Page 3 of By the Fae

“She still has two months left of her probation, and when that’s over, I plan to give her a team of her own and her own office. That’s how good she is. But until then she’s just sort of floating about—”

“I work alone. I never partner,” I cut in. Especially not with a human.

Especially not withthathuman.

“I’m not asking you to partner. I’m suggesting you use Holly as a sounding board. A consultant. Someone to bounce ideas off. She’s the target demographic. In every way. Use it. Before one of the other guys here does.”

“Wow, first dibs on the human, I’m honoured.”

“Suit yourself, Goldie.” August got to her feet and headed for the door. “Survival of the fittest. Adapt or die. If you think you can do it on your own, then be my guest. I’ll be asking each of you to pitch your games at AR.”

Remy’s annual games expo. It stood for Arcade Remy, not Augmented Reality, but I had heard every combination of those names. Arcade Reality. Augmented Remy. It had been a few years since I last presented an idea, and I guessed, would be the first time ever I’d pitch a non-Magic Thief game. I let out my resigned sigh.

August continued, “And whoever’s pitch is the most popular, shows the biggest revenue potential, will receive tenure.”

I stood again, almost tripped on the edge of my rug. “Tenure?!”

To a human, tenure meant twenty, thirty years of guaranteed work. To a fae like me, well, let’s just say I probably had another nine-hundred, one thousand years left in these realms. That was a fucking long time to promise employment.

“Yes, Goldie, tenure. Exactly what you’re thinking. The next millennia sorted. I want an exceptional game.” August lifted her spectacles, huffed on them, wiped the lenses on a special little cloth.

I jammed my thumbnail into my mouth and began frantically working on the cuticle. She reached her hand forward and gently eased mine from my ravages.

“Your manicurist will be furious with you.” She smiled, knowing full well that dropping the tenure bomb had landed precisely where she wanted it to.

“And, Goldie, if you decide to work with Holly . . .” August continued. “There will be absolutely no . . . intercourse. You know the rules.”

She meant rule.

Singular.

Not rules plural. It applied only to me and two other nymphs in the building. Dylan in accounts, a water-nymph, and the appropriately named Rake, a sun-nymph in rendering.

At this point, I had pretty much humped my way through the entire office block. There was almost no one at FaeGames I hadn’t boinked.

What could I say? Nymph. This is what we did. Our very nature revolved around sex. Only my colleagues who joined FaeGames after August brought in the rule five years ago, had not, at some point, been dangling off the end of my dick.

It was hardly my fault if people, my boss included, couldn’t separate sex from emotion.

But it was what it was. I’d made my peace with it. Remy was a big city after all, not like there wasn’t anywhere else for me to get it.

So, no fucking any more of my workmates. If I did, I was fired. Not that I wanted to fuck Holly in any case, and not just because she was human, or because of her gods-awful fashion choices.

Seriously, dungarees, what the hell?

“Remember, sacking leads to sacking,” August said, and the door shut behind her.

Chapter 2.

Holly

It is a truth, universally acknowledged, that a woman in possession of her dream job andalmostin possession of her dream waterside apartment with the mid-century style exposed brick fireplace and rooftop communal pool, must be in want of a super-hot fae boyfriend.

I had the career. I had the down payment on the flat. Now I just needed a love life to complete thirteen-year-old me’s checklist of dreams.

Abby had found the note I’d written, tucked into the case of an ancientGroovy Graham and Palscartridge when going through a box of my childhood stuff.

‘Thirty Things to Achieve Before I’m Thirty’, was the title. Perhaps a smidgen optimistic. But as I went through and checked each thing off, I realised it was only matters relating to men where I lacked that gratifying little tick.

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