The Goddess Gets Her Guy

by Ashlyn Chase

  “I know. That’s exactly why I was coming to you.”

  Karma produced a pad of paper and pen out of thin air. “Okay, what’s his name?”

  “Um…I’m not sure. Abraham or Aaron or something. He’s a doctor and a witch. He’s always helping his fellow humans. But he needs someone too, a lot.”

  “A witch doctor?”

  “Very funny. You’re distorting this on purpose.”

  “No distortion needed. You’re so vague, he could be anybody. What kind of doctoring and witching does he do?”

  Fate shrugged. “Right now, he’s helping his son-in-law build a she shed for his daughter. It seems pretty nice.”

  “What’s a she shed?”

  “Damned if I know. I guess it’s something she wants, but they’re building it as a surprise.”

  “How am I supposed to check him out if you don’t even know his name?”

  “I can take you to him—staying in the ether, of course.”

  “Of course. Our sister would have a fit otherwise.”

  Fate grabbed Karma’s hand, and the two of them appeared near a construction site.

  Karma stretched her neck, looking in every direction. “Where’s the she shed?”

  Fate looked around too. “I don’t know. They were talking about it earlier, but this isn’t a shed at all. It looks like it will become a rather large family home.”

  “Yes, and a sturdy one, thank goodness. This is Puerto Rico. Gaia must have had a hissy fit when she saw what happened here.”

  “You don’t think she did it on purpose, do you?”

  “No. She makes a lot of threats, but you know she doesn’t carry them out. At least not the big ones. I heard her telling someone she was trying to keep California from having a huge earthquake and falling into the ocean at the same time. Naturally, she quipped a rude ‘You’re welcome’ afterward.”

  Fate shook her head. “That sounds like her. You know, I’m not sure this guy deserves her.”

  “What do you mean? I haven’t even checked him out yet. What did you see him do wrong?”

  “Him? Nothing. He just seems to deserve better.”

  * * *

  Aaron looked up from his blackboard where he was trying to break down the properties of the broken heart plant. Yes, that was what he’d been calling it until he had the chemical formula. Then he could come up with a better name.

  Gaia stood there, a few feet to his side. She looks beautiful. Her long white hair had been gathered up behind her head with a few tendrils falling down. And someone must have given her a fashion stylist, because she was wearing a clingy dress that showed a moderate amount of cleavage. The color complemented her eyes, sky blue.

  He didn’t know where she was taking him, so he’d tried to dress for anything. Just some khakis and a white button-down shirt, nice and crisp. He had a tie with him in case that was something he would need for dinner. But it was too hot in Puerto Rico for a jacket, so he hadn’t even brought one. Hopefully, she wouldn’t want to go anywhere that fancy.

  “You look stunning, Gaia. How are you tonight?”

  “I’m happy, and you?”

  Happy. That’s so much better than ‘fine’ or ‘well’. “Very happy. I have a new granddaughter, and I have a date with a beautiful woman.”

  Gaia actually blushed. He didn’t think that was possible.

  “Where are you taking me?” she asked.

  “Oh! I thought since you asked me on the date, you had a plan. I hadn’t made any reservations.”

  “Oh dear. Neither did I. Do we need reservations to do anything?”

  “No, there are many places we can go without them. Why don’t we figure out something we would like to do together. Do you enjoy the beach or the mountains or just walking down a country lane?”

  Gaia smiled. “I like everything, as long as it’s left natural. If they pave my country lane, that kind of ruins it for me. How about if I take us to one of my favorite places?”

  Aaron wondered what one of her favorite places would be, since she had her choice of the whole world. “Sure. I’m up for everything. As long as I’m dressed appropriately.”

  She grinned. “I think you’ll be fine.”

  He took her outstretched hand, and before he knew it, he’d stepped into someplace cool and foggy. Then a moment later, he was following her out of that and into a beautiful mountain valley with several other mountains all around it. He was chilly but not cold.

  “This is beautiful. Where are we?”

