CHAPTER 19

He wanted her so badly, but needed her love to fill his lonely heart. He felt her legs give out and went down on his knees to the hay filled floor with her straddling him as her bag hung on her hip with Azrael in it. Sarah couldn't feel enough of his lips and kisses. Jareth was lost in the moment. Brie stood there watching them kiss with consuming passion. Brie thought, 'One day, I hope I could feel that way about a man when I grow up.'

Sarah broke the kiss and said weakly, "I can't." She started crying again.

Jareth said tenderly, "Yes you can , my precious. I'll help you. I promise to protect you. I love you." He pulled her head forward and started kissing her again by wrapping his hand around her neck with his finger spread inside the nape of her hair and thumb on her jaw. He caressed her face as he kissed her his other hand was on her lower back pressing her to his body. Sarah felt his arousal. She began unconsciously grinding into him slightly. Her hand went up in his hair at the back of his head. His long hair was so soft. He broke the kiss and started licking her neck and kissing it.

He said, "Stay with me. Stay with me in the castle. I need you. I want you." He bit her neck behind her left ear. The sensation went straight to her groin. She moaned. He thought it was the sexiest sound he ever heard a woman make.

Sarah groaned and said, "Oh Jareth."

He said, "Please say yes, my love." He started sucking on that spot and tingles started growing in her lady parts.

Sarah said, "Oh Jareth…. Yes…" He transported Sarah, Brie and their baggage to the Queen's room, not letting go of Sarah on his knees still.

He said, "I love you, Sarah mine. I always have. I always will." His mouth closed on hers again, taking her breath away.

Sarah broke the kiss. She said, "My Brie. My baby girl."

He said, "She's right here, my precious. I will never forget her. She is part of your beautiful heart. Let me be part of your heart too, my love?" He caressed her lips with his thumb. He pulled on her lower lip with his teeth and let it snapback. Sarah thought he was the sexiest man alive. The passion in his eyes had her mesmerized. She touched his soft luscious lips.

She said staring in his unusual mismatched eyes of blue, "I… I… want you too. I… can't help it. You're so beautiful… I… I mean handsome." He smiled at her adoringly.

He said, "So are you."

Sarah looked around and looked at him and said, "Where are we?"

He said, "In the room next to mine in the castle. You and Brie can stay here, Sarah, close to me. I want to taste your kisses everyday." He undid the clasps on her cloak and opened it, placing a kiss on her neck. Brie stepped forward and took her cloak and Azrael's bag off her shoulder and sat them on the bed. The pup bounded out of the bag and started sniffing the bed. Sarah watched it and turned back to Jareth. She looked in his eyes and saw his sincerity.

She said, "It was never like this before. I was so afraid of making mistakes. You're trying so hard this time to be compassionate. It's so different. You're so full of affection and…."

He gazed into her eyes and said, "Love?"

She nodded, looking at his lips and licking her own and said, "Yeah." She captured his lips this time and took his breath away. Her kiss was intoxicating. He danced with her tongue, letting her possess him. He loved surrendering to her. He never let anyone take control. It was so sensual. He wanted so much more but not with a child in the room.

He said, "I need to stand, but I need to go to my room without being seen." He looked down between them. She then knew what he meant. His arousal.

She kissed him and said, "I'll take care of it." She got up first and then he did. She stayed in front of him.

He said, "I'll be back shortly. Settle in. My home is your home, my precious love." He caressed her face, then was transported to his room, without a doubt.

Brie asked, "Sar, we be stayin'?"

Sarah looked at her and asked, "Do you want to?"

Brie smiled and said, "I be stayin' with ye, wherever ye go. I love ye, Sar. Seems he loves ye too. He be very handsome." Sarah walked up to her and put her arms around her and kissed her hair.

She said, "Yeah, he does and is."

Brie asked, "Sar, who's clothes be in the closet over thar?" She pointed at the amiore. Sarah walked over and started to look through the clothes inside.

Sarah frowned and said, "I don't know, little one."

Brie said, "They be fancy."

Sarah smiled and said, "Yes they are."

A little while later, Azrael said, "Whoo… Grrr…"

There was a knock on the big door. Sarah answered it. A fae was standing there in a jacket with knee breeches and stockings and buckle shoes. He looked very 17th-18th century and arrogant. He said, "I was told a very important guest was in here." He looked her up and down in disgust.

She tilted her head to the side and said, "Yes… I guess that would be me. Who are you?" He looked affronted.

He said arrogantly, "I am Cornaith, his majesty's Chief Advisor." Brie came up to stand next to her.

He said, "Oh, is it a servant?"

She said condescendingly, "No, I think not. I am Lady Sarah, Champion of the Labyrinth and this is my child, Brianna. Call her an it or a servant one more time and you'll be picking up your sobbish teeth off the ground."

He stuttered, "But… but.. you're supposed to be a human."

She produced a sea green crystal flipping it from side to side. She asked, "Not anymore. Now, what do you want?" She popped it.

He said, "His majesty told me, you are to be present in the solarium for lunch immediately."

Sarah was ticked off and said, "You're not asking me but telling me? I don't respond to that kind of action. Good day." She closed the door in his face. She walked away and told Brie to wait to unpack.

Down in the solarium, Cornaith didn't want to tell king Jareth that she closed the door in his face, but he had no choice.

Jareth looked around him looking for Sarah and Brie, but they weren't there.

