Pre Edit Count –   3,573 Words

Song I listened to for this chapter: Lady Day by Lifehouse

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He holds her close to him as he lets his words sink in.  She finally asks, “Will it be like this all the time?”

He looks down at her, “Like what?”

She looks up at him, and asks, “Our feelings, being so open to each other?  Or will this fade after awhile?”

He kisses her and tells her, “Are you asking if I will be bored of you?  Never.  Will I always treat you as my equal?  Yes. Will we always desire each other?  I pray it is so from your side.  It will be from mine until the end of time.  Is this how we will be from now on, talking out our troubles?  By everything I hold dear, I am working on it being so.  But you need to remember to talk yourself.  I can’t read your mind, but if you tell me your worries and fears, I will do my utmost to banish them from you.  However, you must promise to talk to me.  Deal?”

Bella searches the Bond and his eyes.  When she finds nothing outside of what he has asked, she nods.

Now:

Godric soon sighs.  He doesn’t want to get up from their cuddling, but he knows that they both need to rise and dress.  He, for one, cannot wait to get cleaned up and into new clothing.  He has come a long way from the vampire he had been when he turned Eric.

Looking down at his happy mate, he smirks as he kisses her behind her ear.  “A thaisce, what has you so happy?”

Not opening her eyes, Bella tells him, “Not in pain, feeling loved and cherished.  What woman would not be happy? And I think I just experienced my first orgasm…”  The last is said so softly that Godric would not have heard her if it weren’t for his heightened senses.

He holds her tighter as he speaks softly into her ear, “And it is my extreme joy to have been the first to give that to you.  But, we need to get moving or else Eric will be bursting in here.  I don’t know about you, but I need a shower, and I would treasure it if you wish to join me.  Shower only, a thaisce.  Call it…a chance to get to know each other without any sexual meaning behind it.”  He can’t stop the smirk. While there won’t be any sexual meaning, he will be feasting his senses on her body.  His personal goddess in the flesh.  Who wouldn’t?

Bella opens her eyes and pulls back enough to give him a look. “Really, Godric?  That is the best you can do?”

He playfully growls at her, “Not the best, no.  But do I need to con you into my shower, my nice, warm shower, where I promise to wash your hair for you, my lady?”

Her smile dims and she shyly looks up at him, while her hand traces his tattoo. “Godric, are we moving too fast?”

“No.”

Looking up at him she raises an eyebrow.

He leans down and lightly kisses her lips, then hovers above her, “We are Soul Mates, a pair so rare in the world that most don’t understand the tie we have.  I have waited 2,000 years for you.  You have waited 18 years.  In my mind, we both have waited too long.”

He chuckles as he thinks of Afanasi.  “Not when a personal friend of mine had found his when she was born, though I will give him that he is one of the oldest of us walking the earth.   To have been able to have been with you since you were born, that may have been about the right time.  Either way, nothing that we share or do right now will ever match the love or simple need that we have for each other.  Will I rush this?  No.  But I will take every chance presented to be as close to you as possible.” He holds her face in his hands at the end, gazing into her eyes as he pours out his thoughts on the matter for her to think about.

Bella sighs softly.  Godric tells her just as softly, “If it is too soon, a ghra, tell me.  I can wait.”

Shaking her head, she maneuvers out from underneath the blankets and stands up.  In seconds Godric is right beside her.  He takes her hand in his and, walking backwards, leads her to the bathroom.

Once inside, he smiles when Bella gasps.  He had designed it himself, and is pleased to feel her awe and how much she likes it.  He tugs her around the corner so that she can see the shower and the counters.

Bella cocks her head to the side as she comments, “Are we underground?” The light in the room worries her considering how he had impressed upon her the importance of avoiding UV light, or, rather, sunlight, in their quarters.

