We went over our day together at the kitchen table while eating dinner. The meal was a mix of odds and ends, some I couldn’t even identify. It had a fruity sweetness that lingered, not bad, just…different. Blaze explained it was apricot preserves she’d brought over from her apartment. Odd as it was, it filled me up.

  “Will?”

  “Yes?”

  “How long can we keep doing this?” she asked.

  “Doing what? We’re both doing a lot of things.”

  “The Game? Us? Everything?”

  “That’s too big a question to answer. We don’t know…we can’t know.”

  “I know all that. It doesn’t help.”

  “No, I suppose it doesn’t. But it’s the best answer anyone can give right now. I’ve tried to look ahead…guess what’s coming next. I’ve been partly right, but my timing’s always off. I can see a day or two ahead sometimes, but not when something new is going to happen…or what it’ll be. We’ve done things I never thought possible, and from the way people talk, we’ve made it look easy. We both know that wasn’t true.”

  “I know. I keep feeling like we should be doing more,” Blaze said.

  “More what?”

  “I don’t know. I’m not the one with all the answers. Everyone thinks you have them.” She laughed, and I had to join her at that. “And what about us? Where are we going? And don’t tell me to the dungeon tomorrow!”

  This time I couldn’t hold back. “That depends on which dungeon you’re talking about,” I said, breaking into laughter. Her fist connected hard with my shoulder, and the blow only made me laugh harder.

  “You know what I mean.” Her eyes were serious, but I saw the corner of her mouth twitching against a smile.

  “I know. But if you change your mind….” I grinned at her.

  “Please, Will. Be serious for a moment.”

  “I’ll try.” I sobered. “My best answer is I hope it continues…and grows. I haven’t felt this way about someone since my wife and I were first dating. I don’t want to screw it up. I want this to last.”

  “I want it too. You’re the first person since college I’ve wanted to be with full time. At first, I was too busy becoming an agent to even think about anyone. Then, when people found out what I did, some of them literally ran from me. That hurts a woman’s ego. You being so indifferent sometimes hurts, too.”

  “I’m sorry about that. I don’t mean to hurt you. I just don’t want to go too far, too fast…and end up wrecking it. Or you get mad and wreck me. You’re fitter, stronger, and your training’s a lot more recent than mine.”

  “I trust you enough. I don’t think I’d respond badly to what you might do. Unless you surprised me…then training might kick in before I could stop it. But I know you. You want to be too much of a gentleman to really hurt me. You showed that when we fought.”

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  Thinking about what she said, I stood up. “You cooked, so it’s my turn to do the dishes. Take the floor pillow to the bedroom. Wait for me on them until I get there. Put your robes away.” I told her, as I carried the last of the dishes to the sink. I was pointedly not watching her.

  “Yes, sir,” she responded softly, smiling.

  A few hours later, we were resting in bed. Blaze lay on her side with her face on my shoulder, arm across my chest. My left arm curled down her back; my right hand brushed gently along her cheek, across her hair. I traced her smile with a fingertip as we lay together in the quiet.

  “Feeling better now?” I whispered.

  “Mmmmm…yes. Thank you. I could stay this way a long time.”

  “That makes both of us. Eventually, though, we’ll have to get up.”

  “I know. I don’t want to. I like it here.”

  “So do I.” Squeezing her closer and turning her face up to mine, I kissed her again.

  And, of course, that was when we got interrupted.

  [Carlos Torres:] [William of Brinsford] [Are werewolves part of this game?]

  I froze, breaking the kiss.

  “Will? What’s wrong?” Blaze’s eyes snapped open, concern flashing across her face.

  “Carlos just messaged me. Asking about werewolves.”

  “Werewolves?”

  “Yeah. Hold on.”

  Amazing how fast something romantic goes away when danger sticks its ugly snout into the room.

  [William of Brinsford:] [Carlos Torres] [Let me check. Not sure yet. Why?]

  [Carlos Torres:] [William of Brinsford] [Reports came in. At first people thought it was a big dog that got loose. Then someone said it stood up and ran like a man.]

  I was already scrolling fast through the Game Rules.

  [William of Brinsford:] [Carlos Torres] [Sounds like one.]

  [William of Brinsford:] [Carlos Torres] [Yeah. They’re nasty. Stronger the higher their level. Straight out of the movies. They spread Lycanthropy. Got any silver bullets?]

  [Carlos Torres:] [William of Brinsford] [Ha ha. I hope you’re joking.]

  [William of Brinsford:] [Carlos Torres] [Not joking. Regular weapons don’t work well. Silver, magic, Holy weapons cut them up better. And they regenerate.]

  [Carlos Torres:] [William of Brinsford] [Shit. What do we do?]

  [William of Brinsford:] [Carlos Torres] [You’ll need casters or people with Holy spells to bring it down. Where is it now?]

  [Carlos Torres:] [William of Brinsford] [It came in from the south, moving north-northeast. On the north side now. We’re sending cars out. I’ll tell the officers to look it up in the rules.]

  [William of Brinsford:] [Carlos Torres] [Unless they’ve got magic or enchanted gear, tell them to stay clear. I’ll alert the Irregulars. Keep me posted.]

  I turned to Blaze. “Carlos says people spotted a werewolf moving from the south side toward the north. No one hurt yet.”

  She stiffened. “What do we do?”

  “What we always do. But first, showers. We both need one. Gear up after.”

  She slid away from me and stood, already moving toward the other bathroom. “On it.”

  [Carlos Torres:] [William of Brinsford] [Roger that, Warchief.]

  [Carlos Torres:] [William of Brinsford] [Been waiting to say that. I heard it bugs you.]

  [William of Brinsford:] [Carlos Torres] [Yeah, it does. But I can’t stop you. Just keep people away from the wolf and feed me updates. Gearing up now.]

  [William of Brinsford:] [Irregulars] [We’ve got a werewolf sighting. Police confirm it matches. Magic and Holy spells required. Normal weapons barely scratch it so stay away. It’s heading north. Bad feeling about where it’s going. Meet at my place.]

  I went for my own shower. It was time to admit I needed to swap out more of my real clothes for INVENTORY gear. Changing would be faster when seconds mattered.

  “Like now!”

  Blaze was already ready, armored and armed, when I came out. She wore her plate vest and carried a holstered sidearm on a gun belt I hadn’t seen before.

  “Will? You think the werewolf’s coming here? Why?”

  “Because traces of the book and the knife are still here…and in my van. If I’m right, it’ll have the MINION tag too.”

  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qae25976UgA

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