PART TWO
Cooking Bossanova Style
The five hour drive between Baton Rouge and Bon Temps hadn't appealed to Preston, especially when he could make the same distance in only seconds. So though fairies that were mainstreaming, living disguised as humans, reframed from using their abilities, including teleporting, Preston deviated from this rule when he began to teleport to Sookie's property.
This evening, he'd planned on teleporting them to Shreveport, zapping, as Sookie had called it. "Have you ever traveled through the portals with Niall?" he had asked her.
"No," she had said, "I didn't know it was possible."
"It's possible," said Preston. But despite his many assurances, the idea had made her nervous. She decided that if she had been created to zap places it would be one thing, but she wasn't a fairy, and so she had insisted on them driving.
As any fairy mainstreaming, Preston was familiar with the concept of a car and how to drive one. Actually, he had learned to drive an automobile back in the mid 1950's. The car of course had evolved since then. His favorite designs had been the 1956 Corvette and the 1966 Mustang Coupe, which he had shared with Sookie on their way into Shreveport.
Sookie's car however, left a man wanting. Though the expression on his face was fleeting when he studied her car, it didn't escape Sookie's notice. Needless to say, cars had been the dominating topic in their conversation into Shreveport. Sookie asked questions and Preston elaborated. A few times during the forty-five minute drive, he had brought her to tears with laughter discussing how the type of car a person drives can reveal about the driver.
Their effortless conversation made the drive time fly by. In no time, Preston pulled the car in front of their destination. Sookie beamed with excitement. They were in the posh warehouse district of Shreveport. A place though Sookie had heard of and was curious about, she would have never investigated herself. It was an expensive place to live and shop. Even the sidewalks were too clean and too fancy.
Preston walked around the front of the car. From the passenger seat, Sookie's gaze followed him. She still couldn't believe that he cut his beautiful long hair. His new hair cut did nothing to diminish his masculine beauty. If anything, it only amplified it. Preston opened the car door and reached his hand out for Sookie. Her breath hitched as he reached out for her.
Preston smiled at hearing the subtle change in her breathing. When it came to Sookie, there was no detail small enough that did not escape his attention. The little changes in her heart rate and the tiny fluctuations in her inhalations excited him.
Sookie felt her insides turn topsy-turvy when Preston smiled. She had begun to notice that when he was truly happy and he smiled, a dimple formed in his cheek. There were a few supernatural men that she knew who could make the needle on her lust gauge spike, but they never did to her heart, what Preston could do with just a smile.
She struggled to articulate to herself the emotions she was feeling. It wasn't lust, though she definitely felt that when she saw him standing at her front door this evening. In some ways, it was like a musical playing inside her, though the idea seemed silly to her. After all, how could there be a musical playing inside a person? But it was true, he made her heart sing.
Preston led them down the sidewalk toward the door to the restaurant. Beautiful urns lined the walkway, and inside them were tall thin trees. On the front of the brick building was a neon sign that read Urban Cooks. Below it in elegant script it read Culinary Studio. Preston reached for the door and opened it for Sookie.
"Nice door," she whispered. When she stepped inside, she saw instantly that Urban Cooks wasn't the Olive Garden, and definitely not Merlotte's. Sookie took in every detail of the restaurant from the beautiful brick that spanned the side of the restaurant to the candles flickering on the tables. She felt slightly uncomfortable at imagining what it was costing Preston to bring her to a place like this. "Don't think about it," she thought silently.
The idea of someone paying for her always made her uncomfortable. She'd been raised to be independent and never to take advantage of someone's generosity. However, Sookie's true reasons had more to do with her buried feelings of unworthiness. As a child and young girl she constantly heard the insensitive thoughts people had about her, her situation, her strangeness, and fundamentally this chiseled away at her self-worth and self esteem, which she has struggled to regain all her young adult life.
"Good evening," smiled the pretty petite brunette who was the hostess. "Welcome to Urban Cooks." Sookie turned her attention to the young woman. She wasn't human. Though she looked the part, the hostess' brain pattern was far from human. The hostess looked up. Her eyes caught Sookie's attention. They were a faint gray purple color. "Preston," she beamed with recognition.
