Authors: Flora Dare
Her Selkie Secret
Her Selkie Secret
A Paranormal Shifter Romance
by Flora Dare
www.floradare.com
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Copyright 2015 by
Flora Dare
First Amazon Edition:
April 2015
DESCRIPTION
She's a witch trying to forget the past. He's a seal shifter who never wants to forget. But if they don't worry about their future...they won't have one.
The dark night that left Danae’s husband and daughter dead will live forever in her memory, even if she can’t recall all the gruesome details. What she can remember haunts her. She wants nothing more than to forget everything about her past, and that spell requires all her skills as a witch.
Gorgeous and grieving seal shifter Liam is sent to help Danae—but not in the way she hopes. His secret mission is to uncover the truth about the terrible night that destroyed both of their lives, and what he finds puts what’s left of those lives in jeopardy.
When the truth is revealed, Danae is left with an impossible choice between her past and her future. No matter what she decides, her life—and his—will never be the same. Two lives destroyed...can they make each other whole again?
Chapter One
Forgetfulness. Freedom from pain. Peace.
The spell complete, she left the still burning sage in the center of the diagram and stepped back. She sat a few feet away, watching the sea slowly rise. The incoming tide took the spell and her last shred of hope slowly into the ocean. The creeping water finally reached the smoldering sage bundle, and extinguished it.
Danae sighed. The sea had her pain now, and all she could do was to wait and pray that Neya, the goddess of the ocean, listened and would grant her what she so desperately needed.
~ * ~ * ~
Danae woke up, tossing, the same nightmare echoing in her ears. Blood, flames, screams. There was an emptiness inside of her where the pain of her loss echoed. She pushed the blankets off and got out of bed. She wandered to the window and looked out over the ocean. A storm was rolling in, and she watched the spikes of lightning strike the water, over and over. It suited her mood. She felt wild, like she could smash at the world a thousand times.
The waves grew crazed as the storm got closer to the shore, and the wind echoed her despair as it howled around her house. She could not look away from the water-lashed shore. Transfixed, Danae felt the sizzling power of the storm wrap itself around her. Exultation rose inside her. The sea was answering her plea. She felt it. Something was coming. Flowing through her was the knowledge that her petition would be answered.
The storm ended as abruptly as it began. Danae sagged down into the seat. She was so sure that it was Neya was answering her pleas, but the horrid etched-in-stone memories were still there, still present. She wrapped herself in a soft blanket and wept until she fell asleep.
~ * ~ * ~
The sun's rays spiked through her window and the calling of the seagulls woke her. A sour taste of disappointment still lingered in her throat as she staggered to look out the window. Danae still remembered everything. Her grief and her pain were still utterly wrapped around her soul. She stared out the window as a bitter tear rolled down her cheek. She was staring, half blinded by tears when a large lump rolling in the surf caught her eye. It was getting closer and closer to the shore and Danae realized that this was the answer the sea was going to give her. She raced out the door. She had to reach whatever it was before it was too late.
She approached the water and saw red streaks rushing to meet the retreating waves. Danae stared at the sea’s offering for several long heart beats, finally realizing it was a man caught in the ocean’s grasp. He was tumbling in the waves and she dashed forward, soaking herself, but she was able to drag him to safety. She collapsed next to him, praying she’d been fast enough to save him. She couldn't bear another dead face trapped in her mind.
Danae reached over and touched his back. He was still warm so she rolled him over. He coughed, spitting up water, and moaned something she didn’t catch. He was too big for her to move any further and she was paralyzed with indecision.
Should I go for help? Would anyone help me even if they could get here fast enough?
She grasped his neck, feeling for his pulse. She went weak with relief when it beat strong beneath her hand.
She looked the man up and down, and realized with a sigh of relief that his wounds were all superficial. Danae shifted to stand, planning on running to the cottage to grab a blanket, but he moved fast and seized her hand. She froze as he opened his eyes and his shocking green eyes locked with hers. His eyes were all the colors of the sea, shifting and hypnotizing.
