Viking Sensitivity (Night World Series Book 2) (3 page)

After the ancient machine rumbled to life she opened an Internet browser and googled Warrior Books and Coffee. She was somewhat surprised to see she recognized the owner. Granted she had to click around a bit to find the owner's name.

She'd met Gwen at a yearly convention in Seattle. What were the odds? This just seemed like one huge coincidence after another.

Firming her resolve she checked out the hours for Monday on their site. If there was a time to believe in signs, this was it. She was surprised to find out they were open twenty-four hours a day. That would be perfect, since her little shop closed at eight. Closing down her internet browser, Mia smiled to herself. She was acting like a teenager. Giving herself a heavy sigh she got up from the chair and walked over to the books she needed to catalog. It took more effort than she would have liked to admit to push Viking from her mind.

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Warrior Books and Coffee was huge compared to her shop. A Thoughtful Philosophy was a moderate bookstore with a small area that could seat about eighty people if they used folding chairs. It was by no means a shabby small space.

But Warrior Books was huge, it was its own building. Mia was almost overwhelmed when she walked in the door. She could see four cash registers to the left. Several doors on the back left wall with signs that noted card readings. A huge area for books to her right. And there was a coffee shop with at least half a dozen tables and its own small entrance.

As she did her scan of the semi empty shop she didn't see the man Lucia called Viking. Setting her resolve and stomping out a few little butterflies she felt in her stomach, Mia headed in the direction of the cash registers.

              Currently only one was open so Mia stood in line and waited behind the two other groups. The man at the register was interesting and vaguely familiar.

He was clearly of Middle Eastern descent. With a long black hair in a braid he kept tossing over his shoulder. She couldn't quite tell from her vantage point whether his nose was pierced. He was attractive. Very attractive. There was this air about him that Mia could almost feel as physical pull. And obviously she was not the only one. Women in the store kept glancing his way and the women standing in line were almost overtly staring. He seems to flirt with the women that came up to the register. Clearly used to being a ladies man.

Mia almost felt that rub her the wrong way. Though the man who went by Viking was less attractive physically she found that this man's arrogance more than balanced the scales in Viking's favor.

When she got up the register she plastered on a smile. The guy looked at her lack of books and his eyes seem to crinkle mischievously.

"May I help you with something? I mean, if you came up to talk to me that is perfectly well and good. But usually people have merchandise to buy when they come to see me."

Mia wanted to smack him just on principle. Years of being in academia made her have a shorter tolerance for men with huge egos. But instead she reinforced her smile and gave the man direct eye contact.

"My name is Mia, I'm here to see someone who goes by the name of Viking? Lucia told me he worked here."

Flirting dropped from his expression but the smile itself didn't seem to disappear, if anything it grew more mischievous. "Viking huh. Well, it certainly has been a while since he's had a female visitor looking for him. Let me see if I can hunt him down for you." He pulled a radio from somewhere below the register and put it up to his smiling lips. "Hey, has anyone seen Viking? I have somebody at the register looking for him."

It was maybe five seconds before some other male voice came over the radio. "So help me Poet if I come down there and you are just yanking my chain because you think that if you're in the shop I have to be in the shop too I’ll mop the floor with you and then make you work a twenty-four hour shift."

The man in front of her's smile grew. "Now would I lie to you?"

Mia wasn't sure how many there were but multiple voices came over the radio right on top of each other stating the affirmative. That just seemed to make Poet's smile grow. What was with these names?

Mia wasn't entirely sure how she felt about this. Part of her wanted to just back out of the store now and another part of her, the part of her that it always listened to her grandmother when her grandmother told her the proper way to do things, wanted to stay put. This man saved her and Melissa. It was the right thing to do for her to say thanks. So she waited. She moved out of the way of the register as more customers came up to pay for their items.

She took the opportunity to check out the store. After two initial scans she was able to spot which people were employees versus customers. She reached what she thought was seven when she felt somebody looking at her.

She turned to her left and out of a back door labeled employees only, came the man from the night before. This time he was dressed in slacks and a button up blue shirt.

She had not noticed the night before just how blue his eyes were. The shirt just made it more obvious. She really found that she liked the jeans and T-shirt from the night before better than this slightly more dressed up outfit. There was something about the way the jeans fit him that made her blood heat.

His expression was curious and confused. Mia could tell he wondered what she was doing there. When she first walked into the store she wondered if he would even recognize her. That question went out the window once she saw him. He clearly remembered her.

