In-Between Work and Play (The Jocelyn Frost Series Book 1) (2 page)

“Twelve flights
of stairs later, I finally arrived at the apartment.  The tenant didn’t even
have the common courtesy to say ‘thank you!’  Now, I know that delivering
packages is my job and all, but seriously, that thing had to weigh at least
forty pounds.”  She yanked several pieces of long, inky hair out of her face. 
With a deep sigh, she added, “After that, I went home, crashed on the couch
with a bag of popcorn, and waited for the phone to ring.  Obviously, it never
did.  Guys can be such jerks.  That’s the last time I tell a guy I’m a
demigoddess on the first date.”

I leaned
forward, giving Lucinda Whisk my full attention. Lucinda flipped her shiny hair
behind her shoulder and shrugged when she finished talking.  I liked Lucinda. 
She had a carefree attitude, personal space issues, and a bad case of adult
attention deficit disorder. The details about her weekend were different from
everyone else’s, except for one, overwhelming aspect:  they all wanted to get
into a committed relationship before things went to the next level.  I couldn’t
blame them. My stomach cramped with anxiety.  The one thing I wanted even more
than keeping my job was a committed relationship. 

  “Thank you,
Lucinda.  Does anyone have any questions for her?”  My fingers twirled a thick
gold ring between my index finger and thumb.  It was a nervous habit. One that
I tried to hide while speaking with clients, but today, I allowed myself to be
a little nervous.  My job was on the line.  Inez’s pen vigorously scratched her
notepad loud enough to cause a couple of my clients to send glares in her
direction. 

When no one said
anything, I transitioned into the next part of the meeting.  “Thank you again,
Lucinda.” I paused, then said, “All right, let’s move on.  Does anyone have a
critical issue she would like to discuss?”

My eyes swept
across the six other demigoddesses.  It was a pretty good turnout for a group therapy
session. Plastic chairs creaked as I started to count the seconds of silence in
my mind.  It was important to give my clients a chance to work up the courage
to talk, but at the same time, someone should have said something.  

A ghostly pale,
young woman with blonde hair so light, it almost looked white, slowly raised
her hand.  I gave her a reassuring smile. “Gwen?”

“You know, the
problem with being a demigoddess is that birth control pills never work,” she
murmured loud enough for everyone to hear.  This was a first.  Gwen Gale
practically blended into the woodwork wherever she went.  If anything positive
came out of today, it was seeing that she finally felt confident enough to
speak without being asked to do so. 

On the opposite
side of the circle, a muscular brunette cracked her knuckles as she spoke up.
“I think demigods have a similar problem.  I heard their sperm is so strong
that it tears normal condoms apart.”  She shrugged. “I’m not sure though,
‘cause I’ve never gotten to know a demigod well enough to ask him if that’s
true...”

“Thank you, Gwen
and Bernice.” I turned my attention toward the other half-breeds. “Does anyone
know if demigods face the same issues as us?”

“Oh, yeah, they
do.”  A petite, honey-blonde patted her large, round belly.  “How do you think
I got stuck with these three?”  She twisted her lips. “My boyfriend, who’s a
demigod, did this to me.  I was on the pill, and he wore an extra thick
condom.  We also used a lot of spermicide. Of course, the condom broke,” she
whined as she counted off her key points on her fingers.  “I went to the store
the next day and bought the morning-after pill.  And guess what girls?” she
paused for dramatic effect.

“You still got
pregnant,” Bernice Crag replied with a dry voice.

“I still got pregnant. 
Unbelievable, right?  At least now, we can fuck whenever we want to.” She
licked her lips and gazed off into the distance.

“Thank you for
sharing, Rebecca.”  The young half-breed received several envious stares while
the others’ faces seemed filled with pity.  I did my best to hide my emotions
behind a mask of tranquility.  I didn’t feel the urge to have a belly full of
kids just to get laid.  There had to be a better solution than getting
pregnant.  Suddenly, my job issues did not seem that important anymore.  I
glanced back and forth between Gwen and Bernice.  “So, umm, what do you think
we should do about it?”

