Charles' Choice (Penny's Choice) (6 page)

“Honey,” Penny said, taking the last bite of her German pork and pickle roast, “The Winchester is in San Jose. No water anywhere around there.”

“Just get them ready for a water attack,” Thomas said, quickly standing up. “We’re being watched, so I suggest we get out of here before we are attacked again. Penny and I will meet up with you, Charli, and Lorelei in Ireland.”

“Where exactly?”
Charles asked.

“A castle, pick one. I’ll find you
,
”
Thomas said, placing a large bill on the table. He and Penny went in one direction and Charles went in the other to find his sister and his
mermaid girlfriend.

Charles sat on the edge of the rock, catching his breath. “Boy,”
he
said, still breathing heavily, “you never really get used to that. I think we should find a new way to get me here.”

“Are you planning on coming back often,” Lorelei said, batting her eyelashes.

Charles looked up at the siren. He still wasn't sure what to make of her. She hadn't mentioned the whole sperm donation thing since they had left the city the first time.

“Well, Lorelei, I like the place,” Charles said, regaining his breath. He was trying to play it cool. He couldn't let her know that he was interested. First of all, he didn't know if he was interested in her. He was kind of hoping for a human woman, but then again his life didn't really fit into the human mold.

“I would think that a notorious flirt like you would enjoy the air kisses,” Lorelei said, lightly touching Charles arm.

He pulled back and ran his finger through his hair. Of course he liked the air kisses, but what guy wouldn't? “Flirt?” Charles asked as he walked through the false rock wall.

“Yes, you heard me right,” Lorelei said as she walked through the wall. She then then spoke in German. Charles wished that Thomas was here to translate, but then again he would probably just end up making fun of him. Like always.

“I haven't been flirting with you,” Charles said, coyly. He had been very careful not to flirt with the mermaid.

“I wish you would,” she said, moving closer to Charles than he was comfortable with.

“So what is this with everyone knowing who I am?” Charles said, suddenly changing the subject. Since Lorelei had pegged him as the Defector at their first meeting, he had wondered why he was the one that was a big deal.

“The Brotherhood has been causing a raucous in the supernatural world looking for you,” Lorelei said, realizing that she was making Charles uncomfortable. “They have even given a reward for your return. Even
us
supers are able to turn you in.”

Charles stopped and looked at her. There was a reward that even vampires, mermaids, and
shapeshifters
could take advantage of? “Lorelei...”

“Oh, don't worry,” she replied, running her finger down his back. “You are a big hero to us. Trust me when I say that there is nothing or no one that the supernatural community hates more than the Brotherhood. For once, you've given us hope.”

“I just wonder why me? I mean, all of this has been my brother's plan,” Charles said. He sat down on the trail to the city.

“You were part of the Brotherhood
;
you left them,” Lorelei said. “You made a fool of them.”

“I lost a lot,” he said, leaning back on his arms. “I just wish I could go back to being a kid before all this happened.”

Lorelei traced her hand along Charles cheek. “But then you would not have met me.”

“Look, Lorelei,” Charles said, sitting up. “You don't have to pretend to like me to get my...”

“I know,” Lorelei said, pushing him back onto the rock. “I don't just want your sperm.”

Charles pressed his back against the wall. Was he really going to let her make the first move? He put his hand on Lorelei's. “I was hoping you would say that,” he said as he moved his other hand to brush away a miraculously dry hair away from her face.

The light from the underground cavern sparkled around Lorelei’s face, making her pale skin glow. Charles thought she was the most beautiful being that he had ever seen. He reached up again and traced the angles of her soft face. Her brilliant sea green eyes stared back at him with a depth that he didn’t quite understand. Her light brown had a natural sparkle in it that added to the glow of the cavern.

Lorelei curled up on Charles’s legs, laying her head on his chest. “I really do admire you,” she said, tracing her fingers along Charles’s chest. “You have given much to help races of people other than your own. You’ve probably given up on hope of any relationship too. Since the only other human you know seems to be quite smitten by your
vampiric
brother.”

“Yeah,” Charles said, pulling Lorelei close, “after Penny left me for my brother, I think that was it.”

“Wait, you and Penny?” Lorelei said, pulling away.

“Well, yes, but,” Charles said, trying to backtrack his last words. He thought that Lorelei had known about him and Penny. “There was. We had a small thing while we were both in the Brotherhood. Thomas’s clan had killed Penny’s family and he felt responsible for her. He asked me to keep an eye on her.”

“So you stole Thomas’s girl?” Lorelei said, raising an eyebrow. “And then he stole her back?”

“Well, Penny,
hmmmm
,” Charles said, trying to think about how to put Penny and his relationship. “She’s handful and pretty stubborn, so I don’t think that there was any steeling happening.
”

“So you guys split amicably?” Lorelei said, sitting back on the rock next to Charles.

“I guess
,
Penny and I have always been close. But, I think our relationship should have always been family. I’d say other than Charli, she is my best friend. Honestly since we…broke up...we’ve been closer.”

“Oh, I see,” Lorelei said, looking off in the distance. “So is that why she seems jealous of me and doesn’t seem to like me very much?”

“You think she is jealous?” Charles asked.
Charles never thought of Penny as the jealous type. She smart, level-headed, and snarky.
Not at all the type of girl that seemed capable of jealousy.

“I know jealousy,”
Loreleie
said, smiling. “Nixie
come
across jealousy a lot. We’re prettier than most human supermodels.”

