So A HUGE regret I had with Team Plunders was making Lucy a virgin. I regretted that the moment I posted the chapter that was revealed. The reason I bring this up is because I have gotten a few PM's from chapter 6 of this story. People upset at Lucy and Levy's friends with benefits situation. Some people think this makes them seem cheap. (Why are you reading M rated stories?)
Let me set the record straight on how I feel about this. I believe it is wrong to tie someone's worth to the amount of sexual partners they have had, or the fact that they have casual sex. I think it is wrong to associate good, pure, and respectable; with "virginal". I am Married, so yes, I do believe in true love, and monogamy. At the same time, I do not think there is anything wrong with sowing your wild oats and having fun before tying yourself down to some one seriously. Or if you prefer never to have a serious long term relationship, that is fine as well. As long as both people are open and honest about what they expect and want from each other, it's all good in my book.
If you don't agree, that is perfectly fine. I respect the fact that you are allowed to have your own opinions on the matter. But you probably won't like my stories. Especially this one…
Chapter 7 – Locked Doors Mean Nothing
"Wait! This was all supposed to be delivered Friday. I called customer service and they never even got back to me! No one even told me you would be bringing it in today." Lucy looked up from the Invoice that had been placed in her hands.
"We're here now." The delivery guys voice was low, and he sounded bored.
Lucy glared up at the man. "I can see that."
He was massive; honestly Laxus would have looked like a kitten next to the guy. He had on a big blue jumpsuit, with a white name tag that said Boris. Boris also had a big bushy beard that was braided in a way Lucy had only ever seen on Dwarves in the Hobbit. And though he had the big impressively long bristly beard and shaggy eyebrows, the top of his head was completely bald.
"Alright." Lucy sighed, and stepped out the front door. At least the deck furniture hadn't been lost somewhere in shipping hell, so there was that.
"Come on, follow me this way. I'll show you how to get around back, and where on the deck to set it all up." Lucy had to squeeze by the mountain of a man named Boris, as he didn't see fit to move out of the way.
"Oh we aren't setting up, we are just delivering."
Lucy stopped in her tracks.
"Uhh, we paid for delivery AND set-up." Lucy brought the Invoice she was still holding up to her face, turning back to face the man. "Yeah, right here! The set-up fee!"
Boris didn't even bother looking at the invoice.
"Yeah, but it's Monday." He said, as if that explained everything.
Lucy blinked up at him, waiting for further explanation. None came forth.
"Aaaaand?" Lucy forced out through a clenched jaw.
"Don't do set-ups on Mondays." Boris was a man of few words.
Closing her eyes, Lucy took 3 deep calming breaths before looking back up at Boris.
"Then you will send someone back tomorrow to set up, right?" Lucy asked with a sinking feeling in her gut.
"No."
"Alright then, I just won't accept delivery. You can bring it back Tuesday or Wednesday or whenever the heck you guys actually do set ups!" Lucy tried to hand him back the invoice.
Finally the look on Boris's face changed from bored, to annoyed. "Listen Lady, we are delivering this today. Now we can either unload it onto the deck, or drop it off on that pretty front lawn of yours. Up to you."
And with that he walked off towards the open delivery truck in the drive, 3 other men waiting by it's open back end ready to unload.
Lucy glared daggers at the mans back, and reminded herself that even though Michigan did not have the death penalty, running this guy over with Doris would still get her life in prison. But worse than that, it would ruin Doris's paint job.
Resigning herself to her fate, she led the Delivery men round the back of the property, and up to the second floor of the deck. She was in hell. Not that the delivery men were giving her grief, they pretty much ignored her. But she had been avoiding the back yard all day for a reason.
She had spoken to Laxus about the rose bushes, and of course he wanted to save them. He roped Winter into coming in especially early that Monday morning to help him. So they had been out there, the 2 of them, working on the Roses since the sun came up. At some point, the heat had gotten to them, and their shirts had come off. And THAT was why Lucy had been avoiding the back yard.
