Max had known that Clare
would take time adjusting back to her normal life. Even though now, one month
after the whole mess at Fantasy Land, Clare seemed normal, he could see little
things that worried him.
Yes, their relationship
had grown, and they had become closer.
When they were together she seemed warm and caring. He felt safe with her, and he opened up to
her, dropping his TV persona entirely when they were together.
While their relationship
was going well, her relationship with her co-workers seemed kind of icy.
He knew why that
was. She had lost Brittany.
He couldn’t say that she
ever truly mourned. When they had left
the park she had cried, but even that night, she seemed to clamed up. Since then she hadn’t even spoken Brittany’s
name. He knew she was doing it to
protect herself, to make others realize that she was still strong, but Max knew
full well that she was hurting.
That’s why he came up
with his big idea.
A trip. Sure, it would be a work trip for him, but
not for her, and not for her friends. It
was a simple job, and he could probably wrap up the episode in a day or two,
and then he and Clare could spend the rest of their trip lounging on the
beaches of Heartsong Island.
“Do you think she’ll go
for it?” Max sat across from Bobby, the
café buzzing behind them.
“I have no clue.” Bobby just shrugged, taking a sip of his
tea. “She doesn’t really talk to me
much, outside of giving me my marching orders.
It couldn’t hurt to ask, though.”
“Has she reacted like
this in the past? To losing
someone?” Max leaned forward. As much as he and Clare had grown closer,
there were parts of her that was still a mystery to him.
“Max, Clare is like a
brick wall normally. I’m not surprised
that she’s shut down a bit since losing Brittany. We’re all hurting, but I think it’s hitting
Clare harder. She felt responsible for
Brittany. She was the boss, and she lost someone on her watch.” He started stirring his tea, his eyes not
focusing on anything. “Being in that
office isn’t helping, though. I can
barely walk by Brittany’s desk without feeling the urge to cry. Clare… Clare won’t even look at it.”
“Then it’s settled. Demon Slayers Inc. is going to be joining me
on an all expenses paid trip to Heartsong Island!” Max smacked his hand down on the table.
“Good luck pulling her
away from her work.” Bobby laughed.
“I’ll make it happen.” Max paused.
“I just have to keep her out of MY work when we get there.”
“Yeah, if she can find a
supernatural distraction, she’s going to take it. You couldn’t keep her away from a possible
hot spot.”
“Don’t you underestimate
Max West!” He crossed his arms, knowing
that his plan was the right one.
“Why would he
underestimate you?” The sound of Clare’s
voice made Max freeze.
Slowly, Max turned, and
standing behind him was Clare, arms crossed over her chest, a stern look on her
face. Her blonde hair, now cut short,
fell over one of her eyes. As much as
she excited him, Clare could still manage to terrify Max with one glance.
“Sweetie, hi!” Max stood, leaning in, and giving Clare a
gentle peck on the cheek.
“What have I told you about
the ‘s’ word in public?” She rolled her
eyes.
“Right… Sorry.” Max returned to his seat, unsure of how this
was all going to play out.
“Well, look at the
time.” Bobby checked his phone, and
stood. “I have to get back to deity
training with Ashtyn and Kurt. See you
two later.”
Max watched silently as
Bobby rushed out of the café, leaving him alone with a very curious, and very
annoyed Clare. She took Bobby’s seat,
leaning in close to him.
“What are you planning?”
Her voice was a flat hiss.
A chill ran down Max’s
spine. “A vacation. You, me, your friends, maybe Rita.”
The words just spilled
out of his mouth.
“Max, I don’t have
time.” She leaned back, her face
softening. “Work has been swamped, and
I’m up to my eyeballs in paperwork. This
just isn’t the right time for it. I’m
sorry.”
“It’s the perfect
time.” Max leaned forward. “Listen, I know you aren’t going to listen to
me when I say how much you need this trip, so listen when I say that your
friends need it, too. They need a break
from all the spooky, demon hunting crazy.
They need a chance to take a breath, and regroup.”
“I just…” She started to
make another excuse, but Max held up his hand, cutting her off.
“No, we are all going on
this trip. That is final.” He smiled.
“And we will have an amazing time.
I promise.”
Clare looked like she was
going to argue with him again, but he knew he had won this battle.
“Look at you getting all
macho.” Clare raised an eyebrow. “I kind of like it.”
Max leaned over the
table, kissing her gentle on the lips.
This was going to be
perfect.
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