by Jane Cousins
Ditching the web sites he’d gone straight to the source, forcing himself to watch a few early episodes of the show itself. The experience was novel. For one it gave him plenty more material to hold over Vaughn’s head and two he discovered why there was a drinking game out there that involved sculling every time Serena bent over and the camera went in for a close up shot. Even from his limited viewing he knew liver failure was definitely on the cards for any viewer who indulged in the game.
He’d been a gruff scowly bastard for the rest of the working day. He’d made his secretary in Milan cry. His own client had hung up on him and told him to call back when he found his sense of humour. Damn, he probably ought to get his secretary to send a crate of expensive whiskey in apology... that is if she were still speaking to him. See…. SEE... how disruptive having a woman in your life was! He’d managed to avoid her all day and still she adversely affected his work. Not to mention his home. He’d seen the mess she’d left in his kitchen. He’d kill his brothers for less. Sighing he headed back around the house, squaring his shoulders… he would not pounce on the mess immediately like a madman… and the same would go for the distracting little witch.
Except when he rounded the corner neither was in sight. The mess was gone; the kitchen counters gleaming and the dishes stowed away. Turning he expected to find her dancing under the moonlight but all was calm and still outside. Perhaps she’d turned in for the night. Or perhaps she was just being a good guest and staying out of his way.
Honestly women… would he ever understand them? Dancing naked in your face one minute and acting all mysterious and absent the next. Goddess help him he should prefer the latter but every instinct he had craved the former. No, he had to be strong. Keep his distance, avoid all personal contact and for pity sake stop spying on her like a school boy with a crush. He just had to survive a few more days.
Hmmmm… how annoyed would Vaughn be if he rang every hour requesting an update? Reaching for the phone he decided there was no time like the present to find out.
Chapter Ten
The next two days passed without incident.
Locke holed up in his office, working online non-stop with his team based worldwide to finalise the merger contract details. Considering there was eighty million dollars changing hands nothing could be left to chance, as he, and the opposition attorneys reviewed the proposed final document, every word, every apostrophe, had to be checked and double checked. Goddess, the binding requirements for the document alone had required a three hour discussion. Locke’s patience was definitely beginning to wear thin.
Perhaps the only thing more maddening was the amount of rigid self-control it took for him to stay away from the glass wall of his office, the one that over looked the courtyard. Too often he found himself restlessly pacing the room distracted, his hand seemingly of its own accord reaching out to part the curtains. In an attempt to control the habit he allowed himself to check on Serena every two hours, just to confirm her health and well-being of course.
So instead of wandering to the window every five minutes he now found his attention fixated on the passing minutes counted off by the clock. And if it wasn’t bad enough that his wanton wiccan houseguest ruined his concentration during daylight hours, he spent his nights tossing and turning. Plagued by disturbing dreams of her covered in nothing but flower petals, a saucy smile on her face as she danced for him… but always just out of reach.
Serena for her part seemed to understand that his work had reached a critical point and from the glimpses he had caught from afar was focusing all her energies on restoring her magic back to optimal levels. This seemed to require her to spend every waking moment in the courtyard garden.
Even the change in weather the morning after Nell came to dinner failed to faze her. Instead she happily skipped through the increasingly muddy garden as the rain fell, intermittent showers the first day and a steady relentless drum the next.
The sight of her soaked to the skin, t-shirt clinging wetly, her hair plastered down and that Goddess darn sexy smile that lingered on her lips as she all too often raised her face to the sky and sipped at the raindrops as if they were the equivalent of French champagne sent from the heavens was slowly, irrevocably, driving him insane.
When Hadleigh rang on the third morning he pounced on the phone in record time, barking a hello.
“Problem?” His sister’s voice sounded faint over the never ending rain pounding on the roof, would it ever cease?
“Everything’s fine. Works a little hectic though, why are you calling? Did something happen?”
“Maybe.”
“Cryptic much Kitten? What’s going on?”
“We had a breach… or so Marcus tells us. They came in through the air vents.”
“I’m extrapolating from your lack of details that you didn’t kill them.”
“No.” Hadleigh’s voice was tight with tension and frustration. “We’re not even sure what they were after. They didn’t come near the trap.”
“You think they were after something else?”
“Unless it was a scouting party. We’re still looking into it. How’s the witch doing?”
“Serena?” He strode over to the window, yanking back the curtains. Into the third day of rain the courtyard was a drenched muddy mess, the foliage dipping and swaying frantically under the continuous heavy downfall. She should have been out there frolicking through the soggy jungle nightmare but she was nowhere in sight.
A man’s home is his castle… truer words had never been spoken, so he tuned into his gut and went with what it was telling him. “She’s fine.”
“Okay, keep her that way. I’ll call if there are any updates.”
Locke disconnected the call. Hmmm, the empty courtyard bothered him for some reason. Time to find out what was up with his witch.
