by Montana Ash
Not all pain was bad? He begged to differ and was still grouchy enough to say so. Unfortunately, his righteous rebuttal was thwarted by thirty kilograms of enthusiastic fur. Zombie ran into the gym, his excited barks echoing around the high ceilings. He was quadruple the size he had been ten months ago, but he was still considered a puppy and Beyden knew he still had some growing to do. Usually he was good with discipline but for some reason, Zombie completely ignored Beyden’s shouts to sit. One ear flopped around as he barrelled directly toward them – and straight through Jasminka’s legs. His furry friend got caught up in Jazz’s pretty skirt, causing her to trip and stumble. Beyden acted without thought, snatching up the falling woman and hugging her hard against his chest.
Elegant hands gripped his biceps firmly, soft curses filling the air between them. Jazz was pressed against him from head to toe and Bey felt his eyes cross when Jasminka’s legs automatically parted, effectively straddling his thigh. He knew without a shadow of a doubt that the woman never wore a bra, and the primitive part of his brain chose that moment to wonder if she also went commando. Considering he went commando, thoughts like that were highly dangerous given their current positions.
Jasminka’s breath ghosted across the sweaty skin of his vee-neck workout shirt as she pulled back to look up at him. “Why are your shirts always two sizes too small?” She shook her head, “Scrap that. I mean, thank you ...” she paused, seeming to lose her focus once more, “Uh ... your eyes really are incredible. A true amber.”
The reality of Jasminka in his arms far rivalled the fantasy woman from his wank session, and Beyden didn’t answer – couldn’t answer. He was too caught up in the feel of supple hips and subtle curves beneath the span of his hands. Hands that felt overly large and clumsy against such dainty beauty. Watching her dark eyes widen in awareness, Beyden lowered his head without conscious thought. Just as he was about to give in to temptation and press his lips against the ones that were so achingly close, a loud bang ruined the moment and they jerked apart. Beyden looked over Jasminka’s shoulder to see every single woman from the house. Gently easing the doctor away from him, he idly wondered what he had done to incur the Great Mother’s wrath. First his leg and now getting caught wrapped around Jasminka like an octopus.
“You have impeccable timing as always, Max.” Jasminka’s voice was flat and even but Max still paused in her tracks. Her blue-green eyes taking in the scene in an instant.
Beyden saw her eyes flick toward Zombie, who was sitting innocently at Bey’s feet. “Quick work,” she said. The comment may have been ambiguous to everyone else in the room, but not to him. He was a beast paladin and his elemental affiliation was with animals.
“Zombie!” The darn animal – trapped halfway between puppy and dog – rolled onto his back, legs dangling pathetically, bi-coloured eyes sad. Beyden narrowed his own eyes; all he was receiving from the dog were feelings of playfulness and joy. Not a sad or contrite thought existed in Zombie’s head. Too bad the others didn’t know that though.
“Beyden!” Ivy punched him – hard – in the arm. “Just because you’ve decided to become an arsehole since you got your boo boo doesn’t mean you can take it out on an innocent puppy.”
“Arsehole? I’m not an arsehole! Boo boo is far too mild a description, and that dog is not innocent,” Beyden immediately defended. Zombie chose that moment to let out a pathetic whimper and Beyden thrust a finger at him, “Don’t even. You may have the oestrogen in the room fooled, but not me buddy.”
“Excuse me? Oestrogen?” Cali raised a perfectly arched blonde brow at him.
He winced, taking a small hop backward. He was still balancing on his good leg and it was starting to get tired from taking all his weight. He knew better than to make chauvinistic comments like that. Usually, such stupidity was reserved for Ryker and Axel. Beyden’s only excuse was that he was tired, in pain, and all his blood supply had been residing south of the border not two minutes prior. To cap it all off, apparently he had a matchmaking dog to contend with. Leading with the only thing he could think of that would save his skin, he groaned dramatically, grabbing his leg. Cali’s eyes immediately widened and she and Diana were next to him in an instant.
