Maybe this was the beginning of a more understanding relationship?All she could do was hope.
Two weeks later, Lottie would swear that Darren had a split personality.Everything would be going great, and then he would start questioning everything.The girls had started training with Moe last week and had done well.Darren had decided to train 2 and had not done as well.He had a black eye to show for it because he let himself be distracted and wasn't paying close enough attention to what he was doing.He was lucky that Moe had not given it her full strength, or he might be dead.Instead, all he had was a Shiner to show for his efforts.
When they had got home after the training, Carlos had tried to fight his smile, and Flo had simply shaken her head.His mother's reaction seemed to bother him more than the one Carlos had, even though most men would have been inflamed by that smile.Maybe it was because he did not know Carlos well and because he wanted to redeem himself in his mother's eyes.They had talked enough that she knew he regretted much of his past and that he hadn't stayed closer to his mom.Shiloh was the only one who had visited at least once a year and sent her oldest child to visit for a summer.The others had only stayed in touch by phone, and those calls were spotty at best.
Someday, Lottie hoped to have children, and it would break her heart if her children were not closer to her than Flo’s had been.She'd gotten to know Darren a little better, and one time he had leaned in, and she thought he intended to kiss her.It was like he changed his mind, and he pulled back without even saying a word.What did that mean, or did it mean anything?All she could say was that he sent out mixed signals, not only to her but also to any other adults who were around.It was obvious that while Carlos tried hard to develop a relationship with Darren, he was not having much luck.It was disheartening for Carlos because he had many sons and a good relationship with each of them.
Flo's luck was only a little better, and she had walked in on them one time when they had been sharing a dessert and talking about the good old days.Darren had told her that he hoped his girls could be as happy as he and his siblings had been when they were younger.He apologized for not staying closer, and his excuse had been that life had simply gotten away from him.She'd heard that it was a problem with many modern humans.It had even infected some paranormals, but sometimes those problems were simply that the parent and child did not get along.
That made her wonder if she and her future children would be any better off than some of the current ones that rarely saw each other.Why was it Darren who popped into her mind when she thought of children?That was just her being crazy, because, as far as he was concerned, the interest simply wasn't there.It was true they had gotten to know each other better, but there had been no romantic feelings that she could see.On the other hand, one of the guards had asked her out, and he was handsome and funny.Lottie knew it wasn't wise to date on the job, and she had told him so.He chatted, but he looked like he thought he knew something, but he hadn't said anything else.
Raider was the guard who had asked her out, and Ace was the other guard.With wolves, it was hard to tell whether they were their real names or just nicknames.Paranormals weren't the only ones that could give their children unusual names.Certain groups of humans also did the same.She'd never really thought about what she would name a child if and when she had one, but she thought it would be something that would help them fit in.Flo had given her children reasonably standard names, or so she’d said.The only names she knew were Darren and Shiloh.
Eventually, she wondered if she would meet any of the others.Flo talked about her children often and the things they’d done when they were young.The only names she mentioned were the two that were here.Flo was starting to show, and soon she would have another child to raise.Would she do anything differently?Lottie wanted to ask but knew that question was too personal.
It was morning, and she could scent breakfast as she opened her bedroom door to join whoever was in the dining room.Today was Liza’s day off, and the surprise was that Darren was cooking as Flo stood nearby talking to him.It didn’t look like this was his first time cooking.She remembered Flo had mentioned all her kids had learned to cook at home.That was a great skill for anyone to have, and when his ex-wife left, she was sure it had come in handy.
Once breakfast was done, they would go to see Moe to train.
“You’re going to train again?”Moe asked.
“I’ll do better this time,” Darren assured.“Maybe I should spar with Lottie instead.”
Moe started laughing.“You think she’ll be easy?Even Lottie knows a lot more than you do.”
“So that means, okay?”Darren questioned.
“Sure, if Lottie agrees.”Moe declared.
“I guess.But I’ll get to work with you a little at the end?”Lottie wondered.
“Sure.Let’s get started.You two spar, and I’ll get the girls going.”Moe instructed.
Lottie and Darren began to spar.She didn’t know what she should do, so she just deflected his attempts at landing blows.Darren tried harder, but that didn’t help him.He was trying harder and putting more force behind his blows.If they landed, they would hurt.Finally, Lottie did a sweeping kick and knocked him on his ass.
“Aren’t you going to help me up?”Darren asked.
Lottie moved to him and put out her hand.Darren grabbed it and pulled her down on top of him.He kissed her, and she kissed him back.
“You two need to get a room.”Moe cackled.
Lottie’s cheeks turned pink with embarrassment.She wasn't sure what to think about this because he hadn't acted like he'd had any interest before, and now that he did, it was in public.Moe wouldn't let her forget this anytime soon.She'd heard a lot about Moe, and she'd seen enough to know most of it was true.They got back to sparring, and she showed him a few moves and worked with him because it was better than fighting an opponent who needed so much to learn.
“It's time to switch.Darren can work with the girls, and they can spar against each other.”Moe announced.“Try not to hurt me too much.”
Lottie wished she were good enough to kick her ass.That would help her get over her embarrassment.Unfortunately, Moe quickly took her down a couple of times and then began showing her how to avoid it again.She could fight, but she was nowhere near as good as Moe.As a youngster, she had been taught self-defense without offense.Her parents had never been able to see a situation in which she'd have to know how to fight, especially since she had magic as a backup.Relying too much on magic wasn't a good idea since the last time it had drained her, and if any more guys had come after her, she would not have been able to use her magic to protect anyone.
While it was true that fighting could also drain you, it didn't take nearly as much out of her as magic did.Without her backup artifact, she wouldn't have been able to last as long as she did.Right now, she was putting as much magic into her artifact every evening as she possibly could.Learning to fight better would help, but she also needed to find a way to pull in more magical energy to replace what she might use.
A willing person could be used like a battery, but wolves in general weren't willing because they were too nervous of magic, and Darren was even worse than a wolf.He didn't understand how things worked, or, in a bad situation with no other way to defend, she thought he might agree.At some point, he needed to learn more about magic, but she didn't think she knew enough to teach him.That was something Harry would come in handy for, but Harry was so busy that she didn't know when she'd find the time.
They were done with their lessons for the day, and now all she would have on the way home was time to think about that kiss.Why had he done it?There was no doubt that this was not the best place to do something like that.Was it because he was interested in her, or had it been some kind of punishment for her knocking him down?Maybe he'd even thought of it as a joke?She might never know because there was no way she was going to ask.
When they got back, the girls, as was their habit, ran in to share their excitement and tell her all about their lessons.Flo always had a snack waiting for them.Often, they started with cheese and crackers, then moved to some kind of sweets.Today, the sweets were cookies.There were butter cookies and oatmeal raisin cookies.They were all hungry, so it was good that the platters were piled up high.Adele had whispered something in Flo’s ear, and she turned to look at them sharply.
“Somebody’s been kissing, and Adele’s telling,” Flo commented.
Lottie felt her cheeks heat again.She looked at Darren, letting him answer.