She leaned forward, transfixed, pulled in by the waves in his eyes. Danae was shocked away from him when his other hand reached out and grazed her check. An unexpected jolt of passion rolled through her. It had been so long, she almost didn't recognize the feelings flooding her body. Danae jerked away and broke free from his grasp.
I don’t want those feelings, I don’t deserve them.
She rolled back on her heels, further away from the man. He slowly sat up, his eyes never leaving her face.
His voice was husky as he said, “Danae. You are Danae.”
She was less shocked than she should be that the man knew who she was. She had poured herself into the spell pleading with Neya, who would know everything about her. It stood to reason that whatever the ocean sent in answer to her plea would know her. She gathered her scattered wits, nodded at him, and said, “Yes, I'm Danae. Are you okay?”
His color was already returning and he looked only slightly battered. She let her eyes drift down his body and told herself she was just checking him for wounds. A blush rose on her cheeks as her eyes shifted down his toned torso and she realized that he was nude. She quickly averted her eyes, but he grinned slightly at her blush.
“I am Liam. Neya, Goddess of the Ocean, sent me to fulfill your request.”
“I prayed to forget and...I haven’t.” Danae blurted the words out. She felt her neck grow hot and knew she was flushed.
“No, not yet you haven’t. You know that Neya doesn't just give supplicants what they ask for. She gives what she thinks they need. And there is always a price.”
“Are you my price?” His eyes penetrated her stoic shield and peeled her like an onion. She felt like she’d been laid bare. “Do you know...everything?”
He shook his head and said, “No, I only know you fiercely desire forgetfulness.” He paused, a storm passing his eyes. “And that you try to forget your pain by refusing your heart.”
Danae shook her head and said, “It isn’t working. I still have to get up every day. Alone.”
Lost in her own thoughts for a moment, Danae stared blankly at the sea, remembering.
Laughing in the car, the two of them were carefree. Then, her husband, David’s face twisted with concern. Then the black hole in her memory stretched until the moment she was clutching his lifeless hand and staring into his unseeing eyes while paramedics cut her out of the car.
Liam sat up and she shifted away from him. He said, “Can we go inside? We’re not safe out here.” He gestured at his nude form, hoping to make her blush again. She stood and realized her night shirt was soaked through and was completely transparent. His eyes raked her gentle curves and she felt her face burn even hotter at his appreciative look.
Danae said, “Are you hurt?”
He shook his head. “I can run. I'm mostly healed.” Liam stood, towering over her, and it took all her hard earned control not to look away from his face. Judging from his smirk, he knew how hard she was working. They skittered up the beach, side by side, scrambling up the stairs and finally into the house.
She started giggling, imagining the look on the faces of the village's old biddy brigade if they'd seen them. Danae had certainly given them plenty to talk about already. What could one more thing do? Maybe the sour looks she got in town would ease long enough for them to ask her who he was. They would love gossip more than snubbing her.
“I'll be right back,” Danae said as Liam stood, dripping, on her entryway rug.
She went into her bedroom and rummaged around in the drawers, grateful now she hadn't cleared out all of David's things. One of the many things that got her sour looks around town was that she kept his clothes, but she just couldn’t get rid of them.
At first, she hadn't been ready, then she just didn't want to give those nasty town gossips the satisfaction of pushing her into something she didn’t want to do.
Myrna though, David's mother, let Danae go at her own pace, and had helped her spirit things out of the house when she was ready.
Danae's hand closed around the clothing. If anyone had a right to be furious, to hate her, it would have been Myrna. But she protected Danae like they were still family, up until the day old age and grief finally swept the old woman into the mists.
Her hands closed on a pair of sweat pants and a t-shirt. The naked man was bigger than David, but they should fit the stranger. She went into the hallway, his back to her, staring out the window. She let her eyes wander down his powerful, wide back that tapered into a perfect ass. Her mouth went dry, it was the first time she'd seen a naked man since David. He turned, and she dragged her eyes up to his, and tossed the clothing at him.
