“And you enjoy doing your own face paint, I
mean…erm, makeup.”
“I do indeed.”
“And they have washing machines for clothes.
And irons that get hot by plugging them into the wall. You don’t
have to suspend them over fires.”
I knew nothing of this, really, in this world
or my other.
Noc had shown us how this was done, of
course, in his pursuit of introducing us to as many things as he
could before he had to go to work (something that would happen that
Monday, two days away, something that I was not looking forward to
because it would take him from me).
He was rather diligent in this endeavor in
the hopes we’d be able to get along by ourselves when we’d be on
our own.
But obviously, considering the subject
matter, I paid scant attention.
“This isn’t explaining, Jo,” I informed
her.
“Frannie,” she leaned a hip against Noc’s
basin, “we’re staying here, aren’t we? In this world.”
“Yes, unless you don’t wish to remain,” I
replied hesitantly.
“I do wish to remain.” Another grin. “I like
it here. But eventually you’ll have the things you do with
Valentine. And you’ll be with Noc. And I’ll be—”
“With me,” I finished for her.
She scooted an inch toward me and her
expression turned gentle.
“Frannie, what I’m trying to say is, nearly
everything is much easier here. It takes no time at all to do the
things I do for you. I can’t sit around all day playing on my
phone, watching the television and waiting for Glover to text when
I can care for your clothes once a week and have that done in but
hours, and I can arrange your hair in no time.”
She had a point.
“And people have employment here, jobs,” she
continued. “Even wealthy people on the television have
employment.”
“You have a job,” I reminded her.
“I do, but the only people I know are you and
Noc, Circe, a little bit, and Valentine, and I don’t know her very
well either. If I go to beauty school, I’ll make friends. If I get
a job, I’ll meet people.”
She had a point about that too.
“So,” she forged on, “once I learn to drive
and can get around on my own, I’ll go to beauty school and arrange
hair as my employment. I’ll continue to take care of you, of
course,” she hastened to add. “But then, once I start making
this-world money, I’ll be able to get my own place to live
and—”
She’d been making excellent points.
However, this last one alarmed me enough for
my voice to rise as I interrupted her with, “Your own
what
?”
“My own place to live.”
I raised my brows. “And why would you need
that
?”
She opened her mouth to speak but got naught
out when we heard, “Everything okay in here?”
I turned to see Noc at the doorway to his
bathroom. He was wearing another suit. He looked decidedly
handsome.
I would tell him that later.
I would also react later to the way his gaze
became fixed on the lovely, feminine, flowy and elegant, but
somewhat revealing (due to its slash from whimsical ruffled
neckline to beltline) red dress that I wore.
Now, there were other things to attend
to.
“Josette wishes to go to beauty school in
order to obtain employment arranging hair
for
other
people
, doing this to make a living with the objective of
eventually finding her own home,” I declared like I was saying,
“Josette wishes to go on a violent rampage, murdering scores of
people in the name of Meer, our god of war.”
It appeared to take physical effort for Noc
to tear his eyes away from my dress. They moved briefly to Josette
before coming to me.
“Baby, take a deep breath and think for five
seconds about what you’re saying,” he urged quietly, going on, “And
while you do that, think of how many people in your world get to
pick the jobs they wanna have, getting paid well enough to do them
that they’re able to afford places to call their own.”
I didn’t need five seconds to think on this.
I had no idea how many of such people lived in my world who were
able to do that. I didn’t even care.
I just knew if Josette wanted that, I wanted
that for her.
And she was saying she wanted that.
I drew in a breath and I did it turning to
her.
“You do this knowing, when you leave me, if
aught happens you don’t like, for instance you begin to feel
lonely, you always have a home with me,” I declared.
Her upper lip started quivering.
“Do not weep,” I warned, feeling my own nose
stinging.
The words were trembling when she returned,
“I won’t.”