He asked, "Where are they?"

Cornaith said, "I told her and she closed the door in my face. She's very uncooperative."

Jareth said, "What did you say to her word for word?"

Cornaith said, "I saw a fae woman answer the door in men's clothing and asked her to speak to the special guest of the king. She said that would be her. A human child walked up and I asked if it was a servant." Jareth groaned.

He said, "She then got violent. She said she was Lady Sarah, Champion of the Labyrinth and if I called her human, an it or a servant one more time and I'll be picking up my sobbish teeth off the ground." Jareth suppressed a grin.

He said, "I said she was supposed to be human and she said not anymore and asked why I was there. I told her she is to be in the solarium for lunch. She got angry and said I was not asking but telling her. She said she did not respond to that action and closed the door in my face." Jareth laughed.

He said affronted, "Your majesty it was not funny. She was rude and childish and threatening."

Jareth said, "First, I asked you to ask them to join me for lunch and you did not. Second, you insulted her child calling her and it and a servant and got the threat in return for it. Third, she is a titled Lady whether she is in men's clothing or rags and above your station anyway. Fourth, she showed great restraint in not punching your teeth out because she trained as well as my elite warriors are trained in hand to hand combat and can do it. Fifth, she will be around for hopefully a very long time and you better not insult her again or her child, because I will knock your teeth out before she can. You will be kind, courteous and ask her as you were told to do in the first place. You will never tell her to do anything. Do I make myself clear?"

Cornaith sputtered, seeing his face, paused and looked down, "Yes your majesty."

Jareth said, "I will go and have to fix this now, though it should have never been necessary." Jareth disappeared, reappearing in the hall outside the queen's chamber. He knocked. Sarah got up and answered the door and looked at him hesitantly.

Jareth said, "He did nothing I asked him to do, but stick his foot in his mouth. Please come have lunch, precious? I'm sure you and little Brianna are hungry." He put his hand out.

She said pouting, "Only if my wolf pup can come too. He hates being alone and not part of the group." He nodded and caressed her pouting bottom lip. She smiled and he did too. She picked up Azrael and his bag of the milk bottle and small dish for his food in a drawstring bag. Brie took the bag from her and carried it. They went to the solarium and sat down at the table to eat. The servers came in and put down trays of food on the table. Roasted Lamb and chicken, with vegetable pasta salad, fresh baked rolls and fresh fruit tarts. The servers were looking at the two females dressed as males and the black wolf pup sitting at the table. The castle gossip will be busy tonight.

Jareth said, "I have commissioned two seamstresses to make dresses for Brianna and I am having a second armoire brought into your room." Sarah took a bit of this and that onto her plate. She served Brie.

Sarah asked, "Jareth, whose clothes are in the armoire in the room?"

Jareth said, "Those are yours, my love. They have been waiting for you to return to wear them."

Sarah got tears in her eyes and said, "You held on to them all this time?"

Jareth looked surprised at her and said, "Of course I did."

Sarah said, "I can't believe you did that for me. That's so… very kind. Did you ever find out who may have shut off my portal mirror? It made me sad that I couldn't talk to anyone here."

Jareth said, "Thank you, my dear. Not yet, I haven't had a chance to look into it properly as of yet. But I will start tomorrow. I am curious too. The magical signature is on the mirror. Do you know where the vanity is?"

Sarah said, "I'm not sure anymore. They probably threw it out or gave it to an antique store. Karen was always big on getting rid of anything she thought was mine. It's probably still back in Greenwich, Connecticut."

Jareth said "She is a hateful woman. The cruel things she said when I was there listening was cold."

Sarah said, "I can imagine."

Jareth said, "I'll locate it and find out tomorrow."

Sarah said, "Thank you."

—--

Over The next week, Sarah had found out that her friends were not in town. They had gone to the mountains in the west of the Goblin Kingdom to visit with their friend Ludo the rock caller. Ludo- had journeyed back to his family there. Nobody seemed sure how long they would be gone.

Sarah apologized to Elion and told him to keep the money for the room. He wouldn't hear of it being she and Brie only stayed two days out of the two weeks they paid for. He gave her a refund for the twelve days she didn't stay in the room. He told her that she was a friend and to visit anytime she wanted.

—--

The gossip had spread from the castle to the town about the incredibly beautiful dark hair fae that had captured the King's heart. He had been seen kissing her at every opportunity. The blacksmith at the stable said he had never seen two people so passionate.

Eventually, the gossip made it to the outside of the kingdom to the ears of Lady Arabella in her sitting room. Arabella smashed her breakables against the wall above the head of her Head of House.

She screamed, "She had ruined everything I have been working for!" SMASH!! "How dare that woman interfere! He is mine! I'll find a way to destroy that fae bitch! I could go after her human pet too. I want her kidnapped and brought to my dungeon in my estate in The Outlands. No detection spell can locate them there. But when to strike. These things are all in the timing."

The Head of House servant said, "My Lady, what of the Pixie King's order to stop interfering with the Goblin Kingdom and its people?"

Lady Arabella narrowed her eyes at him, and he cringed. She said in a deadly tone, "To hell with the king. This has nothing to do with him. He may have threatened me, but I will be in The Outlands not within his borders anyway. Now I have to plan this. Get someone to get in here and clean this up. I will be busy in my library, so do not disturb me unless I call you." She swished with her gown out of the room