He grins as he tugs her closer to him. “Yes.  And the windows by the sink are really white lights behind the shades.  The one above the shower is a reflection that has no UV in it.”  He kisses her throat as he mutters, “Not that it matters anymore for us.” A smile spreads on his face as he thinks about the positives of the earlier revelation, how much he will not miss of his Bella’s life before she turns, and how much she will not miss when she, herself, turns.

Bella frowns, “What?”

Godric grins, “I will let Eric tell you, since it is you two that made it possible.  Plus he will not be patient much longer.  Come, a thaisce, let’s wash, then we are going to go shopping for at least clothing for you and your guardian.”

Bella watches as he turns on the shower, and shyly, undoes her pants.  He has stripped down quickly, and heads to the shower, only stopping just outside of it with his hand outstretched for hers.  She bites her lower lip then steps out of her panties and lets her shirt and bra fall from her shoulders.  She reaches her hand out to him.

Once her hand is in his, he steps under the water, and pulls her quickly in front of him.  He looks down at her face smiling.  Kissing her lips, he simply tells her, “Thank you.” He watches her as he  waits for her to calm down.  Once her initial nerves calm, he smiles more widely at her, and reaches over her to grab the shampoo bottle.  He pours out some, then proceeds to wash her hair, massaging her head as he does so.

As she relaxes into him, his smile gets bigger.  Only stopping long enough to rinse her hair, he massages conditioner into it, letting her head fall on his chest as he works the conditioner into her long locks.  He tells her softly, reverently, “So soft.  I love your hair a thaisce.  It is most pleasing to run my hands through it.  In fact, a ghra, I think you may have a problem.”

She smiles as he carefully rinses her hair, and she looks up to him, “Oh?”

He watchs as he carefully makes sure everything is rinsed well.  “I think it will be hard for me to keep my hands out of your hair. Especially after seeing and feeling it slide through my fingers like the silk it resembles.” His eyes remain fixed as he stares at her hair under the water; feeling it slide through his fingers is enough to stir him.

She can’t help but laugh. She cannot lie… she had looked him over pretty thoroughly earlier as she stepped to him.  To say he was large for being flaccid is like stating that the sky is blue.  But now, standing so close to him, listening to him, feeling him on her thigh, the look on his face actually mirrors his expression from when he had been adoring her body earlier. “Your face looked the same earlier.” She is surprised that he is actually turned on by her, much less her hair.

Godric looks her in her eyes. “Why wouldn’t it?  I love all of you, a ghra.  So why would I look any different now, worshiping you as I clean your heavenly body, than I did earlier when I could not only worship with my eyes, but with my whole body?”

She just stares at him, her shock evident in her features and in the Bond.

He grabs a loofah and, picking through his soaps, grabs one that isn’t too masculine scented and uses it.  He starts at her throat, and gently washes his mate as she is in shock.  His smile soon widens as she doesn’t seem to notice that he is washing all of her.

He takes care, and notices that she has no hair other than her head and a neatly trimmed patch between her creamy legs.  He is curious, but doesn’t want to break the silence.  Unfortunately, he is soon finished with his thorough cleaning of her delightful body, and not able to stretch it out any longer. A soft sigh escapes him as he positions her body under the main shower head to make sure there is no soap remaining on her body.  He thinks of how he will try to remember to take her to buy creams and lotions and such for her body.  Women delight in those things, he believes.  He personally will delight in laving the cream on her body, making sure it is soft and well kept.

But then his small Mate surprises him.  Sometime during his cleansing of her body, she had snapped out of it and just watched him.  She could sense him being curious, but other than that, he did nothing but bathe her.  And the whole time, his affection for her, the love that he was feeling more and more, is the strongest emotion she could feel coming from his side of the Bond.

So she decides to return the gesture.  She takes the loofah, puts more shower gel on it, and starts cleaning him.  She herself spends a little more time on his tattoos as they fascinate her. When she goes around to his back, she gasps slightly as she sees in detail the brand that looks as if it had been applied just that same day.  She hesitantly touches it.

“It doesn’t hurt.”

