Chapter Text
Rhaenyra always loved rain storms when she was a girl, the moments filled with thunder and streaks of light across the sky, the moments when the heavens kissed the earth washing away the dust and grime. As the years wore on, her fondness for the rain remained, only now things were a bit different. Now during storm season in the Crownlands, the high winds, the hail, and the heavy rain meant that it was the best time to generate business by soliciting clients and cultivating leads.
Now, more than anything, it was just a possibility of money in the bank. Much needed money in the bank after a lag in work over the colder months of the year. Rhaenyra had worked for her Uncle Daemon over several summers doing different jobs on various crews where extra hands were needed through her teenage years but came on full time several years earlier to pay for her own college that she was now near completing. Currently, with storm season setting in, she was hoping to be able to rebuild her savings enough to not have to worry constantly about money to financially support herself through her last semester.
Daemon was a good boss, often generous by paying her small bonuses if she was able to quote out and finalize higher paying jobs, which was essential in allowing herself to finish up school without having to take out loans that she had barely managed to avoid thus far.
Daemon’s company provided general residential contract work, but Daemon was a roofer by trade so he preferred those jobs over most.
“With the right crew, we can roof a house in a day. After materials and paying for labor and disposal, this is what it leaves for us.” Daemon explained several summers ago.
Rhaenyra balked at the amount that he had circled on the invoice.
“And this is why we really hustle for roofing jobs, Rhaenyra. After we have shit weather, keep your eye out for wind damage, missing shingles, drooping gutters, all of it. That’s the easy work. Nothing wrong with a little door to door. Especially in the wealthy neighborhoods. You know they got good home insurance or can usually pay out of pocket for work that they want done.” Daemon offered, “Remember that.”
And she did, which is exactly how she found herself driving through the suburbs of King’s Landing after the past weeks inclement weather. Storms had raged for days, the Blackwater flooding small parts of downtown. It was ideal conditions to find some work as a contractor, really.
She better, she thought to herself, grumbling as she pulled her extension ladder out of the back of her truck for the fifth time to look at some gutter damage on some ridiculously expensive house.
The weather was miserable, hot and humid, leaving her work shirt clinging rather unpleasantly to her torso.
Another quote done.
Daemon would be pleased, but quotes were not guaranteed jobs, and her hourly wage rate wouldn’t cover her bills and her tuition payment that was coming due.
“Will you look at that beautiful plywood.”
She could see it from the street as she navigated her truck around the ridiculously ornate cul-de-sac. The roof was stripped down to bare board, shingles missing and underlayment torn back and practically waving at her in the wind.
The house was a charming, two story stone washed brick home adorned with dark gray columns bracketing the dark natural wood of the front door earning an A+ from Rhaenyra for curb appeal. Not to mention the pitch of the roof was just right to take a peek at without any issue.
Rhaenyra threw her truck in park, slicked her sweaty silver waves back before slipping on her hat and grabbing her clipboard before climbing out. She made mental notes on the way up to the house, the gutters looked fine from what she could see and the exterior of the house was otherwise pristine. She would pick brick over vinyl siding any day if she could ever afford something this nice.
She rang the doorbell just like she had at a hundred other houses, completely unprepared for everything that would come after.
“Can I help you?”
Rhaenyra felt dazed, stunned into silence momentarily by the sight before her. Never had ever laid eyes on such a beauty.
It smelled clean, her scent.
Rhaenyra’s jaw dropped open slightly, eyes wandering from behind the safety of her sunglasses up the contour of smooth legs that seemed endless before disappearing beneath the green fabric of her shorts. Rhaenyra thought it looked kissable, really, the tempting skin of shoulders that highlighted a faint tan line that showed from under her gray tank top.
“Excuse me? I said can I help you?”
And that voice, bold and weighty. She wondered briefly what that voice might sound like breathless and begging beneath her.
Rhaenyra pulled off her sunglasses, awestruck as her violet eyes met the prettiest of brown with light flecks of hazel around the iris.
“Sorry, forgive me. My name is Rhaenyra. I’m with Targaryen Brothers Contracting Company. I was driving by and I noticed that you have some storm damage up on your roof, looks like some missing shingles and like the OSB is exposed. If you would like, I can grab my drone and take some quick pics so we can see exactly what’s going on up there. Or I can just grab my ladder and pop up there.” Rhaenyra explained only to be met with a beat of silence “Or is there someone else home that I should ask? Is your…husband home?”
Rhaenyra felt intrigued that that was what finally prompted a response.
“No. Could you show me what you mean? Is that bad? I don’t really know anything about roofs.” The lovely stranger confessed.
“Absolutely. If you come right out here, you can see, Ms. ...?” Rhaenyra replied, fishing for this mystery beauty’s name.
“Hightower.” She replied, her auburn hair gleaming in the sunlight as they walked out from under the cover of her porch.
