Chapter 6
"There goes my relaxing morning by the pool," Livia sighed, as the two of them were relatively alone standing at the ship's railing.
"I'm sorry that Mrs. Karsak wrecked it for you, sweetie," Dave said, as he put his arm around her shoulders again.
"It's not your fault that she can't leave a married man alone. To be fair, though this is a family cruise, which means most men are going to be married and the only reason she is here is because she has a daughter, but she needs to take a cruise for single people and leave her daughter at home if she wants a fling with a man," Livia said, as she cuddled into Dave's arms unreservedly. "So, are we really going to disembark in Naples? Finish out our vacation there and perhaps spend a few extra days to make up for missing out on the rest of the cruise?"
"We can if you want," Dave said. "I know we were both looking forward to enjoying ourselves on this cruise, but neither one of us expected we'd have someone like Melinda Karsak annoying me either. I came this close," Dave explained very quietly and then held his thumb and forefinger less than an inch apart, "to transforming and burning her to a crisp with my dragon fire. The dragon inside me was more than annoyed with her by the time the confrontation by the pool happened a few minutes ago. She wouldn't even be on this cruise if not for her daughter, which means that we end up in a lot of the same places onboard ship because we both have children that are similar in age."
Livia winced at Dave's words of nearly transforming and setting Melinda on fire, as she knew that Dave had a good control of his shifter form and usually never even came close to transforming unless they were absolutely alone and had privacy.
For him to tell her, he had to come so close to shifting meant that this Melinda Karsak had more than annoyed him, but made him angry, and that wasn't an easy thing to do. Dave was so easygoing that sometimes it was difficult to remember that he did have a temper, even if it took a lot to ignite it. That this Melinda had managed to do so told Livia everything she needed to know about the woman, even though she had only met her by the pool less than half an hour ago. However, she been hearing about Melinda Karsak for the last week, as Dave had not kept every single encounter he'd had with her from her.
Livia was not upset with Dave at all, for he hadn't asked this woman to practically stalk him and had just been enjoying the cruise with their sons while she and Kendra were doing some other activity.
"It might be better to leave the ship when we reach Naples tomorrow then," Livia told Dave. "We can always take this cruise again in the future. I hate to do that though, as that is a waste of money, because I know how much you paid for all of us to take this cruise, but because of that woman we can't even stay and enjoy it."
The words 'that woman' were spit out, as if Livia had tasted something foul making Dave wince.
"Don't worry about that," Dave said, even though he knew Livia hated wasting money, but then, she'd had to live on the bare minimum for more the first half of her life, it wasn't surprising, not even after all these years with him.
"At least if we're on land, we can get away from someone like her, as she'd never find us in Naples, where we disembark, while this liner is a contained and a much smaller environment. There's only so many places we can go to get away from someone like her onboard the ship," Livia said.
"Well, I wanted to take you to Amalfi Coast anyway," Dave said. "I wasn't necessarily planning to do that on this trip, but since we're going to be in Naples anyway and it's not that far away, we might as well."
"We'll need to do things that the boys will like," Livia said. "I have no objection to going to the Amalfi Coast sometime though."
"There are plenty of beaches along the Amalfi Coast for the boys and us to enjoy," Dave said. "Also, there's over a dozen little towns along the coast and we can explore some of them."
The two were silent for some time, as they just enjoyed each other's company, and Dave finally spoke quietly again. "I know I emit that shifter appeal, but most women aren't so bold or persistent. There's nothing, I can do about the aura I put off. It's as if a human senses, my otherworldliness and it attracts them. It's always been that way for those who can shift shape, which is one reason most of us tend to stick to our own kind at least for the most part, to avoid such situations."
"Let's not let this woman mar the rest of our vacation, as she's already been annoying enough," said Livia, as she took Dave's hand giving it a squeeze. "I know you can't help if you are projecting an irresistible appeal to humans and paranormals alike, as it's just part of who you are, who all shifters are. It's not usually a problem just this time it has been."