  “I think you people call it Switzerland. I just call it my beautiful, beautiful mountains. And I understand that dinner is something we should have on a date?”

  “Yes, that would be great, but I don’t see a restaurant anywhere.”

  Gaia snapped her fingers, and a table appeared, laden with every imaginable raw fruit, nuts, berries, along with other foods that were more or less man-made but not processed to the extreme. Some cheeses, some whole grain breads, and a bottle of red wine.

  “This looks delicious,” he said. “Shall we?” He held out her chair. She went to sit in the other one. “Oh, would you like to sit there instead?” Aaron quickly moved behind it, pulling the chair out for her.

  Gaia put her hands on her hips. “Well, make up your mind. Which one do you want? I’ll just pick the other one.”

  Aaron chuckled. “I was holding the chair out for you, because that’s what a gentleman does. I was planning on pushing it in when you were seated.”

  “Oh? I guess that’s very nice of you then. I’m not used to gentlemen.”

  Aaron tipped his head. “Not used to gentlemen? That’s a shame. You should have met many of them in your long life.”

  As soon as she was comfortably pushed up to the table, he took the other chair and noticed the bottle of wine next to him was already open. There were two glasses, so he assumed she wanted some as well. He took her glass, poured it half full, and put it in front of her. Then he poured himself a glass. He had to try to remember that she wasn’t used to dating, or etiquette for that matter. He wondered what else they would come upon that might be a tad embarrassing.

  Gaia cleared her throat. “Thank you for the wine. And for agreeing to come out with me.”

  “I’m delighted you asked.”

  “You are? Why?”

  Aaron grinned. “You have no idea what an honor it is for me to know you. Or how beautiful you are, do you? I hope we will be good friends if nothing else.”

  Gaia’s eyebrows shot up. He noticed they had been groomed a bit too.

  “You’ve already decided we’re only friends?”

  “Not at all. I just thought we would see how this goes. That’s usually what happens on dates. People see how they get along first and foremost. If we enjoy each other’s company, I’d like to spend more time with you.”

  Gaia’s posture sagged. “I’m so hopeless at this stuff. I’ve never had to do dating. I hope you can forgive any mistakes I make.”

  Aaron reached over and took her hand. She wrapped her fingers around his, and he gave her a gentle squeeze. “Don’t worry. I’m not judging. I’m just enjoying your company, and I hope you’ll enjoy having dinner with me too.”

  Gaia just remembered something. He could tell from the look on her face. Then she coughed and hesitated a moment.

  “There is something I need to warn you about.”

  “Oh?” He wondered what it could be. Were they about to experience an avalanche? “What is it?”

  “I want to apologize in advance if somebody shows up and tries to ruin our date. It’s happened to me before.”

  “Who would want to ruin your date?”

  “A pesky little god named Pan. I rejected him, and now he’s made sure nobody else likes or wants me.”

  “Well, that’s not going to happen. I alr
eady like you.” Aaron smiled and took a sip of his wine while she visibly relaxed. “What did he do to try and ruin your dates?”

  “Well, the first time, he just showed up in his true form. He’s a satyr.”

  Aaron’s brows shot up, but he didn’t comment, so she continued telling the truth.

  “The next time, he put a truth spell on my date. Then the man told me all kinds of unethical things that he liked to do. It wouldn’t have been so terrible except he let me know he had no intention of quitting his bad behavior. I was pretty unhappy after hearing that.

  “And the next time, Pan put the truth spell on me. I wound up scaring the pants off my date—oh, not literally. But I did have to loosen his tie, because when I told him I was Mother Nature, goddess of the planet and whole universe, he fainted. Apparently, he wasn’t used to powerful women.”

  Aaron laughed. “Well, I’m very used to powerful women. My daughters are both witches and they are far more powerful than I am. That’s just a fact. It has never really bothered me, except when I was raising them alone and wasn’t sure how much magic I wanted them to use. When they both became health professionals, it was clear their powers were going to be used for good. I was happy to let them be as powerful as they needed to be as long as it was to help others.”

