Charmed in Vegas: Bad Potions
Read Charmed in Vegas: Bad Potions Online
Authors: Michelle Fox
Tags: #gambling, #Las Vegas, #Witch, #Elf, #paranormal romance, #vacation romance, #holiday romance
Blurb | Gambling with magic, betting on love. Welcome to Charmed in Vegas!
Where on the web is Michelle Fox?
Michelle Fox
Copyright 2016. All Rights Reserved.
T
his is a work of fiction intended for adults age 18 and over. Minors should stop here and close the book. All events depicted are fictional. Characters are consenting adults. Any resemblance to places and persons, living or dead, is unintentional coincidence.
Every effort has been made to provide a quality reading experience, but editors and technology are fallible. Please report typos or formatting issues to [email protected]
Gambling with magic, betting on love. Welcome to Charmed in Vegas!
A witch on a hit list and a cursed elf in sin city, their hearts and lives on the line.
W
itch-in-training Marion fled to Vegas to escape being murdered. She's counting on the wards of Vegas to protect her until she can learn the magic to do it herself. Except her love potions keep exploding, and if she can't fix them, she'll never control the defense magic that will keep her safe.
The last thing she wants to do is fall in love, but that might be the only fix for her bad potions.
Elf Aidan thought Vegas would be the place to break his curse and win his way back into the Fairy Queen's honor guard, but it's not turning out to be so easy. When he meets Marion, he realizes she might be just what he needs to get rid of his curse. But her would-be murderer has found her, and Aidan will have to protect her or lose his only chance at escaping the curse.
Aidan knows exactly what to do to keep Marion alive, but what he isn't prepared for is falling in love.
And how that will royally piss off his Queen.
Warning: This story includes foul-mouthed pixies in Elvis jumpsuits, sexy sirens, big-hearted giants, shapeshifting as a weight loss method, steamy sex scenes and all bets on love win big.
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***
T
he curse rang in Aidan's ears. The force of its magic hit him like a sucker punch. He'd been head-butted by a troll once. This was worse. Way worse.
Please a woman less than perfect.
And let her see you true.
Only then will the portals of Fairy open to you,
Aidan Fyrebard.
The power in the Fairy Queen's words sparked in the air, sizzling like small fireworks. Aidan winced as her power snapped against his skin, first poking him sharp as thorns and then smoldering with the heat of her fury.
He'd really screwed up this time.
The queen had been so angry, he'd thought she might strike him down or dump him in the Wastelands for the Eros Fay to have their way with him. By some miracle, she'd merely shrieked for him to be taken out to the garden. Her guard, his peers, had swarmed him before he'd even had a chance to try and make things right.
He'd been dragged out of the palace like garbage.
They all stood now on a patio made of polished diamonds, each stone as big as his head. Roses circled them on all sides, delicate petals hiding the sharp edges of their beauty; much like the queen herself. When the sun shone, the diamonds reflected the green, red and purple hues of the roses, but just then the sky was dark, matching his Queen's mood. The nobles of the Seelie Court hovered just past the guard that always watched their Queen's back, curious and delighted at the spectacle.
Aidan narrowed his eyes and took note of those who found his predicament amusing. He'd counted some of them as friends, but now saw they didn't feel the same. When he returned to Court, he vowed to remember every smirk and laugh at his expense.
The queen swept her hands up to the sky as she finished the curse. She cut a striking figure in her blue silk gown. Its plunging neckline showed the alabaster gleam of her breasts and her raven hair tumbled to her waist in a gossamer wave. "By the power of Fairy, so mote it be." A boom sounded in the distance as the curse sealed itself around him, an invisible second skin he wouldn't be able to shake until he satisfied its terms.
With a snap of her fingers, a blue portal flashed into existence. It threw tentacles of blue light toward Aidan, as if it knew who it had been summoned to take.
The queen jabbed a finger in the direction of the portal and the two men holding Aidan, dragged him forward. Just as they were about to heave him into the bright blue light, she held up her hand.
"Wait."
The queen moved to stand in front of him, her violet eyes searching his face. He kept his expression neutral and gritted his teeth so he wouldn't be tempted to speak. Things were already bad enough without angering her further. His mouth had gotten him into this mess, he didn't dare let it loose again.
"I will allow you one boon, my guard." She cupped his cheek in her hand. "You may chose where you will go in the human realm.
Aidan's mind raced as he considered the possibilities. The portals opened in many places and he'd traveled to most of them. What location offered him the most advantage? He needed someplace where he could break the curse as fast as possible. The sooner he proved his loyalty to his Queen, the better.
"Where shall it be, Aidan? London? Paris? The Congo? The Amazon? Where will you go to pay the price you owe me? Where is the woman you need?" Her voice became sharp and her fingers pressed into his cheek until her nails bit into his skin. "Answer me quickly. I tire of this."
Aidan swallowed. "Las Vegas, my lady."
The nobles tittered and nudged each other with their elbows.
Even his Queen laughed. "That is where fortunes are lost. We designed it that way. Are you sure?"
He licked his lips and nodded.
"Lady Luck is unreliable. She'll turn on you, Aidan. Don't say I didn't warn you, my love."
"Surely, Lady Luck cannot compare to you, my Queen."
Several nobles gasped and everyone went still as his words hit the queen. She recoiled, her hand dropping from his face, her eyes wide.
Panic made his stomach drop. "I meant—"
A sharp slap across his cheek cut him off.