Noc interrupted our moment. “Right, before
you two ruin your makeup, meaning you’ll have to wipe it all off
and put it on again, can we get the hell outta here and get this
fucked-up dinner done?”
I turned again to him as Josette said, “I’m
ready. I just need to go grab my bag.”
She squeezed out of the space while I took in
Noc’s expression.
Tonight was our dinner with Dax Lahn and the
director of the organization he supported.
A dinner I’d arranged that Circe would
attend.
She was attending, however she didn’t know
Dax would be there.
I knew Noc was not anticipating this evening
with glee.
Now, studying him, I saw he was actually
dreading it.
I moved to him, lifting a hand and laying it
on his chest, swaying close.
“You don’t need to go,” I told him
softly.
“We’ve had this discussion,” he replied.
“We have, but Josette and I can easily take a
taxi—”
He shook his head, his jaw getting hard.
“You’re not gonna be sitting at a table with this Savage guy
without me sitting right beside you.”
My Noctorno.
So protective.
“I don’t know him,” he carried on. “That
means I don’t trust him. And that means you
or
Jo
or
Circe are not gonna be sitting at a table with him unless I’m
there. And since you all are gonna be there, I’m gonna be
there.”
Oh,
my Noctorno
.
So protective of
all
of those who had
a place in his heart.
I smiled up at him.
“Babe, that dress, that smile, your perfume,
your hand on me, knowin’ I can get right to your nipple just
sliding a hand inside that slit because I can tell you’re not
wearing a bra, you want this done tonight, you best go get your bag
too. You don’t do that and fast, you’re gonna be bent over the
sink, Jo is gonna get an earful and we’re gonna be way fuckin’
late,” he growled.
I felt a lovely tingle as my eyelids lowered
and my smile changed, but, wisely, I moved away from him to enter
the bedroom where my reticule was on the bed.
I did this deciding to share with him that
I’d very much like to engage in the activity he’d threatened me
with.
However, I’d do that later too.
I was making sure I had everything I needed,
screwing the cap shut firmly and sliding the lip gloss I still held
into a side pocket of the little clutch when Noc spoke again.
I looked to him as he did so and saw he’d
turned my way and was leaning his shoulder into the doorjamb,
watching me.
“You wanna tell me why Valentine has all but
disappeared?”
I did.
Yet I didn’t.
“She’s seeing to business, Noc. She’d been in
my old world training me for some time. Being home, there’s much
she needs to catch up on.”
This was not a complete lie for Valentine had
told me that same thing.
I watched Noc’s regard turn penetrating.
“Just to say, gorgeous,” he started in a low
tone, “anytime you keep somethin’ from me, no matter what it’s
about, you better have a really fuckin’ good reason.”
“She’s lost a lover,” I whispered.
I saw Noc’s body come alert as he bit out,
“Fuck. Breakup? Or…
lost
?”
“I don’t believe he’s
lost
lost,” I
answered. “Just lost to her. She’s quite heartsick.”
That, he looked like he didn’t believe.
“Valentine? Heartsick?”
I nodded.
“Fuck,” he repeated, quieter this time.
“I, well, women tend to—”
He shook his head, pushing away from the jamb
and coming to me. “Say no more, Frannie.” He made it to me and put
a hand to my waist. “That’s you lookin’ after your girl. I don’t
need to know her business. In other words, you keepin’ her
situation to yourself is a really good reason.”
He understood.
And I loved that.
I smiled up at him again.
He looked to my smile then he dipped his head
and put his lips to it.
When he lifted away, he asked, “You ready to
go?”
“I have been for several days now, my
dearest.” I tipped my head to the side. “Are you?”
He gave a slight shrug, stepped away but
grabbed my hand and pulled me toward the door stating, “As ready as
I’ll ever be.”
We collected Josette.
Noc helped us both into his SUV (for Josette
was wearing heels as well this night and she actually needed his
assistance as she didn’t have near as much practice as me).