She jumps and can see him looking over his shoulder to her.  He smiles and repeats, “You can touch it.  It doesn’t hurt.” He had been curious about what she had been doing behind him, and had controlled his body well while she was so reverently touching the marks on his back.  Even when she had trailed her hand around the chief’s mark on his chest and moved around to his back he had barely managed to prevent a shudder from her light touch. But the way she had reacted and even hesitated to touch the brand on his shoulder had him encouraging her to touch it.  She should never be hesitant to touch any part of his body.  Never.

Shaking her head from her start when he spoke, she asks, “But… how can you… leave it there?  Can you not remove it?” Seeing it, remembering what it means, and why it was put on him, makes her heart ache.  Him, a Chieftain of one of the strongest tribes of his time, reduced to nothing but a slave?  Why would he want to leave such a permanent mark for anyone to see, to know?

He smiles and turns to face her. Taking her shoulders in his hands, he answers her question, “Why would I?  It is just like the other marks on my body; they are all signs that I have survived.  Each one of the other marks tells a story, and I am not ashamed of it.  I survived.  But if you wish it gone, I can have Eric take care of it.”

If it bothers her, it would only be some pain before the skin grew back.  He would trust Eric to cut deeply enough to get it all in one go.  Anything she doesn’t like, he can happily suffer through very minor pain to have it removed.  With what he has suffered through the years, he has retouched his own marks a couple of times.  When he gets the chance, he will be adding another mark on his left arm to commemorate finding his Mate.  When he Mates her, he will work on adding another band of runes to his right arm to show that event in his life.  He had last added a band for Eric’s turning, but never had enough to add a band of runes.  He will be glad to be able to finally celebrate these positive changes in his life.

Her eyes search his as she asks, “If it doesn’t matter, then it is fine.  But why would you remove it if I don’t like it?  It’s your body.” She is confused, what does it matter what she likes or dislikes?  It is his body.  Or is he going to try to dictate to her how her own body looks?

He smiles crookedly.  “Because it is yours too, a thaisce.  If it bothers you, I will have Eric cut it out.  That is how most of our kind have gotten rid of tattoos and other marks.  I have even known Makers to force their children to cleanse their body to make sure it never has marks.” He will never do so to her or Eric, or to any other children he may have in the future.  But in the future, he knows they will be their children.  Something in the old records, and what Afanasi had told him, hints that any future children will be both of theirs.  Because of the rarity of Mates in their world, none of them have experimented on this…

She is shaking her head halfway through his answer and her hand is spread on his chest, as if to stop him. “No!” She never wants him to have any pain.  And just hearing him talk about having Eric cut it out so casually gave her sympathy pains up the sides of her thighs.

He reaches up to hold her close to him, and purrs to calm her.  “My lady, it would not really hurt.  And if you do not like it, I would do whatever it took for you to be happy.”  His life is hers, in every single way she can ever imagine.  He will do anything to make her happy.

She shakes in his arms, the thought of what he is proposing to do… “No, it only bothers me if it bothers you.  Otherwise, I think all your marks, as you call them, are beautiful.  But never do something like that just to please me.  I am not worth it!” No one should put themselves through pain just to please another!

He kisses her forehead, still purring as he tells her softly, “You are more than worth it, a thaisce.  But if you are happy with it, then I will leave it.”  He holds her as she calms down, letting the water sluice between their bodies, rinsing away the pain of the years between them, allowing for a new beginning.

E

ric is reclining on the couch as he converses with Paul while he waits on his lillasyster and Godric.  When they exit their room, he looks up and teases her, “That shirt looks a little large on you, syrra.” He is dressed in what Pam calls his normal downtime attire, a black track suit.

Bella is wearing a black button down shirt from Godric’s closet.  She also has on her jeans from yesterday, but she had thrown the shirt she had been wearing away, asking to borrow one.  She was slightly uncomfortable going without underwear, but Godric’s appreciative look when he realized she was going commando more than made up for it.  Unfortunately for her frame of mind, she had no idea what he was wearing under his jeans and Henley.

