When he finally released her mouth, she gasped, “And it keeps getting better.”
“Cease talking, Madeleine. The children are expecting me for breakfast, and if you don’t, we’ll both get no sleep tonight, I’ll eventually sleep late and they’ll eat alone.”
He watched her press her lips together.
He shook his head, but he did it quelling a smile, before he rolled to his back, taking her with him so she rolled over him.
He turned out the lamp by the bed.
He rolled them back and arranged them in the exact position they were in.
She cuddled deeper and mumbled, “’Night, baby.”
His arms got tighter and he whispered, “Goodnight, my dove.”
He felt her face move against his chest and he knew it was with a smile
Apollo held her close and within minutes, he felt her sleep.
Just so you know, honey, if your intention is to give me better…you’re succeeding.
And there it was.
It was indeed he she saw when she looked into his eyes while he was taking her, or any other time she did it.
And he was giving her better.
He didn’t quell that smile. He let himself have it before he rolled into her and joined her in sleep.
* * * * *
Three hours later, Apollo opened his eyes to a mostly dark room, the firelight only casting a dim glow.
Maddie’s soft naked body was pressed to him, her cheek on his shoulder, her arm heavy across his stomach. He felt her warm weight. Her closeness. Her soft breaths against his skin.
But in that moment, having her as he wanted, his mind could finally move to other things.
And when it did, his lips whispered into the dark, “Why did they not use magic?”
Chapter Fifteen
Happier
I pulled the nightgown over my head and let it slide down my body, the hem of sapphire satin swirling around my ankles.
Apollo was in the bedroom undressing for bed. I was in the dressing room off the bedroom, doing the opposite.
It had been three days since our mad dash back to Karsvall.
The good news was, in that time, Apollo hadn’t killed anybody and I hadn’t threatened anyone with hedge clippers.
There was no bad news.
This didn’t mean that things hadn’t been eventful. They had.
At first, I was worried that it would be boring.
Sure, when I lived with Pol, we had a cleaning lady and most of his clothes were of the dry cleaning variety, and seeing as I had no job, there wasn’t much to do. But I still did our laundry, the dishes, cooked. It wasn’t like we had a house full of kids where I spent my time tidying toys or bandaging knees but I had things to do.
The second full day I was there, Cristiana did everything, like putting away the contents of my trunks that had arrived from Vasterhague and even making the bed.
This left me with nothing. I’d already made snowmen and the guys had preparations for war to carry out so I was at a loss seeing as I couldn’t hang out with them.
And then, in the afternoon, Loretta and Meeta arrived.
They were my ladies maids.
This made Cristiana’s job even easier as Apollo had brought them to the house, introduced them to me and explained their duties were to look after my “bedchamber” and my “person,” so even Cristiana didn’t have to tidy my clothes or make the bed anymore.
And seeing as I didn’t even have to look after my “person,” the presence of Loretta and Meeta meant I’d have nothing to do.
Further, Loretta either knew or had seen the other me around because she freaked way the heck out the minute she saw me (in a quiet way—that would be, her mouth dropping open and her eyes bugging out). This wasn’t unusual but it was getting tired.
Fortunately, Meeta didn’t.
And Meeta surprised me because she was black and I hadn’t seen a black person the entire time I was in that world. She was also pretty, with her hair clipped short to her head, very dark, smooth skin and a beautiful long elegant neck that was to die for. Oh, and she had very intelligent, very assessing eyes.
And last, she had an easy white smile that made me like her instantly.
But the introduction of Loretta and Meeta became a boon because, with none of the women having much to do, this meant we could spend our afternoons gabbing, which we did.
Fortunately, like everyone who knew the Ilsa before me, Loretta got over the resemblance quickly.
Unfortunately, the gabbing included Meeta matter-of-factly sharing that she was from the Southlands, a country called Maroo, and she had been a slave.
Yes.
A slave.
She then shared she was captured as a young woman and taken to another country called Keenhak where she was put into service against her will.
She also shared she wasn’t really fond of that slave business (understatement). So she conked her “master” on the head, stole some of his valuables, spirited herself into the night and traded the stuff for passage on a pirate ship that took her to the Northlands.
Yes.
A pirate ship.
No kidding, this was her story.
She got as far away as she could, that being Lunwyn.
“I will take the cold, and all these clothes,” she said in her smooth but accented voice, her graceful hand indicating her clothing. “And do it happily to earn a wage and lay my head down free every night.”
I was totally with her.
