Harem Online: My Party Is Full of Beautiful Celebrities

Alexandra pulled him a little closer, pressing the back of his head deeper into her chest.

Martin swallowed. "This is my reward?"

"You don’t like it?"

"I didn’t say that."

"I noticed."

Of course she had. When Martin looked up, she was watching his reaction with obvious enjoyment.

Alexandra no longer needed Katherine to explain how much trouble the women had been giving him. His face made it obvious.

He enjoyed their attention, and there was no point denying it anymore. He stared, became flustered, made crude comments, and sometimes answered their teasing with some of his own. Whenever things stopped feeling playful, though, one of the women always moved first.

Alexandra slid one hand into his hair. "Why did you disappear after the meeting?"

"I didn’t disappear."

"You came straight here."

"The meeting was over."

"And you came here alone."

Martin looked up through the canopy again. "I needed a few minutes where nobody expected me to know what to do."

"That sounds a lot like hiding."

"It’s called thinking."

"Were you doing much of it?"

"Too much."

Her teasing faded slightly. "You think you were too harsh."

Martin glanced up at her. "You heard?"

"I heard enough. People are still talking about it."

"Great."

"Some of them think you were right."

"And the others?"

"They think you were showing off."

Martin let out a slow breath. "Yeah. That’s what I thought."

Alexandra did not rush to tell him everyone had misunderstood. She could be pushy and enjoy his suffering more than she should, but she would not lie just to make him feel better.

"I wasn’t trying to show off," Martin said. "I wanted them to remember that we found answers by trying things nobody else had attempted. Instead, I stood there listing everything my party accomplished while theirs came back with nothing."

"Some of them probably heard it that way."

"I know."

"Some of them also needed to hear it."

Martin frowned. "That doesn’t mean I said it well."

"No. It means leadership is annoying."

"That’s your advice?"

"It’s more useful than telling you everything went perfectly."

Alexandra rested her chin on top of his head.

"You could say the same thing to ten people, and they would all hear something different. A confident person might take it as a challenge. Someone already nervous will hear criticism, while anyone embarrassed by the failure may assume you were attacking them."

"And the angry ones?"

"They were going to be angry no matter what you said."

Martin gave a tired laugh. "That really does sound like work."

"Exactly."

Her fingers moved slowly through his hair before she added, "You’re still thinking like the lowest employee in the room."

His expression tightened. "I’m not."

"You are."

"I know I’m the vice leader."

"You know your title. You still haven’t accepted what comes with it."

Martin stayed quiet while Alexandra continued.

"At work, speaking out of turn could get you blamed, replaced, or buried under more work. Here, people wait for you to speak. When you stay quiet, they notice that too."

"Battlefields are easier."

"Because monsters don’t complain?"

"Because I can see the problem." Despite himself, Martin relaxed against her. "An enemy is in front of me. Someone needs protection, or a formation is breaking. I make a decision, and if it’s wrong, I adjust."

He looked down at his hands.

"Words are different. I can’t Shield Bash a bad sentence and try again."

Alexandra laughed. "That would improve guild meetings."

"You’d attend every one."

"I would sit in the front row."

They fell quiet for a while. The tightness in Martin’s shoulders slowly eased, and although Alexandra’s embrace was shameless, it was also comfortable. He could talk without looking directly at her, and she seemed willing to let him.

Her fingers eventually stopped moving through his hair.

"You know something funny?"

"That question never ends well."

"You’re brave until a woman wants you."

Martin immediately straightened, but Alexandra hooked her arms more firmly around his shoulders and pulled him back.

"What?"

"You heard me."

"I fight monsters twice my level."

"Yes."

"I commanded several parties in Cascade Valley."

"Yes."

"I stood in front of an Ant Queen while she tried to drown everyone in poison."

"And yet a beautiful woman looks at you seriously, and your brain stops working."

"That’s different."

"It is much funnier."

Martin twisted around enough to glare at her. Alexandra smiled back without the slightest concern.

"You know how to flirt when you can hide behind a joke," she continued. "You tease Elisebeth and make dirty comments. You stare at Katherine while pretending you aren’t staring. You even act bold around Cassandra until she steps closer."

"I’m bold around all of you."

"Only until it matters."

Martin opened his mouth, but Alexandra raised one eyebrow, and he decided against whatever he had been about to say.

"Elisebeth grabs you. Katherine corners you. Cassandra claims time alone with you, and I hug you from behind." She gave him a gentle squeeze. "You enjoy it, but you still wait for us to cross the distance."

"That isn’t true."

"Give me one example."

Martin searched his memory. There had been teasing and compliments, and sometimes he leaned closer or answered a suggestive comment with one of his own. He could act bold as long as the situation still felt playful.

Once real feelings became involved, he waited.

Alexandra looked pleased with herself. "You enjoy all the attention, but you’re scared to make a move, aren’t you?"

Martin stared at the path ahead. He wanted to deny it, but nothing convincing came to mind.

She leaned close enough for her cheek to almost touch his hair. "Thought so."

"It’s not that simple."

"I know."

Her answer surprised him. Martin had expected another joke, but the teasing had left her voice.

He watched players move through the academy before speaking again. "If I misunderstand one of you, I don’t just embarrass myself. I can ruin everything."

"You think we’ll leave?"

"I think people say things when they’re excited. They flirt, compete, and get jealous. Then someone takes it seriously, and suddenly everyone has to decide what they actually meant."

Alexandra let him continue.

"I spent years without any friends close enough to lose," Martin said. "Now I finally have all of you, and everyone acts like I should start gambling with that."

His voice came out sharper than he intended, but she did not pull away.

"If I choose wrong, go too far, or assume feelings that aren’t really there, I could screw up the entire group. I don’t want to become the asshole who enjoys attention from several women and throws everyone else away once he picks his favorite."

Alexandra’s arms relaxed around him.

"You’re right to be careful."