Then he drove us to the restaurant where Dax
Lahn would meet his Circe.
I sat mostly in silence as we rode, listening
with half an ear to Josette chattering and Noc interjecting every
once in a while.
I did this because I was relishing my
anticipation for what was to come and tamping down my impatience
that it would not come faster.
There was nothing better than the time before
your carefully laid plans played out.
In other words, I could not
wait
.
* * * * *
I aimed my behind toward the seat as Noc
held out my chair for me.
Drinks and final explanations to Dax out of
the way, my generous donation would be anonymously forwarded to
First Mother House in the next week.
We’d met Patricia, and a check Noc showed me
how to write for fifty thousand dollars that I’d be presenting to
her that night was in my bag.
All seemed to be going well.
Dax was being friendly and respectful.
And after some circling of the savages, Noc
and Dax seemed to settle in with each other.
I wasn’t certain if Dax had worn him down and
gained his trust with his manner, but Noc was no longer eyeing him
with unhidden intensity. This was something that Dax, at first,
seemed to take as his due (likely as he’d expect I would share the
awkwardness of our first meeting with Noc and Noc would react to
that). When his friendliness to Josette and myself didn’t diminish
Noc’s focus, it caused Dax’s alertness to increase until the sheer
maleness wafting around us felt like it might cause me to
choke.
Josette did very well at hiding it (from all
but me, then again, neither man was paying much mind to Josette
considering they were using so much of their own to size each other
up) but I saw she found this amusing.
I did not.
Although it was attractive, from both men,
especially Noc because I knew why he was behaving in such a way, it
went on so long, it was also trying.
Fortunately, Patricia arrived. We met her.
She was lovely. Her addition to our party meant the men were forced
to be outwardly civil to each other. And not long after we were
told our table was ready.
The problem was, Circe had not yet arrived
and she was supposed to do just that ten minutes ago.
I sat but tipped my head back to look up at
Noc who was standing behind me with his hand on my chair.
“I think I may need to text someone,
darling,” I murmured.
“Leave it,” he said.
“Noc—”
He bent toward me.
“Circe got a crystal ball too?” he asked in a
voice only I could hear.
Oh balls.
Would she look into it to see us, or where we
were to have dinner to ascertain what she should wear (something I
would do), or for
any
reason, therefore see Dax and decide
not to come?
“Perhaps,” I answered.
“Then leave it,” Noc repeated. “If she
figured out what you’re up to, we’ll put that fire out later. Now,
I’m hungry. I want to eat. I want this night done. And I want you
in that dress at my house, just you and me.”
I pressed my lips together.
He touched his to my jaw, straightened,
pushed my chair to the table and then took his seat beside me.
I set my purse on the table beside my place
setting, noting that as Noc and I spoke Dax had helped Josette and
Patricia to their seats. Now he was watching Noc and me both
closely.
When his regard finally settled only on me,
he did not look alert and attuned to any action of the other alpha
in his proximity.
His look was kind and warm, clearly
communicating he was pleased I had such a protector after all he’d
assumed I’d suffered.
Taking in that look, I gave him a small
smile, hiding the triumph I felt inside for he was
just
perfect
for Circe at the same time hiding a far more irritable
thought.
This being…where the bloody hell
was
Circe?
“We seem to have an extra chair,” Patricia
noted.
“Yes, we do,” Josette said quickly. “I forgot
to mention, we invited a friend of ours. I hope you don’t mind. We
thought she, too, would be interested in the work you do.”
Patricia smiled at Josette. “I don’t mind.
I’d shout about the First Mother House from the rooftops if I
could.”
I smiled at her benignly as she spoke.
Then I felt something. Something sudden and
something fierce. It made me look away from Patricia and cut my
eyes to Dax.
When I did, I felt my insides seize.
“Shit, fuck,” Noc muttered under his
breath.
He felt it too.
Or saw it.
Or both.
Dax had been in the process of flipping open
his menu.