Dark Princess: Shadows (The Children Of The Gods Paranormal Romance #89)

36. Brandon

36

brANDON

E ll-rom and Annani had been with Morelle for an awfully long time, or at least it felt like that to Brandon. Each minute seemed to stretch endlessly, and he filled the time by committing to memory her beautiful face and those huge blue eyes, an image so perfect it seemed borrowed from a fairy tale.

Next to him, Kian was reading through his emails, frowning and occasionally cursing under his breath.

"Trouble?" Brandon finally asked.

"Incompetence," Kian spat. "I must be really bad at hiring managers. The only good ones are clan members. I know there are competent humans out there, but I can't seem to be able to spot them."

"Perhaps you should use a human headhunter to find managers for you, someone who specializes in the particular industry you need."

Kian regarded him with appreciation. "That's good advice. I'll do that."

"Glad to help." Brandon leaned back in his chair. "Why are you still here, Kian? I don't mind the company, but you are a busy guy. I'm sure you have better things to do than sit out here and wait for your mother. Are you afraid of Morelle attacking the Clan Mother?"

Kian shook his head. "She is in no condition to harm anyone right now, but that's because she has just woken up and is completely overwhelmed." He turned toward Bridget's office, where the doctor sat working with her door open. "Is it good for her to have so many visitors so soon after waking up?"

Bridget looked up from her computer, shrugging. "Could you have kept your mother from visiting her sister until tomorrow?"

"Good point," Kian conceded. "I keep thinking of her as I do of transitioning Dormants, but Morelle is half goddess, half Kra-ell, and she's much more resilient. It's probably okay."

Bridget's smile held a knowing edge. "Your guess is as good as mine." She shifted her gaze to Brandon. "After the Clan Mother and Ell-rom leave, you'll need to wait for Gertrude to put the CPM machine on Morelle's legs to exercise them. You can sit with her while that's being done, but after that, Gertrude will wash her and change her hospital gown, so you will have to leave again." Her expression turned thoughtful. "Perhaps you can utilize the time to get Morelle some things. I can ask Amanda to take care of getting her what she needs, and she'd be glad to do so, but Amanda is already busy organizing Peter and Marina's wedding, so I don't know if she can do it right away. She might delegate it to someone else, but if you're up to it, that could be you."

Brandon's heart leaped at the opportunity. "I'm definitely up to it, but I don't want to leave her side. I'll contact a personal shopper I know to handle everything and deliver the purchases to the reception at the keep."

He could get her an entire wardrobe fit for a princess or a supermodel. Should he order her high heels? How tall was she?

Most of the Kra-ell females were over six feet tall, but Morelle was half goddess, so she might be much shorter than that. Come to think of it, she probably had to wear platform shoes under her priestly robes to compensate for her more diminutive size.

"It's good to have connections." Kian cast him a sidelong glance. "It would never have occurred to me to hire a personal shopper."

"It's standard practice in the movie industry," Brandon said. "Usually, the service is used to provide wardrobes for actors based on the costumer's wish list, but many use it for their personal needs as well." He turned to Bridget. "Did you take any of Morelle's measurements?"

"I took some, but not as many as I do for transitioning Dormants. Once the Clan Mother and Ell-rom are out of her room, I can quickly assemble a measurements list for you, and I'll also text you what you need to order." She swiveled her chair, so her monitor was no longer obstructing half of her face. "Remember, she needs everything—underwear, sleepwear, everyday clothes, evening wear, toiletries. Maybe even makeup and hairbrushes will be needed when her hair grows back. Perhaps a wig if she's self-conscious about being bald."

"Morelle is beautiful the way she is." Brandon felt offended on her behalf. "She doesn't need a wig."

Bridget smiled knowingly. "I agree, but does she think so?"

"Good point," he murmured. "I'll get her a wig, but I won't give it to her unless she indicates that she is upset about her baldness."

"Smart male." Kian patted his arm.

Brandon smirked. "After decades of dealing with actresses, I've learned a thing or two about females."

"I'm sure the experience will come in handy." Kian closed his phone and put it in his pocket. "That being said, Morelle is a sample of one. There is no one like her in the entire universe."

"Except for her brother." Brandon pulled out his phone and searched his contacts for his most trusted personal shopper.

"It's not the same." Kian rose to his feet. "He is a male, and his sensitivities and insecurities come from a different place." He walked over to the water dispenser and filled up a small paper cup. "We all want to look appealing and be perceived as strong and capable people, but for males, the ability to protect and provide is what makes us feel good about ourselves, and for females, it's the ability to nurture and create. Naturally, there is a lot of overlapping, and some males are better at nurturing and creating than they are at providing and protecting. The same is true for females who are better at providing and protecting than they are at nurturing and creating, but generally, I believe that's universally true."

"You forget that she is half Kra-ell," Bridget said. "Morelle was raised as a Kra-ell, and some of the roles are reversed in their society."

Kian chuckled. "Their males still provide and protect, and their females are not very nurturing, but they are still in charge of raising the children."

"You are old-fashioned," Brandon said. "Not that I don't agree with you. I'm old-fashioned, too. We are dinosaurs."

Kian laughed. "I hope not. The dinosaurs went extinct. I hope immortals roam the Earth for eternity."