Adrianna's Storm (10 page)

She woke slowly, snuggling into the warmth on either side of her. She didn't want to move, it felt so good. She was well rested and realized that she had slept, she didn't have 'the dream'. Evil hadn't chased her with her men on either side of her. She smiled, then she turned on her side and opened her eyes. There was Reilly looking at her with his head on his hand.

"Good morning, luv. Sleep well?" he said.

Ari sucked in a breath and the night before came rushing back. She turned over to her other side to get out of bed and there was Lachlan. He said, "How are you feeling, sweet?"

She flopped onto her back and sighed. "Good morning, gentlemen. I slept wonderfully, how about you?" She didn't have any experience with these kinds of things and certainly not with two men. She wasn't sure how to cope.

Reilly ran a hand over her stomach and leaned over her for a kiss. When he had thoroughly plundered her mouth, he released her and said, "I slept wonderfully, snuggled up to the sexiest body. When I woke, I was grateful it hadn't all been a dream."

She smiled at him as Lachlan leaned over her and kissed her just as thoroughly and said, "Best rest I have had in a long time, sweet."

Ari fiddled with the sheet she had pulled up to her chest. "Um, good. How about some breakfast?"

Reilly grinned. "That sounds great. We should go shower, unless you will let us shower with you?" he said hopefully.

Ari laughed and said, "Then we would never make it downstairs."

"And that would be bad because...?" Lachlan asked.

Ari laughed again and shook her head. She pointed to the door and said, "Go now before I change my mind. Please, for the love of my sanity, don't let anyone see you. I am not in the mood to hear it from my sisters this morning or Mamo for that matter. I have never let a boy in my room, let alone two."

Reilly put his hand over his heart and said, "We are honored." He seemed so serious for a moment and then grinned.

Lachlan laughed. "No worries, we will be in stealth mode."

They got out of bed and that gave Ari a spectacular view of their fine asses as they got dressed in last night's clothes. They both came back to the bed and kissed her again before telling her they would meet her downstairs.

When they left, Ari thought about the night before and her cheeks heated as she remembered the men's hands on her body. Then she thought about how grateful she was that she had been getting the birth control shot to regulate her. She had been so caught up in what the men were doing to her and how she felt that birth control had slipped right out of her mind. She sighed, got out of bed, and headed for the bathroom. She hummed through her shower and then came out in a towel to get dressed, only to find Erin sitting in the chair by her window.

"Oh! You scared me!" Ari told her.

Erin raised her eyebrow. "I thought the two men who broke into your room would have scared you, not little ole me," she said wryly and pointed to a cup on her bedside table. "I brought you some coffee. Now spill. I want details."

Ari sighed. "Fine. They were here. It was blissful, wonderful, orgasmic. Satisfied?"

Erin laughed. "Obviously you were. Is this serious?"

Ari frowned. "I don't know. I feel something serious for them. It's as if we are connected in some way. It's hard to explain."

Erin nodded. "I understand, sort of. I have never felt that way, but I hope to one day." She looked so lost for a moment.

"Are you okay?" Ari asked her. "You want to talk about it?"

Erin shook her head. "No, I'm fine. Just melancholy. Get dressed and let's go eat. I'm sure you have worked up an appetite." She laughed and dodged the pillow Ari threw at her.

Ari got dressed and they headed down to breakfast. The men had beaten her down and were helping her grandmother serve the food. Calli and Kira were nowhere to be found—that was typical, they liked to sleep in. Sheela was sitting at the table, looking at the paper.

They all sat down and ate breakfast. Their grandmother told the girls that she wanted to have a family meeting at lunch and the girls agreed. They discussed who had to do what for the party and because Ari's job was done, the men asked her to go for a walk with them. She agreed and then ran upstairs to get her shoes on.

She came back down and they were waiting for her by the main door. Reilly opened the door for her and they motioned for her to go first. When they got out to the drive, they each took one of her hands and began to walk toward the forest. She hesitated for a moment and they noticed.

"What's wrong, sweet?" Lachlan asked.