He found her in the living room, scrunched up in a ball on the couch facing the TV, the remote clutched tightly in her hand. Every ten seconds she muttered a soft dissatisfied hiss and stabbed at a button. Her hair was back in haphazard bun, more down than up, her face pale, eyes dull and she was wearing honest to Goddess pink flannel pyjamas decorated with lollipops. She was a mess. And still… still, Goddess help him, he thought she was the most delectable woman he’d ever seen. For a brief futile second he considered retreating back to his office, barring the door, and curling up in a ball of his own.
Serena glanced up as Locke came to stand in front of her. “You’re blocking the TV.” She groused.
“From what I can tell you’re not exactly watching anything. Is this your exercise for today… channel surfing?”
“Hah, funny.” She leaned slightly to the left, trying to watch around him. How dare he interrupt her blue funk. She was perfectly happy minding her own business, stewing in her own depression. Then he had to come along looking all esquire front cover gorgeous and smelling like chocolate two weeks into a sugar free diet.
“You want to tell me what’s bothering you?”
“Nope.” She leaned even further to the left, angling the remote around him.
He dared to huff an amused laugh. Serena swore that she would ignore him. If she didn’t react or respond he’d get bored and go away. That was easier said than done. In the next five minutes Locke bustled around her like a mother hen. He covered her with a gorgeous silk raspberry pink throw, even pausing to tuck the comforter under her bare feet. Then he placed a steaming mug of tea on the side table next to her, the smell of orange and cinnamon rising from it to tease her nostrils. Next he planted himself on the sofa next to her, snatching the remote from her hands.
“Hey!”
He ignored her feeble protests, proceeding to press a rapid number of buttons. Seconds later a movie began to play.
“I’m not in the mood to watch a movie.”
Locke ignored her, his own eyes fixed on the screen. “Give it a minute.”
“Go. Away.” She hissed out the words sulkily between gritted teeth.
“M
y house… my TV, my rules.” Locke never took his eyes off the screen.
Issuing a frustrated sigh Serena followed his gaze, her eyes opening wide in surprise. “Seven Brides for Seven Brothers?”
Locke shrugged, his eyes never leaving the screen. “Singing. Dancing. The barn raising fight. Better than medicine.”
“I’m really not in the mood…”
“Ssshhhh.” Locke hushed her out the side of his mouth. “You’re ruining it.”
So just like that Serena found herself snuggled up next to Locke on the couch watching an old musical as the rain outside continued to sheet down.
“That was sneaky.” Serena eyed Locke ruefully two hours later as the credits began to roll.
“And yet from the colour in your cheeks and the sparkle in your eye I’m pretty sure it was exactly what you needed.” Locke muted the TV, turning slightly on the sofa to face her.
“Smug much?” She accused.
He grinned at her, making her tummy flip.
“It’s my burden to be right all the time. So you want to tell me what had you kicking the doldrum bucket this morning?”
Serena sighed, reaching up to adjust her hair. Urgh she must look a nightmare. Would it be too obvious to race off to her bedroom brush her hair and change into something more flattering than her lollipop pyjamas? Probably.
“Have you looked outside today?” She gestured towards the courtyard.
“So?”
Serena rolled her eyes, men could be so dense. “Slow moving low pressure, high humidity, incessant rainfall, soaked earth.”
“Are you saying you’re being affected by the weather? But it rained yesterday and the day before.”
Serena shrugged. “Some rain is good… a lot of rain, not so much. The earth can only drink in a certain volume then you have run off. Local flora and fauna begin to be adversely affected.”
“And you feel all that?”
“Sort of.” Serena shrugged. “Normally I’d go for a run, increase my adrenalin levels to fight off the blues so to speak. But I haven’t exercised in six months, I’d be lucky if I made it half a block. So I decided to curl up and wait for it to stop raining.”
“But you feel better now?”
“Sure.” The word sounded weak even to her own ears.
“Right.” Locke got up. “Time to instigate phase two of my evil plan to bring sunshine into your cloudy day. Tomato or pumpkin soup?”
“What?”
“You heard me, tomato or pumpkin?”
“But it’s hot outside.”
“And you’re wearing flannel pyjamas. It’s definitely a day for indulging.”
“Pumpkin.” She requested finally.
“Good.” I’ll be back in a bit. How do you feel about Gene Kelly? I’m thinking nothing could be more apropos than Singing in the Rain for an afternoon matinee.”
Serena watched him disappear in the direction of the kitchen. Stupid know it all idiot. How dare he act all concerned and sweet when she needed him to be all corporate lawyer cool and standoffish, much easier to keep her hands to herself that way. If he kept this up she’d be throwing herself at him in no time, chewing the buttons off his waistcoat with her teeth. Mother Earth give her strength.
Chapter Eleven
The afternoon spent together had been fun. They’d watched two more musicals before Locke was interrupted by the persistent ringing of his cell phone. Whilst he’d disappeared back to his office Serena had seized the opportunity to run to her room for a shower and to change into something more appropriate than flannel sleepwear. Surveying the contents of the bag she’d had Nate pack for her she decided on an old favourite, a dark purple summer dress with bright red flowers ringing the hem.