She had been pretty good at keeping her eyes focused only on the Deck and the back of the house, but eventually she broke. She glanced over towards the back of the property, past the pool to the rose hedge in the very back. She saw their two, sweaty, muscular backs, glistening in the sun.
"Dammit all." Lucy exhaled with a sigh.
Mentally reprimanding herself she walked back inside the house, and left the delivery men to their task. Finding herself in the Kitchen she got to work. She felt like this was a bad idea, a really fucking bad idea. Then she reminded herself it was just her job, she was just being a good housekeeper. Chopping up some lemons and strawberries, she pulled out some sugar next. In less than 10 minutes she was done. Three heaping glasses of strawberry lemonade.
"Hmmmm, something's missing." Lucy tapped her foot while staring at the glasses, as if they ought to tell her why they were inadequate. Then it came to her. She smiled and made her way to the door next to the pantry. She had noticed it the second day in the house, it was made of metal and locked. And the key to it had not been provided to her. Taking 2 bobby pins out of her hair she got to work. A few minutes later everything was perfect.
Putting them on a tray, along with another little small sweet surprise, she made her way out back. Boris was on the deck when she came through, he looked excited for a moment, once he saw what is in Lucy's hands. Lucy looked him right in the eye as she passed by him. Making sure to hold the tray up a bit higher, in plain view for him to get a gooood long look of the glasses beaded with condensation, filled to the top with ice, and lemon and strawberries. And the small plate of cut pineapple in the middle. Served him right!
Making her way down the steps and past the pool, all the way to the very back of the yard where Laxus and Winter were working. Their well muscled sweaty backs were to her as she tip toed up behind them. Slowly, carefully.
"Wow! Sure is hot out isn't it!"
Winter let out a yelp. Jumping up and tumbling backwards from the rose bushes in surprise, he almost ran into Lucy. That boy really did startle easily. Laxus's response was a bit more subtle, and way less satisfying. His head jolted up, and his back and neck stiffened.
"Geeze Miss. Lucy, you gave me a freaking heart attack." Winter brought his hand up to his chest, his breath coming out in labored pants.
Lucy grinned and held out the tray to him.
"Lucy Heart's special made strawberry lemonade. Oh not that one, and no not that one either! Yours is the left most one." Lucy chided as he went to reach for a glass.
Winter gave her a look. And Lucy stuck her tongue out at him, before she turned to Laxus. He stood up and stretched. Tall and broody, he looked down at her before looking at the glasses. He was covered in dirt and sweat, and in the light of day Lucy could see all the sinewy muscle along his arms, chest, and back that had been hidden to her in the darkness of that night they had shared together. The sun lit up his light brown eyes to that eerie orange gold color, casting stripy shadows through the tree branches on him. He really did look like the tiger she had once compared him to.
"Do I also have a designated glass?" God and that voice. That deep gravely voice that sounded like a V8.
Lucy shook her head. "These 2 are my super duper special recipe."
Laxas arched one eyebrow up as he reached for a glass. He brought it up to his mouth and took a large gulp.
With a nod and a sigh he looked back at her. "You broke into my Wine cellar."
Lucy just smiled, balancing the tray on one hand, she went ahead and took a nice big gulp of her own drink.
"Wait what?" Winter chimed in from behind her.
"I wouldn't call it breaking in, the door was wide open." Lucy lied. "And when I went down there to make sure no one was nosing around where they shouldn't be-"
"Like you." Laxus interrupted
"-and I noticed you had a few bottles of Limoncello laying around." Lucy finished innocently, batting her eyelashes a few times for good measure.
"Hey how come I didn't get any booze in my drink?" Winter pouted.
"Cuz you're on the clock." Lucy smiled at him over her shoulder.
"You're on the clock too."
"Yeah, but I live here." Lucy replied. "Now take a slice of pineapple and stop whining."
Winter perked right up at that. Taking a napkin and grabbing 2 slices.
She turned back towards Laxus so he could help himself as well. He nodded towards the deck once he caught site of what was going on behind him while he had been working.
"The deck furniture finally showed up?"
Lucy nodded.
