Page 16 of Flame it Up

“Of course,” she said a bit wistfully. “But this is where I am, now. I’m committed to this, and it gives me purpose.”

“And pleasure?” he asked. “Your daily work should always bring you joy.”

“It does,” she said, grinning. “Why, does your daily toil bring you joy?”

Pyrus’s face fell so completely that Mazie worried she’d said something wrong. Pyrus let out a long, rattling sigh.

“That bad, huh?” she asked. “I’m sorry.”

“No, no, don’t be,” Pyrus said, waving a hand. “It’s just that there isn’t much to say about my business. It’s terribly boring.”

“Isn’t it exciting to make so much money, though?”

“I suppose it is,” he said, nodding. “But I don’t even really know how it works. I inherited most of it. Investments, shares, big and small companies. I’ve got a huge board of directors, as well as a team of submanagers. They handle it all for me, but I’m the guy in charge. I do all the deals, the hand shaking, stuff like that.”

Mazie tilted her head, watching Pyrus look away to study the ground. He really did not seem happy.

“You don’t seem very passionate about it, for a man who says his daily toil should bring him joy.”

Pyrus sighed, still looking at the ground. “It is extremely dull. Maybe that’s why I made my comment. I do like networking and making new connections. Joining businesses together or making trade deals can be very exciting, and I really do love meeting people who are into making good businesses.”

“Good businesses?” Mazie asked, wondering if he meant profits.

“People who care about their companies, their employees,” Pyrus said firmly, finally looking up to meet her eyes. “I take great pride in making sure all my workers are well cared for. It’s important to me that they are paid highly and have jobs they enjoy.”

Mazie laughed softly. “So, you care more about your workers having joy in their daily tasks than you do for yourself.”

“Yeah, I guess I do,” Pyrus said, laughing softly. He looked away as if the question had stirred up an old memory. The expression on his face became contemplative, and Mazie’s curiosity spiked.

She got the impression that Pyrus knew exactly the kinds of things that could happen if employees were not well cared for in their jobs. It made her wonder just how long he had been in business and what kind of things he had done in his past.

Wait. He’s a shifter. Does that mean he’s, like, really old?

He didn’t look a day over thirty with his rich brown hair and beautiful, lightly tanned skin. Mazie propped her chin on her hand and gazed at him, grateful for the quiet, dark night that shrouded them in a circle of light that belonged to them alone.

Mazie was about to ask him why his employees were so important to him when she saw something moving in the darkness. Then she realized there were a lot of shapes coming toward them and sat up.

Pyrus noticed her movement and sat up too. Mazie saw him tilt his head back and take a deep breath through his nose.

“It’s okay,” he said softly. “It’s people. From the party.”

Mazie didn’t understand for a second until brightly clad women and men in their sober, but elegant suits began to walk by her tent. It was a decent-sized crowd, all of them laughing and joking with one another as they left the party. No one paid much attention to them.

Some of the guests passed by very close and waved as they crossed the circle of light made by Mazie’s lantern. She realized that the gala must have ended, and she’d picked a spot somewhere between the compound and one of the housing areas.

Now that they were no longer alone, Mazie felt awkward with Pyrus. She looked away and blushed, standing as another small crowd of people walked by. Some carried lanterns that bobbed in the dark, illuminating fragmented patches of long grass against deep shadows. Some of their faces glowed in the flickering light as if they were marching into the early scenes of a horror movie.

“I need to go to bed,” Mazie said. The crowd of people had given her a little shock as if, for some reason, she shouldn’t be alone out here with Pyrus. The traumatic events of the day triggered in her mind, and Mazie suddenly felt lightheaded.

She stifled a yawn, feeling all her muscles relax and her joints turn to water. Enough was enough for one day. She needed to lie down.

Then, Pyrus stood in front of her. He was much closer than she’d expected him to be, only a few inches away. The clean, fresh smell of him hit her in the face, and she sighed in pleasure, taking the breath slowly into her lungs and letting it caress her throat as if she could absorb his essence through the back of her tongue.

Mazie was lost when she looked up into his wide, amber eyes. Heat radiated from his body, almost shimmering.

The only thing that stopped Mazie from moving was the sound of people still walking past her tent. There were small bouts of laughter and conversation, as well as the flicker of their lanterns and the rustling of the grass as they made their way.

I wonder what we look like to them.

---