Sookie turned her attention to Preston. He knew the hostess. Preston introduced them, which Sookie thought was very well mannered of him to do. The young woman and Preston exchanged a few sentences about her parents. Sookie wondered if he knew she wasn't human.
"Well it's good to see you," said the hostess. Her voice and gaze were dreamy. Sookie was prepared to be inundated with random thoughts, so she had pulled up her guard to block out peoples' thoughts from her mind. But it didn't take a telepath to know what the hostess, whatever she was, was thinking about Preston. "The class is right through those doors," she pointed to a pair of oak double doors with etched glass. Sookie looked up at Preston.
"Class?" she asked. A little wave of nerves washed through her. She was definitely curious and slightly anxious about what exactly her date with Preston involved.
"Thank you," said Preston. He reached his arm around Sookie's small waist, sending a delicious awareness spreading throughout her body. Preston's gesture communicated clearly to Sookie and to Violet, the hostess, that he was with her, and Sookie appreciated it.
Never taking his hand off of her hip, he led them through the double oak doors. On the other side of those doors were at least five more couples each at their own table counters. They were the last couple to enter. Preston led them to the only empty table. "I thought we were going out for dinner?" she leaned close and whispered to Preston.
"We are," he smiled. "It's dinner with a twist."
"I'd say," she teased. Moments later their instructors took center stage.
"Welcome to Cooking Bossanova Style," greeted the young man dressed in a white chief's coat. "I'm Jonathan and this is my assistant Abigail. We'll be your instructors for this evening." He had Sookie's full attention. Like the hostess, his brain signature was a pink and thick smooth pattern. The pink color was more pronounced with the man than the young hostess. Sookie's telepathy studied the woman. She was a hundred percent human. Sookie glanced over to Preston to look for any indication of whether he knew something was different about the man. But there was nothing but a warm smile meant for her. She pushed aside her questions about the chef and the hostess. It could wait until later.
Over the next several minutes, Sookie learned that they would be cooking Brazilian food. On the menu was Brazilian Nut Soup, a Brazilian Fish & Coconut, followed by an Orange Salad.
Preston helped Sookie out of her smoky gray cardigan and into her apron. On the center of the apron, in clean crisp fancy letters read, Urban Cooks Culinary Studio. Preston imagined she would make a potato sack look lovely. "Here let me help you," she offered. Just as Preston had done, she wrapped the apron string around him and tied it in the front. To his surprise she took the palms of her hands and smoothed out the apron fabric against his chest.
"I'm glad you came," he said placing his hands over hers. Her breath hitched.
"Me too," she smiled. Though she had some reservations with starting a new relationship so soon after her break-up with Quinn, and then the fact that she had never dated a fairy before, she was genuinely happy when she saw Preston standing on her porch.
With a life filled with so much tragedy, Sookie was unconsciously afraid to be truly happy for fear that it would be taken away, for everyone she ever loved and depended on had died. This was one reason why she so often second guessed herself, tittering back and forth between what her heart wanted, what her life experience had taught her, and what others would think and feel.
Preston released her hands, and rolled up his sleeves. In between instructions, the two cooking teachers shared with their students the history of Brazilian cuisine. It was all fascinating to Sookie. Her palette was uncultured, so she enjoyed the opportunity to try something new. "Well," she said, "this seems simple enough." Sookie opened the oven door for Preston. With an oven mitt over his hand, he reached in for the baking pan.
"I hope so," said Preston. "I have to cook something for you."
"Oh," she breathed. "Is that so?"
"Isn't the way to the heart through the stomach?" he asked.
"Something like that," she giggled. Preston placed the hot baking pan filled with a layer of nuts on a cooling rack. "They look very pretty," observed Sookie as she admired their lovely golden color. Preston returned to preparing the soup. With wonder Sookie watched him.
He was a fairy doing something she viewed as ordinary — normal; human.
She knew her fairy great-grandfather would never be caught in a kitchen making soup. He was a Prince. Sookie was sure that he had people who cooked for him. Her thoughts then naturally went to her fairy cousin Claudine. "She would probably cook for herself," thought Sookie. But her brother Claude, she figured would only cook if he was starving, or if Claudine wasn't home. On second thought, Sookie, mused, he would probably go through the fast food drive through window.