“I’m  happy that I can get some other clothes.  After I broke my leg, Alice had stayed to help me with private stuff.  Somehow, she had managed to throw away all my clothes.  Every time I bought anything new that was more to my taste, it was gone, replaced the following day.” She stated it as though it was normal for someone to take control of another’s life to that point.

Eric couldn’t help the growl that slipped out, but he is quickly in front of her, his hand cupping her chin as he looks down at her. “Well, I promise you won’t have that problem here.  Let’s get going, you’ll probably love to have some clothing in more your own taste.” He grins down at her, his protective instincts even stronger since she looks like a young girl in her current clothes.  He can see that no matter what she borrowed, nothing would have fit since Godric and she are so different in size.  Even Pam, as petite as she is, would look large next to his dainty little sister.

Bella huffs.

Eric raises his eyebrow. “Is there something wrong? Syrra?” He will do anything to make her happy, so seeing her so obviously upset is making him wanting to fix it.

Looking up at him, she tells him flatly, “Ever since Alice, I hate shopping.  I really see nothing fun about trying on a ton of clothes.”

Godric just starts laughing. He wraps his arms around her and whispers her in her ear, “Then this Alice knew not how to shop.  Come, a ghra.  Let’s teach you the correct way to shop.” He had called ahead and had everything ready for his little one when they arrived.  He is looking forward to the evening and learning his Mate’s tastes.

Paul watches this with interest.  He is, quite frankly, fascinated with Bella.  Yes, she had dated a leech, and technically she was imprinted on by another, but Godric and Eric are not what he imagines when he thinks of the leeches.  But she is so… different.  She so easily accepts both of them just as they are.  Sam had asked Eric if he could show Paul any of the ceremony, and he was allowed to only after Paul had sworn to the same Oath.  To find out that an actual Goddess had blessed her…it made the world get just that much bigger than what he was already reeling from.  But this petite woman, who has both of these powerful vampires basically wrapped around her little finger, doesn’t give the impression that anything is any different for her.  It is as though she doesn’t realize her own power.

He follows them out the door, watching how Godric acts a lot like Sam does with Emily, but is somehow even more intense with Bella.  It’s like he needs to have his hand on her.  At the same time, she also seems to need it, too.  She relaxes with his touch.  And when he pulls her into his lap, her body completely relaxes into his.

The group talks as Eric maneuvers the town car into the Dallas traffic, and heads to one of Godric’s places.  It had been Pam’s idea one evening when Godric and she had been talking, and the project had taken off.  He had looked at the possibilities of it, and noticed that, as Pam had indicated, no one was taking advantage of technology to make some inroads in the supreme type of boutique for clothing.

With Pam’s advice as they put together the first one, the store had paid for its conception within one month, and had set the trend in that type of service in the circles of the influential.  In reward, Godric had given Pam her own store in New Orleans, and they are making money over fist.  They had opened boutiques in France and Italy just last month to even more acclaim and success.

So when they pulled up to a building that was tastefully accented with lighting and landscaping, and came to a stop under the awning with a valet quickly appearing to open their doors, Bella is a little bewildered.  “I thought we were going shopping?” This looked nothing like what Alice had dragged her to even in Seattle the few times they had made their way there.  In fact, this looked much more like a restaurant than a place to buy clothes, much less the amount of clothing that Eric and Godric had indicated that she would be buying tonight.

Godric kisses her on the forehead then ushers her towards the entrance.  “We are, a thaisce.” He grins, looking forward to seeing her reaction.  It may have started off as Pam’s idea, but he took it and worked with it until it was something that he is actually proud of.  Even for him, shopping is much easier.  He had streamlined Pam’s idea in a way that makes it easy for even him to buy his own garments.  Gone were the days when Pam shopped for Eric and him, though she still had a bad habit of buying them clothing.

