Right by strength, and where a being stood on the food chain.

  What really disturbed me was I suspected that’s what I’d have to do, to claim that earth and spirit Nymph or Sprite if we found some unclaimed in the wild. Yes, I’d already claimed Rosaria, but she’d been sworn to my family line, and she’d been panting for it, which was implicit consent. In that context, taking her forcefully had been more of a bedroom game in my mind than anything else or darker. I hadn’t had to hold her down, and she hadn’t been trying to escape to force me to earn it by my power and strength.

  Maybe if I thought of it that way, I could handle it. The spirit wouldn’t be fighting me on it to avoid sex, on the contrary Nymphs and Sprites were as earthy and sexual as my Fae. It would be a test of my strength, to see if I was worthy of them through the conquering. I wasn’t sure if that rationalization would work though, even if it was true.

  That said I was hoping for nymphs, they had to be lesser than Rosaria for her to assist in the capture, but at least the power of the middle being could overcome other druids with a similar lesser being.

  Being a druid wasn’t all sweetness and light, nature could be generous, and it could be very hard and uncaring. Well, it was neither, but that’s how human eyes saw it anyway. It both supported life and took it, and there was no morality in that either way.

  Nora was paying close attention, a look of curiosity on her face.

  Rosaria replied, “I cannot answer that, save that it was a sacrifice given freely. Just as I will hold our interactions sacred, to your successor in the family. I don’t think you would find it objectional if that is your worry.”

  Well damn, I was ready to hear the worst, but now I’d have to live with never knowing. At least I knew it wasn’t the firstborn or something really awful, if it was a sacrifice given freely that meant the one that bonded her first in my family had willingly sacrificed of himself in some way, for his descendants and family legacy and power. What that sacrifice had been would have to remain a mystery.

  Especially since I had no idea what a Fae would even want and bargain for.

  I pulled her out of her seat and into my lap, and I started to stroke her hair and back with my left hand, while I ate with my right. Her hair was soft and silky, and felt really good flowing through my fingertips. She sighed in contentedness while putting her head on my shoulder. Okay, maybe I was a little clingy too, but I’d sensed she’d needed to be reassured after refusing my question. Sensed, meaning picking it up with my empathy through our bond. Refusing me had made her very uncomfortable, and I’d be careful not to ask her specific questions about the past with my family again.

  After breakfast we cleared up and headed to the airport. The flight was at five thirty in the morning, and we would be landing in Rome right around midnight their time, so we had to get there an hour before that. I’d only been on a plane once before, so hopefully I wouldn’t have a problem sleeping on one. Last time I hadn’t had cause to try. At least I knew I wouldn’t get airsick.

  It was going to be a long day.

  Chapter Seven

  First class, which had come as a bit of a surprise, but in hindsight of course Nora could afford it and would splurge for the comfort alone. The druid stone looked ancient, with carved glyphs. We hadn’t been really sure what customs would make of it in Rome, or in the rest of our travels to England and then Ireland, so we just took the expedient solution of having Rosaria carry it in a small shoulder bag. None of the humans would be able to perceive her or the stone, so it worked out.

  There’d been plenty of room to stretch my legs and put my seat back even at my height, once the plane had reached altitude. I had no trouble at all passing out, a little worn from being up twenty-four hours and by all we’d done and accomplished, even with Rosaria sitting on my lap with my arms wrapped around her.

  It was six hours into the flight when I woke up to the warm, wet, and quite pleasurable sensations down below. It was honestly a bit shocking being in the open area of first class surrounded by people, looking down at quickly bobbing golden blonde hair, with Rosaria wedged in tightly between my open legs and seat in front of us.

  She was really talented with her mouth, working me with wicked devotion, her lips soft and silky as she sucked, bobbed, and did magical things with her tongue to the underside of my cock.

  I looked over at Nora, who was looking down at where we were connected, with moist slightly parted lips, and both hunger and amusement in her eyes.

  It took me a minute for my spinning mind due to the pleasure, and just having been asleep, to realize no one would notice. No one could perceive her. The only catch was I had to keep suppressing my moans of pleasure, she was really good at sucking cock, on the same level of Nora in truth, though the wicked witch was still the best. Not that I’d ever say that out loud, and it was the difference between two masters and hardly even worth mentioning save in my new extremely shallow mind.

  Her sweet moans of delight around my cock seemed really loud, but of course only Nora and I could hear her voice too, so it didn’t matter, except to wildly stir my libido. It told me she wanted to be there down on her knees, sucking my cock and giving me pleasure. That she’d done so on her own and while I was asleep, just backed up that idea. She’d longed for it, and now she was thoroughly enjoying it.

  It was also a hell of a wakeup call.

  I suppressed a deep moan, but I couldn’t stop the low hiss as the waves of pleasure overpowered my control and drowned me in ecstasy, I gripped her head by her hair and held her down as I pushed up as subtly as possible, and then drained myself into her perfect mouth.

  All while staring into Nora’s hungry eyes, that told me she wanted to be the one taking my load in her mouth. It was insane, my new life and libido.