"Um, nothing." Ari tried to brush the feeling of uneasiness off.

Reilly raised the hand he was holding to his mouth and kissed it. "You know that you are safe with us, right?"

Ari nodded and they began to walk again. How could she not feel safe with these two strong men at her side? They walked in companionable silence for a while and then Lachlan spoke.

"Adrianna, we needed to speak with you alone. We want you to understand that what we did last night was not a one time thing."

"We want you," Reilly said bluntly.

Ari arched her brow at him. "Really?"

Lachlan stepped in. "What he meant to say is that we are drawn to you. We want you to know that."

"We care for you deeply," Reilly said and then they stopped walking, causing her to stop as they wouldn't let go of her hands.

She looked around and noticed they were in the small meadow by the creek she loved so dearly. This was her special spot and the only one who knew that had been Mamo. This spot was where she came to think and to just be when she needed moments alone. The flowers were all in bloom and filled the area with their fragrance. For a moment she closed her eyes and breathed in the true smell of happiness. This place she felt was just for her, and then she looked at the men.

She was shocked to see both men down in their knees and thought,
Oh my
G
od!
They saw her expression and broke out in grins. Each still held one of her hands and they looked at each other, then Reilly spoke.

"Be calm, luv, and listen. We understand you are a modern woman and have a career, but we care deeply for you," he told her. "We know you are aware of handfasting."

Lachlan broke in. "We are asking you to do us the honor of handfasting with us so we can prove to you that we are all meant to be together."

Handfasting was an old tradition that dates back to the 1600s in which a man and a woman would agree to be sealed together for a year and one day. It was like being married, they would live together as a couple. If at the end of that year and one day they wanted to be married then they would be married. Otherwise, the woman would be returned to her family and the couple would go their separate ways.

Ari was stunned that they were asking this of her. It was a way for them to be exclusive and committed to each other without her having to make an immediate choice of marriage. It was still a serious decision and she needed time.

"I...I don't know what to say," she told them. "I need some time."

The men stood and looked down into her eyes; she could see she had hurt them. "We understand," Lachlan said.

"I am not saying no, I just need to think about this. Everything is happening so fast." She wanted them to understand where her head was. "I care for both of you so much, I just..." She couldn't find the right words; she was overwhelmed.

Reilly grabbed her in a hug. "Shh, we understand. No worries, luv, we can wait. We have waited all our lives for you, a bit more won't kill us."

Ari felt tears gather in her eyes at his sweet words. She felt Lachlan come up behind her and press against her. She loved being held by them. Being with these two men gave her an inner peace she had never felt before in her life. Standing there between them, she knew this was where she wanted to be no matter what happened in her life. Nothing would make her feel the way she did with them, not her work, friends, anything.

Her head was warring with her heart and she knew she just needed to think things through. The men said they would give her time and she knew they would. They each pulled back and continued to take her on a walk in her woods. They spoke more about their lives and their family to her, trying to let her see them as they were. She talked more about Julie and the shop as well as the break she had been given with Fashion Week.

Time stood still for them as they explored the woods and their lives together. They stopped by the small creek in a shaded area and sat down for a while. The men began to caress her and kiss her neck causing her to giggle. Then it turned to heavy petting and some serious kisses that made Ari dizzy. Just when she was willing to let them strip her and take her right there, they pulled back and straightened her clothing.

"Didn't you grandmother say she wanted to meet with you?" Reilly asked as he put his t-shirt back on. Ari frowned because she wanted to continue to look at his sexy chest.

"Sweet? Your grandmother?" Lachlan broke into her thoughts as he, too, was putting his shirt back on.

Ari sighed and straightened her bra under her shirt. She was disappointed and it must have shown because Reilly walked up to her. He took her face in his large hands and leaned in to kiss her softly on the lips.

"Remember one thing, Ari, we love you and want to be with you. No matter what," Reilly told her.

Then Lachlan did the same. "Never forget that. We came here for one reason but are blessed to have found you, Ari."

Each kiss was filled with a promise of more to come and she also saw that message in their eyes. She smiled at them both and took the hands they offered as they walked her back to the castle.