Eric walks beside Bella, and throws an arm around her shoulders. “Welcome to Gúnaí álainn.  Pam’s idea, which turned into the ball of Dallas.”  When she gives him a look, he freely laughs.  “Just wait, lillasyster, you will see the brilliance of your Mate.  He took a rant of Pam’s and turned it into a business like no other.”  His eyes actually seem to be glowing as he walks them through the entrance as the people inside open the doors for their party.

As they walk in, they see the manager standing there smiling.  She moves forward and bows to them.  “Welcome!  My name is Audrey. Godric, I have reserved the main room for you.  You said that your Mate is the primary?” She looks at the petite woman standing between Eric and Godric.

He nods as he releases her onto Eric’s arm.  He turns to Paul, “Is this ok?” He didn’t want the man who had given up everything to be the Guardian of his life to be uncomfortable.  But at the same time, he is looking forward to his little one seeing how different things will be with him.

Paul chuckles, “I have no idea what is going on.  I just need some jeans and such.” He shrugs.  While he has money, and it never bothered him to buy clothes, he has kept his style easy since none of the rest of the pack could afford the same things that he could.  He didn’t need yet another reason for the tribe to dislike him, and putting on airs, according to the rest of them, would have been a huge incentive for them to be upset.

Audrey grins, and she looks to Eric, “I can have him in a side room.  Which styles will he be needing to choose from?” She knows that Bella will be her primary focus, but she knew how important the Guardians are to the Bloodline, of which she, herself, is a member.  Her lead salesperson will be taking care of the tall Native American.

Eric grins as he looks over at his syrra.  “He is to be her Guardian, so I am not sure what will be needed. I don’t really care as long as he doesn’t stick out too much.” He hopes she can read between the lines that until they get a clearer idea of how Bella is, they will need to take a middle line with Paul’s clothing.  He has no idea of how she will want to be viewed.  Eric knows that as far as he and Godric are concerned, she is a Queen, and will be heavily involved in their plans and meetings from now on.

Eric nods down to Bella. “This is the one that I care about.  No pushing her, I want someone with us who will work with her, not someone busy trying to make a commission.” His eyes are soft looking down at her, but his voice is commanding, telling Audrey all she needs to know.  This woman is to be treated better than Eric and Godric.  Not even Pam commands the service of these two vampires.

Audrey nods.  “I planned to take care of her myself.  I figured that she will be here often and that it would be best to make a book on her.”  She nods to herself, and then holds her arm out indicating the room for them.  “I will be in after I settle Mr. Lahote in here.” The men escort Bella into the room, with both Audrey and Paul watching as the doors close.  Paul can already hear Eric teasing Bella on her style since she is from the birthplace of grunge.   He smirks as he hears her snort at Eric’s own outfit.

Turning back to Audrey, Paul raises his eyebrow to her.  “How did you know my name?”

She grins as she leads him down the hall. “Godric let me know who was in the party.  I figured out pretty quickly who you are since Godric and his Child are famous.  Or at least they are in our world.  His Mate is a lucky woman.”  There is a slight tone of wistfulness in her voice, but then, Paul figures that anyone would be wistful for the treatment that those two are giving Bella.

Paul chuckles and watches as she leads him into the room.  A guy was standing there with an iPad in his hands.  “Let Troy here take care of you.  You are in for a surprise.”  With that she leaves after giving him a grin as she closes the doors behind her.

Eric and Godric are chatting with Bella when Audrey makes her way back into the room.  She walks forward, grabs her iPad from a nearby seat, and sits with them.

She addresses Bella, “Now, have you ever heard of Polyvore?”  She smiles at the petite woman, her head busy mentally measuring her.  For the lingerie and such, she will measure her later.  But for now, it was more important to relax Bella and to find her style than make her uncomfortable in asking for measurements.  Audrey is rarely wrong when she estimates, and she is sure that is what is needed this night.  Bella did not look comfortable yet, and it is her job to make this easy on her.