  This time, Gaia reached for his hand and gave it a squeeze. “That’s so reassuring. I was told it might be a good idea for us to share our truths up front, even the ones we aren’t proud of. That way, if Pan shows up, he can’t get the satisfaction of shocking us by putting a truth spell on either of us.”

  Aaron wasn’t sure he understood her statement. It sounded like she wanted to hear anything and everything that he had ever done wrong. Do I really want to confess everything? There could be a lot there, though most of it was not necessarily my fault. Going back to my younger years, however, would be embarrassing.

  “Okay. You want us to reveal all our past transgressions so that this god, if he shows up, can’t surprise us with any truth we might be tempted to hide.”

  “Um, is that not okay?”

  “No, it’s all right… I get it. Usually, those things come out over time. You just want to push up the timeline for getting to know each other—warts and all.”

  “You have warts?”

  Aaron chuckled. “No. But if I did, would you like me less?”

  “No. Exactly my point. That’s what I was hoping we could do. I’ll go first, if you like.”

  “I think I’m going to need more wine for this,” Aaron said.

  * * *

  Gaia had launched into a long list of mistakes she’d made—starting with the big bang. She had indeed farted and caused an explosion that booted her out of the new galaxy. Aaron had quickly stopped her and pointed out that everyone has limited control over certain bodily functions.

  She felt a little better until she started contemplating the things she’d done on purpose. Sometimes, she lashed out in anger. After that, she might try teaching someone a lesson. But was that her fault?

  “I’m confused,” she confessed. “Some of the bad things I did were a reaction to other people’s bad behavior. Is that a mistake?”

  Aaron scratched his chin and appeared to be thinking. She’d vowed not to read his mind. Gabriella emphasized that her power of telepathy wouldn’t be fair to a mate who didn’t have the same ability. Aaron’s only power, according to his own admission, was invisibility—and he rarely used it.

  “I understand what you’re saying, and it’s human to react to things other people do that make you angry, but there are usually good and bad ways of coping with them.”

  It’s human? Is that what I’m doing? Acting human? Now she was really embarrassed. She had always thought she was better than that.

  “For instance,” he continued, “if your actions are overreactions meant to get revenge or to dole out punishment that doesn’t fit the crime, you might have been able to find a better way of handling it.”

  “Oh. Yes, sometimes my temper gets the best of me. And to be honest, I’m in a unique position. Some of my eruptions of temper are because of my own mistakes. I’m actually mad at myself.”

  “That’s very wise.”

  “I wish.”

  Aaron leaned back in his chair and swirled his wine. “It sounds as if you have one major regret. Perhaps you should just tell me about that.”

  “Yes. I probably should. My worst mistake—the thing responsible for most of my bad behavior—is…” She took a deep breath and finally spit it out. “Because I created the human race.”

  Aaron sat up straight. “Excuse me? Did you just say the worst thing you’ve ever done is to create mankind?”

  “Yes. And womankind. All kinds of humankind. You’d think the word ‘kind’ right in the name would provide a hint of what I’d intended to do, but no.”

  Aaron paused, then asked in a quiet tone, “Have you ever been tempted to correct that mistake?”

  “You mean have a big flood and start over? No. It’s too late for that. Humans would just get on their cruise ships and aircraft carriers. They’re too damn smart now. No matter what I’d do, they’d find a way around it. And what makes me mad as hell is that I gave them so many gifts! Free will and bigger brains to survive…and instead, they’re using my gifts to kill each other! Their greed and misguided beliefs caused all these problems in the first place.”

  She could feel her temperature rising as her anger surfaced, but she was on a roll, and maybe this was the stuff he needed to hear. “Did my animals ruin my planet? No. Even lions and tigers respect my rules. They only kill so they can eat. Do the birds foul my air so that no one may breathe? No. They utilize the winds and currents and respect the sky. Do fish pollute the waters beyond their ability to live? No. No, they don’t. But man…humankind, smart enough to share the land with my animals, share the sky with my birds, and share the sea with my fishes, they disrespect it all. They pollute it all. They ruin everything! Sometimes I wish I had never created them.”