“That is true,” Charles said. He had yet to come across a
Nixen
that wasn’t outrageously good looking. He could even tell that the males were good looking. “But, she’ll get over it. Plus, she’s just being a sister. You know, trying to make sure that someone doesn’t take advantage of me. I guess.”

“Oh, you mean like lure you into the ocean for your sperm?” Lorelei said, seriously. “She’s right to be a little
leery
of us. And you are right to be
leery of a relationship between her and your brother.”

“Really?
Are you trying to scare me off?” Charles said, laughing.
He leaned
in closer to Lorelei.

“Oh, never.
I’m just trying to make myself seem like a bad girl,” she said bringing her face within inches of Charles.
Charles was still slightly off putted by the Nixie’s green teeth, but he was getting used to them.
“But, you should still know the nature of the
Nixen
,
mein
Lieblingsmann
.”

“Okay, I think I am okay with that,” Charles said, and stood up. “I think we should probably get going. I’ve had enough time to regain my breath and then some.”

“Oh, come on, Nixie love to sun themselves on rocks,” Lorelei said, grabbing Charles’s hand.

“But there is no sun,” Charles said, walking down the path.

Lorelei shook her head. He was a hard one to break. “I guess you’re right,” she said, running to catch up with him. Her old fashioned skirt swished around her legs as she stopped in front of him. “But I
am making you
dinner tonight
.”

“Just as long as I’m not the main course, I’m okay with that,” Charles said, only half serious.
“And it’s not that stuff Penny ate here.”

“Oh, no, not the main course,” Lorelei said, laughing and skipping the rest of the way down the rocky path.
“Just dessert.”

Great
, Charles thought,
I’ve fallen in line with another jokester
.

“Hurry up slow poke,” Lorelei called after him.

“I’m coming,” Charles said, as he caught up to her. The rest of the way to the city, the couple walked in silence. Toward th
e city, Lorelei placed her hand
in Charles’s hands.

“So, what’s this plan of yours?” Lorelei said as they walked through the gates of the city.

“You mean Thomas’s plan?
” Charles said, taking in the sights of the city again. He would never get tired of looking at this city and its exotic citizens. “He just said that he wanted me to make sure that you guys would lend you support
to a water invasion, but there isn’t any water near San Jose.”

“Of course there is water,” Lorelei said as they approached her house.

“Not to be
disagreeable, but I am pretty sure there are no bodies of water near the Winchester Mystery House.”

“Bathtubs, birdbaths, fountains, glasses of ice water,” Lorelei replied. She opened up the door to her house and welcomed Charles inside. “We don’t need much more than a couple of drops to come through.”

“Really?”
Charles imagined Lorelei emerging from a glass of water that he was drinking.

“Yup.
As long as we know where the water is, we can sing our song,” Lorelei said as she sat
down and
emerged her body into the pool of water in the middle of her living room.

“So if you have an inside man,” Charles said as he slid into the pool with the mermaid. He was getting used to all of the water everywhere. He hated it when he got a wrinkly after a while. Lorelei and the rest of the
Nixen
only seemed to get more silky and beautiful the longer they were in water.

“Then we can put anyone within ear shot of the water in a trance,” she said, finishing his sentence.

“Wow, how come I didn’t
know
this before?”

“It’s a closely guarded secret,” Lorelei said. “I am surprised that your brother knew about it. The Brotherhood has no idea either. It could be a big advantage in a fight.”

“So, do you think that your people will help?” Charles asked as he watched Lorelei swish her tale around in her lounging pool. Charles hadn’t decided whether
he
thought the fish tale was a turn on or turn off. Maybe this was how Penny felt with Thomas. Did she have the same issue with Thomas’s fangs that he did with Lorelei’s green teeth?

“Don’t you think that being in the water with so much clothing is annoying?” Lorelei said changing the subject.

“Yeah, I’ve noticed that most of your people don’t wear much clothing,” Charles said, remembering all the beautiful nude mermaids perched around town.

“Much clothing?”
Lorelei asked, raising an eyebrow. She started to remove her clothing, starting with the skirt first. “It really weighs y
ou down and sticks uncomfortably
to your body.”

Charles followed suit and removed his shirt. He was slightly uncomfortable removing all of his clothing, but she was right: the clothing was uncomfortable in the water.

Lorelei moved closer to Charles and then removed her shirt. “Don’t worry,
mein
Lieglingsmann
,” she said, putting a hand on his shoulder. I know that you human area little squeamish with nudity, so I will keep the bra on.” Her bra looked like a bikini top than underwear. Two
pink
cups were clasped together by a shiny stone.

Charles shook his head; he was quite okay with the mermaid’s nudity.
Maybe.
God,
Charles thought,
Thomas must be rubbing off on me more than I thought.

“Are you okay?” Lorelei said, reaching over to rub his shoulders. “I’m not trying to upset you.”

“No, no,” Charles said as he tried to relax. The truth was he really liked Lorelei. Previously he had only been interested in flings. And with his previous association and current problems with the
Brotherhood, serious relationships, especially with human women, were never possible. Charles had never really thought about himself with someone who wasn’t human. Although part of that was probably due to the fact that most of the non-humans he had regular contact with were vampires. While he supported peaceful vampires’ right to live, they still mostly got on his nerves. They were moody, cocky, and vain. Except for Thomas, who was a complete freak of vampire
nature.
He didn’t mind Charli either
;
he was glad to have his twin sister back by his side. He no longer felt like he was missing his other half. But, other than those two, Charles preferred to stay far away from vampires. Thomas said it was because Charles was already so much like a vampire with his suave, mysterious charm.