A Cursed Kiss (Myths of Airren, #1)

by Jenny Hickman

A monster who preyed on innocent maidens and killed them with his poisoned lips. The Gancanagh had murdered my sister.

Edward and I had been hastily married two days after Aveen’s funeral.

I had gotten to wear my sister’s ivory dress after all.

“If I ever need to escape, I certainly won’t be looking for you.”

“Fiadh lives in a small cottage in the forest north of Graystones.”

Fee-ah.

But the oddest thing about him was that he was reading.

Pooka—shapeshifters who feasted on human flesh.

Banshee—wraiths who reveled in sending their victims to the underworld.

Dullahan—a headless being that used a human spine as a whip and drew out souls simply by...

sluagh—hosts of the unfor...

kohl-smeared finger toward me. “This allows me to see glamours and curses.”

“I would rather use you as a blanket.”

“Because it is easier to fear the unknown than to try and understand it. And unfortunately, the loudest voices often belong to the most fearful.”

Beneath the mud-covered strands, the tips of his ears weren’t round. They were pointed.

My friend wasn’t human. I’d never known.

“I can make it go away,” he whispered against the shell of my ear. “Say the word, and I’ll make the whole world go away.”

Cold lips crashed against mine, stealing the breath from my lungs.

There was something hopeful about the moments before one was fully awake, before reality caught you by the collar and dragged you into its dark abyss. Anything was possible at dawn’s first light. By nightfall, you realized all the day had brought was failure. The small specks of hope that remained were like stars scattered across the vast night sky, reminding you that tomorrow could be different. Tomorrow could be the day you succeeded.

He and I couldn’t work, even if I wanted us to.

“Not all of us have the luxury of love. Sometimes we monsters like to pretend we’re wanted for more than an escape or a distraction.”

Rían. The witch’s dagger at my back gave an answering pulse. The Gancanagh.

“Rían is Tadhg’s younger brother.”

“I’ve never met the Gancanagh.” “Never met him?” she cackled. “You just shared his bed.”

“But most of all,” he said, placing a final kiss over my pulse, “I like the way you hate me.”

“Most importantly, I know that you are the type of woman others are willing to die for—myself included.”

“I tried but couldn’t lie. Or say no.”

The only response was a soft snore followed by a murmured, “I love you too.”

Forgiveness wasn’t a commodity to be bought and paid for. Forgiveness was a matter of the heart. A matter of choosing love over hate. Forgiveness was a release. Forgiveness was freedom.

“I—Shit.” He licked his lips and winced. “I don’t—” He swore again and dashed his hands through his hair, tugging on the ends. Then his hands dropped. Green eyes met mine. Tadhg took a deep breath and said, “I do. I love you.”

“Your sister and I are engaged.”

my sister, my brilliant, strong sister, had sacrificed a year of her life so that I could get everything I had ever wanted.

“There will never be a time or place when I won’t want to be with you.”

“Lady Keelynn Bannon,” he said, going down on one knee, “I’d given up hope of ever finding someone I loved. And then you waltzed into a pub and threatened to kill me.”

“I am wrecked by you,” he said, “completely undone. I would trade my soul for a smile. My kingdom for a kiss. My world to call you my wife. Will you give me the honor of a second chance to be your husband?”

“but I think I love you enough for the both of us.”