Rune Service Read online

  I rolled my eyes and planted my fists on my hips. “Well, what are you waiting for then? Answer received! Let’s get a move on, eh?”

  Siofra giggled. “Normally if someone that was not my master were to order me around in such a fashion, they would wind up dead in an alley but with you, dear Mary, I find it endearingly direct. Fortunately, there is no trip necessary.”

  Bunny let me go and walked past us both to the door. “Siofra was so smugly certain you’d ask for Aelfson that she made an arrangement with the King.” With that, she threw the door wide. It beeped excitedly (purely my imagination and my thumping heart) as Aelfread walked through the door.

  He was every bit as handsome as I dreamt about nightly. Once again, he was dressed in resplendent, form-hugging white leather, this time trimmed with gold filigree and studded with tasteful collections of precious stones. His shining gold hair was tied back and he looked every inch the ravishing prince from a fairy tale.

  Oh, did I want to do some ravishing, indeed. Aelfie managed to blurt out a love-filled “Mary” before I rushed to him, grabbed him by the waist, and pulled him to the floor directly in front of the snack cake display.

  “I never thought I’d see you again,” I managed to get out between the kisses I peppered on his face.

  “I too felt doomed to be apart from you, my dear,” he managed to reply between his own kisses. “In the end, though, you have lived up to your name.”

  I stopped my romantic assault and arched an eyebrow at him. “My name?”

  He flashed a quirky smile. “You are indeed my Miracle Mary.”

  From somewhere above us, Bunny made a vaguely nauseous gurgle. “And now I think I shall be sick. Good luck with that prize catch, Mary.” Despite her words, I could tell she was happy all the same.

  Aelfread and I found ourselves locked into a particularly passionate kiss as Siofra chimed in, “While it would be rather pleasurable to watch, I believe we shall make our exit.” As our hands were starting to roam wildly, that would indeed be for the best. “Shall I lock the door?”

  I came up for air, straddling Aelfie’s chest, and shook my head. “No, I have it and please, express my utmost gratitude to the King.” As the two ladies left the store, I snapped my fingers and the rune-engraved locks responded, locking tighter than a drum.

  Aelfie grinned up at me. “While I most enjoy my current position and view, are we to share our romantic reunion with all those who pass before the crystal-clear store front of your fine establishment?”

  I returned that grin. “Oh, do not worry, my beautiful prince, I have that covered as well.” As I returned to the joyful task at hand, I snapped my fingers one more time, releasing the steel security shutters that were now mounted over every exterior window.

  “You seem to have thought of everything, my dear,” he whispered softly as I leaned back over him.

  Scarlet waves of hair, loose and braided, formed another privacy barrier and our world was now one shared solely between Aelfread and myself.

  “In every way, Aelfie,” I replied huskily, trying to embody every burlesque girl Mr. Genovo had ever hired. “After everything we’ve been through and every stupid, little thing that has tried to take you away, there is no way that anyone is going to intrude on our heroine’s well-deserved celebration with her Prince Charming!”

  About the Author

  J. B. Garner was born in Baltimore, MD on December 1, 1976, the youngest of three children. While still young, the family moved to Peachtree City, GA. His parents always encouraged his creative side and J. B. began writing and drawing from an early age. Though considered talented by his teachers, he never fully applied himself and bounced through high school and into college at the Georgia Institute of Technology. During his freshman year, his father died suddenly.

  Grief and lack of purpose caused J. B. to drop out of school. If not for a few close friends, he might have dropped out of life as well. Taken in by his friends and given a second chance, J. B. matured, applied himself, and finally, after over a decade of hard work, is now back to doing what he loves the most: writing.

  His writing passions include science fiction, fantasy, pro wrestling and superhero literature. His eleventh book, Rune Service, is what you are reading right now.

  Feel free to get in touch with him via his blog (jbgarner58.wordpress.com), e-mail ([email protected]), at his deviantArt page (http://megatarget.deviantart.com/).

  Discover other titles by J. B. Garner

  The Push Chronicles

  Indomitable

  Indefatigable

  Incorruptible

  Three Seconds to Legend

  The Opening Bell

  The Tale of the Tape

  The Twelfth Labor

  The Inspector Redmane Mysteries

  The Songstress Murders

  Clans of Shadow (with J. A. Cipriano)

  Heart of Gold

  Feet of Clay

  Fists of Iron