When he stood next to her he smiled, but it didn't reach his eyes. "Is there something I can help you with?"

Mia found he was just too close. Or at least too close for a man as attractive as him. It had been a while since she'd been on any dates worth mentioning. That void only seem to emphasize just how attractive the man before her was.

Clearing her throat, she plastered on the same smile she initially gave the man named Poet. "Hi, I'm sorry to bother you in the middle of your work day but Lucia told me you worked here. Since I know now you were legitimately there to help us and not some crazy guy out in the woods I wanted to come in person and thank you on behalf of my friend and myself."

The man in front of her didn't have a chance to speak before there was a scoffing cough from behind her. Mia turned to see the guy behind the register desperately trying to hold back a laugh. He actually had the indecency to start coughing from the effort. She could almost feel Viking glaring from behind her back.

When Poet seemed to recover he waved his hand in their direction. "Sorry, sorry just what exactly did you do, Viking, for this woman and her friend? Scratch that. I don't actually want to know. Anything you tell me is not going to be as amazing as what I can imagine." With that he turned back to the people at the register in front of him.

Mia watched him for a second. She wasn't quite sure what to make of that guy. Then she turned and faced Viking again. The blonde man looked at her thoughtfully.

"It's not a problem, really. I appreciate you coming all this way to thank me but that's what I was there for."

Now Mia felt uncomfortable. She almost felt as if he thought her strange for coming to say thank you. Maybe she was. Taking a deep breath she stuck out her hand. When in doubt always leave the situation gracefully.

"Well be that as it may I wanted to say thank you anyway. By the way my name is Mia it's nice to actually meet you Viking, officially."

He looked at her a moment as if trying to decide whether he wanted to shake her hand. "Nice to meet you as well." Then he reached up and shook her hand but he jumped as he did so.

Static electricity jolted through her from his hand. Apparently the static charge caught him more off guard than it had her. She hadn't even noticed his grip tighten until he loosened. Then he dropped his hand like a rock and took two swift steps back.

Mia just looked at him. A second before his expression closed down his eyes widened. It was weird. But then both the people she encounter who worked here were. Not wanting to give it another thought she took a step back.

"Well you have a good night." Then she turned around and left the shop.

The entire walk out Mia felt Viking watching her. Her mind couldn't decide whether it was unnerving or exciting.

Chapter 3

Viking's heart beat four times its natural pace. At the same time his breathing stopped. He didn't have it in him to move. The shock was overwhelming. He hadn't even realized Poet came out from behind the registers until the other man grabbed his shoulder.

"Viking, Viking?"

It was then he finally turned his head from where Mia had been moments before. Looking at his third in command he could see the shock on the other man's face.

"Though you are strange. And your abilities are far beyond that of a Warrior. I would bet money you just felt the Flash."

Viking didn't respond. He didn't really need to. Poet had been around Viking long enough to know his expressions. He couldn't hide it. And he wasn't sure how to cover it up. He just felt the Flash. The warning bell that announced to a Warrior he just met his mate. Not just met his mate but touched her, flesh to flesh.

Viking had been around centuries and now here she was. Some woman he just happened to come across. He had been interested in her. Knowing there was something special about her. Could that have been it? Could he have known she was his mate without touching her? He blinked several times before turning towards the door again. That couldn't have been it, could it?

He turned towards Poet. The other man blanked his face.

"Yes, I did." Just saying it out loud seemed overwhelming. He didn't know what to do. Where to go. He didn't know how to find that woman.

Before he realized what he was doing Viking was out the shop door and looking down the street. He scanned both ways and jogged to the end of either block. He had no idea how long he stood there staring but clearly it was long enough for her to get her car and leave. Cursing himself repeatedly he walked back into the store. Several of the employees gave him funny looks. He ignored them and headed straight out the back doors.

There was only one person he could think of to talk to. Once he exited the back door of the shop. Into the staff only area he didn't stop his momentum, he ran up the stairs. Taking them several at a time. He didn't slow until he burst out the door on the top floor. He yanked out his keys in a jerky motion and unlocked Gwen's apartment. Slamming the door behind him he went and sat down in her favorite oversized chair. He tried to calm his pulse and his breathing. He needed to talk to Gwen.

He had never tried to reach her from so far away before. He wasn't entirely sure if it would work. She was supposed to be on her honeymoon, as it were, but he knew she would understand why he would call.

"Little One! Little One can you hear me?"
He was yelling it so loud in his head the only thing louder was his racing heartbeat.