This was said quietly enough that no one else could possibly have understood what Livia was saying, other than Dave, who was standing right beside her.
"We'll tell Kendra our decision as soon as we get back to our suite. The boys are young enough to go along and likely won't realize that we changed our plans," Dave said.
The two of them had already been ashore at several ports for a day of shopping and sightseeing so Sebastian likely wouldn't realize it was unusual when they went into Naples and Dunston was too young to even realize it.
"I better go buy Dunston that gift you promised him before we dock," Livia said.
"We could buy him something in Italy if we need to," Dave said. "I don't believe that Dunston will care where it comes from so long as he gets the souvenir, I promised him. He is only two after all."
"I'm lucky I haven't gone into a vision at least so far," Livia said. "I'm glad that my visions don't constantly bother me, but it is one reason that I only had so much money before we met. Sometimes I would get visions every few days and other times they were months apart, as if not much was happening in the future that needed me to see it."
"I'm happy that you haven't had a vision, but if you do, we'll deal with it," Dave said simply, even as he kissed her temple in a gesture of affection.
Livia absorbed Dave's love for her and marveled yet again at how lucky she was to have him in her life. To have someone who understood her and wasn't about to leave her just because she could see the future and thought she was delusional. Of course, the fact that Dave was also a paranormal creature was probably part of the reason he accepted her. Still, it gave her a nice warm, fuzzy, feeling to be so loved to where she was wrapped up in Dave's affection and devotion.
The two of them stood at the railing for a while longer, simply enjoying each other and the scenery before they headed back to their suite hand in hand.
~~~Dave and Livia~~~
"If this Melinda Karsak is going to continue to be so annoying then it's probably the right decision to stay in Italy for the rest of our vacation," Kendra observed once she was told about the confrontation by the pool.
She was rather upset at this Melinda Karsak for being such an annoyance when the Rossis had just wanted to enjoy their first cruise with their sons.
It was late evening and both children were in bed and not likely to wake and overhear their conversation, though that was more of a worry with Sebastian then Dunston, as the younger boy had just started sleeping in a regular bed just a few weeks ago. "If you want, though, I could perform a spell to where she avoids you and has the urge to go elsewhere as soon as she sees either of you."
"So, you can make us basically invisible to Melinda Karsak," Dave said, and Kendra nodded.
"You won't actually be invisible, as that would be useless as nobody would be able to see you then not just Mrs. Karsak. What I'm suggesting is more of a not notice me spell and will affect only her and no one else. The spell I'm suggesting would take for less power than true invisibility, something only the great sorcerers with far more power than I possess can accomplish. Mrs. Karsak just won't bother you anymore, as she'll barely notice that you're there," Kendra explained. "You could be sitting at the same table, and she wouldn't pay any attention to you much less make you angry."
"Having a sorcerer as a nanny for our children is proven very useful," Dave observed as he studied Kendra. "If that's what you want Kendra to do so we can finish out our cruise in peace then that's fine with me or we can go with the plan we discussed up on deck. Either is fine with me."
"I know you're not strong as sorcerer go, so my question becomes will this spell drain you?" Livia asked Kendra. "This is your vacation too, even though you're also working. I'm perfectly willing to disembark and spend the rest of our vacation in Italy if doing that spell will drain you too much."
Sorcerer's used objects to cast their spells, ones that had a remnants of power within them. Sorcerer's collected objects and the more objects, they collected the more powerful they became. Livia knew that Kendra had never wanted to be powerful, which is why she had never collected that many objects with power in them. Kendra didn't crave being powerful unlike many of her kind.
"It will, a little, but I should be fine," Kendra said.
Livia studied Kendra and then looked at Dave and said, "I say we go with the plan we talked about earlier today, going into Naples. Let's not put Kendra out, even though she offered. Kendra should conserve her power for when it's really needed like if we and the kids are in danger and it's something that we can't handle or she's out with the kids and we're not present at the time."
