Chapter 20

Rose is his wife?! That is a problem... right? And what's up with this big guys sense of privacy?

I watched Nicholas for a moment and wondered if he was trying to send a message or something. Was he trying to warn me to stay away from his wife? Was he trying to make me uncomfortable?

Or worse, was he also an odd one like his wife? My head felt like it was going to explode from the unexpected situation and the implications.

Maybe staying here wasn't a good idea. Thinking about it, I decided finding a new residence might be worth the effort.

As I was about to awkwardly close the door in Nicholas unreadable face, I heard a pair fo feet stomping up the stairs.

"Dad, what are you doing standing around up here? I need help! You always try and slink off and avoid work."

The voice belonged to a girl. One right on the edge of maturing into a woman. She had long blond hair in a ponytail with a few messy strands hanging loose over her forehead and her deep blue eyes. Despite calling Nicholas her father, she didn't take after his body type at all. She had an elegant and womanly build and a height of about 5' 8".

I watched as she approached from behind Nicholas. She was about to pull on his arm in the direction of the stairs when she noticed me.

"Dad come on, I nee-..."

She darted behind the mass of her father and hid. I reacted to the situation too late to save myself or this girl the embarrassment but quickly closed the door anyway. I could hear her speak words in an awkward tone through the door.

"I'm sorry. I didn't know anyone was up here. I, I, um... Dad, let's go downstairs. He needs his privacy. It's getting busy downstairs."

I could hear the young woman scolding her father in hissing but hushed tones as she and Nicholas moved to head downstairs.

Standing on the other side of the door and listening to them part, the image of the girl flashed into my head. I didn't get to see much of her, but she had left an impression.

Who was that girl? She called Nicholas dad. She lives here too?

Maybe staying here for a bit wouldn't be so bad? Yes, it would be rude to just up and leave. These people had been great hosts so far. They had opened their home and hearth to me and put a roof over my head. I should stay and show my gratitude however I can. It was the right thing to do!

With the decision to stay here for a while made, I dried my body and put on Nicholas's spare clothes with a smile on my face. They were too large by a rather sizable margin, but I made do by rolling the sleeves up and tucking the shirt in. The pants were slightly baggy but between fixing them up with a belt and rolling the pant legs up a bit, they would do.

After getting dressed and putting my dirty clothes back into my bag in the room, I went down the stairs and into the common room of the inn.

Nicholas was busy behind the bar getting drinks. There were more customers scattered around the large room than when I had come in. The inn seemed to be hitting a busy part if the day.

The golden-haired girl flit between the kitchen and the tables in the common room. She carried rather large plates of food and drinks to tables full of dirty and rough looking men.

The men tried to compete for her attention and tease her but all attempts were expertly ignored as the lovely young lady seemed to dance from table to table. She was like a drop of serenity among the growing chaos of the common room. When she disappeared into the kitchen and didn't immediately show again, I felt a pang of regret.

Without her lovely presence in the room, it immediately became a boring place. The men who roamed the room with a beer in hand while smelling to high hell held no interest to me. I had seen it before.

Making my way to the bar I sat down in one of the stools next to Nicholas and a little away from any of the men drinking at the bar.

Before I could say anything Nicholas set a mug of clear liquid before me and leaned on the bar from his side.

"Here. It's good stuff. I made it. We treat it like mother's milk. It's very smooth. Drink up!"

The drink had already been poured. It would be rude to deny the offer. Plus it was just some weak brew. So I accepted the offer.

When I took the first swig of the brew I didn't hold back. A man is not supposed to be timid. I regretted the action immediately.

The alcohol felt like a liquid fire that began to burn its way towards my stomach. Halfway through my swig I almost choked on the fire like brew.

Some of the alcohol spilled down the edges of my mouth as I fought back the urge to spasm and cough. The aftertaste was horrendous. It tasted like gasoline had been poured down my mouth. Making small suppressed coughs, I leaned onto the bar and closed my eyes.

"What is it too strong for you?"

The way Nicholas said it riled me up. It felt like he was questioning my manhood. I felt a foolish desire to show the man some steel. I looked him straight in the eyes.

"No. The alcohol is fine. The taste is much like mother's milk. Smooth. Just like you said."

Nicholas beamed at me.

"Good! Drink up. I brew all kinds of alcohol. I want to know what you think of them all!"