He concentrated on his breathing as he waited. If he could calm his body down, maybe he would have a better chance of reaching her.

"Viking? Viking is that you? What's wrong? What's happened? Is everyone okay?"
The worry and fear in her tone was clear as a bell. It overrode the sleepiness he heard.

Viking took another deep breath before answering.
"Everyone's fine. Everything is fine. I just. I just needed to talk to you. I needed to hear your voice."

"What's happened? Viking you tell me right now or I'm walking out the bedroom door to find August and making him call over there to tell me what's wrong."

Viking knew that was an empty threat. Gwen would not stoop to chasing down her husband, who could be doing important political business just so he would answer her question.

He blew a few random strands of hair from his face. Gwen could always tell when something was wrong. She'd gotten good at reading every single one of his micro-expressions in the two decades they'd been together.

"I felt the Flash."
He didn't even get out an entire thought before she answered.

"You what?! Who is she? I'm coming home right now. I will be on the next flight to Seattle."

This is why Viking loved Gwen so much. She had such a big heart. She would drop everything if she felt someone needed her.

"That is not necessary Little One. She's someone I met paying off the debt to Lucia. There is no need for you to come home before your proper honeymoon has begun just to sit with me."

If he was honest with himself there was nothing Viking wanted more than having the woman he had grown to think of as his little sister by his side through this trying ordeal.

"Don’t be ridiculous. I'll be there in the morning. One of you guys are to pick me up from the airport. I'll text you the flight information as soon as I have it."

With that last statement he almost physically felt her disconnect from him. And he knew at that point the argument was over. He couldn't convince her not to come. Not that he really wanted to. He would be grateful to see her. He and all the other Warriors missed her terribly. She meant a lot to a lot of people. He had been eternally grateful when Cesar agreed to move part of the Warrior government to Washington State so she could be near the people she loved.

Closing his eyes to the room around him, Viking concentrated on his breathing. The next few days were going to be difficult. He had to somehow woo a woman he didn't even know. It had been longer than he cared to admit since he had been up for such a challenge. He was going to take the opportunity while his head was still relatively clear to meditate and relax his body. Hopefully, ward off some of the initial effects of the Maddening.

When the Flash hit, a Warrior only had three days to bed his mate. If he didn’t, the Warrior in question would be driven insane by the overwhelming lust that came over him during that three day period, or as it was usually referred to, the Maddening.

During the Maddening, the Warrior would experience physical pain when away from his mate. He would lose his senses should she be injured or touched by any other male. Warriors tended to stay away from those in the Maddening or in the first stage of mating while all the Maddening symptoms lowered to the tolerable level mated Warriors dealt with. The first stage of mating could last anywhere from three months to a year, depending on the Warrior. The more the Warrior bedded his mate in that first stage, the easier it would be for him to handle the symptoms. Viking wasn't sure how to get a near stranger to sleep with him once, let alone multiple times over the coming months.

He couldn't have been in the apartment ten minutes when the front door burst open. He didn't have to open his eyes to know it was Raider storming into the room. When he heard a second set of footsteps he assumed it was Poet strolling in behind and shutting the door. He didn't bother to open his eyes. He could hear Raider physically calming himself and forcing himself to sit on the couch across from the chair Viking sat in. However, not being one for patience, not long after he sat, Raider cleared his throat.

Viking opened his eyes to see a smirking Poet and a wide-eyed, worried Raider.

"Is it true? Is what's Poet says true? Have you truly begun the Maddening?"

Viking didn't say anything. He didn't really feel he had to respond. The silence alone would be answer enough. Less than a beat later Raider started cursing, leapt off the couch and began pacing Gwen's living room.

"What do we know about this woman? Do you have a way to reach her? Does she even know of our world?" With that last question Raider stopped mid-pace, eyes widening as he rounded to stare at Viking.

Viking forced his racing heart to slow and took a deep breath before answering. "I do not believe she does. She is an acquaintance of Lucia's. So yes, I do have a way to contact her."

Some very creative curse words came out of Raider's mouth as he began pacing again. Poet just leaned further back on the couch, his smirk growing to a smile.

"Stop smiling Poet! Don't make me force it off your face." Raider growled as he continued to pace. He had not looked at Poet once since entering the room.

There was a snort. "I would like to see you try." He then turned to look Viking in the eyes. "It took me a moment but I knew I recognized her. Would you like to know where you can find her? That way you do not have to broker with the MP?"

