The ruin of his family had all gone as Ciaran planned after the arrests of his brothers and his coven. Since the business still technically belonged to him, and he'd been reported missing, believed dead given what went down, the estate would stay in some sort of legal limbo until his will could be carried out. At that point, his brothers, hopefully still in prison, would get a surprise when it all was liquidated and donated to charities, ones he'd specifically chosen to help right the wrongs of those his father, and his father's father, had screwed over in their lifetimes. He knew it wouldn't personally touch those they'd hurt, as they would have grown old and passed on as well. Still, he liked to think somehow the money would get to their families surviving them, to next generations if they had the same need.

Allanah and her mother had been reported missing as well. Allanah, last seen with Ciaran, the news reported thanks to those who knew them, didn't hold out much hope for either's return. They'd successfully disappeared without a trace, just as he'd hoped for so long.

So, they began their new lives.

She stretched out like a contented cat alongside his sleeping body. Looking down the bed, past her feet, she never tired of the view. The doors of the bedroom left open provided a stunning view the white sand and blue water. This was the only room with an ocean view, the house built in a grove of trees on the island, obscuring it from planes, giving only a lost traveler view to a small portion of the house. It happened rarely, and in such cases, they stayed out of sight, let the staff handle whatever needed to be handled to help the wayward.

The staff, a nice, aging couple without children or family, took care of the house in exchange for every luxury; a retirement, according to them they never imagined possible. Even here, they were pampered. He'd seen to that. Being together, it proved everything they'd ever wanted, and never let themselves envision beyond a desperate hope.

The whole place proved unbelievable on a daily basis, no matter how many days passed. Warm sun caressed her skin almost every day, with the exception of a fierce tropical storm which only excited her. Bright and beautiful landscapes spread out before them wherever they turned here, from trees and flowers to sea and sand. The crash of the waves, the sound of his voice, they wrought comfort in a reality she'd never let herself wish for. Beyond that, even though all of it was more than enough, she existed in a real home, like none she'd ever known, with beautiful, rustic walls surrounding her, and comfortable furniture which smelled like him to rest upon. 

He took care of her daily like a princess. Even after months here, he looked at her like she wasn't real, a dream still. She felt cherished, though, like she never thought she would be. He sated her every desire, even some she'd not known she had. Her every need, he met, pampering her with more than any one woman needed. She'd never complain, though. In fact, she made sure to thank him every day until, at times, he'd tease her, chase her, to stop, until they ended up in a tangle of limbs, burning off excess energy.

He stirred beside her, his hand instinctively tightening on her stomach where it had rested. Her breath caught, as his released, hot and heavy across her skin. The scent of a storm lingered in the humid air, reminding her of how far they'd come. He could no longer affect the weather, only she could. A control thing, or the fact his magick had been demon-spawned, it brought her comfort as each new day began. He'd not lost his bad boy touch, though. He worked out on the island, kept up his endless hills and valleys of cut muscles with hard work and long runs. An edginess remained within him, a constant state of observance, maybe waiting for the other shoe to fall, something bad to ruin all their fortune again, his own demon, per say, to work out after having had to deal with one for so long.

"Good morning, beautiful," he said in his rough morning voice, making her stomach, tighten ,her core heat, and her ready for him immediately.

"Good morning to you. Just laying here, still in disbelief as to our luck after all this time, admiring our view."

"Yes, can't get tired of that, now, can you?" He'd posed the question with a great big grin of an answer grooming his face.

"No, you can't."

"We have it all because of you," he said with a sigh.

"I don't know about that. You were the one determined to change. You could have just stayed, played your family's game. Become richer, I guess. Continued to live that lavish life."

"Never. I didn't live, exactly, without you. I existed. I managed. But, I didn't live. I fought. For you. For us. On a daily basis, in fact, even if only an internal struggle to find the answers. Still, all those years, and I had the stuff needed for the spell all along. I even had the damn spell. I'd just never looked in the right place. I still can't believe my father filed it with business papers, but then again, I guess I can, because the spell ensured his business. And the fact he had it with all of those ancient contracts. I should have thought of that. I was looking through grimoires, private places, nothing so obvious as to stick it between two bills of sale from the original whiskey distilleries acquired by my family in Ireland. Hell, even if I had thought to look there, I may not have looked that hard, that deep. And, your mother knew, and I didn't bother to talk to her enough..." he left off. "Guess there is no need to rehash it all. It happened as it did, as it was meant to, I guess. All that matters is the now. And, in the now I have you."

"Yes, you do. So, you are right. You did end up with it. Now we stop wasting time, lamenting time lost, so we can be grateful for what we have."

"Speaking of gratitude, thank you for doing the spell. Sorry, I just have to say it again."

"Well, stop. You've thanked me enough. And I almost didn't, if you remember. Without my mom, I may not have completed it. I will never lose that feeling of thinking I'd lost you even before I ever really had you."

"You always had me. Always. But, now, I'm free. I'm just me. A man, just a man. You can't imagine how that feels."

"I guess not. Do you wish I didn't have my powers?"

"Why would you ask such a thing. I mean, especially after yesterday, that little stunt you pulled, stroking me hard while you sat in your swing by the water and I sat in the house attempting to read. Those magickal fingers of yours are amazing, in person, or in energetic form."

"You and your reading. Never met a man who read so much."

"Well, it started out as an obsession, research to get rid of that thing inside me. Found I liked the pastime, the way it relieved stress in me."

"You have stress here?"

"No, but I have a lot of time to make up for. Now I can just read, whatever Sam can get his hands on through our deliveries."

"Sam and Sallie are the most amazing keepers of a house ever. So kind. So generous of their time. Speaking of time, remember that my mother will pop in around noon, she said, for her first visit."

"Pop in, huh? Well then, I better get to it," he said, as he rolled his body over hers.

The hard muscles, all him, all man, pressed into her soft curves, making her feel like a small woman despite her five feet eight inches. She liked it. Relished all the ways he made her soar. He found her lips, a gentle crush of skin against skin. His kisses came in soft waves over her mouth, her nose, her chin.

She didn't hold back, her fingers trailing over the peaks and valleys of his back. Seemingly possessed, she stretched her arms to reach his rock hard ass. Already the muscles there tightened, a gentle flow of movement which rocked him against her.

Letting her energy flow to her hands, the hot tingle of power igniting at her fingertips, she brushed them along his hips, reaching between them for a better handful. His hips jerked then, making her giggle.

"You never tire of that, do you?" he accused, though the light sound of laughter hinted at the edges of his tone.

"Do you?"

"Never. Like I said, magickal hands. Do what you will to me with them."

And, she did, planned to, each and every day for the rest of their lives. She gave him pure magick, lifting him to heights he'd never known existed. At the same time, even though all his powers were gone, he repaid her in spades, loving her, caressing her, taking her to places full of passion and love, until her body cried out with contractions and releases, trembles and whispers of magick.

"You're my everything, Allanah. I love you more than any words any man could come up with."

"And you, Mr. Byrne, have given me life, a whole world where only we exist."

To her, he always smelled and tasted of whiskey, a luxury he'd not given up, playing with a small distillery right here on the island. It brought her great comfort, proof he was right there with her, always and forever now. To him, she'd always be witchcraft, a blessing of unworldly gifts that had saved his life.

 

 

The End