"It is with great pleasure that I introduce our town's heroes, Laxus Dreyar and Lucy Heartfilia from Fairy Tail!" The Mayor's voice boomed over the lacrima speakers.

They stood before the podium at Town Hall. The townsfolk gathered before them, the crowd cheering and hollering. Lucy bowed her head.

"The Rotten Circus has terrorized our town for weeks. For weeks the Dark Guild has-" the Mayor droned on, but Lucy wasn't listening. Not really.

She stole a glance at the Lightning Dragon Slayer who stood beside her. He was dressed up in a black tuxedo. His tie was missing and his purple dress shirt was partially unbuttoned, his tribal tattoo peeking out. His blond hair was slicked back and styled. Lucy bit her lip as the smell of his aftershave made her stomach twitch and her heart quicken.

His stormy blue eyes flicked over to meet hers. His eyes trailed over her body and his lip tugged up into a smirk. She tore her eyes away, her heart hammering in her chest and her cheeks warming. She cursed her traitorous body.

"To have Fairy Tail's own Master accept our request, was a great honor," the Mayor continued.

"Happen to be chasing after a lost kitten," Laxus said, low enough for only Lucy to hear.

Lucy rolled her eyes. She crossed her arms under her breasts, her cleavage overflowing the sweetheart neckline of her mermaid evening gown. She frowned at the Lightning Dragon Slayer.

"Still didn't need your help," she whispered harshly.

The Mayor turned towards the two bickering blonds, his brow raised in question.

Lucy quickly schooled her features and offered the Mayor a brilliant smile.

"Please accept this five million Jewel check," the Mayor continued, his voice echoing throughout the hall. Lucy's eyes widened at the amount of the check. The Mayor bowed his head. "You have our eternal gratitude."

The hall roared with thunderous applause. Tears filled Lucy's eyes as the Mayor handed her over a year's worth of rent.

…

After the reward ceremony at Town Hall, the two blonds were invited to the Hotel de la Luxe for dinner and wine. Lucy should have been ecstatic. She had completed her first S Class mission in months. She had been rewarded with enough money to sustain herself for the next year. She was rocking a new sexy dress with a plunging sweetheart neckline and as she walked, men's jaws dropped to the fucking floor.

She should have been ecstatic. However, there was just one problem.

Lucy pushed her salad around on her plate. She stabbed a cherry tomato with her fork. She frowned, her eyes narrowed at the bar counter across the room. There, Laxus leaned against the counter, a beautiful woman standing next to him. He smiled at the woman, the woman's hand upon his chest. Lucy stabbed another cherry tomato, the tomato's pulp exploding outward and onto Lucy's breasts. She failed to notice.

She watched as Laxus leaned towards the woman and whispered something in her ear. Lucy slammed her fork down on her table. The Lightning Dragon Slayer smirked, his eyes darting to Lucy and then back to the beautiful woman before him. Lucy cursed. She stood up, her cloth napkin falling off her lap and onto the floor.

I need a drink, she thought, as she slung her purse strap over her shoulder.

She marched over to the bar counter, her steps heavy and unladylike. She came up beside Laxus, her hands on the marble bar counter. He turned towards her, but Lucy ignored him. She flagged the bartender instead, flashing the man a flirtatious smile.

"What can I get for you, Miss?" the bartender asked.

"A glass of red wine, please," Lucy said. She leaned over the counter, her breasts flowing out the top of her dress. The bartender's eyes lingered on her cleavage before pouring her a glass of wine.

She accepted the glass with a giggle and a smile. She shimmied slightly, her full breasts jiggling and the bartender stared.

"What are you doing?" Laxus asked his voice low and deep. He leaned over her.

She looked up at him finally. She offered him a coy smile. "Oh, just getting a drink," she said, batting her lashes. She took a slow, lingering sip of her wine.

Laxus' eyes came to rest on the soft tops of her breasts. His eyes lingered there for a moment before his hand came towards her.

Lucy flushed as she stammered, "Wha- what are you doing?"