Both Viking and Raider froze. Viking's mind blanked before pumping into overdrive. Poet knew her? How could this be?

Raider recovered first. "Are you serious? So help me, if you are making a joke I will beat you."

Poet gave the other man a droll look before returning his attention to Viking.

There was silence for a second before Viking realized Poet really wasn't going to tell him anything until he asked.

Sighing heavily, Viking fought the urge to get annoyed. "Okay Poet, tell me."

The other man smiled again and lifted his arms above his head, interlocking his fingers at the base of his skull. "If either of you ever attended that annual convention on holistic healing with Gwen you would know Mia Jones owns a pan-religious bookstore in Renton. I cannot remember what it is called but I'm sure that Gwen does." Poet smile this time a little more indulgent than before. "I assume you've already contacted her and knowing our little Gwen she is already making plans to make her way to us."

Viking didn't even know why he was the least bit surprised. Not only at the fact that poet knew the woman, Mia. But that he already knew Viking had spoken to Gwen. He felt himself calm marginally.

At least this gave him a place to start from. He wouldn't have to track down Lucia to find the woman. Nor would he have to spend a great amount of time trying to hunt her down. Her owning her own shop would definitely make that part of the Maddening easier. He found himself wondering what type of religious bookstore she owned. He hoped it would not give her of bias that would make the Night World harder for her to process.

It had been quite some time since he tried to court any kind woman. Viking hadn't tried since before he had been sent to take care of Gwen. He was unsure how he was supposed to woo this woman he barely knew. And convince her to sleep with him. Over the next three days. Taking a deep breath Viking looked at the two men in front of him.

"With all due respect to both of you, your presence is going to be more of a nuisance to me then help." Viking looked at the pacing Raider. "Raider I need you to take charge. I need you to take control of the day-to-day operations of things while I try and sort this out. Worst-case scenario this is going to be your job now. There is no other warrior to whom I would trust Gwen’s safety. You already know almost as much about my job as I do. While I prefer you get eased into it, it seems that is not what fate has in store for us."

Raider stopped pacing and watched Viking. His expression a mix of worry and sorrow. He wasn't a very emotional person. But it was clear that Raider didn't like the idea of losing Viking to the Maddening. He probably wouldn't say it out right but Viking knew it to be true. After a moment his second-in-command simply nodded.

Viking then looked to Poet. "I need you to try and not cause problems for a while. Raider is going to need someone who knows the ropes to back him up on things. So worst-case scenario you're going to have to be less difficult as he settles in to his new role. Best-case scenario you just have to be on good behavior for a couple days. I'm well aware of the fact that won't kill you."

Poet’s smile didn't quite reach his eyes. There was a seriousness there Viking knew not everyone always noticed. Poet lived a very long time. Viking got the impression that his nonchalance and his joking demeanor was only a recent addition to Poet's personality. Which is probably why he overused it so much.

Poet leaned forward on the couch. "Of course. But I do not think you should count yourself out as of yet. Unlike our dear King you are not going to do in yourself due to chivalry. You're much too intelligent for that. I have more faith in you mating your woman than I would have Cesar mating anyone other than our Gwen. Any woman less determined and he would've been screwed." With that Poet stood up and smiled again for beat before walking past Raider out of the apartment.

Viking had no idea where he'd gone. Probably, knowing Poet, he could've gone right back down to the store. He was little surprised by the other man's confidence in him. He was touched by it and confused by it all the same time. It was not like Poet to be outwardly encouraging or emotional in any way. He looked at his second-in-command whose expression said he was just as thrown off by Poet statement as Viking.

"Certainly a little bit strange. Tell me Viking, what exactly is your game plan?" Raider looked at him expectantly

Viking sighed. "I don't actually have one. The farthest my thought process has gotten is to use the internet to find her shop and then go there and strike up a conversation with her. That is literally as far as I have gotten. Although, I know that I probably will not be able to reach her shop until the morning. Sure I could probably bribe Carter to look up her home address but I can't imagine showing up at her doorstep would work in my favor."

"No, probably not." Raider frowned.

Viking rubbed his forehead. He would spend the rest of this evening doing his usual work. It would be difficult but there was not much he could do in the meantime. Then, later tonight he would check into the store Poet claim she owned. First thing in the morning he would head to the shop and introduce himself properly. He would offer to take her to coffee or some such thing. If there was anything he learned from Gwen it was that women in this area loved their coffee. At least marginally relieved that he had a plan Viking took a deep breath and stood up.