“Are you hungry?” She turned her back on him, not that he seemed to care about needing privacy, and walked into the kitchen. “And can you eat eggs?” She looked back at the now dressed man. “Uhm, are you even human?” She froze, was that something you could ask strange naked men who washed up on your beach?
He laughed at the look on her face. “Yes, I'm hungry. Yes, I can eat eggs. No, I'm not human, strictly speaking.”
She caught herself before she could blurt out her next question, instead grabbing a pan and rummaging around in the fridge. She set up at the stove, and he leaned against the counter, watching her.
He reached out a hand, and rested it on her arm. “Ask. You want to, just ask me.”
“Fine. If you aren't human, what are you? And, except for knowing my name, how do I know you aren't lying.”
Liam said, “I'm a selkie.”
“Aren’t you supposed to have a seal skin, then? Where is it?”
He pulled away from her, looking back out the window, towards the sea, regret in his voice. “It's gone,” he said. “Destroyed. But Neya can restore it. I just have to earn it back.” He looked back at her, his penetrating blue-green eyes peeling back her defenses, “You are not the only one looking for forgiveness.”
Danae kept her eyes on his and said, “I'm not looking for forgiveness, but for forgetfulness.”
He lifted one eyebrow and said, “Do you think you'll be able to find one without the other?”
“There is no forgiving what I did.” She broke away and furiously scrambled the eggs, before continuing, “Not everything a person does will ever earn forgiveness. Sometimes the best you can hope for is to wipe it away completely.” She plated breakfast and handed him the food, gesturing to the table, while she grabbed glasses and juice.
After they settled at the table and ate some, she finally broke the uneasy silence.
“So, Liam. I pulled you from the sea, now what?”
He said, “I'm not entirely sure. Neya yanked me from my home without saying much. But, I get the feeling our paths lie together.”
Danae fiddled with the food on her plate, finally responding, “You won’t be getting a hotel room, is that what you’re saying?”
“I think so, yes. I have to know you, before I can figure out if I can give you what you want.”
There was another long pause until Danae finally looked up at Liam.
“Know me? You can't just wiggle your fingers and clear my mind? I thought you things had magical powers.”
He started laughing, a low, rich rumble that swirled around her insides. The zing of desire was so alien at this point, it took her breath away.
He said, “Do you really want someone rummaging around in your brain, zapping memories without knowing what's going on? You'd end up a vegetable.”
“Maybe that would be no bad thing.” She couldn't help the bitter twist to her words that slipped out. She so desperately wanted to escape the past that was tying her to this place and trapping her in an endless spiral of grief.
Liam tilted her head and quietly said, “Do you want to run away from your past that badly?”
She stood abruptly and carried her plate to the sink. Danae said, “How long will all this take? I don't think I have much in the way of clothing for you. And I suppose I'll need more groceries. Oh my God, if the town finds out what you are and that you are staying here...”
Liam followed behind her into the kitchen and said, “I don't know how long, but there will be some packages arriving today. So clothing will not be an issue.”
Danae took his dishes from him and placed them in the sink. She said, “Packages, how?”
“The glory of technology and magic merging means Neya can make certain things happen very easily.” Liam flicked his hands to the sky like a new age yoga teacher and smiled at Danae.
A smile burbled out of her and she said, “She can make pants happen?”
“Selkies don't have to figure out how to turn ancient gold coins into modern money anymore. We know where all the shipwrecks are and can salvage so much easier than any human. One of the packages will contain the various documents I'll need to move around human society. You won't have to worry about that.”
“But what about the gossips in town? I can’t very well come out and say that a drop dead gorgeous selkie is living in my house. This is a
very
conservative community. They do not much care for magic or magic creatures. And I'm already barely tolerated. If I spent more time in town, they would find a rail to run me out on.” She felt the words tumbling out. She already was opening too easily to him.
“Drop dead gorgeous, huh?” He preened a little, and then laughed. “Those gossipy old cows will see me eventually. Better to be straight forward about it, than give them even more fuel to use against you.”