A heavy silence
filled the circle once again.  Beads of sweat trickled down the side of my
face.  Out of the six demigoddesses present, no one seemed eager to say
anything in front of my boss.  Every so often, I would catch one of them
shifting her gaze toward Inez, as if hoping she would disappear.   I couldn’t
blame them for preferring not to say anything; but still, it would have been nice
if someone came up with a suggestion.  The air conditioning kicked on as I
leaned forward in my chair.  I raised my brows. “Anyone?” 

“There is
nothing we can do.” Rebecca Breeze rolled her eyes.  “If there were something,
I’m sure someone would have figured it out by now.”

Bernice pounded
her fist into her other hand. “So what you’re saying is that we have to remain
virgins for the rest of our lives?”  Despite being built like a powerhouse, the
woman was pretty sensitive.  I could only guess her father was a war god, based
on the way she carried herself.  Several groans filled the circle from the
other demigoddesses who had yet to contribute to today’s session.

“Or you can get
laid and pop out a few sets of kids,” Rebecca smirked while patting her swollen
belly.

I couldn’t
believe her nerve.  I must have let my mask of tranquility slip because the
next thing I knew, she was giving me the stink-eye. 

“I met one of my
half-brothers once,” whispered a mousey-looking woman named Melissa Vale.  When
no one else said anything, she continued to talk.  “He told me he has over
twenty kids.  I couldn’t believe it.”  She chewed on a piece of dirty blonde
hair.

“With the same
woman?”  Rebecca asked.

Melissa shook
her curly locks. “No, seven different women.  When I saw him, he was with his
friends at a bar, looking for chicks.”

“What a man
whore!” Bernice cried. 

“I know…”
Melissa looked down. “He said that the kids were their mothers’ problem, not
his.”

“Okay, so at
least some of the demigods don’t care about having a lot of children; and it is
already obvious that the gods don’t mind leaving passels of children in their
wake.  So, we have to figure out this problem.”  My plastic chair creaked when
I shifted my weight.

“I wish there
was something we could do,” Gwen whispered as she played with a loose thread on
her rainbow, patch-patterned skirt.

“We need better
contraceptives,” Bernice muttered. 

“Better
contraceptives would be ideal.” I slowly nodded.  “Does anyone have an idea how
we should go about getting those?”

They looked at
each other as if the answer would magically come to them.  I twisted my lips as
a thought popped into my head.  Could it really be that simple?  “Does anyone
know a witch or a wizard?”

“Are you saying
that we should use magic as a contraceptive?”  Melissa tilted her head as doubt
clouded her stormy-grey eyes.

“Possibly.” I
touched the gold ring hanging between my breasts.  I wanted them to figure this
out.  Of course, I had no idea where to get started.  But that’s the beauty of
working through issues as a group. When one person comes up with an idea, the
others provide feedback.

“Maybe the
witches or wizards know of a spell to make stronger condoms?” Bernice suggested
as she cracked her neck.

“Or maybe they
could enchant them?” Rebecca grinned.

“Does anyone
know a witch or a wizard who could help us?” I paused for about a minute. 
“Anyone?”

“Couldn’t you
find someone?  You’re the one with all the connections.”  Gwen smirked,
crossing her arms in front of her large chest.

“Yeah, Frosty,
you should find someone to help us.”  Bernice sounded so whiny when she begged.

I looked around
the circle at all of their faces, pleading with me.   Damn, I wanted them to do
the heavy work.  I had enough to deal with between running the Demigoddess Anonymous
meetings, counseling various clients, and trying to help my mom out at her
office one weekend every month.  Not to mention having to deal with Inez.

“I… I’ll see
what I can do.”  I did my best to give them an encouraging smile.  My stomach
twisted into a knot.  I had no idea how to go about finding someone to make
enchanted condoms, but at least, they were united in this common concern. 

Inez checked the
time on her cell phone before casting her amber  gaze back at me.  She mouthed,
“We’ll talk soon.” 

I gave her a
slight nod before taking a quick glance at the clock over the door. We still
had five minutes. 

Inez’s stilettos
clicked on the floor as she made her way to the door.  Based on the ample
amount of cleavage hanging over her skintight, ruby-red blouse and the strip of
fabric covering her legs, I sincerely doubted she was headed to another
meeting.  

I closed my eyes
for a second to refocus.  “Does anyone else have a new topic they would like to
discuss?”

I saw several
heads shake. 

