassidy crossed her arms and gave me a “yeah right” glare that I ignored.

  “Get some sleep, girls. We’ll deal with this in the morning.”

  She stood and kissed the tops of our heads, waiting for us to climb under the covers before blowing out the flame and leaving. Cass rustled around, getting comfortable.

  “What did Rock say when you were in the woods together?” I whispered.

  “He was warning me to stay away from the Fae.”

  “That’s it? Did he say anything about that Fae girl and McKale?”

  “No. Nothing. He told me that his clan wasn’t even supposed to be seen by them. I asked him what his clan did that was so bad and he said the Clourichaun have always liked to have too much fun, and the Fae are overly sensitive about their rules being broken.”

  “Hm. That’s probably true, but I’m sure there’s a lot more to it.”

  “Yeah.” We were both quiet for a while before she asked, “You don’t think Freaky Fae Girl is going to be a problem, do you?”

  I did, but I didn’t want to admit it. “I don’t know what to think. I’m trying not to worry anymore until I talk to McKale tomorrow.”

  “When will you give him all of his presents and stuff?”

  Ugh. The bin.

  “I don’t know. I can’t think about that yet. Let’s just go to sleep.”

  It didn’t take long for Cassidy to doze off. I lay there for a while trying not to think about the Freaky Fae Girl. I liked Cass’s name for her. The FFG. It was nice and ugly.

  No matter which way I looked at the situation, something very unsettling was going on.

  I thought about the bin o
f gifts. At this point it would be completely awkward and uncomfortable to give it to him. He couldn’t possibly appreciate them yet. I would give McKale the presents if and when we earned each other’s trust.

  I could tell it was really early when I woke. Our room was still dark and my head throbbed with tiredness. But now that I was awake I couldn’t fall back asleep. I struggled out of the bed and slipped on shorts, flip-flops, and a pullover hoodie. The fresh morning air might do me some good.

  I quietly left the room and walked toward the clearing, dewy grass dampening my toes. Busy birds chattered and a few crickets still chirped. Halfway to the clearing I thought I heard music. I stopped and strained my ears, listening. A violin. I headed in that direction, heart quickening.

  The sound led me to the woods. As I got closer and could make out the sound of the sad ballad, so beautifully wrought, goose bumps prickled my skin. I slowed, entering the trees, and saw him sitting on the ground against one of the larger trunks. His eyes were closed as he played the heartbreaking melody. When it ended he lowered the instrument and peered over his shoulder. His eyes only met mine for a moment before looking away.

  Apparently the song fit his mood.

  I moved forward and sat down near him in the dirt and fallen leaves. He didn’t move, just hung his wrists over his knees, the violin and bow dangling from his fingers. I picked apart a leaf into tiny particles. What I wanted most from him was the truth.

  “Do you love her?” Please say no.

  He looked up at me, appearing startled by the forward question.

  “No. I suppose not, exactly. She’s…”

  “Beautiful?”

  “Well, there’s that, yes. But ‘tis more than that.” The words sounded as if they were being pulled out against his will. He wasn’t comfortable sharing, but this was necessary. We needed to talk.

  “Go on,” I urged.

  He sighed and swallowed. “When I was a wee lad, I dreamed of running away. I didn’t understand why I had to be different. Not just my height, but also that I was bound to someone while the other lads were choosing lasses of their own free will. No offense.” He looked at me. When I shrugged, he continued. “But when Khalistah would come, she made me forget about it all.”