Rhaenyra felt a little silly for admiring bare toes in the cut grass, the green polish more vibrant in contrast.
“See right up there, Ms. Hightower? I’m not sure if that’s the only spot, that’s just the only spot I can see on the front. I’d like to get a look at your rear too, if you would like that?” Rhaenyra explained, Violet roaming over supple hips while her potential client eyed the damage on her roof.
“Okay. So, what am I supposed to do when it rains again, Rhaenyra?” She asked, a hint of concern in her voice, “I’m sure it will again soon. I feel like it never stops this time of year.”
It was a hard fought battle to not smile when her name was spoken so naturally from such full lips. She wondered what they would taste like, what they would feel like against her own.
She was not supposed to, but she couldn’t bite back her own words quick enough.
“I could put up something temporary if it would ease your mind, Ms. Hightower.” Rhaenyra offered helpfully.
Out of kindness, of course.
Daemon could get fucked.
“You know how? You don’t just do this, the ground work stuff?” Those gorgeous eyes shining with a hint of surprise.
“Totally. I have experience. You should have your insurance folks come out to take a look, so I’m not fixing it properly or anything, but it won’t leak.” Rhaenyra assured her with a grin.
“Dare I ask how many years of experience?”
“Four, working full time. I’ll grab my drone.”
“Okay, I’m just going to…go back inside.” She informed Rhaenyra, pointing with her thumb toward the house, “Just come inside when you’re done.”
Rhaenyra exhaled a long breath as she turned back toward her truck, “I’d love to come inside that pretty mouth too.”
Rhaenyra was able to get multiple pictures loaded onto her IPad before finding herself back at the front door that had been left slightly ajar. She stepped inside, feeling unsure if she should walk past the foyer due to the few bits of mud that she could see clinging to her boots.
“Ms. Hightower? It’s Rhaenyra”, she called out, “I have the photos from the roof if you would like to see them.”
“In the kitchen!”
“Um, should I take off my shoes? Your house is really, really clean.” Rhaenyra called back, her eyes wandering over the bright interior design.
The response came, softer, closer, “If you wouldn’t mind. Thank you for asking.” A smile, briefly, was directed her way before auburn hair disappeared back through the doorway.
“For fucks sake.” Rhaenyra prayed under her breath, “Seven give me strength.”
“I made you a glass of lemonade. It’s my son’s favorite.” She explained, setting a condensing glass and paper towel on the countertop.
Rhaenyra cleared her throat to mask the low grunt that escaped, her cock twitching at hearing that Alicent was a mother. She should’ve known, she surmised, because the only thing that helped develop such irresistible hips paired with a snatched waist like that was hard work and a successful breeding.
“How old is your boy?” Curious minds wanted to know.
“He’s seven. His name is Aemond.”
Rhaenyra’s mind was in overdrive. Where was the boy’s sire? There was no ring on her delicate finger, no mark on her tempting neck.
“You’re kidding! You don’t look old enough to have a seven year old, Ms. Hightower. Great age though. He’s a tad older than my little brother.”
Alicent felt florid, a slight blush creeping across her cheeks before taking a sip from her own glass, “I feel every bit as old, but thank you. You said you have the photos of my roof?”
“Right! Yes.” Rhaenyra replied, having completely forgotten that this was not a personal social call, “Let me just get them pulled up here, Ms. Hightower.”
“Call me Alicent, please. You’re saying my name so often that you’re beginning to sound reminiscent of my Septon’s admonishment after I finally get around to attend a service.” Alicent joked, taking another sip from her glass, “All that’s missing is the reminder to repent and pray daily.”
Alicent.
How lovely.
“Alicent,” Rhaenyra replied with a smile, teasing, savoring the feel of the name on her tongue, “Your Septon sounds like a real drag.”
Alicent giggled, “He is, I would know. I’ve known him for thirty-three years.”
Rhaenyra’s brow crinkled in confusion.
“He’s my Dad.” Alicent explained, grinning.
“Ah, that makes sense. Whew! Now I feel a little less worried for our souls after we made fun of a priest. Would you like to take a look at these?”
Dexterous fingers tapped the screen as she slid in closer to Alicent, “You can swipe through like this or zoom in like this if you’d like to get in closer. I can walk you through it.”
Alicent liked how Rhaenyra explained things like she genuinely wanted her to understand what she was looking at and not talking at her about what she was being shown.
“So what we’re looking at here is the decking, it’s like the skeleton that supports everything. And this is the underlayment, it protects the skeleton. Then of course the shingles, the home’s armor, protects it all. Everything looks good up there except for that place we looked at along this eave here.”
Eyes met in a way that felt comfortable.
“You know, I'm starting to believe that you might actually know what you’re doing, Rhaenyra.” Alicent teased, taking another sip of her lemonade.
