Page 28 of Dark Princess: Shadows

Gertrude's brow furrowed. "I'm not sure, to be honest. That's not really my area. I'm just there to perform nursing duties."

As she spoke, Rob found himself drawn in by her animated expressions. She was lovely, with a hint of shyness that he found endearing.

She was the opposite of Lynda, he realized with a start.

Where Lynda had all golden hair, sharp angles, and almost boastful confidence, Gertrude had dark hair, soft curves, and an inner strength tinged with a touch of awkwardness.

It was a refreshing change.

"So, Rob, what do you think of the village so far? It must be overwhelming."

Rob chuckled. "It is, but it's also refreshing and wonderful."

He proceeded to tell the lovely nurse about Arwel volunteering to be his inducer and how he'd been training to prepare for the induction fight. "I don't want to embarrass myself or Margo," he admitted with a self-deprecating smile.

Gertrude nodded. "That's great that you're taking it so seriously. I try to visit the gym at least four times a week. When are you usually there?"

"I was planning to go tonight, actually. Around seven."

"Oh!" Gertrude smiled. "I might see you there. I want to do some weightlifting this evening. I could use a spotter."

She didn't look like someone who pumped iron, but Rob had learned that looks were more deceptive in the village than in the human world. The other problem was that the soft-lookingnurse was probably stronger than he was, and he wouldn't be able to spot for her.

There was no way he was admitting that, though. He would just have to find a way to get out of spotting for her.

"I usually train with the punching bag," he said. "Would you like to join me there?"

"Sure." She gave him a bright smile. "I've never trained with those before, so you will have to show me how to do it."

Rob felt a flutter in his stomach. Was she flirting with him? It had been so long since he'd been in this situation he wasn't sure he could trust his instincts. But there was something in the way she held his gaze, the slight tilt of her head, that made him think maybe she was interested.

"I'd be delighted."

Gertrude grinned. "Thank you. I've always wanted to try boxing." She pretended to punch the air in quick succession. "I don't work in human facilities, but Merlin does, and he tells me that sometimes they bring in patients who are high on drugs and attack the staff. If I ever decide to work with humans, I should probably work on my fighting skills."

"I've heard stories from the ER," Rob said. "The sister of one of the guys I work with is a PA in an ER, and she told him that it's like a war zone in there."

"Oh, my." Gertrude pretended to be scared, but the slight twitching of her lips betrayed that she wasn't. "Perhaps I should stay away from human hospitals. It's not like my duties here leave me with a lot of free time." She seemed thoughtful. "On a completely different subject, have you ever done Pilates?"

"No, but maybe Margo has. Why?"

"We are getting a Pilates Reformer tomorrow, and I'm supposed to learn how to train people on it. I can watch instructional videos, but I need someone to practice on who will not break the device. As long as you are still human…"

The implication was obvious. Rob was weak, and she wasn't afraid of him breaking her new toy. But if it meant having her hands on him, he didn't mind.

"I'll gladly let you train on me."

She grinned. "Awesome. Thank you for helping me."

He returned her grin. "Any time."

As they chatted for a few more minutes, Rob was becoming increasingly aware of how easy it was to talk to Gertrude. She was knowledgeable and passionate about her work, and he found himself genuinely interested in her stories about the medical herb garden she cultivated in her backyard, and her work with the other village physician who used her herbs to create elixirs and potions for various ailments, and most importantly helping immortals conceive, which was a major problem given their low fertility rate.

Margo found the subject exceedingly fascinating and asked a lot of questions, making Rob suspect that she wanted a child with Negal sooner rather than later.

"The potions taste really bad." Gertrude's lips twisted in distaste. "We haven’t had much success yet, and I'm wondering if it's because the couples are not using them consistently because of that. I tried to convince Merlin to mix in some agave nectar toimprove compliance, but he thinks it will be detrimental to the potions' potency."

Margo continued asking questions about who got pregnant using the potions and who was still working on it, but Gertrude wasn't forthcoming with information.

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