“Poor baby! You must be in so much pain standing around like this. I’m sorry, I think I’m still all hormonal, you know? Maxwell is just so perfect in every way and he’s just getting so big, so fast. I just – hormones!” Cali ended on a yell.
Beyden kept his mouth shut, choosing to nod instead. Cali had been a particularly blood-thirsty pregnant woman. He had assumed motherhood would make her softer somehow but figured he should have known better. The women in his family were fierce. As Diana, Cali, and even his sister helped him over to a chair, Max and Jasminka watched on in amusement. Yeah, he figured he wouldn’t fool the doctor. And no doubt Max could tell he was lying simply by looking at him. The thought had his butt cheeks clenching – Max hated liars. But he was also a little thrilled. It meant that Max’s abilities were still in full swing and perhaps their liege would truly return to them.
The moment he completed the thought, Max’s face fell and he wondered if she had somehow picked up on what he was thinking. He wondered why the thought would upset her because since the breakfast talk two days before, they were all being really positive. Before he could ponder on it more however, Max’s attention was drawn away by Ryker, Darius, and Axel, who chose that moment to saunter into the gym. All of them were shirtless, sweating, and out of breath. Beyden knew for a fact that they had already had their beach run for the day. That meant this display of flesh and virility was for Max’s benefit. Seems their Captain was taking Jasminka’s suggestion seriously. Going by the heated, stunned look on Max’s face, it seemed to be working. As Beyden watched, Ry flexed his pectorals, causing the metal bars piercing his nipples to flash in the light.
And I thought I was at a low point in my life, Beyden thought, shaking his head at the antics of his esteemed and fearless leader.
“Hello, ladies!” A grinning Axel called from across the room. “We’re heading into the showers. Anyone care to join us?” The endless flirt offered.
Diana grinned, “Will you all be in the one shower? Because if so, the answer is yes!”
Axel simply grinned wider. “Hey, you know me; I’ll try anything once.”
“Yeah? What do ya know – so will Darius.” Came the death paladin’s cheeky reply.
Beyden barely refrained from gagging. Where the Order’s second in command was very serious and strict in his daily routine, rumour had it he had a devilish streak in the bedroom. It was something Beyden chose not to think about. Ever. He kept such information locked away firmly in a vault in his brain alongside things like his sister sleeping with his best friend and Dex using his powers for sexy-times with Cali. Diana and Cali were just as much sisters to him as Ivy was. Given his sanity was largely still intact, he figured it was working.
“Doc, you’re looking especially beautiful today. The highlight of my day is seeing you walk down those stairs in the morning, barefoot and beautiful in your dresses.”
Beyden’s humour over his friend’s womanising ways fled in an instant. Was Axel flirting or was he flirting? There was a big difference and Beyden knew he had a big problem with one of them.
“You really do have lovely dresses and skirts,” Diana was complimenting Jazz’s wardrobe. The doctor murmured a thank you and Diana kept talking, “I don’t think I’ve seen you in pants since you arrived. Do you ever wear them?”
Jasminka shook her head. “Nope. Not unless the situation is extreme.”
“Huh,” his sister looked intrigued. “Do you ever wear shoes?”
Jazz looked down at her bare feet, wiggling her toes against the workout mat. “Unfortunately, yes. Can’t be a surgeon without shoes. One clumsily dropped scalpel and I wouldn’t be able to count to twenty anymore.”
The women snickered, and Beyden smiled in shared humour. That was until Max posed the next question;
“What about a bra? Do you ever wear a bra?”
Jasminka took the question in stride, “A bra? For these bee stings?” She gestured to her chest. “What would be the point?”
Beyden felt heat spreading over his cheeks as the women cackled and apparently bonded over the trials and tribulations of underwire. It was taking all his self-control not to focus on the unrestrained mounds hidden behind the colourful fabric. Sure, they weren’t huge, but Beyden bet they would be soft and delicate and perfectly tipped ...
“Bey!”
Beyden winced. From the tone of his sister’s voice, she had been trying to get his attention for some time. “Yes?”
Ivy eyed him knowingly but thankfully didn’t see fit to torture him today. No doubt it was because she still felt sorry for him, but he didn’t care. He’d take the reprieve.