Oh no. I had walked into a trap! Nicholas's gaze told me so. I was a fool! How could I back out of this now?

"I don't have any money currently. I can't pay for this right now. I would if I could but-"

"No no no. You're my guest! Drinks are on me tonight!"

My mind raced for ways to turn down the offer. Just as I started to think about saying I was too tired a set of manly hands clasped my shoulders.

"Yes! You're our guest. Drinks are on us tonight! Don't worry about it!"

Rose had nearly draped her body over me while she kneaded my shoulders. My body went tense at her sudden arrival and her hands on nature. The fact that she was like this in front of her husband also threw me for a loop.

Between their harmonic coaxing, eventually, they got me to finish the drink. The brew was very strong alcohol in a very large cup. I knew that even with the enhancements my body had received it wouldn't take more than a few of these drinks to make me tipsy. A few more than that would get me sloppy drunk.

Just as they started talking about pouring me another drink in almost unison like agreement, my savior came. From a door behind the bar, the golden-haired girl came out in a rush.

"DAD! What are you doing? I need help!... Mom, you're home already?! Good! You can help too. What are you two..."

She then saw me. She had a look of consternation on her face. She knew her parents well and could guess better than me what was happening. She closed her eyes, raised her face, and looked to be pleading with a higher power for a moment.

After a moment her lovely blue eyes shot open and she rushed forward in a huff. Her father took a sudden step back and her mother did as well. The bar between Rose and her daughter appeared to have little effect on Rose's fear for her daughter.

The beautiful young girl who seemed very harried reached up and grabbed her father's ear with a twist. Nicholas let out a yelp and lowered his head to try and alleviate the pain of his daughter viscously tugging at his ear. Air hissed out of his teeth.

The girl, who now seemed more like a Valkyrie than a tavern girl, glared daggers at her mother. She didn't say anything for a few moments as her mother withered under the look.

The entire common room went almost silent while the girl stared at her mother. I could swear the temperature in the room had dropped a few degrees.

"Mother... would you please join me and father in the kitchen for a talk."

The voice was silky soft and lovely as always, but it had a hint of metal to it. It offered no warmth and seemed to imply disobedience was not acceptable.

I looked on in fascination as both husband and wife hung their heads and slowly walked into the kitchen like prisoners heading towards the execution grounds. To them, she was an executioner. To me, she was a guardian angel!

This girl had fire! I should have guessed it. With parents like this, it was no wonder. She had tamed her parents well. As well as can be expected with weirdo parents like these, anyway.

I smiled and tried to listen in to the ear full I could hear the young girl give her parents on the other side of the kitchen door.

A hand landed on my shoulder startling me from my inner musings. A half drunk man with an impressive beard leaned over and whispered to me with a cunning smile on his face.

"Be careful lad... you wouldn't be the first young man to chase the hare and instead get caught by a bear."

Looking the man in his eyes for a moment, I looked down the bar to see half a dozen other men also smirking at me.

A feeling of embarrassment rolled over me. Had I really been seen through so easily? I didn't even know these men. I was only a little intrigued by the young blonde haired girl. That's all! And what exactly did they mean by bear? Were they talking about Rose or her husband? And if they meant Nicholas... in what way did they mean It?

"We have seen this play out a few times. Some young buck comes sniffing around the lady and doesn't realize he is as much prey as she is in this place. Most are able to scurry away and give up after too many close calls. But... those that fail to escape... Well, they are changed forever."

The entire bar burst into laughter at the man's words. A few of the men spoke. Their words were not encouraging. One told me to run for the hills. Another said something about sitting down being hard for me from now on. And one winked and said, "maybe you will like it?"

I sat on the stool and brooded. They were making fun of me. My reaction only made the men giggle harder.

Nicholas appeared from the kitchen moments later with a chastised look. He started serving drinks to the customers again. Rose also stepped out of the kitchen and began to clean dirty tables and clear empty plates off of them.

It seemed they were warned about bothering me and they were doing their best not be chastised again. They still took every chance they could to make me feel uncomfortable.

Nicholas kept staring at me and Rose found every excuse in the book to pass by me and run her fingers over my back or through my hair.

The men who had joined in laughing at my odd circumstances quieted down eventually and the room began to descend into the chaos every good bar room had.