When Bella shakes her head no, she smiles. “Well, what we are going to do is similar to it.  I am going to pull up some collections and you tell me what you like and dislike about them.  No pressure, just tell me your thoughts on them, even if there is simply an aspect of the clothing that you like, maybe the color, like the pants if we had them in black instead of grey or a straight skirt instead of the one shown.  As I get a sense of your style, we will move on.  If you find something you love and want, let me know.  Everything on here is available.” She smiles as she pulls up the account she had made for Bella per Godric’s orders.  Just as in Polyvore, Bella can make her decisions without caring about or even seeing the price of the items.

Eric looks at his syrra and tells her, “Audrey is really good. Just relax, and we will have fun.” He is sprawled out in the chair beside her.  He had an iPad of his own, and before Audrey had came in, he had made some selections for himself to be delivered at the house.  He normally didn’t have many suits here, and he suspects he will need some soon.

And, amazingly enough, Bella did have fun.  Eric encouraged her to express herself, as did Godric.  They could feel in their Bonds with her when she did like something but thought it was expensive or something that would not be appropriate.  They had no issue with telling Audrey if Bella didn’t tell the woman herself.  The sense of style they were getting from her is unique.  She had no problem with dressing for meetings and such and both Eric and Godric highly approved of the clothing she picked out.  For casual, but where she thinks it might matter, her tastes were more relaxed, but still more than appropriate to be in meetings.  Her “at home lounge around” clothes, as she called them, were completely opposite.

They ordered Bella something to drink, and after a while, Paul came in to sit with them.  In less than twenty minutes, he was debating with them on the styles and such, hanging on the back of the chair behind Bella, explaining why he will help her walk in heels, since some of the dresses she had chosen just called for them.

Then Bella had a shock.  There came a model show.  And some of the clothing she had loved is there, and all she had to do is say yeah or nay.  And the men, along with Audrey, have no problems debating with her on what they thought of the clothing, with Eric and Godric chiming in that when she is changed, she will lean towards the softer fabrics when she wanted to relax.

After a while she became used to it, and really started to have fun.  With the iPad she could put together outfits, and then view them in person to see if they look the way she had imagined.  The freedom to express herself was liberating, and, along with the group chiming in with their thoughts, she is comfortable enough to express herself in ways she never imagined.

Godric had relaxed his arm where it rested behind his Mate as he watched her along with her Guardian and Eric debating styles.  He can feel her enjoyment, and noticed that she liked classical clothing, but at the same time she loves to have fun with the additional items.

He is also noting what kinds of jewelry she likes since he plans to drape her in jewels.  He acknowledges when Eric glances at him as he, too, notices the same things.  It will be easy, but hard to find her things since she loves the unique.  This makes him happy; he will love looking for stuff.  He had told Audrey to make sure that anything she wished was available for this shopping trip, no matter the price.  He can afford this and many, many more shopping trips.  He grins as notices that sometimes she innocently picks outfits that would shock her at the price, while the next has something that costs less than $10.

Eric notices it, as well, and also sees how she mixes up stuff, like the pearl necklace choker that has a platinum heart hanging from where it joins.  His syrra has a taste for the unique, but all in all he enjoys himself as he encourages her to open up.

Paul is the one who reminds them that Bella needs to eat, along with himself.  They order in, and by midnight they are almost done.  Bella had left at one point to change, and returned looking more relaxed than she had when she came in.  She had kept on Godric’s buttoned down shirt as a light jacket, and he had grinned as she walked in.  He can definitely understand why men loved to see their women in their clothes.

He watches as she eats, and only trades a look with Eric that the slight pain he is taking from her increases as the night goes on.  He is not happy about it, and will see if he can give her some blood later.  But, for now, he will try to make sure she has as much time here as she wishes.

Eric too is unhappy with the reminder that while the pain is building more slowly, it seems the only answer will be to change her.  He urges himself to remember as much as he can about the human Bella, but in a way he is looking forward to vampire Bella.