“Okay, then
let’s say our pledge, and we’ll end a couple of minutes early.”

Each of the
demigoddesses reached for the hands of the women on either side of her. 

During our first
session each year, we agree to a new set of rules and a closing pledge.  The
various rules may differ, along with the pledge, but there is one rule that
remains consistent: no one is allowed to state the name of her godly parent. 
It might not seem like a big deal at first, but believe me, when you have two
different war gods’ daughters in the same room, the sparks can fly!  

However, the
closing pledge was designed to remind everyone that despite our differences, we
are all a part of the same extended family.

“I pledge to be
true to myself.  I will do right by my fellow demigoddesses. I will maintain my
integrity.  I know that I am not alone, and my sisters will look out for me.”

I gave the
demigoddesses one last calming smile. “Good job, everyone.  We’ll meet again
same time next week.”  I stood at the same time as the rest of the girls.  The
meeting went well, so why was my heart palpitating? 

I really wanted
to give the demigoddesses something to work on. Instead, I was the one with the
homework assignment.  I still didn’t know where to start.  Beads of
perspiration gathered across my brow as my mind raced.

Bernice gave me
a hard pat on the back. “Can’t wait to hear some good news next week.”  She
strutted out of the group therapy room with the rest of the half-breeds. 

I flopped my ass
back down on the chair.  The task ahead weighed me down like nothing else I’d
ever tackled in my entire life. 

My head throbbed
as a wave of nausea filled my chest.  Deep breaths; I needed to take deep
breaths. I pressed my eyelids together. 

No new
inspiration hit me, nor could I even focus properly on the task at hand.  My
mind was at war with itself.  Sometimes, I wondered if I needed therapy more
than my clients.

I don’t know if
I sat there for five minutes or fifty.  The next thing I heard was someone’s
throat clearing. I peeled one eye open and then the other.  A ruby-haired light
elf with equally vibrant red eyes poised his tall frame against the door. 
Carmine Rosewood was Christmas in a fine, tall package, carved up with lean
muscles that radiated the grace of a professional figure skater.  He was nice
to look at, but beyond that, no sparks flew between us.   

“Are you feeling
well, Jocelyn?”  His head tilted slightly as his eight-hundred-year-old eyes
scanned the room.  I guess that was about as much concern as I could get from
the mysterious elf.  He took several steps into the room, sending a draft of
cinnamon and pine-scented aroma in my direction.

My knees ached
as I stood.  “Yeah, just give me a second. My legs are asleep.”  I took a step
forward, but stopped for fear of falling flat on my face.

Never one to
smile at another person’s expense, he glanced down at his phone before raising
a brow.  “If I were you, I would make haste.  I have a group of unseelie fae
arriving in fifteen minutes.”

I swallowed as
the pins and needles spread down my legs.  Carmine warned me that several of
his clients were addicted to mythos blood, and being a demigoddess, my blood
fell into that category.  Believe me, I did not want to mess with the unseelie
fae.  Not only did they have nasty attitudes, but most of them tended to lack
any sort of empathy for other people unless they really respected them. 

I forced my legs
to carry me toward the door as the painful tingling sensation lessened.  “Thanks
for the heads-up.  How are they managing during this heat wave?”

He gracefully
bowed his head. “Not good, I’m afraid.  Most of the winter unseelie crossed
back over to Erda.  The autumn unseelie are the ones having a hard time dealing
with their malevolent natures.”

“Well, then,
it’s a good thing they have you to help them out.”  I was about to leave the
Group Therapy room when a thought occurred to me.  “Hey, Carmine, do you know
any magic users who can enchant objects for an extended amount of time?”

His ruby gaze
locked onto mine for over a minute before he responded. “Perhaps.  However,
most of the fae that I know would require a favor from you in order to help. 
The larger and more complicated the request, the more dangerous the favor they
would ask in return.”

I didn’t like
the sound of that.  We needed someone willing to mass market a new condom line
dedicated to demigod half-breeds.  I doubted that any magically gifted fae
would be willing to work an assembly line.  “Oh, okay. If you think of anyone,
specifically, a witch or wizard if possible, please let me know.”

“Will do.” His
attention shifted once again as one of his clients glided through the door. I
took that as my cue to make myself scarce. 