  Rosaria bobbed a couple of more times, milking me hard with suction to make sure she got it all, before packing me away while looking up at me dreamily, then crawling back into my lap and curling up against me.

  “Thanks.” I gave her a long lingering kiss.

  Rosaria sighed in contentment into my ear, “My pleasure. It was Nora’s idea to wake you.”

  I turned to her and she shrugged, “If we sleep anymore on the flight, we won’t be able to get a couple of hours after checking into the hotel, so we feel well rested when we wake at dawn. I just told her to wake you up, how she did it was all her.”

  That was a good point, better to suffer the next six hours with less than a full night’s sleep, so we get our bodies on Rome time. Not that I wasn’t totally blissed out in that moment, and completely relaxed.

  When I turned back to Rosaria she gave me a cute look, “I couldn’t help it. I’d been sitting on your lap for six hours, and you were so hard under my ass the whole time you were asleep. I didn’t think you’d mind.”

  Mind? I snorted, “Feel free to wake me that way every morning, if you want.”

  Nora snickered, “So self-sacrificing.”

  I nodded with mock gravity, accepting my due, which had Rosaria giggling in my neck, and Nora rolling her eyes with a smile.

  “So, do we have a plan, we haven’t really talked about the second stone.”

  Rosaria said, “A museum has it as part of a pagan exhibit, items brough back to Rome after the purge of the old ways as trophies, and the stone eventually ended up in a museum. Anyway, that exhibit is not on display right now, hasn’t been in years. It’s in the museum’s warehouse.”

  Nora interjected, “If that’s true, we’re not going to be able to talk someone out of it or buy it. We’ll have to do it my way this time, I can get us inside and keep the guards distracted while you find it.”

  Distracted? My newfound possessiveness didn’t just grumble, it roared in my chest.

  “Distracted?” I glared.

  Nora studied me a moment, then smiled widely, “You’re jealous. Don’t worry, I won’t be letting them have me, they won’t get to do more than eye fuck me while you find the stone. This body belongs to you, I belong to you, until you send me away, as I promised.”

  She looked really pleased at my insanely jealous and possessive reaction, but that was better than getting angry at me or telling me it was her body or something. It was jarring, she was a powerful witch, of all female beings she was the one that would never have to tolerate a possessive man. Yet, she seemed to glory in it, at the idea of her being mine. I wondered if that was all kink, or if it was just true confidence and knowing herself, that it was okay to be possessed and protected by a man. That it didn’t mean I didn’t respect her, and that it didn’t mean I thought her helpless, that it was just my nature to protect and possess and that it was okay to be that way.

  I wasn’t sure, I just knew it was obvious the witches didn’t proscribe to modern feminism.

  “What makes you think I’ll ever send you away?”

  She smiled mysteriously and winked, which wasn’t an answer at all.

  I mean, I get the part of why she was there now. For her coven, to release the more powerful spirits of power and principality for her coven to claim some, along with the nature spirits that would empower the druids out in the world. I even got that she was a confident sexual creature, who wasn’t ashamed to submit to a man for the experience and pleasure of sating my needs for her pleasure. I could sort of see that one, anyway. Crudely put, she loved my cock and how I used it. But why the blank check, to stay with me, advise me, and take care of all my needs until I sent her away. What reason would she have to stay past completing the renewal.

  I couldn’t think of a single one, save my cock, and even I wasn’t that arrogant. I mean, she should want to return to her coven and sisters, not to mention the rest of her coven’s spirits and the new ones they manage to draw in and make a deal with.

  Maybe she was just depending on my good will, not to keep her past that, and let her go when I no longer needed her for the druid and magic side of things. But that didn’t seem quite right, I would of course, release her from the oath and send her away if she didn’t want to stay, but we were strangers just a few days ago. How could she possibly trust in that?

  The truth was I didn’t want to let her go, and I’d keep her as long as she’d let me. I suspected with her witch magic I’d never get tired of fucking her, even on just the shallow side. Shallow lust always failed in time, no matter how hot or talented a bed partner, but I was guessing a witch with the power of seduction would be an exception to that rule. But more importantly I was coming to care for her more than that. Above the sex and wildness of the past three days. I just didn’t see how she could want me to keep her long term. Witches didn’t have long term relationships and lovers, they had wild sex and one-night stands, even with the fathers of their children.

  Of course, outside of the bedroom and our sex life, I treated her as a respected equal, and she was my equal in all ways despite her wanton submission and kink in the bedroom. But that didn’t really explain anything either, witches didn’t do husbands or even boyfriends.

  It didn’t make sense, so it bothered me.

  Woman were a mystery, and she obviously wasn’t going to answer my question past that flirty and mysteriously warm smile.

  The rest of the flight I tried not to think of it. I practiced my spells on and off, and when I got really bored I started to play with Rosaria, making her cum again and again on my fingertips, just for something to do, and I lived for the looks of ecstasy on her exquisitely lovely face. No one could see her squirm and tremble, or hear her screams of ecstasy, and her dress gave me ridiculously easy access to her nubile body, and my lips on the back of her neck and shoulders drove her crazy.

  She really didn’t seem to mind.