When Ari arrived back at the castle, she found everyone in the dining room waiting on her. Her sisters were sitting around the table with her grandmother at the head, where she usually sat. The men gave her hand a squeeze and then let her go. She took her regular seat on her grandmother's right and watched, surprised, as her men remained in the room, standing back behind her grandmother. She was going to question them being in the room when this was obviously a family matter but before she could open her mouth, her grandmother stood and began to speak.

"Thank you, girls, for all being here. I know this is odd for us to do, but I have some news for all of you. Before you ask, I am fine. It's not that kind of news," she said and looked at each of her girls.

"Thank God," Ari muttered, her heart had seized when her grandmother began speaking.

Coni smiled. "There is no easy way to say this, so I am going to be blunt. You come from a long line of witches. Every other generation is blessed with a special set of five girls. We call them the Blessed Five due to the powers they are able to wield. You, my loves, are the latest set of the Blessed Five and it is time for you to have your powers." She paused to see how they were taking it.

All the girls were shell-shocked and looked at each other. Then Erin, Kira, Calli, and Sheela looked at Ari, their leader in all things.

Ari didn't say anything for a moment, thinking. Then said, "Mamo, I know you have had a lot of stress with our raising and now you have a virtual empty home. That can get lonely therefore making one depressed. Maybe we should take you into town this afternoon and have Dr. Neil take a look at you."

Coni tried to keep a straight face, but she couldn't and ended up laughing out loud. "Girls, I have not gone nuts here. I am telling you the truth. I am the last in the line from my generation. Think about it, I was one of five." She waited and looked at them again.

Ari said calmly, "Yes, you were one of five. So am I. Good. Now, let's make some lunch and then we will talk about our magical powers we will have soon. I am so excited for us. How cool, huh, chickies?" She looked at her sisters and rolled her eyes. Her grandmother was losing it and fast.

Erin said, "Oh, riiiiight. I am so happy to have powers now."

"Yes, it's going to be fun," Kira added.

Sheela exclaimed, "Mamo, I'm already feeling different."

Calli just looked stunned. She was thinking about the voices she had heard lately and this might not be so crazy after all. She spent a lot of time with Coni and knew something was different about her, as well as herself.

Just when Ari put her hands on the table to get up and indicated the girls should follow her, she paused as she heard her grandmother saying something in a low voice.

"Fire, Earth, Water, Spirit, and Air. Help me make the delivery fair. Keep these girls within their seats so they may learn their future feats. As I will, so mote it be," their grandmother chanted.

As she said it, the women sitting around the table found they could not get up. Ari was shocked to find she could move everything but could not stand up.
What the hell
? Then she looked around at her sisters and found they were in the same predicament.
Holy shit
, she thought,
Mamo is telling the truth
. It hit her like a ton a bricks. She took a deep breath to calm herself.
It wouldn't do anyone any go
od if she flipped out right now,
she thought,
her sister
s
were going to look to her for guidance in this
.

"Okay, Mamo, explain," Ari said calmly.

"It is as I told you. You are the Blessed Five and as such, are blessed with the gift of power," their grandmother said as she sat down. "Now then, you will come into your powers at midnight when Calli turns twenty-one."

"What?" Calli exclaimed.

"What do you mean, powers?" Kira asked.

"Each of you will be selected with a gift from the elements. Mine was Spirit, I was able to know when someone was deceitful or telling the truth. I was also able to talk to those that have passed on if they spoke to me," Mamo explained. "I also have visions. They happen in small bursts to show me snippets of the future."

Ari still couldn't seem to find her voice. As she glanced around the room, she noticed that Reilly and Lachlan hadn't moved or said a word. They looked very serious. She realized with some shock, the last thing they looked like was surprised by this news. Did this mean they knew? What was going on? Who were they really?

Her grandmother must have seen where she was looking and said, "Yes, Ari, they know. Reilly and Lachlan are what we call Guardians. I contacted the Council, which is a Wiccan group that governs all witches; they sent the Guardians to us to protect you."