All Fired Up

by Kristen Painter

  After dinner she taught him to play gin rummy. Two hands later and he was winning every game.

  “It’s no fun playing with someone who wins every time.” She pouted over her cards.

  “Then perhaps you should not have taught me so well.” He slapped his cards down on the table. “Gin!”

  “Again? Couldn’t you let me win one hand?” She tossed her hand down.

  “Is that what you desire?” He raised a brow.

  “No. It’s no fun to win like that.” She narrowed her eyes and put on her best game face. “I want to beat you fair and square.”

  “I can think of other games we could play. Games where we both win.” He smiled slyly and leaned forward.

  “Like what…oh!” Warmth spread over her cheeks and curled into her belly. “I think we should both just go to bed and call it a day.”

  “Very well.” His sly smile curved into a wicked grin. “You may call it whatever you like.”

  “That’s not what I meant!” When he smiled like that, sharing a bed didn’t seem like such a bad idea. “I meant go to your own bed. Tomorrow’s going to be a busy day for you.”

  His voice deepened with undeniable need. “Then perhaps I should start with a busy night.”

  Chapter Twelve

  Calleigh watched for two hours while Alrik stood wearing nothing but Uber Homme briefs, getting his body covered with foundation. Shay, the makeup artist, had done a great job of hiding the scars on his chest. Still, Calleigh prickled as Shay blended the makeup over his bronze skin with her fingers. She wanted to be the one touching him that way, caressing every delectable inch of that beautiful Viking man. Of course, she’d had her chance last night and turned him down. She just wasn’t ready to take that intimate a step with a man who was only in her life on a temporary basis.

  The only thing that kept Calleigh from yanking Shay’s hands off him was the fact that he’d paid no attention to the makeup artist. He’d only had eyes and smiles for Calleigh.

  Seamus walked over to them with one camera in his hand and another around his neck. He looked Alrik over then nodded to Shay. “Excellent job with the cover up. I think we’re ready. Leona love, music please.”

  The heavy thumping beat of “Sisters of Mercy” filled the studio with energy. Calleigh bobbed her head and hummed along with the lyrics. “I want more…” Did she ever. How long could a virgin look at a hot guy in his underwear and still remain a virgin? She giggled at her own silliness and Alrik smiled back. If only he knew what she was thinking. Maybe she should give in to her urges.

  “Lad, no smiling. Isn’t the right mood. Give me brooding, sexy, dark and dangerous. Think cover of a romance novel.” Seamus snapped away while Alrik took on a more serious expression. “That’s it! Give me more of that!”

  Indeed. Give me more of that. Give me all of that. Calleigh stifled the bubble of laughter building inside. What on earth was happening to her? This was not the way she usually behaved. But then she didn’t normally get to watch a beautiful man get photographed in a very small, very tight pair of briefs every day.

  The afternoon sun filled the studio by the time Seamus finished shooting the last roll of film. “Excellent work, really good. I’m sure the boys will be pleased. I’ll call if I need anything else.”

  He smiled in Calleigh’s direction. “On yer cell, I presume?”

  She stuck her tongue out in response.

  “Save that for your lover boy, pet.”

  Alrik grinned at her uncle’s reply. He wondered if the man knew how much he longed to be Calleigh’s lover. He tugged his T-shirt over his head and squeezed his chieftain’s armlet back onto his biceps. “I am glad you are pleased with the work but I am near to death with hunger. I do not like going without food for so long.”

  “Feed the lad, Calleigh. Can’t have my new star going hungry.” Seamus kissed her cheek. “See you soon, love. Good work, Alrik.”

  “I could do with some lunch too.” Her stomach rumbled and she glanced at her watch. “Or maybe I should say dinner.” She looked at Alrik. “What are you hungry for?”

  “Meat and ale.” And you. The way she’d watched him, her bronze eyes sparkling with want, had created a hunger that food would not satisfy. But he would not shame her in front of her kin by telling her what else he desired.

