Bound (A Faery Story 1)

She was exhausted. Her entire body was relaxed as she slept so

trustingly in his arms. Cian would make her see how beautiful she

was. He would have to be careful, though. His brother had dug them a

deep hole. Beck had taken her body, but had refused to share his soul

with her. It was selfish, and Cian intended to have a long talk with

him about it. She was their responsibility. They had to fulfill all of her needs, and Beck would have to see that her needs were different than

the women they had grown up with. Meg wouldn’t want to be a

perfect little princess on a shiny throne. She needed to work. She

needed to contribute. She needed to be valued for all the things that

made her unique.

“T à mo chroì istigh ionat,” he whispered. My heart is within you…

He was just about to kiss his sleeping princess when he heard a

knock at the door. Curious, Cian gently rolled away from his wife. He

reached for a shirt and walked to the front of the house.

A small brown woman was gingerly opening the door. She was

dressed simply in a dark, threadbare skirt and linen shirt, with a

colorful shawl around her thin shoulders. Her big feet were bare. Her

head was a mass of scraggly, wiry hair and her own thick skin. Her

eyes were huge in her small face and black as a moonless night. She

was beautiful to him. Flanna was a brownie. The brownies had been

domestic help on his home plane.

“Beckett.” She squinted, turning her elderly eyes up at him. He

immediately got to one knee so she could inspect him. She had been

his nanny throughout his childhood. It hadn’t taken him long to get

taller than the brownie who took care of him, but he always showed

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her proper respect. His throat closed up at the thought that he hadn’t

really seen her for years. She walked up to him with a smile that

showed her gaping teeth. “I am glad you changed your mind, son. It’s