"If that's what you want," Dave agreed without arguing, "Kendra's offer, though, is a good one, and I'm more than willing to take her up on it."
"I know, but I think it's too risky," Livia explained her feelings. "Kendra might be able to make this annoying woman ignore you, but I'm sure others will notice her finally leaving you alone and wonder what made her do so. Your confrontations haven't exactly been in a vacuum as there have always been other people around."
"There were always at least a few people like at the pool this morning, where we were enjoying ourselves. They might not have interfered, but they were still there listening, so they could be witnesses to her behavior and yours, so if anything were to happen to her, you would be the first suspect like if she suddenly got sick and it wasn't proven natural causes," Dave added once Livia had explained her thinking.
"Also, the movie theater and the waterpark that you took the boys to, to keep them entertained," Livia reminded him, and Dave nodded.
"She has a point," Kendra said, and Dave nodded again, because his mate did indeed have a point.
"Yes, she does. We'll disembark the ship in Naples Italy and finish out our vacation there," Dave agreed. "While your offer is appreciated Kendra, Livia brought up a good point about other people noticing that Mrs. Karsak just suddenly started leaving us alone when she was being so annoying before and I'm sure they will wonder what we did in order to get her to her turn attention elsewhere, something I hadn't thought about when you offered to cast that bit of magic for us. Luckily, Livia did think about it before we could actually enact that plan."
"We are decided then," Livia said obviously relieved at the decision. "I don't fault Melinda Karsak's taste in men, just her sense of personal boundaries."
"She doesn't hold a candle to you, honey," Dave told Livia sincerely. "She is conceited and didn't care if she broke us up. She also, doesn't have a loyal bone in her entire body and would've bedded me and then abandoned me if I had fallen for her games. I would've been nothing more than another notch on her bedpost. It wouldn't surprise me if she's divorced, because she can't seem to stay away from men, whether married or not. I wouldn't be surprised if she didn't love her husband, at least not enough to be loyal to him, even though they produced a child together."
"I hate to think of her daughter growing up under her mother's care," Kendra said. "That little girl could turn out just as conceited as her mother is. I doubt there's a nurturing bone in her entire body. People like that should never have children."
"Unfortunately, they do all the time," Dave said gravely well aware that people like Melinda had children all the time whether or not they deserved parenthood. He'd seen of this a lot in his centuries. "A lot of times children turn out more different from their mother or father, whichever one is conceited and shallow. Those children often turn out to have compassion and kindness unlike, whichever parent is the one that doesn't care about anybody but themselves, not even their offspring. We'll never know how that little girl will turn out, but she could turn out a better woman than her mother is if the gods are kind."
"We'll have to hope that is the case," Livia said, "since there's nothing, we can do about Melinda's Karsak's daughter growing up with her mother. We have no right to interfere and no way to interfere, even if we had the right, so there's nothing we could do."
"It is time for us to go to bed as the boys will be up early," Dave proclaimed.
"I'm really sorry that that woman ruined our first cruise as a family," Dave added to Livia.
"What are you apologizing for? It isn't your fault, it's hers. You told her numerous times that you were married and yet she didn't back off. It isn't your fault that she has no sense of personal boundaries and that she thought you were playing hard to get instead of her just leaving you alone when you told her you weren't available. She ignored the wedding band on your finger and you telling her that you weren't available.
"This ship might seem large, but really, it's not. There are only so many places onboard you can both take your children, so they can have fun and it's not your fault you kept running into her," Livia told him letting Dave know it wasn't him that his mate was upset with, but rather the situation.
"We'll just spend the rest of our vacation in Naples and maybe go to this Amalfi Coast you were telling me about, which is a place I've heard of, but never had a chance to visit. I'm sure the children will enjoy it. Let's go to bed and I'll show you how much I love and adore you and then we'll have breakfast in the morning and let Kendra take the kids to whatever activity they want to do while we spend some time together," Livia said.
"You're hoping if you send Kendra with the kids that we'll be able to avoid another confrontation with Melinda?" Dave guessed and Livia nodded shortly.