  Regardless, my actions also wound-up Nora pretty hard, let’s just say we stayed up another couple of hours that night when we reached the hotel, we were both at a fever pitch…

  The Hawthorn suites was fairly nice, with elegant furniture, a comfortable king-sized bed, and gold fixtures. But in the end, it was just another hotel room. It was a little surreal being in Italy and such an ancient city, I’d never really imagined myself the world traveler type. Before three days ago I’d have had a satisfied life as a Ranger and staying in the same forest wilderness for my life, never leaving my hometown of Philly. In truth, that hadn’t changed much, except for being a druid instead of a Ranger, the rest of that was the same.

  We weren’t exactly there to be tourists however, but I did enjoy the view and the city as we headed out and grabbed breakfast. Then we took a cab to the museum’s warehouse. It was quite large, and I imagined there were ten times the number of exhibits in storage that there were actually in the museum on display.

  I was just glad Rosaria had kept an eye on the three stones down through the centuries, or else tracking them down would’ve been extremely difficult.

  Nora said, “Just give me thirty seconds, then come in. I should have them eating out of my hands to the point they won’t even notice you coming in or heading into the warehouse proper.”

  “There’s two people out front in the office, but there’s also someone in the warehouse.”

  She looked at me, and I shrugged, “Water power, I can feel their bodies.”

  It was a handy power, it’d be hard to sneak up on me the way I constantly felt all the life around me. I wasn’t sure of the exact distance, but it was a healthy one. At least a hundred yards, and I suspected I could push that farther if I focused on it.

  Nora smiled, “Right. Maybe one of the museum’s curators are working, either doing inventory or checking in new items. Maybe it would’ve been better to come at night. Umm, give me a little longer, I’ll have security call the person to the front, so wait a few moments after you feel that happen.”

  I nodded, “It’s a woman.”

  Nora shrugged, “That won’t make a difference,” and then gave me a lingering kiss that could’ve woken a dead man, she was an amazing kisser. The insatiable and lush beauty gave my bottom lip a nip and she winked saucily as she took a step back and then turned and walked toward the front entrance.

  Whatever her motives, she was a hell of a woman.

  I let out a sigh as she went inside.

  “Any idea what she’s hiding, or what I’m not getting about her open-ended promise?”

  I felt guilty even saying it, because I liked her, and not just for the obvious shallow reasons. Sure, it’d only been three days, but I’d spent every second of every day with her since the moment I entered that stormy glade. That had an impact, and it was worth at least ten normal dates of getting to know your lover, so significant in impact despite the short timespan involved.

  Rosaria shook her head, “I don’t understand it either, but she’s sworn to protect you and see to your needs as well. Just stay wary, if you can, I know you are coming to care for her. Witches are born to manipulation and seduction, and masters of the former before they can walk, using others though they’ve always been generous with their bodies. Witches are not to be trusted, but I must admit she is making me doubt that adage. Perhaps it is this new age influencing and changing their kind? I do not like feeling unsure of my judgement. I am also sure she is delighted in your presence, as you are in ours.”

  Of course Rosaria knows how I feel, she could feel my feelings whenever I looked at or thought of the witch. She was right about the last as well, it was clear Nora had feelings for me past lust. As an empath I could hardly fail to feel it. It also made me feel guilty for doubting her, she really was an incredible woman, and maybe I just didn’t need to understand it. Women were a mystery.

  I took her hand as we waited, entwining my fingers with hers. The burst of affection I felt from her at that small intimacy was powerful, and I returned it in equal measure. It wasn’t even about our attraction or insatiable sex lives. It was purely comforting and an emotional intimacy.

  It didn’t take long for the person in the back to come to the front, no doubt Nora had had security page the curator up front under some pretense. We waited another thirty seconds, then headed for the building.

  The front office was rather small. All that was in it was a large desk and a few file cabinets, and a computer with a few extra chairs. There was a door to the warehouse on the other side of it, behind and to the right of the desk.

  We walked in, and Nora was sitting on the desk with her legs crossed and leaning forward, showing off her very impressive cleavage in the red sundress she’d put on that morning with an alluring smile on her face. It did make me a little jealous, that those men were looking at my woman, but since I was the only one that got to touch and play with those tits, I let them live. They weren’t true competition for her body and affection, so I was able to push those feelings down.

  I had the feeling she was right in what she told me. Not that I’d doubted her, but I could feel it in my gut now. I just had to learn how to control my new stronger instincts that I was closer to and open to as a druid, just like I’d learned to control my libido and keep my perspective on life the first time. It was already getting easier, and even my possessive thoughts were accompanied by a deep respect for the lovely witch. Already a little less of a shallow asshole. She truly was amazing.

  We walked behind and past the three, who looked entirely mesmerized and didn’t even notice our presence as we headed into the back, despite the fact we had to walk past their vision to access the door.

  The druid stones were magical, which was less help than I expected. There were at least fifty magical auras in the large warehouse, but it turned out that wasn’t really a problem. Rosaria walked me right to it, perhaps she could feel the subtle differences in the magic, or perhaps she was simply connected to the stones in some way.