It was still
relatively early, even though my body seemed to think otherwise.  Stark rays of
bright sunlight bounced off the ivory marble walls.  The heat wasn’t too bad on
the first floor, due to the marble, but as I slowly dragged my aching feet up
two flights of stairs, the temperature increased by about twenty degrees.  I
longed to install an air conditioner in my office, but the fifty-year-old
electric panel inside the building could never have supported the additional
wattage.

I decided to
keep the lights off upon entering my office.  Shadows covered the Earth
Impressionist paintings that decorated my walls.  My teacher-like desk faced
the door, and took up about a quarter of the available floor space. 

Overall, my
office might not have been much, but it was mine.  I loved seeing how the aqua painted
walls blended with the brown wood tones in the furniture.   A lavender oil reed
diffuser set wafted its relaxing scent throughout the room from the corner of
my desk.    I took in a deep breath, attempting to regulate my heartbeat. 

All I needed was
a caffeine fix.  Yes, that was it.  A cup of coffee would do the trick.

With a fresh cup
of coffee in my hand, I made my way over to the desk.

“Shit!”  Coffee
scalded my tongue, and I splattered several huge drops on my black capris.  I pulled
some tissues out of the box by my computer in order to blot the coffee off my
lap. Well, at least I didn’t get anything on my favorite blouse. 

Holding my head
in my hands, I racked my brain, trying to figure out Inez’s reasons for
disliking me so much.  I didn’t know if it was something I said, or maybe I did
something that the fairy found insulting?  I doubted that I would ever actually
know the real reason for her general animosity towards certain people, myself
included.  All I could come up with was that she wanted to get rid of me ever
since she got promoted.  So what if she had her eyes on Mr. Hunky intern?  That
guy would never be able to handle my clients.  No, they would just stop coming
or find someone else to help them.

Refocusing I
told myself, No more excuses.  Figure this out.  Okay, what did I know?  Make a
list.  Yes, a list would be great. 

 I noted that
being extremely fertile was rare on the Erda side of the In-Between.  Sure, the
humans who worked and lived there were fertile, but that was mainly because
they were mortal.  Being mortal pretty much meant that their lifespans tended
to reach a century at best, although at least a third of their lives were spent
in bodily degeneration.  The ones with magic intertwined in their life forces
doubled their life expectancies, but beyond that, they had to breed in order to
survive as a species.  People infected with the lycanthrope virus, aka
werewolves, tended to fall into this category as well. 

The fae were
quite the opposite.  Yes, they could die if they received enough bodily damage,
but, for the most part, they were immortal.  The oldest fae on record reached
his twenty-seven-thousandth birthday last spring.  With the possibility of
endless longevity, the faes’ reproductive systems went through periods of
dormancy.  Not that it did anything to disturb their libidos.  It had quite the
opposite effect. 

As for my mythos
brethren, they ranged between mortal and immortal species.  Some groups, like
the gods, were both immortal and extremely fertile.  Other groups, however,
like the centaurs, griffins, and unicorns, were both mortal and infertile.

I clicked on the
mouse, waking up my computer.  Having an office in the In-Between gave me
access to resources located in multiple dimensions.  On one side, I could tap
into our WiFi server located outside the portal in Washington D.C. On the other
side, I could access similar technology at the server in Erda. 

Perhaps my
dilemma could be solved in-house. My coffee had cooled by the time I decided to
click on the Bough of Converging Worlds intranet directory.  Inspiration hit me
in the form of a single department. With a shrug, I dialed the department’s
number, and after six rings, someone finally picked up.

“Good evening
and thank you for calling the Department of Sex Magic,” a raspy woman panted.
“My name is Katrina Rift.” She swallowed as a low moan vibrated across the
line. “How can… How can I help you?”

I pinched the
bridge of my nose as something that sounded like a rubber ball bouncing echoed
in my ear.  “Hi Katrina, I’m, umm…”  Did I really want to bother this woman
while she was in the middle of getting laid?  “…Jocelyn Frost, over in the
Psychology Department.  I’m looking for someone who can either develop
contraception spells or enchant condoms to ward off pregnancy.”

“I’m… I’m…
sor.., ry… most of the senior members of the de… department are away at a
retreat in Erda.”  I heard several more muffled moans.  “There is no one pow…
powerful enough here that can help you with that ty… type of magic.  Most of us
focus on main… maintaining the In-Between or increasing fertility, not less…
lessening it.”

