hatred before glazing over. Death took him before he hit the ground.
Scáthach looked up at Trey, her blue eyes sparkling with approval. “You did
it. You defeated the enemy.”
Trey offered his hand to her. “You were not supposed to be in the midst of
the fight. You could have been killed.”
“Are you reprimanding me, warrior?”
It seemed wrong to reprimand a goddess, but damn it any way. “Yes.” He
pulled her to him and crushed his mouth to hers, kissing her like there was no
tomorrow.
She reluctantly pulled away, her hand on his chest.
“No.” He tried to pull her to him once more, but she was persistent.
“You will have to go now.”
“Go? Why? I won. Shouldn’t I be able to claim the fair maiden?” His voice
teased, but he was serious. He wouldn’t give her up so easily.
Her lips curved. “Oh, aye my warrior. If it is your wish, you have the right to
claim the fair maiden.” She touched the spiral Celtic symbol on her silver bands
that she wore on her arms. He remembered now what the symbols represented:
Links to other worlds. She was sending him home.
“Scáthach don’t.” He closed his eyes to block out the pain. He felt like every
molecule in his body was splitting apart. Did he escape death only to succumb to
this?
“Don’t fight it.” Scáthach’s voice drifted toward him a second before all went
black.
Chapter Eight
Every bone in his body ached as if someone had beaten him to a bloody pulp
and left him for dead. Sleep seemed the best course of escape, but he forced
himself to open his eyes. Deep brown eyes stared at him unblinkingly. “Joey?”
“Uncle Trey, you’re awake. The doctors said you’d be waking up soon, but
they didn’t always think you would. They thought you were a goner a few days
ago.”
Leave it to his nephew to say it like it was. “I fought.” His voice sounded
rough from lack of use.
book you gave me about Celtic Gods and Goddess.” He ran over to the chair and
brought back the book to show him. “Your doctor told me your body was in a
battle, fighting to make you well.”
A nurse walked in with a cart to monitor his vitals. “Oh, you’re awake. Good.”
“Scáthach,” Trey mumbled, remembering the dream. It was a dream, wasn’t
it? He frowned. She’d made him a warrior and he had fought. “I feel like shit. Did
I win the fight or not?” he asked the nurse.
She chuckled. “You won. Dr. Laine said the tests came back and everything
looked great. You’re going to be fine. You should be going home by the end of the
week.”
“Uncle Trey, did she make you a warrior?” Joey asked.
“I …” he didn’t know what to say. He remembered the training and Scáthach,
the beautiful goddess who had helped him.
“If anyone qualifies as being a warrior, your uncle does,” the nurse told Joey.
“He’s a real miracle and you don’t get to see that every day.”
***
Later on, Joey had gone home with his friend, Christopher. His parents were
good enough to let Joey stay with them while he was in the hospital. Thank
goodness for nice people. Trey slept, only waking when a nurse would come in to
check his vitals. He would then drift off to sleep with ease once more.
In the morning he felt well enough to join some of the other long-termed
patients in the lounge. The room had tables, and a flat screen television set on
caption so as not to disturb those who wished to play cards or just talk.
Jenna, his nurse for the day wheeled him down the hall toward the lounge,
chatting all the way. “There’s a patient here who came out of coma after being in
one for six months. Just like that.” She snapped her fingers. “The weird thing is
when she woke up, she asked for you. What are the odds that you two would
know each other?”
Trey turned to look at her. “This woman knows me?”
“Yes, I thought you would like to talk to her since you two must obviously be
friends. Here she is.”
around to face the woman who had awakened with his name on her lips. His
breath caught in his throat. “Scáthach?”
“My warrior.”
They spoke at the same time and laughed.
“I’ll let you two catch up,” the nurse said and left them.
He stared at her. He couldn’t help it. The light from the window beamed
down on her raven strands of hair, making them shimmer with cinnamon, russet,
and red amber. His gaze took in her beautiful face with those kissable lips. “It is
you.”
Her brows puckered. “You called me Scáthach. My name is Skye. Do we
know each other?”
Now it was his turn to be confused. “I thought you knew me. The nurse
said…”
Her face turned a nice shade of pink. “I dreamt of you.” She cleared her
throat. “You were a warrior and …”
“And you were Scáthach.”
Her blush deepened. “It wasn’t a dream, was it? You were there. We fought
with swords and we made …” Her eyes widened as she remembered other things
they had done.
He didn’t pretend to understand what this all meant. Maybe in another
realm she was a goddess and he was her warrior. Together, they had conquered
the enemy, making them well and whole again. However, they were in this world
and goddess and warriors of legends weren’t real. Or were they? It was all in the
eye of the beholder, he supposed.
“Let’s start over. Let me introduce myself. I’m Trey Brennan.” He held out
his hand.
“I’m Skye Alba.” Her hand slipped into his, warm and soft. Her blue-eyed
gaze met his causing anticipation to thicken the air. He knew with certainty they
had all the promises of tomorrow within their grasp.
About the Author:
Karen Michelle Nutt lives in California with her husband, three fascinating
everyone well trained.
Her book Lost in the Mist of Time was nominated by New Books Review for
2006, Spotlight Best Fantasy Book of the Year Award. The Object of Romance
Anthology feature’s her novella, “Mr. O’Grady’s Magic Box.” It was nominated
for P & E's Top Ten Reader's Award and A Twist of Fate finalized for the
P.E.A.R.L Awards for Best Time Travel.
In her spare time, she reviews books for PNR-Paranormal Romance Reviews.
An avid reader of history, romance, and the paranormal, she tends to combine
the three in her writings. She enjoys travel, old movies, books, and the chance to
weave a tale.
Visit the author at www.kmnbooks.com
kmnbooks.blogspot.com/
www.myspace.com/karenmichellenutt
www.authorsden.com/karenmichellenutt
Time Travel, Magic and Otherworldly Romances…
Also by Karen Michelle Nutt
Lost in the Mist of Time
The Object of Romance Anthology, “Mr. O'Grady's Magic Box”
A Twist
of Fate
Destiny’s Prerogative
At the Stroke of Midnight
Black Donald’s Coin
Shattered Illusions
The Second Time Around Anthology, “The Spirit of Love”
Moon Shifter
Creighton Manor