by Jane Cousins
“Is it my fault Stephanie invited every model who works at her agency?” The redhead moaned.
“You know, I don’t think that dress she’s wearing is even designer.” The brunette scoffed lightly.
“Are you sure she’s not a swimsuit model?” The scrawny blonde was sneering blatantly in Brodie’s direction. “With the way all the men are drooling, I can definitely see her being a hit in the men’s magazines?”
Brodie gripped the edge of the bar tightly. She would not react. This was a party. A children’s party. All she had to do was hold out until the cake was cut, and then she could make her escape. Then she could kiss the twins goodbye, thank Stephanie and Galen for their hospitality, and make her way quickly and quietly to the nearest exit.
She would not hack her way through the mass of annoying party-goers with wanton abandon.
She would not blacken the eye of the woman who’d reached out, unasked, and grabbed her left breast, announcing loudly to her circle of friends. “Hey, they are real.”
She would not cut the Achilles tendons of the man who’d run his hand up her thigh and under her dress. A look of disappointment on his face as Brodie batted his hand away. He’d had the gall to issue a complaint – “Damn, I thought all you model types went commando” – before stumbling away.
And she would not head-butt into unconsciousness all the males who had leered, hit on her, or propositioned her, often with their wife standing only a few feet away.
How Stephanie managed not to kill any of these horrible people was beyond Brodie. Though it might have something to do with her massive husband constantly shadowing her. Galen was tall, and broad. With a shock of dark hair, dark eyes and a cruel mouth. To the partygoers he was a filthy rich divorce attorney. Brodie knew him better as a demon prince. One who clearly adored his wife and daughters.
Brodie tensed as hot breath pebbled the skin on the side of her neck.
“Hello there.”
His breath smelled of scotch and tomato sauce. Her new admirer was a few inches shorter than Brodie, with thinning blonde hair, tanned skin, weak blue eyes and a carefully groomed beard clinging to his jawline.
Brodie gave him a brief, sizzling look of disgust before shifting her attention away. The man was invading her personal space, but she would not kill him. She would not hurt him. She would ignore him. She just had to wait for the cake. Then she could leave.
She’d head back to the battlefields… or maybe she’d go home, air out her apartment. Not that her destination mattered, either way, she’d be alone. It was funny, she could be surrounded by strangers at a party, or her fellow Valkyrie on the battlefield, but essentially she would be alone.
Without Fen.
Without Fen, the world felt muffled and drab. Every victory was hollow. Everyday life was pointless.
Each day she threw herself into battle with determined gusto, hoping this time, if she fought hard enough, long enough, this time it would mean something. That she would re-discover the sheer joy and elation she had once experienced on the battlefield.
But so far, all she’d found was that the never-ending surge forward to fight the enemy was… meaningless.
She loved her sisters in arms. But the routines that she had once found comfort in, suddenly made her want to scream. Training was boring. She knew her opponents next move, and they obviously knew hers. The face of the enemy might change, but thanks to detailed planning, they were always made fully cognoscente of their foe’s strengths and weaknesses. There were no surprises, no challenges.
Everyday was the same. Get up, gear up, fight, eat, re-tell battle tales whilst sharing an ale with her sisters, sleep, and do it all again the next day. And the next.
Was this her life now? Essentially a battle robot? Huh, she wished she could be a robot, then she wouldn’t feel like this. Several times she’d thought about returning to the Southern Sanctuary. But only just over two Earth weeks had passed by, barely enough time for Fen to miss her. At least he should still remember her name.
But what would be the point in seeing Fen again? Other than a chance for her to experience outright humiliation? Watch as pity fill his beautiful cerulean eyes when he realised she was hung up on him.
“So…” A wave of alcohol laden breath assaulted Brodie’s senses. “What do you say you and me find somewhere a little more private and… have a discussion?”
Brodie locked her gaze on the annoying man, all his attention was focused down the front of her dress. Her hand clenched into a fist, if this creep touched her… all bets were off. Suddenly she found herself praying to Freyja that he would, at least if she was pummelling this fool, she would be doing something other than waiting.