Laxus dipped his finger in between her cleavage before wiping his finger up her chest. He raised his finger and Lucy's face flamed.

"Got some tomato on you," he said examining the tip of his finger. He sucked the bit of tomato pulp off his finger. Lucy gawked at him, her heart pounding.

The beautiful woman from earlier hugged Laxus from behind, her arms clutching at his chest. He sighed, rolling his eyes. He grabbed the woman's hands and pulled her off. The woman tugged on his sleeve. She cooed.

"Come on, Daddy," the woman purred. "Let's go have some fun."

Lucy scoffed, narrowing her eyes at the handsy woman.

"Not interested, Lady," Laxus growled.

The woman frowned. Her eyes flickered between Lucy and Laxus. "You think because you're Fairy Tail's master that you can have your pick of women?"

"Pretty much," Laxus said dryly.

She clutched at his chest again. "I bet I can make you come harder than that blonde bimbo ever could."

"Hey!" Lucy said.

"Doubt it," Laxus smirked.

Lucy cleared her throat. "Don't let me get in the way," she said, her voice sharp. She paused to take a sip of her wine. "You can have him."

The woman pawed at Laxus' chest. He growled, shoving the handsy woman off him.

"Come with me, Blondie," Laxus said. He grabbed Lucy's arm and her wine sloshed around.

"Hey!" she said, her wine splashing on her chest.

The Lightning Dragon Slayer ignored her as he led her away from the bar, through the dining hall and down the Hotel's main corridor. She pulled her arm out of Laxus' grasp.

"Where are you taking me?" Lucy asked, her eyebrows knitted in a frown. She stomped her foot.

"Admit it," Laxus said leaning over her. She backed into the wall. "You're jealous."

"Of what? You getting laid?" She patted Laxus' on his shoulder. "Good for you, I don't care," she lied. Her eyes avoided his.

She looked down at the wine spilt on her chest. She sighed, opening her purse and pulling out a handkerchief. She licked the corner of the handkerchief before rubbing her breasts with it.

Laxus licked his lower lip, his eyes on her breasts. "Want me to get that?" he asked, his tone suggestive.

She twisted around, shielding herself from his sight. "I got it," she said. "I can take care of myself, Daddy."

Laxus cringed. "Don't call me that," he growled.

Lucy smirked as she took a sip of her wine. "Why not? You're an old man now, aren't you?" she asked. "That and the fact you felt compelled to come to my rescue, makes you a Daddy." She poked him in the chest.

Laxus flinched. He narrowed his eyes.

"Oy, if I hadn't shown up you would've been spider meat."

She threw her hands up, her wine sloshing in her glass. "I was about to escape! I didn't need your help!" she shrieked.

He caught her wrist and she winced. He turned her wrist over, his eyes widening at her purple bruising and chaffed skin.

"Shit," he cursed. "Didn't a healer check you out?"

She snatched her hand back. She clutched her hand to her chest. "Quit fussing over me, I'm fine!"

Laxus frowned. "Where else are you hurt?" he asked.

"You know this wouldn't have happened if you had just let me take the job," she said, pushing past him. "I could have prepared better instead of rushing off before I got caught!"

He raised an eyebrow, crossing his arms over his broad chest. "You think anything would have changed?" He scoffed.

She fumed, her anger boiling in the pit of her stomach. "Laxus, I'm an S Class Mage. I can take care of myself! But you're making that difficult because I can't pay my rent because you won't give me work!"

He clicked his tongue. "I give you work," he said.

"Working in your office all day, doing your paperwork is not helping pay my bills!"

His eyes softened. "If you need money, just ask," he said his voice low.

Lucy flinched. "I- I can't just take money from the Guild."

Laxus rolled his eyes. "Not from the Guild, from me."

Her jaw dropped and her cheeks warmed. "L- Like that's any better!" she stuttered. "I don't need your charity! Let me take solo jobs."

"No," Laxus said.

"Why not?" she spat.

"Because you're a disaster waiting to happen," he said, frowning. "You're not going anywhere unless you got someone watching your ass." He flicked her forehead.