Sookie was quickly learning that fairies were as different from one another as humans.
"What do you think?" asked Preston. He offered her a spoon filled with soup. Preston watched her closely as she leaned forward wrapping her soft lips around the tip of the wooden spoon. A quiver ran down his spine. The sensation had a personal and physical effect on him, and he was relieved that the apron was long enough to cover him.
When the soup hit Sookie's taste buds, a wave of pleasure washed over her face. "Mmm," she breathed. Her response intensified Preston's arousal. "It's good," she said. "You should try it."
Without reservation, Preston leaned in and kissed her. Sookie drew in a breath. Preston enjoyed kissing her, and she enjoyed being kissed by him. In the short time that she'd known Preston, like her fairy relatives, he was touchy-feely. However, there was one key difference between their touch and Preston's; his touch had the intimacy of a lover.
"That's good," he said, stepping back from kissing her.
"That's not what I meant," she said, feeling her cheeks redden. Preston smiled, running his tongue over his bottom lip. He couldn't help not touching her in some way. She was so soft, and his feelings for Sookie that had began to blossom when he first saw her from a far, ran deep. Fairies were affectionate beings that found deep meaning and joy in their connections with others.
A fairy's very design gave them the unique ability to feel the presence of their loved ones without touching. It wasn't possible to have this type of connection with humans. It required skin against skin. And sometimes even two bodies entwined could only create a faint connection. But with Sookie, her spark allowed the connection to be formed with just a simple touch. The more contact Preston's skin touched Sookie's, the deeper the connection he experienced. And he graved it as much as he graved her sound, her scent, and her mouth.
"It's hot," warned Sookie. Preston paused, the wooden spoon an inch from his lips, and blew before tasting the soup.
"You're right," he said. "It's good. Of course, it's not as wonderful as your sweet lips."
"I think you're biased," she quickly pointed out.
"No," he said. "A man can find the reason for his entire existence in your mouth." Sookie blushed, biting her lip. The things he said made her knees feel weak. She sighed softly, savoring the warm feelings that filled her heart. She turned her attention to the cutting board and started chopping up the fresh ingredients.
Preston watched her with wonder. She held a power over him, and though it should have concerned him, it didn't. He had disobeyed a prince for the pleasure of her smiles, and he was certain that he would disobey a hundred more princes if it meant he could be close to her.
Sookie was aware of his admiring gaze, and she felt her complication turn rosy. Preston loved the color on her cheeks. Other women always flushed when he was near, but they couldn't hold a candle to Sookie's beauty.
After skinning nuts, whisking, sautéing, marinating fish, and peeling, Sookie found herself in a quiet corner in the dining area with Preston. They had been served the meal they had both made together. "So what did you do when you were in Faery?" she asked. Preston took a drink from his glass. The wine was complimentary. He hated the taste, preferring a finely brewed cold glass of beer, even a soda over the wine.
"My family, we're artisans," he answered, "sword-makers."
"Why do you live here and not there?" she asked.
"It's very different here," he explained. "Being an earth fairy, our status, though not the lowest among fairies, has certain limitations." Sookie nodded her head. She sat straighter and leaned forward. Her attention fixed on what he was saying. "Here," he referred to Sookie's world, "there aren't as many social restraints."
"Like what?" she asked.
"Well," started Preston. "Everyone in Faery has a role to play in our society. Earth fairies are the builders. That's our purpose."
"That sounds like a good thing."
"Yes," smiled Preston. "It is an honorable purpose." He paused taking time to collect his thoughts. "I wanted to learn something more than building, but being an earth fairy it was something above my station," the word made the space between Sookie's brows wrinkle. "For any fairy to reach beyond their station isn't something that is done."
"Why?" asked Sookie, her tone a bit harsh. Preston couldn't help but smile. His eyes sparkled with amusement. The idea of a cast system was a touchy subject among humans, and he could see it wasn't any different with Sookie.
"I don't have the magic that water fairies do," he explained. "So it's impossible to share in their purpose. It works both ways. A water fairy doesn't have the same kind of magic like an earth fairy. We both would find no pleasure or happiness in striving to share in each other's purpose. It would only lead to frustration."
