Chapter 18 Right Place, Righter Time #2
It was only that Brioni wanted very badly to be Ragnar’s soul-whatever, but maybe he knew she wasn’t, and that was why he’d told her not to come back to the barn right away.
Maybe he needed time to think of how to break it to her, the stupid human, that the most romantic thing she’d ever heard of was skipping her over.
Her vision blurred, and she groaned, wiping hard at her face.
At least if Ragnar was going to let her down, she wouldn’t have to explain the tears.
She hadn’t expected them when she had a mouth full of…
him, and at first it really had been because he was just so big that it made her eyes water, but then there was such a strange relief welling up behind them.
Relief she didn’t want to ponder, so she grabbed her satchel, intending to make her last delivery on the way to the barn.
Another letter from the orange demon sat heavily in the bottom of her bag, given to her during the day with a snarl and a demand.
He didn’t let her explain that she’d almost been turned into monster mash when he complained about how she’d gone missing, he just wanted the work done, so she obliged as always.
But there was a giant figure waiting on the doorstep when she went to leave the post that would keep her from going into the woods at all.
“Ragnar?” Brioni tipped her head back, and he spun to face her, black eyes wide like he’d been caught doing something he really ought not be, which was a laughable look on the massive, gruff demon.
Dressed in a crisp tunic, one without stains from dirt or sweat, he broke into a wide smile, hands behind his back.
The tie that zigzagged up his chest was cinched, and while Brioni never minded a little extra skin while he worked, the neatness of how he was done up flustered her too.
Maybe everything about Ragnar flustered her, even the lack of treat pouches on his belt and the knife tucked into a freshly oiled leather sheath there instead.
The way he’d pulled back his hair in a tight braid without a single strand falling in his face certainly wasn’t not-flustering either, and his swooping horns weren’t their normal muted black but as shiny as polished obsidian.
Uh oh, something’s wrong, she thought, heart sinking and teeth clenching.
Ragnar took a deep breath, and she prepared herself for the worst, but he just revealed the package he’d been hiding behind his back, and the worst shifted to the most confusing.
I know this paper, she thought. And this smell.
The package was tied up with a pretty bow, and slipped under the ribbon was a folded piece of parchment, creased many times over, and in the shape of a…well, it was something, surely, because it hadn’t gotten into that shape by accident, but Brioni had never seen anything like it.
“For you.”
She really should have guessed, but Brioni still took it carefully because she was too used to being the one delivering packages to others. It was warm still, which meant… “You went to the Lovable Loaf?”
Ragnar nodded gravely. “I asked the demon behind the counter for something special, and he picked out these dense little balls. They’re not very attractive, but when I told them who they were for, he assured me you would love them. Don’t open it now, though, or they’ll ruin dinner.”
“Dinner?”
“If I remember right, there are thirteen taverns in Heck, and at least one of them should have room for us. If you’re willing to accompany me, that is.”
For a whole minute, Brioni was so struck she couldn’t utter a word, which was just long enough for a demon to worry a human might have changed her mind about everything, but not long enough for him to walk away. That amount of time might not have existed at all, but neither of them found out.
“You’re asking me…on a date?”
The last of the moonlight reflected off Ragnar’s horns as he nodded.
Brioni launched herself at him, throwing arms around his massive shoulders and squealing. Ragnar caught her about the waist and chuckled into her neck, the feel of his warm breath and vibrating chest shaking out the nerves that had been building all day.
“I have to admit it’s been a while,” he said as he let her back down. “I don’t know where would be best, but I hoped you might have a place in mind.”
“Oh, I have a hundred!” She stuffed the goodies into her bag and looped her arm into his, but as they took a step off the stoop, something tapped the back of her head. She looked over her shoulder at the closed door, then squinted up into the big tree overhead.
A shock of teal feathers and a set of blue eyes blinked out of the shadows. Kat emerged just into the glow of the lantern light below, the drayk perched beside her on the thickest branch. I think he likes you, she mouthed, pointing her needle at the top of Ragnar’s unsuspecting head.
Brioni flushed with embarrassment and glee both, but in the darkness, nobody could really see, so she didn’t care as she pulled Ragnar into the streets of Heck. “Don’t be alarmed by the state of things. Apparently there was an attack yesterday. I heard all about it from…”