Waiting for the cake to be cut. Waiting to get over Fen. Waiting until her life got back to normal… except her life was back to normal. She was back on the battlefields and when she wasn’t there, she was training. See, normal, and the boredom of it was slowly killing her.
“Hey.” Stephanie’s cool hand slid down Brodie’s arm to cover her clenched fist. “What’s going on here, Duncan?”
“I was just getting to know your pretty friend, Steph. She’s quite the looker.”
Stephanie smiled, her hand squeezing Brodie’s closed fist in warning. “Really, that’s nice. You know, I think your ex-wife is looking for you Duncan, something about missing child support payments.”
“Oh.” Duncan flushed then swallowed. “Which wife, do you know?”
Stephanie’s blue eyes twinkled with amusement. “Does it matter?”
“Good point, later.” Duncan winked at Brodie, ducked, and made a quick escape.
“That… that little toad.” Brodie hissed under her breath.
Stephanie smiled ruefully. “There are some nice people here… I just don’t think you’ve met any of them yet.”
“Tell me about it.” Brodie flashed a quick admiring glance down Stephanie’s frame. Her friend had deliberately dressed in an understated way today. Hair up in a high pony-tail, white silk t-shirt, with a large splash of silver across the front, white trousers and silver sandals. She looked effortlessly hot and really happy. It made Brodie feel bad, but she couldn’t help but ask. “When’s the cake due to be cut?”
Stephanie laughed, grabbed a bottle of beer from one of the hovering bartenders and placed it in Brodie’s hand. “Come outside with me. The kids are playing soccer and most of our close friends are lounging about in the sunshine.”
Brodie allowed Stephanie to lead her outside, the air was fresh and the winter sun’s rays warm. This was definitely a good idea. She recognised several of her fellow Valkyrie and nodded a greeting. There were fewer people out here, she could drink her beer in peace and watch the kids playing. Brodie wandered away as Stephanie was pulled into a nearby conversation with a relaxed, laughing group spread out over several loungers.
Walking past the outdoor bar, Brodie stepped on to the lush grass and kept right on going. Until she reached the shade of a large tree. Leaning back against the trunk she took a drink. Her attention shifted to the group of kids running back and forth between two goals. The twins were easily identifiable. They were the most determined and the most in-sync players on the field. Their matching blonde pony-tails streaming behind them as they ran, their faces glowing with exertion and happiness.
A smile flickered across Brodie’s face as one twin hip checked a member of the opposition whilst her sister claimed the ball. In a few year’s time, the twins would make awesome Valkyries.
She wanted that back. That happiness. That focus.
And the only way for her to do that was to get over Fen. So she would. Starting right now. She wouldn’t think about him. She wouldn’t dwell on him. She’d stop daydreaming about what might have been.
Only one little annoying factor was holding her back from enacting her brilliant plan, the fact that Fen Valhalla was striding across the grass headed in her direction right this second.
By the Sword, he looked good. Fiery red gli
nts glimmered in his dark, short hair, courtesy of the winter sunshine. His tanned face was expressionless, but those cerulean eyes had clearly pin pointed her location, and she was his target. Damn, too late for her to run.
All she could do was stand there and enjoy the way Fen’s black silk shirt clung to his muscular chest, the sleeves rolled back, revealing strong, healed forearms. His trousers were black also, making him appear taller for some reason, though that may have been the boots.
Um, what should she do? Smile? Say hello? Breathe… gulp, what she needed to remember to do was just breathe. Say something, anything, but make it witty, casual, and light. “How the hell did you get in here?”
Fen came to a halt in front of Brodie, his lips twisting upwards in an amused smile as his eyes drank in the sight of her. Goddess, she looked beautiful, two tiny braids twisting around the crown of her head, the rest of her lustrous black hair rippling down her back, contrasting with the deep red of her summery dress, those gorgeous long legs showcased by strappy, gold sandals. She looked sexy and strong, but at the same time sweet. “Hey Xena, I like the dress, the sleeves are a nice touch.”