  She slumped over with her head in her hands.

  Her date was quiet. Too quiet. She was beginning to wonder if he had become invisible, then snuck off and run away. A lot of men would.

  At last, she felt a warm hand on her back, gently rubbing in circles. He didn’t leave. He heard my worst mistake and all the regrets I’ve had because of it, and he didn’t leave.

  Moisture gathered in the corners of her eyes. One tear leaked out and ran down her cheek. What’s happening? I don’t cry. I never cry. Ever!

  She raised her head, and there was Aaron’s face, close to hers. He swiped away the tear with his thumb. He didn’t try to tell her she was wrong or that everything would be all right. Smart man. Instead, he simply adjusted his body and pulled her close to his chest, enveloping her in a comforting hug.

  “Wh—what is your biggest regret?” she asked finally.

  “Not meeting you sooner,” he said. And then he pulled back just enough to kiss her.

  It wasn’t a friendly kiss on the cheek or an even friendlier peck on the lips. No, it was a long, deep, emotionally satisfying smooch that made butterflies flit around her stomach again. Not only that, she liked the way he opened his mouth and swirled his tongue with hers. That was very intimate.

  She didn’t know how long their lips were fused together or when they started running their hands over each other’s arms and backs. She just knew she liked it and wanted it to last forever.

  Chapter 13

  Gaia had told Aaron she needed some time alone to think. She was having some human reactions, and that made her uncomfortable. He reluctantly let her pull him through the ether and return him to a private spot in the Fierros’ backyard. Before she left, he pressed a kiss to the back of her hand. Her hand tingled in the most agreeable way. She hadn’t felt anything special when Bruce had done it. The sweet gesture she had seen centur
ies before made her wonder why it ever went out of fashion. Perhaps humans weren’t a complete failure as a species after all. Aaron seemed perfect. But according to him, nobody was perfect.

  Eventually, Karma and Fate found her brooding a few miles away under a large leaf dripping moisture in the foggy Puerto Rican mountains.

  “Hello, Sister,” Fate said cheerily.

  “Oh, it’s you,” Gaia answered, deadpan.

  “I’m here too,” Karma said as she walked out of the ether.

  “Fabulous.”

  The two interlopers glanced at each other as if wondering why she was being sarcastic when they hadn’t had a chance to annoy her yet.

  “I was pondering the future of the planet. Whatever you have to say, say it and let me get on with my deliberations.”

  “Hmph.” Karma stuck her fist on her hip and said, “I don’t know if you deserve to hear our good news. Not with an attitude like that.”

  Gaia sighed. “All right. I could use a bit of good news about now.”

  Karma gestured to Fate. “The floor is yours, Sister. Since it’s your area of expertise, I’ll let you go first.”

  Fate grinned. “We found a match for you!”

  Gaia slapped a hand over her eyes. “Not this again.”

  “Don’t be hasty. At least listen to what she has to say.” Karma folded her arms.

  Gaia sighed. “Fine. Go ahead, Fate.”

  “He loves nature, is trying to do something good for humankind, and is a dedicated family man. He’s a widower with two grown daughters and a new grandchild whom he adores. Bachelor number one is Dr. Aaron Samuels.”

  Gaia reared back, laughing. The fog cleared, and sunshine warmed her.

  Fate whispered to Karma behind her hand. “Why is she laughing? Ah! I know. She’s glad we persisted and found her a match.”

  “Or she’s just losing it,” Karma said.

  “No, I’m laughing because you’re too late. I already found him.”

  “Really? How?” Karma began, then she smirked. “Never mind. It just proves Fate knows what she’s doing…sometimes.”

  “And we give you our enthusiastic blessing.” Fate clapped her hands.