"Why didn't you show them the service drive on the other side of the house, they could have driven up. They wouldn't have to cart that stuff from all the way in the front." Winter asked.
"Oop's must have slipped my mind." Lucy replied airily. Winter looked at her confused.
Laxus patted the boy on the back. "We are all good here for today, you can get going."
Winter thanked him, and thanked Lucy again for the Lemonade before grabbing his shirt, and making his way back towards the house. Laxus looked over at the delivery men and glanced back at Lucy again.
"So what did they do to piss you off?" He didn't miss much.
"Apparently-" Lucy dropped her voice down low, and talked in a bored monotone imitation of Boris. "-they don't do set ups on Mondays." She looked down at the ground and kicked a bit of loose soil. Laxus Dreyar did not like excuses. He had been upset when the furniture hadn't been delivered on time as it was.
"Don't worry though." She added quickly. "I'll set it up myself." She looked back up at him and gave him a nervous smile.
He looked at her with that serious face of his. Then he brought his glass back to his lips and tipped it back, finishing off the last of it. Setting it back on the tray he grabbed a slice of Pineapple, and then he swiped Lucy's glass of Lemonade from her, before walking away towards the deck.
Lucy blinked at her empty, lemondade-less hand. "Hey! That was mine!" She turned around and jumped forward, trying to catch up to her drink stealing, stony faced boss.
"Go inside and make some more, the delivery men are going to need it. It's going to be tiring work setting up my deck furniture in this heat."
Lucy looked up at him, her eyes wide. 'Oh, so that's how it was gonna be.' Well then yeah, if he was gonna go all "Big badass Mr. Dreyar boss man" on their asses she deff would rather be inside, where she could watch the fireworks from a safe distance.
They had made their way to the deck, Laxus letting her go up the steps first. Once they reached the top, Lucy continued on her way to the Kitchen.
"Oh and Ms. Heart." Lucy stopped in her tracks and looked back at Laxus. He was standing in front of Boris, Boris was eyeing him up and down. A look in his eyes like, 'Now what?"
"Regular Lemonade, not your "Super Duper Special Recipe." Lucy couldn't help but to blush and nodded, but he had already turned back towards Boris. When he got that look in his eyes it always scared her a bit. That cold detached look. If she was honest it excited her just as much…
Quickly making her way into the house and closing the door behind her, she went back to the kitchen and started in on the lemonade. He had put on his ultra haughty scary business man face, and she definitely did NOT want to be around for what would be coming next. She had been on the other end of that look plenty of times.
About 15 minutes later, after taking her sweet time making it, Lucy had a giant heaping pitcher of lemonade ready. She placed it on a serving tray, and got some glasses as well before making her way out on to the deck. The delivery men were all hard at work setting everything up. Once they caught site of her they all perked up and grabbed a glass, very politely thanking her. All except Boris who stayed with his back to her, setting up a table. Lucy smiled at each man in turn before walking up to Boris, pouring him a glass., and handing it to him personally. He took it grudgingly, not meeting her eyes. Lucy almost felt sorry for the guy.
With that she left them to it, and made her way back inside to finish up the rest of her Monday duties.
A couple hours later found Lucy back in the kitchen again. She had just gotten back from grocery shopping, and was putting everything away. She opened the freezer to put away some stuff when she saw it. A bottle of Limoncello stowed away on the top shelf to keep chilled.
Short chapter I know, but I am trying to keep the momentum on this story going, I don't want to drop it like I did before.
When I finish this I might do a re-write of Team Plunders. Not sure though, I prefer AU stories honestly. How do you guys feel about AU by the way? You don't see it too often with Fairy Tail Fanfiction for some reason.
I gotta say I am getting really sick of the whole, "Lucy gets kicked off the team, and everyone hates her" theme. No offense to people that write those stories. I just think we have this super awesome story that's rich with amazing Characters, and there is so much more you can do with them!
Also if you guys have never had Limnocello you need to try it. So yummy! Very sweet though, it really is great as a mixer for some spiked lemonade. Otherwise, chill it and pour out a small tumbler to sip at on a hot day.
