"Notacyclops, you mythology nerd.Cyclops, from the movies."
Paul turned red. "I knew that."
Teasing laughter arose, and Briana focused her gaze downward even as she smiled, because it turned out to be very, very difficult to notseeLaurie Torben in the background, and she still didn't want to meet his eyes. She was already far too aware of him, his blond hair bright in the electric 'torchlight' the tavern sported. In retrospect she should have left earlier, but it was too late now.
It wasmuchtoo late, because she'd lost track of him when she glanced downward, and as she looked up again, Briana heard him say, "May I have this dance?" as Laurie, now standing right behind her, tapped her on the shoulder.
Chapter 4
Laurie didn't actually want to dance with Briana Gilson, but saying 'can we talk?' in front of all her friends was a recipe for disaster. For one, no conversation that started out with 'can we talk' was a good one. For two, because itwasin front of all of her friends, it would put her on the spot in a way he really didn't want to. Even if she said no, they would all want to know why he'd asked in the first place.
She could just as easily say no to 'may I have this dance,' but at least it wasn't nearly as loaded a question. As it was, she dropped her head and sighed, her body language making it clear that she would prefer to say no, even from where he stood behind her. Everybody else at the table tensed just a little, closing ranks: they were obviously prepared for him to not take no for an answer, and to send him off. But then Briana lifted her head again, squared her shoulders, sighed, and said, "Sure," as she stood up.
The blacksmiths surrounding her moved enough to let her climb over the picnic table's bench, and a quietoooOOOooohwent up around the table as he and Briana moved away. Briana shot her friends a dirty look and got enough guiltily-hunchedshoulders in response that Laurie was pretty sure they hadn't been meant to hear the intrigued chorus, but he squashed a smile. The last thing he wanted was for Briana to think he was laughing at her, or encouraging her friends to tease her about him. "I'm sorry," he said in a low voice. "Obviously we don't have to dance, but I hoped we could talk."
"Well, we have to now," she said with an exasperated, or possibly annoyed, edge. "Because they're expecting it, and if I just go off with you, I mean,God."
He hadn't thought it through quite that far, and quelled a grimace. "Right. Yeah, sorry. If we get on the other side of the crowd they won't be able to see us as well, at least."
"Fine." Briana actually took his hand. An electric buzz shot through Laurie, so vibrant and startling that he gasped, and she took a short, sharp breath of her own, though it ended in a frown. Then she pulled him through the crowd to the far side of the dancers, closest to the musicians. His brother Jon was in the midst of them, playing guitar, and when he noticed Briana and Laurie in the dancers, he leaned over to the guy next to him, and as the bouncy song they were playing ended, they started into a much slower one.
Briana shot a look at the musicians like they'd done that on purpose, which they obviously had, but sighed again. "I guess that makes it easier to talk, anyway." She stepped into Laurie's arms like she belonged there, and he put his hands on her waist as politely as he could, with her palms resting on his chest. For a glorious moment, it just felt soright, like they fit together perfectly and were meant to for always.
You are,his bear said happily.
Tellherthat! Actually don't.Because it was obvious that the very last thing Briana would accept from Laurie was him trying to strong-arm his way through what was supposed to be a simple situation. She looked wary as they swayed together in astiff circle, like the most awkward seventh-graders at the dance. Laurie hadn't exactly expected her to look thrilled, given how clear she'd been about not being interested in him, butwaryseemed a little extreme.
"What do you want to talk about?"
Up until she actually asked, Laurie thought he knew. It had seemed self-evident that they needed to talk. Mates weren't supposed to just…opt out of fate. Faced with the question, he supposed that maybe he'd thought he should reason with her, or ask what she was thinking, or…something, to get the whole situation straightened out so they could move on to their easy and effortless happily ever after.
Except she had, in fact, been very clear about not being interested in that, and he was, in fact,justbright enough to recognize she wouldn't take being strong-armed well. And she probably expected him to try. No wonder she looked wary. After what he was pretty sure was a too-long pause of turning in slow, uncomfortable circles with her, Laurie said, "I just wanted you to know I'll stay out of your hair. I mean, I won't bug you about this, or be weird about it or anything. You don't have to walk on eggshells or avoid the tavern or whatever, which I guess you've been doing, because I neverhaveseen you here."
"Yeah, I have been," she said more abruptly and honestly than he would have liked, but then, he didn't like anything about this and had no idea how to deal with it. Girls generallylikedLaurie. Having one preemptively reject him was a whole new and unpleasant experience, especially when she said, "It's been a real pain in the ass, so thanks, it'll be nice to be able to come here," as if he hadn't already understood he was putting a hitch in her get-along.
"You're…welcome, I guess? I just—can I..."
Briana's eyebrows went up and she sighed. "What? Go ahead, ask whatever it is."
Part of him wanted to ask why she didn't like him, although she'd basically already explained that. She thought he was a shallow pretty-boy player, and the worst part was Laurie couldn't really argue with that. But even more, he wanted to know, "How have Ineverseen you before? Have you only been at the faire a couple of years?"
A thin, but not at all friendly, smile stretched her mouth. "I've been coming for about five years. I even used to come to the tavern. But I wasn't…" She lifted a hand from his chest and spun a finger in the air,possiblyindicating other women around them. "In your orbit."
"Why not?" he asked, genuinely baffled. "Fate aside, you're gorgeous and I can't imagine I wouldn't notice you."
Briana didn't so much laugh as make a sharp bleat of sound. "And yet. Look, hundreds of people work at the faire, right? And tens of thousands of attendees come through. You gravitate to the girls who love the fighters and the minstrels, and they gravitate toward you. I like the fights, don't get me wrong, I make swords, for God's sake, but I'm not going to elbow my way through a bunch of other women to getanyguy's attention. I've been around. You just didn't see me. And then I made sure you didn't see me."
"Am I that bad?" Laurie thought he sounded a little sad and pathetic, but then, he felt a little sad and pathetic. He hadn't beenlookingfor a fated mate, but finding one and having her be actively uninterested in him was still something of a blow.
"God, I don't know. You're probably fine, if you're into pretty playboys who flirt their way through every day of their lives. I just…meh."
Meh?his bear asked incredulously.She thinks we're…meh?
No one had ever thought Laurie was 'meh' in his life, as far as he knew. Certainly none of the brief, dazzling dalliances that marked his summers working at this and other faires, or themutually delightful hookups during the periods of time he and Jon were out making deals for the brewery's sales. "How do I be not meh?"
Briana laughed, and at least this time she sounded amused instead of just sharp. "I don't know, man. That sounds like a you problem. Can I askyousomething?"
Hope leaped in his chest even if she wasn't going to solve the problem of how to impress her for him. "Yeah, of course."
