Corn, Cows, and the Apocalypse

Attempted Enlightenment and Champagne

Two glasses of champagne later, the sudden realization that I had been wearing the life of a dead woman the last year and a half was starting to sound less dramatic. If the champagne wasn't enough to tame my thoughts, my first glimpse of Garrett was.

He was in fine form, mock fighting his human opponents with a wooden sword. He easily bested everyone they paired him with. I couldn't help but feel pride in each of his wins. I applauded a little too loudly after each one.

He caught my eye after one win, and I smiled the smallest smile I could. I wanted to grin and wave, like an idiot, but I knew he wouldn't respond well to that. He didn't smile back, which was no surprise, but he did offer a curt nod. It was enough, enough to keep me from throwing my champagne glass at him in jilted frustration.

"So..." Jimmy's elbow slipped over the back of his chair and he looked at me. "What are you going to be competing in? Your friend is obviously going to place tonight." Jimmy nodded to August, who had also beaten her last three opponents. I felt a tinge of guilt for watching Garrett instead of her. "That will be three out of four. What about you?"

Before I could answer, Devin put his arm around me and squeezed my shoulder a little too firmly. "Lenore is going to compete in the archery tournament."

"Oh, really?" Jimmy said with genuine surprise, though I wasn't sure why. He didn't know me. Perhaps my cleavage was making me look inadequate as a contender. I smiled and nodded shyly about the admission. "I look forward to it." He smiled and glanced at my chest.

I looked away, uncomfortable with his attentions, innocent as they were. That was the problem with dressing to please your man—it also pleased other men.

I caught the eye of Adrian Dorn in the mayor's box to my left. There was an entry point to the arena between us, but no other obstructions. He nodded at me and looked me over. A small smile formed after his inspection was through. He apparently approved of my outfit as well.

He looked back at his company and nodded up the stadium. He stood wiping down his bland sweater. He wanted to meet.

I looked back at Devin. He was distracted by August and Garrett mock fighting. Neither of them appeared to be letting up, but since they knew each other so well, the fight looked like a dance more than a match.

"I have to go do something," I said before stepping past him. I thought that would be the end of it, but he pulled me back onto his lap.

"Where?" he asked, not taking his eyes off the fight.

"I'll be within eyeshot." I didn't let him continue his investigation and he seemed to know that I wasn't interested in him joining me. He let me go and I stepped out of the box.

I met Adrian over the entryway between our two boxes. He was taller then I remembered, but I was standing on stairs the last time I met him. I did, however, remember how his touch made me feel.

This time his hands were tucked in the pockets on his pants. The only physical movement he made toward me was a slight bow. "Hello." He smiled and rocked back on his feet. He at least appeared to be nervous.

"Hi," I said, trying even now to figure out why I had come to meet him. Instincts were fine and dandy, but until I learned how to drive them, they were going to get me into some serious accidents.

"You look nice," he said, pointedly looking away after he said it. This man was not shy, but he was pretending to be.

"Thank you. I was going for sexy, but I guess nice will do." I leaned my hip against the railing in front of us and crossed my arms. I realized that it was only exasperating my cleavage, so I put my arms down again.

"Your body is sexy," he smirked, leaning his elbows on the railing beside me so he was facing the tournament. "You've just decorated it nicely."

I couldn't muster a smile for his efforts. "I want to apologize for August's behavior last time we were here." He looked out at August. I followed his gaze and saw that she was watching us. Garrett was taking interest in our meeting as well. I didn't have much time. "She's a little overprotective," I said.

"I can see that." He sounded annoyed.

"She doesn't usually like my friends." I huffed as if I too was frustrated.

"I'm not sure we've known each other long enough to be friends, Lenore." He smirked at me again.

"What, haven't you heard of friends at first sight?" I asked, finally finding a smile for him.

"I believe the phrase is love at first sight."

"A misnomer, don't you think?" I flipped my hair back out of my face, even though it wasn't in my way. "Love at first sight. I mean, let's face it, two people drawn to each other across a room. They aren't thinking about touching each other's hearts, are they?"

His smile brightened and he stood up. I did the same, licking my lips as I did. "What do you suppose then, Lenore? Should it be lust at first sight?"

"Definitely." I winked. I trailed my finger down his sleeve toward his hand. He smiled, glancing down at my innocuous flirtation. Even without contact, his proximity made me uncomfortable. I fought on and reached for his hand. It took everything I had to grip his fingers.

At first I didn't feel anything but the warmth of his hand, but then it felt wrong. So very, very wrong.

"What the hell are you doing?" Devin ripped me away from Adrian.

Shit, too soon.

"Excuse us, Mr. Dorn," Devin fumed before he yanked me along behind him. I offered Adrian an apologetic shrug on the way. He didn't look happy about my sudden exit. Neither was I, but for completely different reasons.