  “Uncle Seamus, have any recommendations for a good meat and ale restaurant?”

  “McManus’s, a few blocks down. They serve a prime rib so grand even himself couldn’t finish it.”

  With his belly full and the day behind him, Alrik wanted nothing more than to tuck Calleigh beside him in a warm bed and put a well-deserved grin on her beautiful face. Knowing that was not likely to happen, he was happy to settle for whatever she wanted to do. The ale’s drowsy pleasantness lightened his mood, making him playful.

  He held the door for her after she’d unlocked it, pulling her close as she started into the house and burying his nose in her soft, auburn curls. “Mmmm, lass, I love the way you smell. Like something good enough to eat.”

  His lips brushed the side of her neck and he felt her shiver. A small exhale told him the sensation of having him so close was not unpleasant to her.

  “Aren’t you full? You just had sixteen ounces of prime rib. How can you even talk about eating?” She tugged the door shut but stayed in his arms.

  “Aye, but I have not had my sweets yet. And you are very sweet indeed.” He laughed softly as she shook her head, her curls bobbing around her face.

  “Are all Vikings as wicked as you?”

  He laughed louder. “Fair eyes, you have not yet begun to see my wicked side. I would be happy to demonstrate, however—“

  “I’m sure you would but I think I can use my imagination.” She eased out of his grasp. “I’m going to go change into some comfy clothes then I was thinking we could watch a movie.”

  “A movie?”

  “It’s like TV only no interruptions for selling things.”

  “Ah, very good. Whatever you wish.”

  “Great. Okay, I’ll be back in sec.”

  “Should I change as well?”

  “Sure, you can if you want to. Just put on whatever you’re comfortable in.”

  “I am comfortable in nothing.” He grinned, waiting for her response.

  “Alrik! Clothes, please. I’ve seen you in your underwear all day. There’s only so much a girl can take.”

  Words came to his tongue but he held them back. Instead, he shrugged. “As you wish.”

  He went upstairs and changed into sweatpants and a T-shirt and returned to the living room. Calleigh was already there, standing in front of a rack of what looked like thin, shiny books. Her hair was tied in a messy knot at the nape of her neck, exposing a pale expanse of mother-of-pearl skin. Gone were the loose plaid pants and baggy T-shirt. Instead she wore pale green satin pants trimmed in lace and a matching top that buttoned up the front. The fabric skimmed her body, accentuating her curves and her fair coloring. He tried to swallow his desire but his hands itched to slide beneath the fabric and feel the silk of her skin.

  “Is this to your liking?” he asked, hoping his voice did not betray the need heating his blood.

  She glanced up and sighed. “Is there anything you don’t look good in?”

  Before he could reply, she held up one of the slim books. “I can’t decide which DVD. I was originally thinking Kate and Leopold but Meg Ryan’s a blonde and I don’t think either one of us are particularly fond of blondes right now.”

  She slid another one from the shelf and held it up. “How do you feel about the Matrix? Nevermind, that might be too far out.” She tucked the two books back onto the shelf and ran her finger along the edge.

  “Here we go. A remade classic and the female lead isn’t blonde. Sabrina it is.” She pulled out the book, opened it up and popped out a shiny silver disk.

  “What is that?” By the looks of it, the disk was a blade of some sort. She held it by the middle, careful not to touch t
he edges. They must be very sharp.

  “It’s a DVD. It’s the movie.”

  He narrowed his gaze. As a weapon, it would be highly effective since the blade was sharpened all around. “That is a movie?”

  “Yeah, here, check it out.” With a flick of her wrist, she tossed the sparkling disk at him.

  The flash of silver ignited his warrior instincts. In one swift motion, he dodged the DVD, leapt over the couch and pinned her to the wall. The DVD clattered to the floor.

  “Get off me, you big oaf. What are you doing?” She struggled to pummel him with her fists but his hands were locked around her wrists.

  “What did you mean by throwing that blade at me?”

  “It’s not a blade, it’s a movie.”

