Chapter 3: Stew?

It was around noon already and Bulma had just finished putting the last ingredients into her stew. Suddenly the owner of the tavern Mr. Satan came in and said, "Bulma, the men are starting to come in for Lunch, is your stew ready yet?"

Bulma sighed, "Yea just about it needs to heat up a bit more though."

Mr. Satan frowned, "Well, why don't you go chop some firewood out there and stick it into the oven so that the fire will burn hotter and get the stew done quicker."

Bulma smiled, "Good idea sir, I'll go do that now."

Pan, ChiChi, Bra and Videl all looked as Vegeta came into the town on his black horse. He had his dark leather pants on and his black boots and a white home sewn shirt that revealed a good portion of his chiseled chest. His onyx eyes scanned the town of its female inhabitants.

"Well I have to admit, Vegeta does have a great body." ChiChi said with a quick glance at Vegeta. All the girls nodded and continued watching him not with liking but with curiosity as to what he was going to do.

Suddenly Vegeta laid eyes on them on the porch, he looked at Pan first, then ChiChi, then Videl and lastly Bra. His eyes stopped on Bra and he looked at her strangely. He then stopped his horse and dismounted it; he grabbed the reigns and approached the four girls on the porch. The girls looked at him curious as to why he was coming over to them, they were sure that Vegeta wouldn't want one of them for his wife.

"Why stop here Vegeta?" ChiChi asked.

Vegeta glanced at ChiChi and smirked, "Who's your blue haired friend?"

"Why not ask her yourself Vegeta?" ChiChi replied coolly. Vegeta smirked and looked down at Bra who was looking at him with a nervous glance.

Vegeta just glanced at her, "Well, will you not tell me who you are?"

Bra swallowed, "I am Bra, Bra Briefs, I arrived in town yesterday."

Vegeta nodded lightly, "That would explain why I've never seen you before."

Bra looked at him still feeling nervous, "Pretty much sir."

Vegeta looked her over quickly and then sighed, "Too young for my liking, if only there was someone a little older."

Everyone was silent, Pan and ChiChi wanted to laugh cause they knew there was someone like Bra who would fit his age requirement, but they said nothing, they didn't want to help him in his search.

"See you girls later." Vegeta said with a wave of his hand, he then walked down the road with his horse behind him.

"So that's Vegeta?" Bra asked as she followed him with her eyes down the street.

"Yea that's him alright." Pan said watching him walk down the road.

"I wonder what will happen if he sees Bulma?" Bra suddenly said as she saw Vegeta head in the direction of the tavern where Bulma was now working. The girls started laughing.

Bulma had been outside chopping firewood, for the oven. She would place the chopped wood on one side and the whole logs on the other side. With her large axe she began chopping again.

Vegeta was approaching Benjamin Briefs black smith shop, and decided to get a new shoe for his horse. He left his horse outside tied to the wooden fence and Vegeta strode in, as if he were royalty. Benjamin took a last swing at a sword he was making and looked over at Vegeta with a smirk.

"Vegeta? What a surprise. What brings you to my shop today?" He asked blowing on the heated sword. Vegeta looked around the shop to see if he needed anything else before stating his intentions, when he found nothing he glanced back at Benjamin.

"My horse slipped its shoe, he needs another." Vegeta said as he tossed a sack of money towards Benjamin. Benjamin looked at it and didn't even bother counting the money for he knew Vegeta was an honest man who knew the price of a horseshoe and the like. He picked it up and tossed it in his moneybox with the other moneybags he had earned for the day.

"Sure thing Vegeta, come back in an hour. Oh and by the way," Benjamin began, Vegeta halted at the door and looked back at Benjamin, "Do you also come to town today for a wife?"

Vegeta smirked, "I said I would didn't I?"

Benjamin nodded, "What kind of wife are you looking for? The girls willing to wed you, you've denied."

Vegeta leaned up against the doorframe and folded his hands across his chest, "I need a woman who isn't afraid of hard work, someone who is a good cook and a good housekeeper. It isn't easy living up in the mountains with four idiots who can't cook or clean. We need a woman to straighten up around the house and to just make our lives a bit more manageable."