“Huh… I see.”  I
shook my head, and then had to ask, “Is that what you’re doing right now? 
Pumping magic into the In-Between?”

The smacking sound
grew louder. “Yes!  Best job ever!”

I had to hold
the phone away from my ear. It was time to hang up.  “Umm… keep up the good
work, and please leave a message for the head of your department to please get
back to me.”  With that statement, the other end went silent. 

Wow, no wonder
most of the interns applied to that department. At least, the energy generated
from their combined orgasms fueled the Nexus. 

 I returned to
my computer, trying to find someone who specialized in contraception methods. 
After several hours spent pursuing dead ends, making a few phone calls, and a
one-on-one client therapy session, I decided to call it a day. 

It was getting
late, and as night progressed, there would be an increase of unsavory
characters prowling about.  It would be nice if the Enforcers, the BCW’s police
force, did a better screening job with the merchants that worked and
transported goods into the Commerce District.  That way, I could walk around
after dark without having to look over my shoulder; but that would be
unethical.  So yeah, my mood continued to sour.  

Images of having
to move back into a dormitory filled my mind.  Everyone who worked for the BCW
was either adopted as an orphan or drafted after college.  Being drafted by a
mysterious organization was exciting, at first. However, learning that I would
be stuck working for them for at least ten years just sucked. 

As a
demigoddess, I got more perks than the humans that were recruited. My favorite
only happens once a month; I get to travel to Earth under the watchful eye of
my Nord, or professional guardian, in order to visit my mother.  When I was
drafted, it felt like I was going away to college. Unfortunately, my mom and I
were forced to adjust to living in different dimensions.  It’s been weird, but
at least, we can e-mail and Skype if we just want to talk.

The click from
my door’s lock echoed down the hall as I closed it behind me.  A whiff of
cinnamon and pine caught my attention.  Tenor tones, voicing elfish words,
drifted down the marble hallway, sounding more like music than a conversation
to me. 

Carmine’s back
was turned toward me as he leaned against his doorframe.  I wished him a good
night as I passed.

“Jocelyn?”

I stopped and
turned back toward him.  Movement in his office caught my eye.  I could only
see the back of a woman with a white-blonde ponytail and a long, colorful skirt
before Carmine stepped in the way.  Strange, since all of his clients were
male.  Maybe he had a girlfriend visiting?

“Yes?”

“Were you
successful in your attempts to find a witch or a wizard?”  He held his hand
over the mouthpiece of his phone.

“No.  I’m going
to ask Inez if she knows anyone during my post observation interview.”

“I would not
recommend doing that.  She will likely count it against you.”

I pinched the
bridge of my nose.  “You’re right.  I’ll have to think of something tonight.”

“Have you
checked the Archive?  I vaguely recall meeting someone with a similar problem
five or six centuries ago.”

A smile lifted
my lips. “Thanks, Carmine. That’s more than I had a minute ago.  I’ll go check
it out.”

He bowed his
head before bringing the cell phone back to his ear.  One of these days, he
would expect me to return the favor.  Not that I would mind giving him advice,
although I doubted it would be that simple. 

The outside of
the Psychology Department building felt like a different world.  And in truth,
it was—the In-Between.  From a certain perspective, the Borough of Converging
Worlds resembled a college town; while from other perspectives, it just looked
like a sad attempt to physically copy Washington D.C.

The Department
Mall was located in the same spot as D.C., but between dimensions, as was the
Smithsonian Institute, along with various historical landmarks. Most of the
famous landmarks I always associated with D.C. were deconstructed, while some
of the other buildings were repurposed. Recycling most of the materials, they
created new buildings that resembled various forms of architecture.  My
building was made from the marble that used to be part of the Lincoln Memorial
and the Capital Building.    

Wait a second!
Carmine mentioned someone with a similar problem? I never mentioned my problem
to him. Weird. It simply amazed me that the more I talked to him, the more
unsettled I became. There was just something about him that did not seem
right.  For instance, what eight-hundred-year-old light elf would volunteer to
work as a therapist?  I would have expected him to be tramping around some
wooded glen in Erda, not working with unseelie fae clients.