The men proved to be talkers and I struck up conversations with them. Most of them had a few giggles at my expense here and there but seemed to be genuinely alright people. They were the Lonely Crow's regular customers.

They filled me in on the day to day here at 'The Crow" as they called it. Nicholas brewed the alcohol and served the beverages. Rose worked in the security forces as a platoon leader but helped however she could when not at work. Both Rose and Nicholas were not people to mess with apparently and that kept trouble makers away.

Alice, their daughter was the real head of the inn. She did everything in her power to keep her unruly and odd parents from tanking the business. She ruled the bar room and the kitchen with an iron fist.

Regret filled me at not hearing the girls name from her own lips. Alice was a good name. It suited her well.

I'm a young man. A young man with hormones coursing through his veins. Probably more so after the enhancements. It wasn't love I felt. I hadn't even known her name until a moment ago, but she had definitely caught my eye. I couldn't help smiling every time her head darted out from the kitchen door to check on her parents. Both of whom were on their best behavior when she was looking.

The men at the bar slowly introduced themselves. A few of them even bought beer for me. They loved to throw in little jokes when they did. Things like "you'll need it." Or "it will help with... later.".

Deciding to take the jokes on the chin with good nature, I accepted the drinks and got down to learning about this city. The men were more than willing to answer questions and teach me the ropes. I received a lot of helpful information from the men.

It was always easiest to get a man talking once you got a few drinks in him. Usually, it was me buying drinks for others in an attempt to rattle some info loose. Now I was being treated.

The overdrinking became a problem though. I couldn't turn down drinks constantly or I would risk ruining the forthcoming and open attitude of these men. They like most drunks were a fountain of info. Nicholas also came over from time to time and replaced my empty cups with full ones.

By the time the room started to clear out, I noticed there were a half dozen of my new friends nearly passed out at the bar. I was not in much better condition myself. My ability to drink had improved drastically from the alterations, but it could only go so far. I had avoided getting knock out drunk in a new place, but not by much.

My ability to drink had left many good impressions among the men in the bar, but I still got drunk in the end. The attitude of the bar room had swept me along. The men had bought me drinks and tried competing with me. I really did like this bar. It was more open and warm than others I had been in.

Normally, people drank quietly among themselves and were distrustful or rude to strangers. It was different here. More... free and friendly. More... chaotic and loose.

As I sat in the bar stool enjoying my languid and drunken state a pair of large hands rest themselves on my shoulder. Rose leaned over one of my shoulders and spoke into my ear.

"You're drunk. We should get you to bed. I'll tuck you in nice and snug."

My eyes flew to Nicholas behind the bar. The man was cleaning a cup and watching his wife drape herself over me. This was one of the weirdest situations I had ever been in. What in the hell was going on!?

"Yes. We can't leave you down here like this. You'll catch a cold."

She half supported and half dragged me towards the stairs and I felt mounting confusion. My mind was fuzzy with alcohol but even in my inebriated state, I could feel something was going terribly wrong.

Just as I was about to start flailing my way out of her burly arms, a charming but wrathful voice shattered the almost silence of the common room.

"Mom! Leave him alone!"

My thoughts about Alice now bordered on pure devotion. She was my guardian angel. She had saved my innocence!

Alice shot out of the kitchen and batted her mother away from me. When I nearly toppled at the lack of support, she offered me her shoulder and began to help me up the stairs while scolding her parents.

"There are still dishes to do. There are still plenty of dirty cups laying around. Make yourself busy! I'm going to get him to his room. When I get back you two better be cleaning!"

She helped me keep my balance as we walked up the stairs to the second level. I wasn't so drunk that she had to drag me or support my weight, but the help with my balance was much appreciated. I also very much appreciated the feel of pressing against her and her smell.

She smelled like home cooked food with a hint of beer. There was a smoky scent as well as an undertone of sweat. It was heavenly. Even after a full night of running around the inn, she smelled great. How do women do that?

"I'm really sorry about my mother. She means well. She's just a little... weird. Don't worry she won't go overboard."

I laughed.

"You're my savior. My beautiful guardian angel."

The alcohol was talking now. Alice blushed at my words but continued helping me to my room.

"My name's Caleb. I'll be staying here for a while."

She smiled.

"My name is Alice."