Benjamin tried to hold back a laugh, it all made sense to him now. Vegeta turned down those girls cause they were girls who never lifted a hand to chop wood or anything of the sort in their whole life. He knew what Vegeta needed now, "So your not marrying for love?" Benjamin shook his head slightly in disapproval, "Pan is a hard working girl in every respect."

Vegeta's eyes went wide almost as if he was surprised that Benjamin would say such a thing, "Pan is not the girl for me. There is something about her, that I find annoying…and her sister I would find myself beating her senseless from constant bitching. And yes, I'm not marrying for love, but who in this day and age can afford to marry for love?"

Benjamin laughed at Vegeta's hard honesty, "Well, those two are the most wanted in the town, right along with Videl."

Vegeta nodded, "I know, perhaps my kin would find them to their liking but not I. Although I did see a new girl, with blue hair and amazing sapphire eyes, but she seems to young for me."

Benjamin's eyes widened, "You mean Bra Briefs?"

Vegeta nodded, "Yes, is she your kin, for you have the same last name."

Benjamin nodded, "She is my niece, her parents died a short while ago so they are living with me now."

Vegeta was silent a moment, "Yes…well…keep an eye on her. Most likely men will be ready and willing to steal her for themselves. I better be off and find myself a wife."

Benjamin chuckled, he was not telling Vegeta about Bulma for he was afraid that he might take Bulma for a wife. "Good luck Vegeta, lets see if its true what they say about you, that you always get what you come for. But I will say this, many women in this town only marry for love Vegeta."

Vegeta smirked and walked off into the town. He heard his stomach begin to grumble and he found it foolish to continue a bride hunt on an empty stomach. Suddenly he heard the sound of chopping wood over next to the tavern, he began walking out of curiosity, and he then stopped as he saw a blue haired maiden chopping wood. Vegeta froze in amazement at the way the girl handled the axe and showed no real signs of fatigue. He then realized how fair she was when she picked up the pieces of wood and headed inside the tavern.

"She's extremely beautiful, and she is good with an axe," Vegeta then saw her through the tavern window with a large bowl in her hand and she was serving the men inside, "Now last test, try out her cooking."

Vegeta with a smirk walked through the tavern door and looked over at Bulma with a devilish smirk. Bulma then glanced up at him and felt the weight of his stare on her, she lost all sense of reality for that moment until a man put his empty bowl up to her and she came back to her senses and started pouring him her stew. Vegeta saw an open seat next to the man Bulma was serving and he made his way there and sat down eagerly waiting to try some of Bulma's cooking.

"Stew?" Bulma asked him holding a large spoonful over his plate. Vegeta merely nodded and allowed Bulma to drop the batch on his plate.

"I'd like some ketchup to go with this." Vegeta said asking the man next to him to pass him the ketchup.

Bulma put a soft hand on his firm arm, Vegeta looked up into her sapphire blue eyes and froze, "I think my stew can stand on its own, you won't need any ketchup."

Still looking at Bulma Vegeta let go of the ketchup and took a spoonful of stew and sampled it. His eyes went wide and he smirked up at her, "Seems your right woman, this is incredible."

Bulma smiled in gratitude of the compliment, "The name's Bulma." She said as she walked by him and began serving the rest of the people. Vegeta chuckled as she walked by him and he began devouring the stew on his plate.

After the men had left after lunch Bulma went out back to begin milking the cow to get fresh milk for dinner and breakfast tomorrow. As she put the bucket under the cow and sat at her small chair she began singing a little hymn to herself, and she was then lost in her own little world.

Vegeta had tightened his belt around his waist after his food was digested and as he turned to he left he saw Bulma milking a cow in the small tavern barn.

Well here we go Vegeta, lets see if this girl will be my wife.

Vegeta crept up on the other side of the cow and crossed his arms over the cows back and he looked over and down at Bulma waiting for her to notice him. Bulma was still humming when she felt a presence looming over her, as she looked up she said nothing but smiled lightly.

"Hello there." Vegeta said with a grin.

Bulma smiled, "Hello."

Bulma may not have realized it but she was turning a lovely shade f crimson as each moment passed.

"I have a question." Vegeta said.

Bulma raised a brow to the young bronzed skinned man, "Alright, what is it?"

Vegeta took in a breath and sighed, "If I were to ask for you to marry me what would you say?"