Val watched the fog drift outside her window. It made her rotten day seem even worse, and it had been pretty damned rotten. First, there had been the incident with Belle. Goodness knows, it's entirely too much to ask that a day start with a nice cup of coffee and no bad news. But that's what you get in this line of work. You start with the best intentions, to intervene and give someone a better life. And a few years down the road you spend your every waking moment solving their problems.
Fairy god-mothers never get any rest. So her whole morning had been shot listening to Belle's headaches with her new in-laws. And Val had managed to hold her tongue in check; but she'd really wanted to shout, Well, when you marry a beast, you should be prepared for family issues. Hell, the girl broke the curse, no sweat, but give her a mewling mother-in-law and she crumbles under the pressure. And the fairy god-mother is supposed to wave her wand and make it all better. Well, that was pretty easy. A little "magic dust" to put in her mother-in-law's dinner would solve all her problems. And valium comes to the rescue once again.
So breakfast was ruined, but no, that wasn't enough. By noon Rapunzel starts shrieking about a runaway child and why didn't you get here sooner and what should I do..? Talk about psychological issues after being locked in a tower for a few years. After searching for the stupid kid all afternoon, he shows up for dinner. A friend had invited him out for a friendly game of baseball. He'd left a note, which apparently had gotten put in with the outgoing mail. Grrrr... If it wouldn't have ruined her image, she'd have probably have smacked Rapunzel for not checking with his friends before freaking out.
And not three hours ago she'd had to go and threaten Little Bunny Foo Foo for going out and chasing her field mice. Damn it, those field mice were imported from Transylvania, and too bloody expensive to have that stupid rabbit poaching them.
So now she stood by the window and brooded. If ever a person could brood, Val did it best. Her reflection in the window glass showed a beautiful woman, surely not older than thirty, with dark hair fluttering around her waist and large hazel eyes framed by sooty lashes. Honey toned skin and a scattering of freckles made her seem almost human. Her soft, ruddy mouth was set in a sneer as she gazed out into the night.
And suddenly her evening improved. Along the road to her cottage she could see a torch slowly edging closer. Val spun away from the window and doused the lantern in her room. Near blind in the darkness, she quickly moved to her dresser and searched by feel for her nicest nightgown. It was soft velvet with two slits up the front to showcase her legs as she walked. The spaghetti straps would be a little chilly, but that was the least of her concerns. She pulled it on and was about to close the drawer when she paused. Another quick search turned up silk panties, which she hurried to put on. At the night table her fingers found her brush and she spent a little time making sure her hair was soft and untangled.
Since she could use all the height she could get with him, she pulled on sandals that had a slight heel. Just thinking about him made her panties get a little wet. She was just telling herself to calm down, because she hated getting her hopes up when he never seemed to notice anything she did, when there was a knock at her door. It wasn't loud, but it was matter of fact, and just hearing it made her take a deep breath so she wouldn't be too flushed when she saw him.
A lighted candle in hand, she went to the door as calmly as possible and slowly opened it. She wasn't sure if it was the slightly chilled air or seeing him standing there that caused her nipples to pucker faintly. As their eyes met he slowly doused his torch in the bucket beside her door.
"Huntsman." She was proud that her voice was almost calm.
"Lady." A shiver made it's way down her spine. That answers that question, how could she doubt that her body responded to him rather than the cold?
"Please, would you like to come in?"
Rather than answer, he moved towards her until her nerve very nearly broke. But rather than throw herself at him as she wanted to, she allowed pride to rule her and she backed out of the doorway, drawing the door with her. The huntsman passed so near her that she caught the sent of him. A bit of smoke and pine. Damn, her panties were getting soaked already.
"Did I wake you?"
"Not really, no. I had yet to fall asleep. But what brings you to my door at this late hour, huntsman?" She leaned against the fireplace mantle and gestured for him to pick a seat. The remaining embers from that day's fire warmed her back. "Surely you've been awake since dawn, this is a late call..."
"And unfortunately not a pleasure call. You have mice ruining your southern fields." He sat in an overstuffed arm chair, his body dwarfing her petite furniture. He dwarfed everything in her cottage, since he hovered at nearly 6' 7". Which put him over a foot taller than Val. He relaxed into the chair with a soft sigh. His eyes closed, and Val could see how tired he looked. A tremor of guilt moved her.
Moving quietly she slipped into the kitchen area, and opened the cold storage. "Mice? Again? I'm sure you're right, but..."
"But?" He sounded drowsy.
"Not again, was what I was going to say." She piled a plate with slices of turkey and nudged the stove a little sharply until it woke up and started to heat the kettle of water she'd placed on it. A swift search of the pantry yielded a wedge of pineapple and a chocolate muffin. OK, so maybe it wasn't a gourmet selection, but at least she had something to feed him. "It's only been three or four weeks since the last time you trapped my fields."
"Apparently it's been enough time for them to regroup..." His eyes opened as she leaned over him to place the plate on the table beside him. Her breasts were showcased nicely in front of his eyes, and he felt himself stir, as he always did around Val. Unfortunately today had been a hell of a day, and he doubted he'd be able to keep up with her even if he did manage to get her into bed. Damn, but he loved theses night visits. And in the past six months he'd managed to make several night visits, mostly because he loved the way she filled out her nighties. Wasn't he too old for this, he asked his libido? The answer was a resounding 'no.'
"I thank you, lady. Today has been too long, and my last meal was many hours ago."
Val smiled sympathetically at him. And almost felt guilty about the mice. Almost. Today had sucked for her too. A gentle chirp from the tea kettle had her returning to the kitchen and pouring the boiling water over tea. She returned to his side and sat on the floor by his feet, her back against the sofa.
Hunter ate the cold repast with pleasure. It was probably the best thing he'd ever eaten. Which was partially because he was starving after spending all afternoon returning sheep that had wandered from Mary's flock and putting out snares for a rabid boar in the Enchanted Forest. The only highlight was sitting here watching Val as she relaxed, staring into the flames in the hearth. And trying to keep from staring at the edge of her nighty as it slid high on her thigh, revealing more of her shapely legs than he could comfortably deal with. Having downed all he could eat, he leaned back in his chair. Almost as if that was a signal, she turned to face him and smiled at him from her perch on the floor. "Finished?" She rose, and stretched, making his eyes widen and trace the curve of her breasts appreciatively. Hunter also rose and took the plate and cup, before she could reach them. Paralyzed, all she could do was look up at him, her body inches from touching his, her lips parted on a small exclamation.
Annoyed with herself and wondering for how long she had been frozen, she wrenched her gaze from his. And for good measure she also grabbed the dishes from his grasp. "I'll take these. You've had a long day, and need to relax." She pushed him lightly back into the chair.
"I should argue with you, since I've already inconvenienced you enough... But I am tired. I can only thank you again."
"Nonsense, it is always a pleasure to have your company." And with a quick turn she moved away from him towards the kitchen. Hunter could only sit back and admire her swaying backside.