Violet eyes watched the slight bob of her throat as she swallowed before permitting herself to gaze a little longer on that flawless neck, unmarked and waiting.
“Are you aware of your staring or are you doing it by accident?” Alicent asked casually, catching her off guard.
It was Rhaenyra’s turn to blush, light pink appearing without her permission, “Forgive me if I’ve made you uncomfortable. It is proving difficult to pull my eyes away from the most beautiful sight they’ve ever seen.”
Alicent blinked once, unbothered, “You’re sales techniques could use some work, you know? Does using your sex appeal usually work to your advantage for boosting sales?”
Rhaenyra couldn’t help but laugh, “Admittedly no, especially considering how most of the people I deal with are shriveled up Alphas that think they know more about my profession than I do. That’s not this, I assure you. I rely on my skill to close deals, even with breathtaking Omegas, but I do appreciate you admitting so openly that you find me appealing, Alicent.”
Rhaenyra grinned, leaning casually against the countertop, enjoying the way that Alicent looked while flustered as she assured her, “That is not what I meant.”
“Too late to take it back now, I’m already flattered.”
Alicent scoffed, “Don’t you have some paperwork or something that I need to sign before you get up there and fix my roof, if you still intend to do that?”
“I can do a lot more than that, Alicent.” Rhaenyra replied, grinning as she reached into her back pocket.
“I could call your boss to report your unprofessional behavior.” Alicent informed her sharply, “What do you think of that?”
Unbothered, violet eyes moved slowly, with purpose as they admired her, “I just meant, should you need anything. At Targaryen Brothers, we pride ourselves on being the best and we offer a variety of services. Should you need anything done around here, give me a call.”
“Oh.” Alicent replied, “Thank you.” No longer able to tell if Rhaenyra was still blatantly flirting or actually being sincere.
“Mom, I’m home!” A voice called before the sound of running on the stairs reached startled ears.
“Aemond. He’s going upstairs to check on his pet fish. He’ll be back down in a few minutes so I think you should.…” Alicent said, gesturing toward the doorway to the kitchen.
“Right! If you could, just fill this out really quick. I’ll be back for it.” Rhaenyra instructed as she tapped several times on her IPad, “I’ll head up now. Here’s my business card. Use it.”
The card was placed on the smooth surface of countertop before Rhaenyra stepped away, “If you hear some banging, it’s normal. If you hear screaming, it means I fell.”
Alicent’s eyes went wide in alarm, “There’s not actually a chance of that happening is there?”
Rhaenyra smiled back with a wink, “I think it already has.”
Alicent’s mouth fell open, gaping similarly to her son’s fish upstairs, her mind short-circuiting and void of comprehensible thought for several minutes after.
“Hi, Mom! Grandad wants to know whose truck is outside.” Aemond informed her happily as he came into the kitchen.
“Grandad needs to mind his own business.” Alicent replied playfully as she rubbed her fingers through his blonde hair, “Did you have fun staying the night?”
Aemond nodded against his mother’s stomach, “Can we watch TV?”
“Sure, Bud.” Alicent replied, “I just need to finish up something really quickly okay?
Socked feet padded toward the living room as the faint sound of hammering could be heard coming from above.
Alicent smiled to herself, shaking her head as she picked up Rhaenyra’s IPad and began completing the questionnaire.
Her eyes lingered over the last section: Comments
She gnawed on her lower lips as she debated on what to say.
Representative had little regard for self control, unable to keep her gorgeous eyes to herself at any point. Overly presumptuous. Inappropriate. Mildly infuriating. Knowledgeable on relevant, work related topics. Refreshing.
Better not, she conceded, someone else at their office likely reviewed things like these.
Eager. Would hire again.
She didn’t actually want Rhaenyra to get into any trouble with her employer for their earlier banter, not when she had kind of enjoyed their bit of innocent fun, as fleeting as it was. How could she mind when Rhaenyra made her feel seen for the first time in a long time? How could she when she knew that it would amount to nothing because Rhaenyra had to be no older than twenty five years old or so?
Nimble fingers plucked Rhaenyra's business card up off cool stone, her eyes pausing a moment to look at the door that hid her trashcan from view.
Alicent gathered Rhaenyra’s things and scribbled a quick thank you on a spare piece of paper that she found randomly while looking for a pen to write with. She appreciated Rhaenyra’s help today and the fact that she could still hear her up on the roof banging around.
With the items placed on the mat outside the front door, she closed it softly with a click before bolting it locked. She turned around, pressing her back into the wood panes, and exhaled a ragged breath.
What an unexpected, annoyingly beautiful individual.
She tried to put Rhaenyra and the business card that was now magnetized to her refrigerator out of her mind as her sweet boy plopped down next to her on the couch, cuddling up close as they settled in for some afternoon family time.