She had very white teeth. Her skin was a clear and almost pure white. Not pale, but clean and healthy looking.

When we got into my room she brought me to the bed and helped me into it. She was very gentle and I was soon under the covers.

"I'll see you in the morning. I'll lock the door on my way out."

I didn't want to part so soon. I was making an awful impression but my alcohol flooded mind didn't care. I also wanted to get a rise out of the stunningly beautiful girl. When drunk, forethought is never a strong suit.

"Your mother offered to tuck me in. I don't seem to be tucked in..."

Looking around my bed like I expected the bed to magically tuck me in on its own, my eyes eventually came to rest on her.

"Shouldn't a daughter make good on the promise of the mother?"

I let a sly grin spread across my stupid face. I was sure this last comment would send the girl scrambling with a deep red blush on her face. I was playing the rogue.

She eyed me up and down in all seriousness for a moment.

"My mother really promised that?"

I nodded. I didn't expect her to go with my foolishness at all!

"You're probably cold too. That blanket is pretty thin. We wouldn't want you to catch a cold. Maybe someone should sleep with you... you know... to keep you warm."

I was starting to feel wide awake. She was hinting at something and I was very much liking where this conversation was going.

"Would you like that? A warm body to keep you cozy?"

She seemed so angelic and lovely at that moment. There was a sex appeal about her. I eyed her. Her eyes were so blue. Her hair was bright and lustrous. My eyes traveled down her body and took in the sight of her. She was thin where she should be and full were she should be. Her figure was perfect. Even beneath her somewhat loose tavern girl get up, I could see her body's seductive lines. I had only ever seen 2 or 3 women as attractive as this girl in my entire life from a distance. It felt like I was close to something absolutely amazing about to happen.

"Yes. I need someone to keep me warm. You wouldn't want a guest to catch a cold would you?"

She showed a shocked expression before she brought her right hand up to cup one of her cheeks.

"That would be horrible! What kind of hosts would we be if we let you be cold at night? Yes... you should be kept warm."

I was wide awake now. I couldn't believe some random drunken bullshit I was spouting seemed to actually work! As crass as it was, I felt like the luckiest man on earth. I began to even feel a little narcissistic. My charm had obviously won this angel-like girl's heart over. My head kept flopping up and down in agreement to her every word.

She smiled lightly and approached the side of my bed. Her hands slowly pulled back the edge of the covers enough for a person to slip into. She paused and looked at me with a seductive look in her eyes.

"Is that what you want? Someone to keep you warm tonight?"

I nodded my head so hard it made me dizzy for a second. There was no way a young drunk man like I was going to turn down this girls offer. Never going to happen.

She smiled brightly. Raised her head up and stepped away from the bed.

"Mom! It looks like our guest needs some company tonight. He's very cold. He needs some warmth."

The words were like a bucket of ice cold water being poured over my head. I sat bolt upright and began pleading.

"No. I'm actually fine! It's actually too warm in here. Far too warm. I'm fine!"

She showed me a puzzled look with a small grin splitting one side of her face.

"But you just said you're cold. You're right. It's very cold up here. We can't be poor hosts and leave you up here all alone can we?"

I was panicking.

"No. No. It's fine. I'm a grown man. I can get by. Truly... thank you for the offer, but it's fine."

She smiled a devilish smile.

"Are you sure? My mom wouldn't mind at all. It IS a hosts duty, right? My mother also made a promise. You yourself said how important keeping promises is."

She wasn't going to let this go easily. Hanging my head I admitted my wrong.

"I'm sorry. You win. I'm just being a stupid drunk. Please forgive me?"

She covered her mouth with her hand and laughed hard. She was definitely soaking in my shame and enjoying it. She made her way to the door while giggling. When she got to the door she looked back at me with a confident smirk.

"I always win." She turned off the light to the room and continued. "See you in the morning, Caleb."

As she said my name she slowly closed the door while fighting back a chuckle.

"See you in the morning, Alice." I shyly answered back while feeling like the world biggest fool. What had ever come over me to say such stupid words?! I had thought that based on the girls innocent appearance it would be easy to tease her. I was dead wrong!

After I heard her footsteps going down the stairs, I let gravity bring me to lay on the bed with my arms stretched out and stared at the now dark ceiling above me.

"Alice... what a sweet name."

I fell asleep with a stupid grin on my stupid face.