“How’s the leg?” she queried.
And just like that, Beyden felt his good mood plummet. His leg let itself be known again and throbbed with the beat of his heart, and he felt sweat break out on his forehead. He would do well to remember that the whole reason Jasminka was even there in the first place was to play doctor to him and his wrecked leg. As much as he enjoyed her banter and her company – as well as her body – she was a constant reminder of everything he’d lost. And that was his status as an active paladin. Even though their Order was on the fritz – Axel’s upbeat way of looking at things – the others were still fully intact paladins and could resume normal duties. Whereas he could not, and likely never would. He would be too much of a liability in the field. Exhibit A was the thirty minutes of physical activity Jazz just had him do. Before his injury, he would barely have broken a sweat. Now he was exhausted, aching in every bone of his body, and unable to weight-bear on the left side. Even if Ryker or even Max took pity on him and allowed him to act as a paladin and provide vitality to Max, there was no way he could act as a knight and provide protection.
Feeling five sets of feminine eyes on him – and boy, was that a lot of female eyes – he gave a shitty attempt at a smile; “It’s still there at least.”
Max, Cali, and Diana gave him doe eyes, cooing over him a little. Whilst Ivy and Jasminka eyed him shrewdly, their faces eerily similar in their intensity. He knew neither woman was falling for his pathetic attempt at normalcy. Thankfully, his sister let him off the hook, addressing Max next and tactlessly asking how her ‘broken brain’ was. Beyden ignored the laughing hyenas otherwise known as inappropriately behaved women, and instead pondered what the hell he was supposed to do about his entirely unsuitable crush for his very human doctor.
SEVEN
Another week had passed and the monotony of his existence was beginning to get to him. Ryker had finally deigned to allow him a token job; sorting and answering the correspondence from, well, everyone. Beyden had been thrilled to help at first. He had been feeling rather useless and he was used to performing active duties every single day. Ryker had made it sound like an important task and one that Beyden’s temperament would be suited for. Bey had quickly learned he had been suckered. The job was shit. And although his old temperament might have been suited for the endless emails and phone calls, his new one had a shorter fuse.
It did allow for him to get a better understanding of how his fellow wardens, paladins, and chadens were coping since the epic fight. Short answer; bad. Long answer; really fucking bad. From what Beyden had been able to figure out in the few days since he’d had his butt parked in the library, there were still factions who stood against them – who stood against Max and everything she represented. But the number was small and ever-dwindling. The vast majority had seen what Garrett and Autumn had become. And if they weren’t there to witness the destruction and pain Emmanuel had wrought, they had quickly heard about it – or felt it through their connections to their domains. It was reassuring to know further civil unrest was unlikely, but the mammoth task of getting their society into some semblance of order was daunting. No doubt that was why Ryker had saddled him with the job of glorified secretary.
Rubbing his forehead, Beyden realised another headache was brewing. They had become a frustrating daily occurrence. At least the pain in his head sometimes distracted him from the pain in his calf – which had shown no further signs of improvement. His life hadn’t been all doom and gloom over the past week though. Max had taken it upon herself to visit more frequently, and though he adored her company, he couldn’t say he was exactly thrilled with her choice of conversation. For some inexplicable reason, Max found it necessary to give him hourly updates about Jasminka. Max catalogued the doctor’s activities and proceeded to describe them in vivid and very flattering detail to him. Apparently, Mordecai had seen fit to introduce Jasminka to Dawn – a well-respected Life Warden. Not only was Dawn older and very powerful, she was an endangered species – one of only two female life wardens in the world. With the betrayal and loss of Garrett, the male life warden population had also taken a hit and Beyden knew those numbers were dangerously low too.
Being affiliated with people rather than an element, Dawn was strongly empathic and tasked with bringing light, life, and laughter to the world. She was also responsible for new births, healing and absorbing pain. As such, Dawn had been just as busy in the wake of war with their surviving paladin and warden population. The chadens were proving to be a new, though welcome, challenge to the Life Warden also. After Mordecai had extolled the virtues of having a human medical professional in the house, Dawn had sought Jasminka out. Jasminka had helped Dawn set up a clinic of sorts, much like the infirmary she had kitted out in the house. Such a thing was unheard of; wardens and paladins rarely needed medical attention. It was just another sign that times were changing.