Unfortunately all good things must come to an end.  Audrey promises them that the clothes will be delivered by morning, and they soon leave.  Bella is curled up with Godric who is seated in the front seat this time with Eric, laughing at Paul stretched out on the back seat of the car.

She looks up as Eric pulls into a warehouse area.  She lifts an eyebrow, “Another business?”

Godric snorts. “No.” This warehouse is one of his that he uses in case he has to punish those who think they are above the rules he has set for his area.  But for tonight, it is being used for a totally different purpose.

Eric helps her out of the car, and gives a hand to Paul as he unfolds himself from the back seat with the comment, “The SUV should be here tomorrow.  Godric hasn’t needed a vehicle that seats more than two for a long time.”

Shaking his head at Eric, Godric dryly comments, “Nor do I really need one now.  You can fly.” He had ordered the vehicle for his Mate.  But he can see himself enjoying it.  He is also, per Eric’s suggestion, ordering a Guardian for her.  Eric will also have one for her to use when she visits him.

Eric grins at them. “But I enjoy being with my syrra!  You wouldn’t deny me that, would you, Master?” He tries to give Godric a sad face, but the effect is ruined by his laughing eyes and the overall impression Eric is giving of a much younger man.  Bella had already teased him about his hair, and after conceding an outfit to him, he agreed to get a haircut before the night is out.

Bella is grinning at them as they walk into the warehouse.  Then she stops in amazement.  “Wow.”

The vast space in front of them is full.  It has furniture set out like rooms, and has unique one of a kind items mixed in with others.  Eric leans down and tells her, “Welcome to a little repository of your Mate’s belongings.” He watches for her reaction, and it didn’t fail him this time as it did earlier.

She squeaks out, “Small?”

Looking around the choices he had indicated earlier in the day, Godric offhandedly comments to her, “Maybe a small percent of it.  If you do not find anything for our home here, I will gladly let you look through the inventory online.  I just thought this might be easier.” He is also noticing the superb job the team did in hiding the true purpose of this warehouse.  Later Bella will know about it, but right now she has enough on her plate.

Bella looks back at Paul, her eyes wide as she mouths, “A percent?”

He laughs at her.  Godric looks down as he tells her seriously, “Be picky, a thaisce, please.  I want our home to have only what you wish it to have.  If there is nothing I own that will satisfy you, let me know, and it will be purchased or made.  Your imagination is the limit.”  He wants their home to be comfortable for her, a place where she can retreat when their lives became hectic.

Watching her face, Eric tells him, “I think you overwhelmed her, Godric.”

Paul is looking around and causally mentions, “I am overwhelmed, and I ain’t exactly poor.” He is amazed by the selection surrounding them.

Godric just shakes his head.  Neither of them can truly understand that both he and Eric have lived a very long time.   With a long life comes a great many belongings, and both of them believe in safety.  They switch out homes often, and Pam loves to redecorate for them.  Nudging his mate, he tells her, “Go look.  You don’t have to choose anything right now.  Act like you are in a showroom without any pushy salesmen.  Just make mention to me or Eric what you like, and we will remember it for you.”  And they will also remember any details to help her with any decorating she wishes to do.  He has a feeling that they will be visiting paint stores soon, too, since she has mentioned how she hates the white.

Taking a deep breath, Bella does as he asks.  Telling him as they start, “I have a feeling I am going to be shopped out by the end of the night.”

Godric chuckles. “This is only the beginning, a thaisce.  We have much more to do, but take your time.  We are in no hurry.”

And with that, the foursome work their way through the warehouse, soon joking and laughing as they walk among priceless artifacts that Bella has no idea that were brought out of hiding specifically for her to look at tonight.  Tomorrow they will be shipped back to the safe climate-controlled storage facilities where they had previously been hidden.

Final count:  6,236 words.

Fairfarren~Wendy