Brodie glanced down quickly at the cap sleeves. “Yeah, you can thank Elijah for his expert consulting advice. What are you doing here, Fen? It’s a private party.”
“I have an invite.” Fen reached out, grabbed the bottle of beer that Brodie was holding and claimed it for himself, raising it to take a drink.
Brodie’s left eyebrow arched upwards. “You walked by the bar on the way over here, you could have gotten your own.”
“But I wanted yours.” Fen’s heated gaze never shifted from her face.
“Well then, I’ll just go get myself a fresh one and leave you to it.” Brodie made to push off the tree trunk but suddenly Fen moved, blocking her way, inserting a boot between her sandals. Trapping her against the tree.
Funny, with Fen it didn’t feel as if he were invading her personal space, it felt… right. Like a part of her that had been missing had been found.
No, no, she would not be weak, she would not melt into him, and she would not touch him. Clenching her hands into fists by her side, Brodie lifted her chin slightly higher. “What are you doing here, Fen?”
Fen dropped the bottle of beer, uncaring that half its contents drained away onto the carefully manicured green lawn. “I came to talk to you.”
Had Lanyard or the Vulcans been making trouble again? “Is something wrong?”
“Only in the way we left things.”
Brodie fought not to blush. Her departure from the Southern Sanctuary had been a little abrupt, on the border of running for cover. “I’m not big on goodbyes. I told you I was leaving after we caught Lanyard.”
“And a Valkyrie never lies.” Fen stated evenly. His glance slipped away from Brodie for a moment to watch the kids play, he smiled, flushed a little and looked back at Brodie. “It’s funny, now that I have you here in front of me, I’m not sure what to say. I had it all planned out. I’ve spent the last two weeks doing nothing but thinking about you.” He shook his head, and chuffed a laugh. “And now for the life of me, I can’t remember a single word of what I was going to say.”
“I see your wrists are healed.” Brodie was grateful for an excuse to look away from Fen’s gaze, yet now she was staring down in the vicinity of his groin, not good, look up, you idiot.
“Yeah.” Fen held up one tanned wrist. “Those seaweed wraps of Nell’s really do itch like the devil, but they sure work a treat.”
“Well… um.”
Fen opened his mouth to speak, closed it. “Ah… to hell with it.” He stepped forward and planted his lips on Brodie’s.
Was she dreaming? Was Fen really here? Kissing her? His lips hot and demanding. Brodie found herself clutching at his waist, he felt solid, oh so real. Suddenly her world seemed bright again. As if she’d sipped from a chalice handed to her by Freyja herself.
To want someone this much, it was… scary. There, she’d gone and admitted it, what she felt for Fen, it scared her. She didn’t like it. Hating how vulnerable and needy the emotion made her feel.
Fen lifted his head, breaking the kiss. “We can do this. Make it work. I’ll do whatever it takes.”
Brodie frowned. What this? Make what work?
Fen barrelled on. “I can get a job at a Fire Station locally, maybe find some land and when you have to work nights or weekends, I can work on building us a house.”
“Wait.” Brodie clutched at him tighter. “What are you talking about?”
“Us. Together.”
Brodie shook her head, she couldn’t have heard him right.
Fen watched as Brodie shook her head in denial. He couldn’t let her push him away. “Brodie, listen to me. We’re perfect together, you just need to give me some time to prove it to you. From the moment we met, you’ve had me turned around, barely knowing which way was up. Tempting me. Taunting me. I tried to be strong, resist you. But it’s you… how could I? Brave, strong, smart, funny, sexy. I would be mad to let a woman like you slip away.”
Brodie’s hands unclenched, dropping away from Fen as if he’d burned her. Everything he was saying was right. Tempting. But there was something important missing. What he was proposing was a mirage, built on nothing but lust. Yet physical attraction was a starting point. He was here, now. Sure she could push him away because she wanted more than he was willing to give. But wouldn’t that just be setting herself up for never-ending misery, and a hollow, lonely life?