She glared at him, her teeth clenched. "Well seeing as my team disbanded to start families of their own, solo is my only option right now!" she yelled, her voice echoing throughout the corridor.

Laxus smirked. "That's right," he said. He leaned over her. "How does it feel to be the only one in your group not hitched?" he whispered in her ear.

She shoved him in the chest. "You're one to talk!" she shrieked. "You're pushing thirty! When are you going to settle down?" She jabbed his chest with her finger.

"Maybe I will," he said.

Lucy flinched. Her grip tightened around her near empty wine glass, her knuckles whitening. She bit the inside of her cheek as she tried to ignore the ache in her heart.

"Well, good luck finding someone who will put up with your shit," she spat.

She spun around and marched off down the hall. Her clicking heels echoed throughout the corridor and she cursed her short strides in her mermaid gown. She could hear him effortlessly following behind her. Her heart thundered in her chest as she reached the end of the corridor. She called for the elevator by jabbing the up arrow button with her finger.

"Oh, I've already found someone," Laxus drawled behind her as she incessantly jabbed the elevator button.

Lucy's stomach dropped and her chest tightened. "I wish you happiness," she said dryly.

The elevator dinged before the doors opened before them. She stepped into the elevator and selected her room's floor. She fumbled through her purse for her room key.

Laxus followed her into the elevator and the doors closed behind him. He grabbed her shoulder and her eyes shot up at him. Her eyes glistened with unshed tears.

"What do you want?" she asked. She sniffed.

His face paled and he froze as the elevator carried them to Lucy's floor. She shrugged his hand off her shoulder. She wiped her eyes with her free hand. She took another sip of her wine.

The elevator dinged and the doors opened. She pushed past the Lightning Dragon Slayer.

He cursed as he staggered out of the elevator after her.

"Lucy," he said.

She paused, frozen at the sound of her name on his lips. She held her breath as he walked up behind her.

"Marry me," he said his voice low.

"What?!" she gasped, jumping. She spun around to face him, her face flaming. "Are you out of your mind?! We- we're not even dating!"

His hands landed on her shoulders. "Then date me."

Her mouth gaped like a fish and her heart hammered in her chest. "Wh- what kind of joke is that? I- I don't even like you," she stuttered. A lump formed in throat and she swallowed hard to clear it.

He lifted her chin with his finger. He smirked. "You're an awful liar."

"I- I'm not lying!" she shrieked. She shook her head. "You're arrogant and cocky. A womanizer and-" she paused to catch her breath. "You're pigheaded, stubborn, you're infuriating and condescending. Not to mention you do as you damn well please, you spoiled brat!"

His smirk widened and his eyes lowered. "Are you done?"

Her heart threatened to jump out of her throat. "We'd never work!"

Laxus pinned her against the wall and she held her breath.

His stormy blue eyes were half-lidded. He licked his lips. "Shut up and let me kiss you," he whispered, his voice low and husky.

Oh, hell. Who am I kidding?

Her glass of wine slipped through her fingers and shattered against the floor. She threw her arms around his neck and his lips came crashing down onto hers.

His hands cupped her lower back as he pulled her to his chest, their bodies molding together. Lucy moaned into his mouth and he kissed her harder. She had suffered through years of sideways glances and subtle flirting. For years she had repressed her yearning, her desire and her lust. All of these feelings, now bubbled within Lucy's core and she couldn't breathe.

His hand traveled up the length of her back, drawing her closer still. Pressed up against his chest, she could feel his heart pounding in rhythm to her own. Every one of his kisses were firm yet gentle and caring. Lucy's heart swelled and her walls came crashing down.

Their lips parted slowly, their foreheads touching. Lucy panted, out of breath, her heart racing, her eyes heavy with lust.

"All- all this time you've been," Lucy said through bated breaths. "How long have you felt this way?"

He kissed her neck, his lips lingering as he spoke. "Since I met you," he answered.

"What? What took you so long to tell me?" Lucy asked, her voice soft.

