Page 16 of Lahaina Noon

Bridget relaxed under the warmth of his gaze. She believed him. She wasn’t sure why, but he seemed trustworthy and had been so genuine with Gabe earlier.

“Gabriel!” she said suddenly, reaching for her purse to get her phone.

“Relax,” he said, understanding the reason for her panic. “He’s safe. I’ve got your home under patrol. My men won’t let anything happen to your son or your friend. The only place they could be safer would be here with us, but I assure you, they are fine.” He leaned away from her, “Go ahead and call. I’m sure you will be more at ease hearing from them yourself.”

Bridget stared at him, a little pissed he’d put a protective detail around her family without telling her, but also grateful he’d taken thatextra step to protect what was hers. She nodded, hoping to convey all of that. She pulled out her phone and quickly found Jorrie’s number.

After three rings, Jorrie finally answered. “Why are you calling me? You should be halfway through jumping Mr. Hotty by now. We are fine, we don’t need you, don’t want to talk to you. Rutabaga is going down!”

“No, I’m not! And stop calling me Rutabaga!” Gabe shouted in the background.

Bridget laughed and put her hand on her heart to stop it from racing right out of her body. “Thanks, Jorr. I just wanted to see if I could take you up on that offer to stay the night?”

“YES!” Jorrie shouted. “Get it, girl! Brown-chicken-brown-cow.” she sang, doing her worst impression of risqué music.

Bridget could imagine her crazy friend dancing around the living room, shaking her butt. She glanced over at Vaughn to see he could clearly hear Jorrie and her face heated. “Not what you think, Jorrie.” She kept her eyes on Vaughn so he got her meaning, too. “Vaughn and I have a lot to discuss, and I’m not sure how long this is going to take.”

Jorrie sighed, “Boo! Whatever. It’s not like you just met him tonight. How long have you been drooling after that gorgeous man? Let go Bridget. It’s beyond time you found yourself again. Sleep with him, or I am never speaking to you again.”

“Eww!” Bridget heard Gabriel yell before Jorrie disconnected the call.

Bridget held her blank phone for a moment before slowly returning it to her purse. She turned back towards Vaughn and took in hisbemused expression. Not knowing quite what to say, she mentally added Jorrie to her ‘those who must be harmed’ list.

“Well, are you?” he asked with a devastating smile.

“Am I what?” she said nervously.

“Going to ensure your friendship remains intact. I quite like that friend of yours. She’s a smart woman,” he teased.

Bridget took a moment to catch his meaning and with a blush said, “Maybe later. For now, tell me more about these Shadow Claws. Why me?”

Vaughn’s smile grew bigger, “I’ll take later as long as you mean it.” He pulled her close and softly murmured, “First though, I just have to.” He crushed his mouth to hers in the kiss that had been interrupted too many times tonight.

Bridget could swear her eyes rolled back in her head. She heard angels singing and then blissfully, nothing. Her mind came to a complete halt, allowing her to enjoy the moment.

Vaughn put one hand behind her head so he could deepen the kiss and held her body tightly against his.

Oh god, it wasn’t fair how hard and soft his body was at the same time. She could feel his abs beneath her hands as she ran them up to his sculpted chest. Just not fair at all. Their lips danced with each other, and she felt his tongue alongside hers as she struggled to keep her hands from yanking his shirt open like in those steamy romance novels Jorrie was fond of reading.This can’t be real. This can’t be real, her brain chanted.

He gentled the kiss and slowly pulled away from her. “Sweet Bridget, you taste even better than I could imagine. Now that we’ve gotten thatout of the way, I believe you asked about why the Shadow Claw wants you.” He sat back on the floor.

Bridget was still for a moment, trying to wrap her brain around what happened. She gently touched her lips and marveled at how deliciously swollen they were. She cleared her throat and reached for her wine, taking a large fortifying gulp. She was beyond caring about seeming lady like. Besides, he was a man who apparently appreciated a healthy appetite. Setting her glass down, she focused on his now serious expression. “This is all starting to sound like a fantasy novel or some sci-fi show,” Bridget started.

Vaughn laughed, “I get what you mean. I hope you can hold on to how you felt a minute ago because I don’t want you to forget that I’m here to protect you, and I think it’s obvious how I feel about you. How I’ve been feeling about you.” His expression returned to serious. “The Shadows, they want you because long ago,” he paused, as if he was searching for the right words.

“In a galaxy far, far, away?” she supplied helpfully.

He narrowed his eyes at her for a second, then smirked. “No, you aren’t Princess Leia if that’s what you’re thinking, but close. Long ago, as in thousands of years ago, there was a group of magic practitioners. Most were peaceful, but some insisted they should rule. They weren’t content with the status quo, so they began looking for ways to become more powerful. As I said earlier, many of them turned dark and sold their souls to demons to become masters of the shadows. They began to use this power to take out leaders of the other tribes and other magic users. Planning to wipe them out and be the only ones who could wieldpower.” He paused for a sip of wine, glancing at her over the rim to see if she was following along.

She nodded encouragingly for him to continue.

“One tribe, calling themselves Wielders, were not about to go quietly and knew there was only one way to combat the Shadows. They joined forces with…” he hesitated, “Another species to eradicate the Shadow Claw menace. There was a war of which you can only imagine the magnitude. The proverbial battle of good and evil, right versus wrong, etc. Good did triumph, of course, but at great cost. The damage done to the land and the people was horrendous. The Wielders prayed to their God, Taranis of Light and Thunder, to help heal the land. He agreed, but he was displeased at the way they had used their power and their allies; he had created those allies.

“He said in exchange, he would take away their powers for two thousand years so they could learn to use them responsibly again. Two thousand years seemed a long time to the people but a mere blink of an eye to a God. The people agreed, though, so he stripped away the powers, healed the land and removed the memory of it from all that remained.” He stopped for a moment to see how Bridget was handling this.

“Well, that’s quite a story,” she said slowly, “Sounds like something straight from Celtic folklore.”

He nodded, “There’s usually some basis of truth in many of those stories.”

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