"I see," said Sookie. It seemed to make sense. But she was having a hard time accepting the idea, which at its core went against how she was raised. Her Gran had always told her she could be anything she wanted if she only applied herself.
"That's one reason I enjoy living in this world," he said. "I've been able to do things I wouldn't have been able to do in mine."
"Really?"
"Yes," Preston grinned. "After I came to live among humans, I was able to learn the arts of human healing. You see, fairies, we're different. The healing arts require healing magic. That is only something water fairies are gifted with. Though what I learned here cannot be applied with fairies, I still enjoyed it tremendously."
"I see," said Sookie. Hearing Preston talk about his life was fascinating. Having been around vampires she understood that there were hundreds of lifetimes of experience that they had. It was no different with Preston. He'd seen and experienced so much more than she would ever be able to.
"And I have my shop now," he said proudly.
"That's right," Sookie recalled their conversation on Christmas Eve. "You had mentioned that you lived over a shop."
"I make custom wood furniture," he said. "It's convenient to live and work in close proximity." Sookie smiled at his practicality.
"What's your other reason you like it here?" she asked before taking a bite of her fish.
"Well," said Preston. "Things are a bit complicated right now in Faery."
"Yeah," breathed Sookie. "Niall hinted as much." Sookie took a drink of her wine. The wine was alright. She wasn't a red wine kind of woman. "Did you know my grandfather Fintan?"
"I met him once," said Preston.
"You did?" Sookie laid her fork down. "What was he like?" she asked hoping he would tell her since Niall really didn't like talking about him. It seemed to make him sad.
"You have to remember," he pointed out. "He was a lot older than me. But even as a young fairy, I saw how charming he was." Charming, thought Sookie. She was always being told that she was charming. Maybe that's where she got it from. "I remember him being the most beautiful of all of Niall's children."
"He was?" smiled Sookie. So far she wasn't learning anything Niall hadn't already shared with her.
"Fintan had a magnetic personality," he explained. "When he spoke, people would listen. Many fairies and humans were equally drawn to him." Sookie definitely knew she didn't inherit that particular trait. "This I remember intimidated a lot of fairies." Preston took a sip of his wine. His face wrinkled. Sookie could tell he wasn't very interested in it.
"Why don't you order something different to drink?" she asked. "I'd like a soda." Preston nodded. The waiter saw them glance over toward him and quickly picked up on the queue. When he came over, Preston asked for two cokes.
"Many fairies had sworn allegiance to Niall because of Fintan."
"I didn't know that," said Sookie.
"He engendered loyalty in those that got to know him," said Preston. "I heard a few years ago that he died. I'm sorry."
Sookie wearily smiled at Preston, feeling a strange sensation knot up in the back of her throat. "Thank you Preston," she breathed. The consolation she felt at hearing Preston's apology, surprised her, because she never knew Fintan. She wished she'd had.
When Niall first told her the truth about her Gran and his son, Sookie tried to deny that he had been her grandfather. She knew instinctively that Niall was her great-grandfather, but the idea of her Christian grandmother having an affair with another man that spanned several years was a bombshell. The revelation shattered the perfect image she had of her grandparents and their marriage. But over the last several months she'd come to accept the truth. Her initial shock was now diminished. She had known the moment Niall spoke the words that it was all true. She felt it.
"So have you aligned yourself yet?" Sookie asked, curious to see where he stood in relation to her great-grandfather.
"My family and I are kin to the earth," he said. "Our allegiance is to the sky fairies."
"Niall," said Sookie, "He's a sky fairy."
"Yes," smiled Preston. Sookie's face lit with joy. Amelia and Octavia had explained to her about the elements and how like Witches and wiccans, fairies drew their energy from one of the four elements. She wasn't sure what it all meant, but she was glad to hear it nonetheless.
As their evening progressed, there were moments, though fleeting, that Preston noticed a soft golden glow to Sookie's skin. She was beautiful and completely unaware of how her spark sometimes gave her skin a luminous quality. He even noticed how she smelled of the sun; sweet and fresh. Her natural perfume was a faint version of the fairy scent of her people. It wasn't surprising to Preston that she attracted the vampires. He estimated that only a vampire connoisseur would be able to make the connection between her scent and the traces of fairy blood she possessed. All others would simply think she smelled of summertime.