"I was already annoyed with her, even though I didn't meet her until today, just from everything you told me about her, and I knew I wouldn't like her before I ever met her, but the minute I did, I knew I was right.
"I know at least theoretically that women like Melinda go after what man they want, and it doesn't matter to them if that man is married or not. That we encounter someone like her on our first cruise as a couple is just bad luck and hopefully, once we disembark in Italy, we'll never encounter her again."
"I certainly hope not," Dave said sincerely. "There are always going to be people that don't pay attention to personal boundaries, but that doesn't mean it's not annoying when it happens. Perhaps the next cruise we take can be a couples cruise where we can spend a lot of our time in our stateroom, making love, no kids and no one like Melinda to worry about," Dave suggested. "It'll be like a honeymoon something we never got a chance to have since we never technically had a wedding."
"That sounds good. Maybe when Dunston is a little older," Livia said.
"Once Dunston starts school is a good time. Kendra is capable of looking after them for a week or two and we'll take that cruise then, but right now, Dunston is still too young for school."
"It'll be less than three years before he starts first grade, though I suppose we could send him to kindergarten, but that's not a legal requirement."
"We should've done that with Sebastian, as it would have given our son time to mingle and get to know other children his age, but with both of them being shifters, I just didn't see it as necessary and it could also be dangerous as a lot of young shifters don't have a complete control over shifting at that age," Dave said. "Also, they're just like me and radiate that shifter appeal, which can and often do cause problems in places like a public school. I know a lot of shifters send their children to public school, but those children mostly don't bond with their human classmates just with other paranormals if there are any."
"I don't think there were other paranormals in the school I attended, but I could be wrong about that," Livia said remembering her own school years. "Of course, back during my school years, I didn't realize I was actually seeing the future and thought I was delusional, so I didn't go out of my way to bond with anyone of my classmates anyway. To my classmates, I was just this weird kid, that the bullies went out of their way to torment."
"I'm sorry, I reminded you of your childhood bella," Dave told his mate compassionately. "I know you must've had a hard time in school without having friends and going into a vision at any time after you hit puberty."
"So, you haven't had a vision about this Melinda Karsak?" Dave since the subject had been brought up.
"Nope, I would've told you if I had if we weren't together when it happened," Livia said shaking her head. "So far, I've been vision free and I'm glad as I would hate to go into one in public and have people see me and think I'm having a seizure. Besides, Melinda is human, and I think I only have visions about other paranormals, so it is unlikely I will have a vision about her. Come to think of it is kind of a shame as we could've had some warning."
"I'm not going to worry about it. Neither should you," Dave said firmly.
"We'll be leaving soon, so I'm not worried about it. I just think it's a shame I don't have visions about humans when they're important in one way or another to our lives, even if that's as annoyances," Livia said.
Livia's blush had faded at Dave's calling her bella she answered Kendra's question, as it meant beautiful in Italian, as well as being both a first and last name it was also just a word.
"My school years are over now," Livia told the other two simply, as she cuddled close to Dave on the couch they were occupying. "I don't like remembering my school years or my years at all before I met you."
The two were silent as they sat cuddled together before Dave finally spoke. "I think it's time we went to bed as you suggested some time ago."
"Fine with me," Livia said suddenly feeling tired. The tiredness just came upon her suddenly and it was if her energy had run out of her like she was a sieve.
"We'll see you in the morning Kendra," Dave told the nanny and Kendra nodded thinking it was time for her to go to bed herself because she was tired, as she had told the Rossis earlier.
Both Livia and Dave rose and headed for their bedroom, so Livia could fulfill her earlier promise to make love to her mate before they went to sleep something Dave was really looking forward to.
A few minutes later, once they had brushed their teeth and done everything else necessary Livia fulfilled her promised to Dave and they both drifted off to sleep only twenty minutes later, both satiated an satisfied with large smiles on their faces.
~~~Dave and Livia~~~