She’d foregone the urge to do anything else other than run a brush through her hair, leaving it unbound and adding nothing more than a slick of lip gloss. What would be the point except for vanity’s sake? She’d inadvertently eavesdropped on Locke and Nell’s goodbye conversation the other night. Nell admitting to him that she couldn’t sleep alone. Locke assuring her oh so sweetly that it would all be over soon.
Yeah, as soon as he could off load his unwanted house guest he and Nell could resume their perfect lives. And Nell was so nice and obviously the perfect companion for Locke. Okay so she hadn’t sensed any full blown knee melting heat between the two but there was definitely a comfortable familiarity that spoke of friendship and affection.
Earth, Serena knew if she’d met Nell under any other circumstances they’d end up being good friends. And didn’t that make her feel a hundred times guiltier. She’d danced skyclad in front of him for Star’s sake. Thrice! Teased him. Flirted with him. Earth, and what about all the inappropriate naughty thoughts she’d indulged in, all starring Locke Valhalla. Well they had to end now.
She would not be a home wrecker. She would not hurt the lovely Nell. She would not indulge in a selfish hot brief affair with Locke Valhalla to scratch an itch for an entirely inappropriate tightly buttoned up lawyer man. She swore by the Earth and the Moon that she’d behave… or at the very least work more diligently on fighting the attraction she felt for a man who could never be anything more than an indulgent white hot fling.
* * *
It was like a replay of their first and only dinner together. Locke manned the kitchen, sans jacket, his shirt sleeves rolled up whilst Serena sat across the kitchen bench, drinking wine and staying out of his way. She enjoyed watching Locke move about so confidently in his kitchen, absently answering her questions about his work as he chopped, mixed and sautéed a wonderfully smelling meal for them.
By the time they were seated at the dining room table her mouth was practically watering as he placed a bowl of spicy peanut chicken and vegetables in front of her.
“Rain’s backing off.” He noted, taking the seat across from her.
“Hmmm, this is fantastic Locke. Where did you learn to cook?”
“One of my uncles is Thai.”
“He taught you?”
Locke nodded confirmation. “His sons and all the male cousins. Said learning to cook was right up there with learning to fight, an essential skill. And it’s true, more deals are brokered over meals than they are on the battlefield.”
“Are all your cousins as good as you?”
Locke laughed, reaching for his wine. “Too many of them had… fire control issues back then. It became a running joke that everything tastes better barbequed.”
“You sound close to your family. But no one ever comes by?”
“I learnt to set boundaries a long time ago. We grew up practically in one another’s pockets thanks to proximity. We went to school together, played sport, surfed, hung out, all the normal things kids do. With the added bonus of going through the teenage trials and tribulations of discovering what our powers were and learning to control them.”
“It must have been nice not to have to go through that alone.”
“Sounds like you weren’t as lucky?”
“Only child.” Serena acknowledged. “I learnt very young that I was different from the other kids, that it was important that I keep my distance.”
“Sounds lonely.”
Serena shrugged. “I had my Mum and my Grandmother lived right next door. They spent a lot of time with me, taught me everything they know.”
“What about your Dad?”
“He was away a lot, with the army. I take after him when it comes to the itchy feet department. He’s retired now. What about your parents, do they live locally?”
“Yes.”
“You don’t get along?”
“Not at all, love them dearly, but they’re parents, you know? My Father is kind of… set in his ways whilst my Mum has a tendency to smother… with the best of intentions of course. Except lately she’s gone a little nuts on wanting grandkids. She thinks my brothers and I should step up to the plate.”
“You have brothers? I thought it was just you and Hadleigh.”
“I’m the
eldest, then comes Erik, he’s a sculpture, then Fen, he’s a fireman and you’ve met the baby of the family.”
“She’s one very tall baby.”
“Tell me about it. It’s very strange when you’re twenty-one to have your fourteen year old little sister match and then surpass you in height.”
“Why did you go into corporate law?”
“As opposed to?”
“Putting bad guys in prison I suppose, being a criminal lawyer?”
“When I first started studying law I was pretty idealistic. I thought I’d tear up the justice system, punish the guilty, save the innocent. The problem for me became the truth in the law. I might know when someone is lying but I couldn’t compel them to tell the truth, that would be tampering with a witness. And what about those cases where the truth is irrefutable but the judge must omit the damning evidence thanks to some legal technicality?”
“That would have driven you mad. To know… and not be able to do anything to change the outcome because you’re hampered by the same rules that grant you your powers in the first place.”
“Exactly.” He reached over refilling both their glasses.
“Okay, but then why not environmental law?”
“Because it’s a field already bloated with do-gooder lawyer types battling the nameless faceless corporate bad guys.”
Serena smiled, then laughed huskily. “You’re undercover working for those nameless, faceless corporations aren’t you?”
“I specialise in finding small to medium technical, medical and agricultural companies with products that have the potential to change the world. All the majority of them need is an influx of cash, that’s where I step in.”
“But how do you know the corporate giant won’t squander the acquisition? Or change the focus so that only a few will benefit from the end product rather than the masses?”