"So are there any other reasons you like living here?" she asked glancing over her glass at Preston. She had learned the first night she met him that he lived in Baton Rouge.
"I enjoy the company of humans very much," he said.
"Why?" Sookie asked sarcastically. Preston picked up on the change in her tone. After her run in with the Fellowship of the Sun guys this afternoon, she was feeling less loyal to her fellow humans.
"They're fun," he said. "Why do you like the company of vampires?" he asked, raising a brow.
"Because," smiled Sookie, "They're fun." He didn't need to say anything else. His question answered hers. "Preston," she said, "do humans accept you? They don't ever suspect that you're different?"
"We're beautiful to them," he explained. "Our beauty mesmerizes them. We don't even have to use magic. They can't help but be pulled toward us and want our company."
"So am I not beautiful enough?" she asked. "Is that why they treat me the way they do?"
"No," emphatically said Preston. "Look at you," he gestured. "There's no human that can compare to your beauty." Sookie smiled.
"Then I don't understand," she admitted. "If I'm so beautiful, why do most humans think I'm a freak?" Preston flinched. Sookie saw his expression harden at hearing what most people truly thought of her.
"You're more fascinating than a dozen humans," he said. His voice was ardent.
"I try to fit in, I really do," she said.
"Humans aren't afraid of me, because my spark…," he hesitated, dropping his gaze so that he wasn't looking directly at her. His voice softened. "It isn't weak," he paused to gauge if he'd offended her.
What he didn't say was that his spark, his magic, was not diluted with human blood. The quality of a fairy's blood was a sensitive and heated topic. Even as they sat there, he knew back in Faery lines were being drawn because of this very thing. Some fairies believed that the introduction of human blood into Faery had led to the decline in their numbers.
He glanced up to see her watching him expectantly. Instantly he relaxed. She wasn't offended. He continued, "That is by-and-large the draw for humans. They are attracted to our spark." Sookie remembered Niall telling her that she had the spark.
"So my spark isn't strong enough?" she asked. Her tone was thoughtful. Preston nodded.
"I think you fall in a precipice," he explained. "Your spark is too weak to glamour humans, but too strong that it makes you different enough from them. They see in you what they're too charmed to see in us. It frightens them." Sookie exhaled an audible breath. She appreciated Preston having this conversation with her. He could have easily just brushed her questions off.
"I guess it's a good thing I don't have pointy ears," she giggled imagining how much more freaked out people would be around her.
"Yes," smiled Preston. He loved hearing her laugh, her sound was a song. Almost absently because it felt so natural to do, Sookie rested her hand on Preston's. They immediately glanced down. For a fraction their gazes fixed silently. Preston turned his hand over. Very naturally, they laced their fingers together. "Maybe if you did have pointed ears, you're fairy essence would be strong enough to charm humans."
"So how do you get your ears to look human?" she asked. "Did you have surgery?" Preston enjoyed Sookie's questions.
"It's my gift," he answered her. "Remember how I changed my hand?"
"Yes," she said.
"I change my ears," he said. "When I'm home, I change them back to their natural form."
"Don't you get tired?" she asked, appreciating Preston's openness. She liked it. Claudine didn't like to talk about fairy things. Preston didn't seem to mind.
"No," he answered.
They continued their conversation covering a long list of favorites, their wish lists, and Sookie's family, her Gran in particular. In the bubble they'd created, time slowed, while outside it sped along. It wasn't until Sookie yawned that the thought of time crossed her mind. Her eyes darted around the restaurant. They were the only ones left.
"We should go now," said Preston. Sookie glanced down at her watch.
"Wow, where did the time go?" she asked. Preston stood and pulled her chair out. Her cardigan, which she had put back on, ended up draped on the back of her chair during dinner. She reached for it only to have Preston intercept her. He took her smoky gray cardigan and held it open for her. Sookie slid her arms, one at a time, into the sleeves. "Thank you," she said, fastening the small leather belt she had exchanged with the wool braided cord she had bought the sweater with.
Preston reached for her hand and led her out of the restaurant and to the car. Her stomach fluttered and tickled with the sensation of a million champagne bubbles. With her other hand, Sookie held his arm drawing herself closer to his side. ~