  “Why did you not touch the edges then?”

  “Because the movie doesn’t play very well with fingerprints all over it. Besides, why would I throw a blade at you anyway? I like you, you dumb Viking.”

  She liked him. He released her wrists. She was not Dagny. And he had touched her without permission.

  “I can’t believe you think I would try to hurt you.” She shook her head.

  He sunk to his knees at her feet and bowed his head. Freya would enjoy this. “Forgive me,” he murmured. “My past has made me a fool.”

  How could he have reacted that way? Nothing about Calleigh or the way she treated him was anything like Dagny. No lies, no duplicity. But the warrior in him saw nothing but the flash of a weapon, the possibility of danger. The memory of that fatal day.

  Calleigh had not yet moved. Would she banish him? It was within her power. Never before had a charge ordered him to leave their side. But it could happen. He prayed she would forgive him.

  Fingers tangled in his hair. Gentle, soothing, trembling fingers. “I’m the one who should apologize. You had no idea what that DVD was and I should know by now your instincts are to protect yourself.”

  She sank down beside him, cradling his face in her soft hands. “You scared the crap out of me, though. Try not to do that again, okay?”

  “Never again. I swear it on my life. But I should be the one begging your forgiveness.” For the first time in his life, the thought of begging a woman for something actually held merit.

  “You’re forgiven. Unless you can think of a better way to earn your way back into my good graces.” She laughed at her own words and her smile soothed away the last of his shame. She dropped her hands to his shoulders.

  Her touch renewed his spirit and filled his mind with new ideas. Thor’s thunderbolts, he wanted to kiss her again. “I am at your command. Anything you wish of me, I shall do. Anything.”

  “Then I have a question I want you to answer.” Her gaze lowered and her jaw tightened. “Did you enjoy having Shay’s hands all over you today?”

  He tipped her face back towards his. “Shay?”

  “The girl who put the makeup on you.”

  “Ah. I had forgotten her.”

  Calleigh’s jealousy sent a bitter thrill through his gut. He hoped it was rooted only in the possessiveness most charges felt toward their Phoenix and not because of stronger feelings. He did not want to break her heart when he left. Especially when he would not be able to come back and explain the hurt away.

  The entire time the girl had worked on him, he could think only of having Calleigh’s hands on him instead. But telling Calleigh that could cause her feelings for him to grow.

  “Well?” she asked.

  He could not lie to her but he could hold back part of the truth. “I did not enjoy it overmuch. Why do you want to know?”

  A half-smile turned up one corner of her mouth. “Just curious.”

  She started to get up but he stopped her with a question. “Did it make you jealous to see another woman’s hands on me?”

  Faint color swept across her cheeks. She bit her lip and lifted one shoulder.

  Her lack of answer was answer enough. She was jealous. Jealous in the way of a woman whose heart had begun to do her thinking. “I am your Phoenix, loyal to you alone.” He helped her up.

  “I guess that’s good to know.” She shrugged as if it did not matter but he could sense there was more to what she was feeling.

  He should pull away from her, make her think him uncaring and cold but he did not want that. He liked Calleigh more than any other charge who had summoned him. Everything about her made him happy, her kind spirit, her sweet laugh, her genuine heart, her forgiving nature. With startling clarity, he realized he wanted her for his own. The thought broke his heart anew.

  He sat with her on the couch and they watched the movie. Occasionally, Calleigh would explain something or tell him “this is a great scene.” Her comments did not seem to need a response and he was glad for the time to think. After a while, she stopped explaining things.

  He glanced over. Her eyes were closed and her head rested on her arm. Her rosy lips were parted, her breathing deep and even. She was so fair. In sleep her innocence was like a tangible thing draped about her shoulders.

  He took the blanket from the back of the couch and covered her, careful not to wake his sleeping beauty. The movie forgotten, he sat watching her instead, trying to force the moment into his memory for the time when he would no longer be at her side.