Laxus chuckled. "I've been telling you for years," he said. He kissed her along her jaw bone. "You just never took me seriously."

Lucy's eyes widened. She remembered all his insistent flirting and teasing. His blatant invites to lunch or dinner. His subtle displays of favoritism, like when he handed her extra sparklers at New Years. She remembered all the times he made excuses to touch her, like brushing a bug off her shoulder or sliding a loose strand of her hair behind her ear.

She remembered his overprotective attitude whenever she headed out on a job.

Wait a minute.

She pulled back from his embrace. "Is this why you kept denying my job requests?"

"And kept making lame excuses for you to work in my office so that I could stare at your ass all day?" He nipped at her ear. "You got me," he whispered.

She smacked his chest. "Jerk," she said. "I was seriously hurting for money."

He chuckled.

She frowned and smacked him again.

"Shut up, stop laughing," she said. Her eyes lowered and she licked her lips. "Kiss me before I change my mind about how I feel about you."

He groaned. "I can't," he said, his voice deep and feral. "If I kiss you again, I'm going to end up carrying your ass back to my room."

She kissed him softly on the lips. "I'm okay with that," she whispered.

He grinned against her lips. "Don't tempt me," he said.

"Why not? I'm going to need help getting out of this dress anyway," she said. She leaned her head back and stood up on her tippy toes. "Or should I ask someone else?" she whispered in his ear.

Laxus growled, the sound vibrating in his chest, as he swept her off her feet.

…

Lucy woke the next morning to an insistent buzzing sound. She sat up, silky sheets falling to her lap. She rubbed her tired eyes with the back of her hand. The buzzing sound continued.

She hazily looked around for the source. She groaned when she found it. A glowing communication lacrima sat upon the bedside table. She yawned before tapping the buzzing lacrima.

A flash of light and Mirajane's face was projected in a swirl of colors above the device. The Take-Over Mage blinked in surprise as her eyes laid to rest on Lucy.

"Oh my, Lucy!?" Mira squealed. The silver haired Mage giggled into her fist. "Did I catch you at a bad time?" She looked Lucy up and down.

Lucy frowned before she looked down at herself. She was stark naked. She screeched as she scrambled to cover herself with the bed sheet. Her cheeks flamed with embarrassment.

Mira clapped with joy. "Ah, Master Laxus must be with you," Mira said as she squealed yet again.

Lucy clutched the silky sheet to her chest. "How did you-"

Mira winked. "Why it's Master's communication lacrima that I called," the Take-Over Mage said with a grin that reached her eyes. She craned her head to try to look around Lucy. "Now, where's Laxus?"

"Here," Laxus said is voice rough from sleep. He sat up in the bed beside Lucy. "The hell do you want?"

Mira squealed as she clapped and Laxus plugged his ears. "I was calling to check in, to see if you found Lucy and eeeeee-" She squealed again.

Lucy flopped face first into the bed. She groaned, burying herself under the covers.

"You told her?!" Mira exclaimed. "Oh Laxus, that's wonderful!" The Take Over Mage clapped again.

"Yeah, yeah, Harpy," Laxus grumbled. "Now piss off. It's too early in the morning for your screeching." He leaned over Lucy and palmed the glowing lacrima on the bedside table. The projection shut down, cutting Mira off mid squeal.

Lucy groaned again. "She's going to tell everyone, isn't she?" Lucy said her voice muffled by the blanket over her face.

Laxus chuckled. He ripped the blanket off Lucy, revealing her naked body.

"Hey!" she said, crossing her legs and covering her breasts with her hands.

His smirk widened and his stormy blue eyes were half lidded as his eyes trailed her nude body. He leaned over her, licking his lips, his warm chest pressing her into the mattress. He kissed her neck.

"It's a little late to be embarrassed, Kitten," he said, his breath hot against her throat.

She closed her eyes, her heart racing.

His hands traveled down her body and she melted under his touch.

A/N And that's it! Thank you so much for reading, following and faving! I hope you enjoyed this short. Please leave a review with your thoughts and feelings.