Page 56 of The Christmas Mittens
He sighed but nodded. “You’re very wise. I will think it over, although it’s shitful that the person being persecuted has to be the one to offer his hand to the dog that bites it over and over again. Why on Earth can’t the dog learn better manners?”
I had no answer for that. Nor would I ever, I was sure. Della, speaking of dogs, bounded up onto the bed, scaring us to bits. Perhaps it was a good thing that she arrived when she did since we both needed to clean up from our romp. Anders took me by the hand to lead me into his bath, an extravagant area with marble, dark wood, and a bath big enough for four men and a kangaroo.
“Who are you bathing with in here? The Östermonian soccer team?” I asked as he steered me to the tub, his smile a wicked one.
“No, well, not the whole team,” he replied with a naughty wink and asked me a silly question as he bent over to crank on the taps with his free hand. “Orange or morning glory?”
“Uhm…orange?” I said, unsure of what I was picking, but it soon became clear when he plucked a bottle of bubble bath from a rack and squeezed a dollop into the churning water. Citrus scent filled the air as the humidity rose. Anders climbed in, motioning for me to do the same. Lowering myself into the tub, I hissed as my balls touched the hot water but then eased myself downward, bubbles tickling my nipples. “This is magnificent.”
I stretched out my legs, something that one couldn’t possibly do in a normal tub. “It’s one of my favorite things about the lodge, other than the fact that there are a few reporters snapping pictures. Well, that used to be the case. Now with drones, we have to worry about that invasion of privacy too. There are laws on the books now, quickly passed a year ago when my brother was caught in a hot tub with some rock stars.”
“Can I guess which brother it was?”
“I’m sure you don’t have to ask. Lean back on me.” I did as asked, letting my back rest on his chest. He rubbed a wet hand on my dad belly. Tiny bubbles broke free from the pack to float skyward and pop. It was bliss. No music, no television, no yelling, no phones. Just sweet silence and the muscular support of the man I adored behind me. “During our lovemaking, we said some things…”
“We did, and I meant it.”
“Mm, and I as well.” He kissed my shoulder, his palm resting on my tummy just below my navel. “Are you scared of being my lover?”
“No, not at all.” I let my eyes drift shut as his lips moved from my shoulder to my neck. “I should be. It feels as if I should be terrified, but right now, in this moment, I am as happy as a clam at high water.”
He snickered softly. “And I am as happy as a dog with two tails.”
That made me chortle. “Nowthatis happy.”
“Mm, that is me, a happy pup. Oh, and what is this?” His hand slid down between my legs. “I think I have found two balls and a bone. What a lucky pooch am I!”
Turned outIwas the lucky dog, for after the bath, Anders buried my bone in his sweet ass once more, him riding me, until I howled out my rapture. We never did get back in the bath. Nor did I return to my bed.
ChapterTwenty-one
Monday, December 28
There was one good thing about the circadian rhythm: I rarely overslept on a workday.
The bad thing about the circadian rhythm was that I woke up at six a.m. no matter if I was working or not. Once I was awake, and my bladder was also, I rarely could fall back to sleep. My mind kicked in, and the list of things to do for the day was front and center. Wiggling my butt closer to the hunk of man beside me, I contemplated wriggling under the covers to give him a blowjob as a happy Monday morning gift. Then my bladder really woke up, and I sadly realized that the staff was probably already up. Cooks cooking, butlers butlering, and maids cleaning. And while we were a couple and Anders was out, there were still certain protocols to adhere to. Also, he did not need a scandal about us sharing his bed to come to light. The king and he were at odds enough over holding hands. Imagine if a maid spied me creeping out of the prince’s chambers.
Nope, that was not a headache Anders needed. God knows he had enough. So, with a hearty sigh for a BJ that would have towait, I quietly slid from the covers. He shifted slightly, cleared his throat, then fell back into the heavy breaths of a deep sleep. Smiling at the mound of curls and the tip of his nose that I could see, I blew him a kiss and began the search for my clothes. Not an easy task in the darkened room. The fire had burned down to a few red coals. Surely someone would be coming in soon to stoke it. The slipper that had flown to the canopy would have to stay there. Jammies back on, and one foot bare, I eased out of Anders’ room, closing the door quietly, glad for a thick throw rug to rest my naked foot on as I tugged the door shut.
“Morning,” a man called, startling me out of my wits. I spun, heart pounding, to find Harold sitting in an overstuffed chair, dark blue robe and slippers over fleece joggers, cup of steaming something that smelled of honey and lemon. His curly hair was tamed, his cheeks free from whiskers, his dark eyes dancing merrily. “Tiptoeing out of the young prince’s chambers before dawn? Quite the scandal!”
I stammered over myself. “I, uhm…there was…” The smirk on Harold’s handsome face grew wider the more I bumbled about, so I just quit. “You won’t say anything, will you? Things are tense enough with the king and Anders.”
“Please, as if I cared one bit about you and my brother sharing a bed.” He waved my worry off with a well-manicured left hand.
“Thank you.” That took a load off. “Not to be rude, Your Highness—”
“Harold, please. We’re practically family, and I hate standing on formality here. This is the one place on this uptight island where we can be ourselves.”
“Harold then. Not to be rude, but I wasn’t expecting to run into anyone, or I was hoping not to see any staff. I didn’t think I’d bump into you sitting here in the hall at the crack of dawn.”
“No? And why is that?” He slurped his tea as I tried to find a polite way to say that I assumed he would be a slug-a-bed richprince who slept until noon. “You don’t have to answer that. I’m sure I know why you asked. I have fitful sleep at times. Other times it’s full-blown insomnia.”
“I’m sorry.” I shifted my weight from my bare foot to my slippered one. “I’m up because I always get up at six for work and to get Gilda ready for school.”
He lowered his cup to rest on his thigh. “Right, you’re a working man. That’s commendable. And a single father. Twice as commendable. Since I had patchy sleep last night, I thought I would call up for some tea and sit here and wait for the sun to rise.”
I glanced over my shoulder to see a lovely bow window which looked out over the wooded acreage of this humble cottage. Facing east, it would indeed get the first rays of the sun. The door at the farthest end of the hall opened. Rani stepped out fully dressed.