Speaking of which, Beyden had hollered for Ryker and whoever else was in the house to come into the library. The more emails he read, the more concerned he became regarding one specific issue. But he was hoping he had a solution for it. “Max?” he asked, noting she wasn’t among the gang sauntering into the book-filled room.
“Outside. Diana, Lark, and Jazz are with her,” Ryker informed him. He paused, “And very likely Mordecai and his paladins. If they weren’t family, it would be seriously creepy the way they watch Max’s every move and guard her like a hawk.”
“Riiight,” Axel sang, drolly. “And you sleeping on the floor outside of her bedroom every night isn’t creepy at all.”
Ryker glared at Axel, “It’s technically my bedroom too. If I want to sleep on the floor I can and I will. Besides, don’t think I haven’t noticed you following Max with your eyes. In fact, all of you do it. We’re all just as creepy as each other.”
Beyden had actually noticed Axel’s longer than normal perusal of Max and had asked him about it just that morning. Axel had admitted he was dying to ask Max a question but was trying very hard to be respectful of her boundaries. The question revolved around a private conversation the two of them had before the war. Max had revealed something to Axel that he was impatient to get more information about. The only problem? The one and only person in the entire world who could help him had no recollection of the conversation. Bey hadn’t pressed for details but he did feel sorry for his friend. Axel was always upbeat and for him to be anxious and show clear signs of agitation, Bey knew it must be something very important.
“Anyway,” he said overly loudly in order to capture the attention of the occupants of the room whom were all glaring at each other. “I’ve been thinking ...” Beyden began, then paused, feeling uncharacteristically shy around his own family. Although he had made deliberate attempts to be friendly and outgoing the past week, he’d still been acting like a dick every second time he opened his mouth. He felt like a right arsehole about it but it was impossible to stop his new churlish ways. He had been working himself up to an apology for days but hadn’t quite made it there yet. He wondered if this was how Ryker felt every time he was a moron.
Beyden felt his lips twitch with that thought, knowing it was impossible f
or Ryker to regret his dickish ways, basically because Ryker acted like a dick the majority of the time. For the first time since the Order link went silent, Bey was grateful. Ryker would have kicked his butt if he’d heard Beyden’s thoughts – limp or no limp.
“You’ve been thinking?” Ryker prompted when Beyden was silent too long.
Beyden straightened his shoulders. “I’ve been thinking about the constant calls, visits, and messages we get here regarding the battle and the councils. Thanks for that shitty job by the way.” The glare he aimed at Ryker was not in jest.
Ryker’s mouth quirked up for a second, scarred skin pulling taut, before he sighed, running a hand through his long hair, “It’s annoying as fuck. I swear, I feel like all I do is field questions and threaten people. I don’t mind the threatening part but listening to wardens and paladins cry all day isn’t really my thing. I figured you’d be better at it. You actually like people.”
“Gasp! Ryker lacking patience and people skills? Who’d a thunk?” Ivy murmured, not bothering to look up from where she was sharpening her sickle in the corner of the room.
Ryker sneered in her direction, raising his two middle fingers and flipping Ivy off. Bey saw Ivy smile, though she still didn’t raise her head. He didn’t bother to defend his sister because he knew Ryker’s response was in jest – mostly. Bey was just glad to see Ivy interacting and playing with his family. He hadn’t noticed when she had suddenly become so comfortable. It was just another thing to blame on his stupid leg. He was missing so much. He hadn’t even been able to play with his new nephew much either, he realised, looking at Cali where she held a sleeping Maxwell in her arms. It had been unanimously decided that Cali and Dex could have Maxwell with them wherever they were, including official work commitments as well. Within reason of course. Bey didn’t think Cali would take the baby to the shooting range but meetings like this weren’t an issue.