Darkness Falls, Light Rises #Wattys2015

Ch.19

Ch.19
Standing in front of the mirror, my face remained the same: emotionless.

And I hated it.

The entire thing was frustrating. My mind was miles away from my hormones, unable to make the connection that I may like this guy who I was supposed to kill (according to Catherine). I had made a deal with her to kill him and here I was fixing my makeup and getting stressed out about if he would approve. It was fucking ridiculous and yet, at the same time, I needed him. I knew it was weird but he made me forget most of the time. He would never truly understand what I felt and had endured, but he made me feel the best I had in years.

But then there were the ghosts of the past that never ceased to remind me that he loved the idea of Brandy, not Katya.

That resulted in the stoic in the mirror, staring back at me.

It was probably what I looked like when people weren't looking. But I was determined to have real fun with Mason. Not because I had to to keep up appearances, but because I truly wanted some sliver of a happy and normal life. I wanted to forget about my queenly duties and party.

After applying the last of my makeup, I opened my door and laughed quietly when I saw Mason down the hall trying to put on his tie. He was so hopeless.
Sneaking up behind him, I gently put my hands in front of his eyes, laughing even harder when he let out a sigh of utter frustration.

"Anya, I don't have time for this; I don't trust James to be alone with Brandy. Just help me fix my tie or find someone who can."

"Good thing I can." I said, grinning.
Moving my hands away, he turned around, his mouth ready to catch flies. We stood there for a moment in silence, my laughter threatening to overtake me.

"So can I fix your tie now?" I asked, holding the tie's material between my fingers.

"Ummm, yeah." He whispered, looking at me from head to toe. "How?"

"Stop acting like you haven't seen me in my underwear." I mumbled as I concentrated on his tie. "It's gonna be a bow tie."

"I know that, but this is..." He whispered, at loss of words as he gestured to my body.

"Fucking great. I know. That's why I chose this dress."

"But-"

"I wanted to try and see how it would be to mix both cultures. So black and gold, little skin, and a perfume that I found in town while you and Anya were fighting over where to go for lunch." I said patting him on the chest before stepping back to see a perfect tie.
Looking down, he raised his brows, truly surprised. "How did you learn how to do that?"

"My father." I said quickly, wanting to dismiss any thought of him as quickly as possible.

"Your father is smart to teach you."

"Yeah," I mumbled, chewing on the inside of my cheek. "So did you find a date for the ball?"

"Yeah." He replied, his eyes keeping me from looking away.

"Anyways, I guess we should go together since you don't trust James with me and you have a date."

"A date with you!" He shouted as if he wanted the whole world to know.

"Really?"

"Yeah. I mean, umm, yes. I want you to be my date to this dance."

"I think it's proper terminology is 'ball'." I corrected him playfully, knowing that if Anya heard him call it a dance she would flip.

"Fine. I would like to take you to this ball. As my date." He said, clarifying his intentions.

"I'd be delighted."

Walking into the hall, Anya immediately came forward, two drinks in her hand.

"Thank goodness you guys didn't bail. James has been bothering me and only a handful of people have arrived." She said quickly, picking at her nails after she handed us our drinks.

"Anya it's only been ten minutes, give them time. They'll be here." I reassured her, not needing the host to be scared out of her mind.

After she calmed down a little, Mason directed me to the right side where we had made Rider chic (by that I mean, I told them what to get and I did it).

Sitting down on one of the love seats, I smiled when I tasted the drink James had made for me. Ocho Rios. He had worked at the palace, so it would've been hard not to see how much I loved certain drinks.

"Brandy, do you like it here? Being my personal guard, that is." Mason inquired, putting his untouched drink on the table next to him.

"Yeah, I guess. I mean, you're not a terrible person. Sometimes I want to punch you in the face, but that's only when you act like a selfish brat." I answered truthfully, smirking when his mouth swung open.

"I do not act like a selfish brat!"

"You kinda do." I laughed, actually enjoying myself. "But that wasn't the point."

"That you sometimes want to punch me in the face?" He shot back, holding back his laughter.

"No," I paused to run my fingers through my hair. "All I'm saying is that you've made me happy, despite our overwhelming differences." I admitted, heat rushing to my pale cheeks.

"So now we can have intercourse?" He suggested playfully, leaning closer in my direction.

"I don't think you could handle it. Intercourse is a huge commitment." I smirked. "Fucking on the hand is casual and fun. Which would you like to do?"

I laughed, watching him chew on my words. "I think intercourse could be fun; after all, you do have half of my soul. If that isn't commitment, then I don't know what is."

Before I could even blink, he was in front of me, his lips capturing mine. Getting closer, I could smell his aftershave, drowning me in its delicious scent. Grabbing a fist full of his hair, I smiled when there was nothing but clothes between us.

"Brandy, I should tell you something before we start this." He whispered, his eyes glued on my my now swollen lips.

"You started this one, Mason, and intend on finishing it." I mumbled, pulling him back to me, lowering us to floor as I straddled him. "Don't be a wuss."

Pulling at his hair, I moaned loudly as our tongues fought for dominance.

Gently caressing his cheek, I tugged on his hair, earning a low moan.

"You'll be the death of me."

"Shhh." I mumbled, against his lips. I didn't want it to end.

"Brandy, I love you."