Standard disclaimer applies
He was pulling her onto the crowded dance floor and out to the entrance hall as discretely as she allowed him. Without turning to look at her he spoke.
"If u don't behave people are going to think that I'm about to take you into a secluded place to do illicit things to you…" His tone mocking.
Was that a joke? Did he just make a joke? It would have been funny under different circumstances. For one thing, she didn't appreciate being dragged out of a public event like a sullen child and she sure didn't like getting man-handled by this barbarian of a man! This was nothing short of scandalous!
She thought she saw the flash of a camera. Oh no! She had forgotten about the press coverage the event was getting… The local papers would have a field day with this. She could see the headlines already: "Pouty Princess Punished", "Royal Love Triangle", "Mixing Business with Pleasure: Princess Dating Brooding Bodyguard."
"Heero, unhand me this instant!" Relena tried feebly to pull her wrist from his vice-like grip.
"You're hurting me…" She winced as she lost her footing; he had stopped walking and before she could stop herself she crashed into his wall of a back.
"Get in." They were in the parking lot standing beside the car. Her hair disheveled, her feet ached; she was disheartened and embarrassed. Defeated, she entered the car and said nothing until Heero deposited her at her door. He reached for the doorknob but his hand was swatted away. He stared at it as if he had never seen it before then looked at Relena. She glowered in return.
"If you think for one second, that I'm going to let you come into my home after the way I was treated tonight, YOU, Mr. Yui, have another thing coming! I have never," Her voice was steely, cold. "-EVER, been so embarrassed in my life. I can now say, without a shadow of a doubt, that I hate you. I hate you Heero Yui. And if ever u get the nerve, the slightest inclination to darken my doorsteps again, DON'T."
"Relena, I-"
"I'll call Duo, Trowa or Wufei to-"
"I'm the only one available Relena. Duo and Trowa are already on their way to Lunar Colony DX9 on a mission regarding the disappearance of your coworkers. Wufei, Noin and your brother are not going to return to Earth for another three days, so unless you're going to call Lady Une to babysit you, you're stuck with me. Anything else you want to get off our chest feel free, but the point still remains, I'm staying."
She gawked up at him. Damn that men, everything he had said was true. It infuriated her. He was right.
"Are you going to continue to stare into my baby blues or are you going to let us in."
She looked away, flushed with a mixture of anger and embarrassment. Angry because of his conceit and embarrassed because she had been staring at his eyes… They were far from baby blue… Cobalt more like it. Deep, dark and determined.
She let them into the house and punched in the security code as Heero secured the locks to the doors and windows downstairs.
"You can take the pool room."
"I'm sleeping in the guest room next to the master bedroom."
"But-"
"I want to be able to hear you snore."
"You're not the boss- Snore? I don't snore."
"Said the grizzly bear. You have a meeting at 8 am with Outer Limits Inc. You should get some sleep."
With that he went upstairs. She stared after him.
"Un-freaking-believable."
She woke up to the sound of the 7o'clock news and the smell of… What was that? Bacon? Cinnamon rolls? She inhaled again, coffee… Nectar of the political gods. Thank you Pagan. She jumped out of bed to take care of hygienic chores and as she brushed her teeth, it dawned on her that it couldn't have been Pagan who prepared the meal waiting for her downstairs. Pagan had died 3 months ago. The old man had lost a valiant fight to cancer. Heero? No way… He probably had it delivered. Right?
She'd put on her suit. She had taken to wearing skirts suits as her PR rep said it was more flattering to her figure and made her look more approachable and professional instead of an immature teenager who wanted to stand out. If she was going to stand out, let her words and action make the difference.
She took a final look at her outfit. She looked good… wearing a cream silk blouse and black pencil skirt and black patent leather opened toed stilettos. She held up her jacket, with? Or without?
"Leave the jacket. Breakfast is ready. Eat. You have a full day ahead of you."
She scoffed, rolled her eyes and replied.
"Yes dad."
She walked past him, the remnants of her vanilla body mist lingered in the room. The jacket was left on the bed. Pleased, he joined her downstairs.
She still had a mouthful of cinnamon roll in her mouth when she asked "These are great. What coffee shop did you buy these?"
His back was to her, turning to see her response, he said, "I didn't buy them. I made them. I was up since about 4, and I thought I would make you something to eat. You like cinnamon rolls so… I made them."
Her mouth formed a small 'O' then she swallowed. " I mean- uh- they're good. Really good. For you. Did you really make these?" Her eyebrows drawn up sceptically.
"Yes."
She grabbed 2 more muffins and dropped them in a paper bag and rushed to the door with Heero in tow. They drove to her office in semi silence, only broken when Heero asked about new buildings that he did not recognize. He chortled when Relena had told him that the Cinq Kingdom now sported a roller rink of all things. They got to their destination without falling into another row and it seemed as if the day would get better.
"What do you mean it won't be ready by then?"
"I understand that you're upset, but-"
The young man's hand came crashing down on the table, rattling glasses and sending nearby documents flying. There were gasps and whispers coming from the persons seated at the table. Each person, 15 in all, were representing various shareholders in the terraforming scheme, Operation Alpha, a project instigated by Relena, to curtail over population on the planet. An emergency meeting was called to discuss reasons behind the disruption of operation Alpha.
"No buts Miss Relena! We had an agreement."
"Your anger is quite understandable Mr. Dawkins. But I'll say this once more, I will not jeopardize the safety of the potential citizens of Lunar Colonies Alpha 001, 002, 003. These colonies must be tested and retested to ensure air optimum air quality and a continuous source of adequate potable water. Do you know what is at stake if anything should go wrong? The countless lives lost. Now I understand that it will be a little costly with the Terraforming project at a standstill and you are free to withdraw your support. But I can only imagine the repercussions your companies will face."
There was grumbling around the table as Relena finished.
"I understand your concerns, but until we can ensure the safety of the people, we cannot proceed with the move."
"Point taken." Came from a young blue-eyed blonde. "When can we expect the tests to be completed? Soon I hope, considering that we are about six months behind."
"Our researchers say that it will take three to six months."
"Not so bad…" He said looking at Mr Dawkins. Had we allowed Ms Relena the opportunity to speak, we would have been through with this meeting hours ago."
"Thank you, Mr Winner. Is there anything else you would like to discuss? No? Well. In that case, meeting adjourned."
The conference room cleared, leaving Quatra, Heero and Relena. "That was awful. Thank you Quatra."
"No problem. I couldn't allow them to continue picking on you."
The three of them made small talk as they escorted Quatra outside to his car. They heard a commotion as they stepped outside, Quatra had completely forgotten he was double parked and was blocking none other than Mr Dawkins. He ended the conversation, making promises of a visit in the near future. Quatra drove off allowing Mr Dawkins to get into his car.
Relena, seeing Quatra off, turned to enter the building, just then there was an explosion from the parking lot. Heero instinctively shielded Relena's body with his own. Looking down at her, he asked gruffly, "Relena, are you alright?"
"Yes, What was that?"
Taking a backwards glance to confirm he said "A car… It exploded."
"Oh my God! Quatra?"
"No Dawkins."
"Let's get you something to drink. A brandy. Calm your nerves"
It was then she realized she was shaking. She let him lead her into the supposed safety of her office building.