  ***

  Calleigh bolted upright with a sob, the haunting dream of her mother’s last days in the hospital still piercing her brain. Tubes everywhere. Machines beeping. The cold wash of green fluorescent light. The medicinal smell of the scrubbed white halls.

  She inhaled hard, scrubbed at the tears wetting her cheeks and her elbow bumped something hard. Alrik held her on his lap.

  “Hush now, the dream is passed.”

  “How did I get in your lap?” The last thing she remembered was sitting on the couch beside him watching the movie. Some infomercial played on the screen now.

  “I have overstepped my bounds.” He loosened his embrace. “But you wept in your sleep. I did not know what else to do but hold you.” He lifted her off his lap and moved her back to the cushions but she clung to his neck.

  “No. I want to stay here.” She sniffled and relaxed against his chest. The solid muscle comforted her in a way ice cream never had. “I have these dreams sometimes, about my mom. It’s like I’m reliving everything all over again.”

  She could feel him nod. When he spoke, his voice was distant. “I know about dreams.”

  “Do you know how to make them stop?”

  He shook his head, ruffling her curls. “I wish I did, fair eyes.”

  One last, quiet sob shook her body before she spoke. “I’m ready to make my next change.”

  He tensed then relaxed again so quickly she almost wasn’t sure she’d felt it. “What is it?”

  She sat up so she could look at him. “I don’t want my mom to have died of cancer and my dad to have suffered a heart attack. Can I change that?”

  “Aye but—”

  “Good.”

  “But if they were meant—”

  She held her hands up. “Just do it. Please. It’s what I want more than anything. No more nightmares, no more missing them, no more pain. And don’t forget, you said you would stay with me.”

  He sighed resignedly. “I will return as quickly as possible. I must be gone for a little time, to cause the change to occur.”

  “Good enough. I’m ready then.”

  Alrik eased her off his lap and stood facing her in front of the TV. There was a look on his face she didn’t like. He didn’t meet her eyes when he spoke. Instead, he stared ahead, eyes fixed on some distant point. “With the power of the Phoenix, I grant this change.”

  From his shoulders the now familiar but still amazing wings of fire unfurled with a soft hiss. Their crimson glow burnished his unsmiling face with coppery light. She wanted to be inside those wings with him, to feel the warm caress of the gentle heat wafting over her body, to be held in his comforting arms.

  Think about Mom and Dad. It will be wonderful
to have them back. She stayed where she was on the couch as the blaze surrounded him. When his face disappeared behind the feathers of flame, a small sadness tugged at her heart. He’s coming back as soon as he can.

  Just as before, the fire flared brightly then snuffed itself out from the floor up.

  A faint ring of ashes marked the carpet in front of the television. Her Viking was gone.

  Chapter Thirteen

  This time, Calleigh woke before her alarm went off. She couldn’t wait to see her parents. Maybe she could convince her mother to close the studio so they could spend the day doing girl stuff.

  She sat up in bed and stretched. Everything was a blur. She blinked a few times but her vision was as clear as Vaseline. She fumbled her hand over her nightstand.

  Glasses.

  She still wore glasses! Of course. She hadn’t had her LASIK surgery until her mom had passed away. It was the one extravagant thing she’d spent her inheritance on.

  Same old wire rims, too. She plopped them on her nose and smiled. She was in her old bedroom, not her parents’ redone master. Snickers curled at the foot of the bed, tail tucked over his nose. Happiness bubbled up inside her like it was Christmas morning.

  Grabbing her robe, she headed downstairs, pulling the worn chenille on as she went. The house was quiet. Unusual for her parents to sleep past seven. The door to their room was open, so she stuck her head in.

  The bare mattress and partially-filled boxes on the floor sent an icy shiver down her spine. Something wasn’t right. Where were her parents?

  “Mom? Dad?” She called out, praying for a response. She got none.

  A stack of mail sat on the table near the door. She grabbed it and read through the envelopes. Some were addressed to her, some to her dad and one piece of junk mail to her mom. Well, that was a good sign, right?