The Magical Forest (Box Set)

The Magical Forest (Box Set)
Marteeka Karland
All rights reserved.
Copyright ©2015 Marteeka Karland
Excerpt from Tygers' Lilly

The brilliant morning sun shone delicately through the blanket of new spring foliage in the Magical Forest. Lilly yawned and stretched as one ray of light caressed her naked body. Her spongy moss bed was like a jealous lover, trying to find reasons for her to stay rather than have her flee to the arms of another.

Standing, she fluffed her teal and purple wings, preening as if she were really going to meet her lover. Instead, she jumped off the ground and fluttered slowly through the trees, leaving a faint trail of sparkling purple faery dust. There was a hot spring she loved to visit in the cool of the morning. If she hurried, she might have it all to herself before other forest creatures demanded she share.

Flying around the pool a couple of times, Lilly muttered a spell of seclusion. She just wanted to spend an hour or so in peace before beginning her work with the spring foliage. It was her job to see they were awakened from their winter long sleep. If the delicate vegetation weren't nudged gently, they would wake up cross and not bloom to their fullest. The results wouldn't be disastrous or anything, but she really didn't want to live with moody trees and flowers all summer. It was hard work, but she loved every second of it.

Finally alighting next to the steaming pool, she dipped her toes into the water to test it. She winced. It was a tad warm this morning, but it would still feel good. Without any other hesitations, she stepped into the shallow end and worked her way deeper and deeper until she was waist deep. Warmth seeped into her and her muscles relaxed from the previous day's work.

She sat on a natural ledge within the pool and rested her arms on the edge, out of the water. Lilly couldn't keep back the groan. She hadn't realized how stiff she was. Her muscles ached, and the hot water made them sting as they relaxed.

"What's a nice faery like you doing in a place like this?"

Lilly squealed and jumped. Her wings quivered with surprise, then anxiety. The husky, masculine voice belonged to one of the Tyger twins. Jayden. The only weretiger twins to have been born in the Magical Forest in ten generations. They were also a royal pain in her ass. They tormented her, teased her, and made her life miserable whenever they could. It had gotten so bad that she'd holed herself up all winter, not daring to go outside for fear of running into them. With spring here, she didn't really have much choice, but they usually left her alone during the Waking.

Where one twin was, the other wasn't far behind. Sure enough, on the opposite side of the pool from his brother was Darren. Both as naked as she was. Both model specimens of the male body. They were large and muscled, all those hunky veins lurking below the skin…

And they were stalking her. Hunting for prey.

"Boys, I'm a little busy at the moment." Lilly tried to recover, shrug their presence off, but her wings still shook slightly. It was like shivering. She couldn't control it. She rose slightly, acutely aware of her nakedness, to get her wings out of the water. Maybe if she pretended they didn't affect her they'd go away. "I don't have time to dally with the likes of you today."

"Not today, maybe." Darren's deep voice, sounding much like a purr, washed over her and set her wings to trembling again. "But the day will have an end."

"I won't have time for you tonight either," she snapped. "And how the hell did you get past my seclusion spells?" This was a horrible way to start out the day. The whole reason she rose early and took so much time preparing herself before waking the flowers was to wash away negative energy. These two, in only a few moments, had put her on edge and made her anxious beyond belief. This was going to be a disaster. She'd have cranky flowers all frigging summer.

Both men chuckled quietly. Jayden replied, "Suffice it to say we have friends in high places. I suppose when we get together is ultimately up to you." Jayden stepped into the pool, and Lilly's defenses slammed into high alert. He was getting ready to pounce. She just knew it. "But we've been instructed to --" He turned to his brother. "How did the king put it, Darren?"

"Entice her into a sexual escapade the likes of which would make even the Fae folk blush." They both turned to look at her, identical grins from ear to ear.