Her life with Fen in it was better, brighter… damn it, complete. Just because he wanted to pursue a physical relationship with her wasn’t a bad thing. Whatever Fen was willing to give, she’d be willing to take.
There, she’d admitted it. And he was talking about moving to Los Angeles for her, he must hold her in some esteem. She would cling to that. But not to him. He deserved to know the truth.
She swallowed hard. Knowing what she was about to do was the riskiest thing she’d ever contemplated. More daunting than facing off against a thousand demons. More scary than her mother trying to prepare a Christmas dinner in a rare fit of domesticity.
“I love you, Fen.”
Fen’s heart beat was racing hard, so intent was he on getting Brodie to commit to him, to them, that he wasn’t really listening. “And you will, given time. I’m sure of it.”
Brodie frowned. She’d just told Fen she loved him and he’d either misheard her or hadn’t believed her. Given the build up, the courage it took to say those three incredibly scary words out loud, Fen’s reaction was a little disappointing.
“I can be patient, Brodie. As long as you give us a chance. It will be fun, we can adapt the house plans I’ve already drawn up to fit a new location, and we can add a training and weapons room on for you. You’ll love the media room, Xena on the big screen. And when we’ve finished watching her, I’ll introduce you to Buffy the Vampire Slayer. We’ll have to spend holidays visiting my folks, but you like my Dad, and my Mum will come around.”
“Fen!” Brodie grabbed his upper arms and shook him slightly. He really had to be the most vexing man in the entire world. “Did you hear what I said?”
“What? Um… no.” He blinked, pausing.
“I love you.”
Fen’s eyes widened, his mouth dropped open for a moment and then slammed shut. “Are you sure?”
Brodie grit her teeth; this was not the way she had hoped this moment would go. Although, it was better than Fen collapsing in a dead faint of horror, or running for his life. “I think we’ve already determined that Valkyries never lie.”
“You love me?” Fen started to smile.
Brodie reluctantly nodded, if he began laughing at her she would rip his head off.
“You really love me?” His smile turned into a full blown grin.
“No, you know what? I’ve just this second changed my mind. I’m taking it back. It’s off the table.”
Fen laughed then, grabbing her wrists as her hands came u
p, intending to push him away.
Grr, Brodie glared at him, just one quick twist and his annoying head would pop right off.
Fen stepped forward speedily, pressing his body against hers. With the tree trunk at her back, Brodie had no where else to go. Her hands held up on either side of her head as Fen trapped her in place.
“What would it take for you to put those three little words back on the table?” His warm, fresh breath brushed over her cheek.
“A miracle.” Brodie gritted out. If she couldn’t relieve him of his big, fat, laughing head, then maybe she could head-butt him black and blue. She was seriously considering it when Fen stopped smiling abruptly, turned his head and brushed a soft, barely there, kiss across her temple.
“I’m an idiot. A blithering idiot.” He felt the tension in Brodie drop by a miniscule amount, she wasn’t happy in his hold, but at least she wasn’t actively preparing to launch a counter attack on him.
“Go on. I’m liking where this is heading.” She grudgingly allowed.
Fen chuffed a soft laugh. “I came here today, with it all mapped out in my head. What I would say. What I would do. Then I saw you and it all went to hell. That’s what you do to me, Brodie. I should have remembered the KISS principle.”
“The KISS principle?”
“Keep it simple, stupid.”
“Ah, a worthy personal motto for you.” Brodie began to press back against Fen, hoping to move him, instead it just plastered her entire body more firmly up against his.
“Brodie, I love you.”
Brodie stopped trying to push Fen away, her eyes flicking up to meet his intense cerulean orbs, so close she could have counted each and every one of those long dark lashes that framed them. He wasn’t laughing, or making fun of her. He looked very, very serious for once. “You love me?”
“I probably should have led with that, huh?” Fen mused thoughtfully.
Brodie kissed him. There had been too many words between them already. He let go of her wrists and she wrapped her arms around him, one of her legs coming up to hook around his calf. She wanted him right this second. Who cares if they were outside, who cares if… oops, she reluctantly broke the kiss. “There are children out here.”