"Silence." Her voice thundered in the air and stirred the wind.
Aidan snapped his mouth shut and his gut churned. He'd done it again. Offended the woman he only wanted to please.
His Queen took several deep breaths. "Do you serve me, Aidan Fyrebard? Is your heart true?"
He nodded.
She slapped his other cheek. "Say it!"
His gaze locked with hers, he said, "Yes, my lady. I serve you with my heart and soul." He hoped she could feel how he meant every word.
She gripped his mouth in her hand, squeezing until his lips puckered. "Your heart and soul don't appear to be connected to your lips." She gave him a little shake and then let him go.
Aidan dropped to his knees, forcing the men holding him to bend over if they wanted to retain their grip. "My lady, I am sorry." Despair filled him, heavy as an anchor.
There was a long silence, where no one spoke or moved. Finally, the queen sank to kneel before him and used her finger under his chin to force him to look at her.
His heart clenched into a tight knot as her violet gaze captured his. Regret filled him. He should have never come to Court, let alone joined the Queen's Guard. She still believed in him, though. He could see it in her eyes. The problem was, he didn't understand why. All he'd done was make mistakes. There was something wrong with him and he wasn't sure it could be fixed.
"This curse is your last chance. You must learn discretion. And diplomacy." She rolled back on her heels and stood up. "If you do not, I will cut out your tongue. Do you understand?"
"Yes, my lady."
"Then prove your worth, Aidan Fyrebard. Break the curse and come back to me the guard you were meant to be." She nodded to the men who then lifted Aidan up.
With one big swing they threw him into the portal. Aidan closed his eyes against the searing blue light swallowing him whole. Time and space slipped away as he tumbled, like dice cast on one last, desperate gamble, into the nothingness that made up the portals.
***
T
he portal spit him out at the Avalon, the casino the queen operated in the strip of Las Vegas. Aidan had only heard about it as she'd never brought him with her on any royal visits. The gossip had said it was because he was bad enough luck in Fairy. The last thing she wanted was to bring the black cloud that haunted him with her to Vegas.
He'd gotten into a fist fight when one of the nobles had been brave enough to say that to his face.
The noble had turned out to be the queen's Godfather and she was not amused to find Aidan had rearranged the venerated elder's nose. It took two healers to set things right and for his transgression, the queen had assigned Aidan to guard the kennel where she kept her hounds, one of the most back-breaking tasks of her guard. Not to mention dangerous. The hounds never stopped looking for a chance to pounce and were experienced escape artists. Aidan had taken to locking himself into an empty cage at night, just to be on the safe side.
A trill of laughter brought Aidan's attention back to his present surroundings. A young elf couple had just stepped across the portal's threshold, and the woman was giddy with excitement. "Oh, Geoff. Look!" She waved to a wall featuring a display of different flowers from Fairy. The rainbow of blooms crept up to the ceiling, the petals furling and unfurling in a steady rhythm.
Geoff, in a chivalrous gesture, plucked one of the flowers and tucked it behind her ear. "There you are, Mila."
"Sir!" A round faced troll called to the couple from behind a desk made of quartz that had been smoothed until it was slick as glass. The queen's coat of arms—a unicorn with a floral garland—was etched into the front. "Please don't touch the flowers. Some of them are dangerous."
"Don't be silly," Geoff protested, capturing Mila's hand in his as she moved to take out her flower. "There's nothing here that could hurt anyone."
"Not one of us, no, but our human guests are particularly susceptible to the pollen of that flower." She pointed to Mila."I'm sorry, but you'll have to remove it. I can't allow you to take it out of our arrival zone."
With a grimace, Geoff snatched the flower out of Mila's hair and tossed it onto the quartz desk. "There? Happy?"
The troll gave a bright smile that lit up her eyes, making her round, green face—with a slimy sheen—almost pretty. Almost. "Thank you for your cooperation. Your room is ready. If you'll come this way, I'll have one of our staff escort you up." Mila, Geoff and the troll walked away, disappearing behind a set of double doors to the side of the desk.
A second later, the same doors squeaked open and a dwarf with a wide face and tiny little spectacles trotted out, a clipboard tucked in the crook of one arm. He wore an elegant black suit with a name tag in Avalon's trademark blue.
"Mr. Fyrebard, I presume?" The dwarf peered up at him through thick spectacles.
Aidan nodded. "Yes?" He leaned forward and read the name tag. "Hahm? Did I say that right?"
"Yes. We've been expecting you." The dwarf gave him a knowing look. "If you'll follow me, I'll show you to your room and explain your duties."
"Duties?"
The dwarf arched a fuzzy brow. "Surely you don't expect our fair lady to pay for your room and board after she curses you? That would add insult to injury, no? I'm afraid you'll have to earn your keep while you're here."
"Show me my room then," Aidan said with as much authority as he could muster. Great. The curse came with a job. Just what he needed.
"This way, please." Hahm spun on his heel and headed for the doors.
Before he could follow, a feminine voice filled the air behind him and she knew his name. "Aidan Fyrebard. Is that you? What a surprise."
Aidan froze as the woman's voice played up and down his spine in a shiver. His eyes widened as he realized he recognized her.
Oh no. Not her. The timing could not be worse. He cast his eyes upward and prayed the queen wasn't watching him.
Then, squaring his shoulders, he turned in the direction of the woman and found he'd been right. " Serena! What are you doing here?"