I’d also learned that Loretta had been laid by Hans. This I found because the guys still came around even if their strategy sessions were no longer held at the house. And I found it when he walked in, totally ignored her and greeted me like I was his long lost sister even though he’d seen me two days before.
Loretta watched this, got teary-eyed, mumbled an excuse and exited the room. Cristiana later shared why, this being that Loretta had slept with Hans, he hadn’t come back for seconds and she still had a big old crush on him.
Cristiana also took this opportunity to share that Apollo’s men were quite active in the village and amongst the servants so, “Every other maid you’ll pass, dearie, will have known the stroke of an Ulfr soldier’s cock.”
By the way, during my gabs with the girls, I learned that sexual mores here were a lot more lax. This being demonstrated by Cristiana’s words.
And also by the way, knowing this about the boys, I was glad Cristiana was over fifty years old and married, “To the love of my life, the stubborn, useless cuss.” (Her words.) Therefore, she wasn’t in danger of getting laid by one of the guys (I hoped).
I liked these ladies a lot and it was fun making friends again. There was a time when I had friends, but Pol, just being Pol but also doing what he did, scared them all away.
It felt good to gab with the girls, get to know them, and in doing it feel more settled in this world.
The other thing that was good was the dower house.
Outside, it was made of lacy, carved wood that had been weathered to a dark finish that made me think of chalets in the Alps.
Inside, it was what Apollo said it was, warm and welcoming.
But there was nothing rustic about the dower house of Karsvall. Its décor was sumptuous (though not as refined as the house in Fleuridia), yet tasteful.
That said, it seemed lived in and loved. There were beautiful pictures of flowers on the walls and graceful vases or figurines here and there. And there were warm throws and fluffy toss pillows that made cuddling up with a book or having a gab with the girls feel homey and cozy.
It had a formal sitting room and dining room as well as a big kitchen downstairs. There was also a study that doubled as a library (thank God, more books!) and a small sewing room. But the best part of the downstairs was the conservatory at the back, made of glass and filled with plants—on tables, hanging from baskets, the windows dripping with damp.
The upstairs had three bedrooms with the “master bedchamber
” having a dressing room, a bathing room and an additional small room (yes, for the chamber pot). It also had a massive fireplace with a cream marble mantel that provided a beautiful contrast against the dark wood paneling of the walls. It was decorated in creams and soft yellows with hints of peach and was quite feminine, the down comforter even tipped with dripping scallops of eyelet.
I’d learned that Apollo’s mother lived there but not much more as Loretta and Cristiana gave each other big eyes and changed the subject practically before it was brought up.
I didn’t push it. I didn’t want to make them feel weird or force them to share anything that might annoy Apollo.
And anyway, I wanted him to tell me himself, in his time.
As for Apollo and me, our days had found a rhythm. This being him getting up way early in the morning, waking me to tell me he was going to eat breakfast with his kids, then he’d touch his mouth to mine and leave.
During the day, he’d mostly be away unless he had some free time. If he did, he’d come visit me, but it was never for long.
Still, it was nice he did that.
And in the evening, he arrived just in time for a late dinner, which was after his kids had gone to have a bath then to bed.
Up next was the best part of any day, when we would go to bed and he’d make love to me. We’d spend some time whispering after we made love, these mostly sweet nothings while we cuddled (the second best part of any day). Then he’d either make love to me again or we’d go to sleep.
Tonight, though, he’d sent Alek with the message he’d be late and that I should eat and, if he was very late, go to bed without him.
This I had been preparing to do when I’d heard him hit the room five minutes ago and call, “Maddie!”
To which I called back, “I’m changing.”
To which I heard nothing but his boots and belt hitting the floor which meant he was getting ready for bed.
We’d also had one other change of circumstance since things settled in. This was Apollo getting me pennyrium, which he’d brought along with Loretta and Meeta.
So all was good on that front and sheaths were no longer necessary.
But it wasn’t lost on me that we hadn’t “explored” the “play” we’d engaged in that night we arrived in Karsvall, deeply or otherwise.
When he made love to me, it was sweet. It was slow. It was taking our time, building it then letting it explode.
It was also awesome.
But I had to admit, that night was hot. As in h-o-t, hot. I also had to admit I wouldn’t mind exploring it (at all). Deep or otherwise.
That said, even slow and gentle, every time was good and there was no denying that the adela tea led us to understand each other better, what we liked, deepening the experience, making it richer than any I’d ever had or could even imagine having. There was a freedom to it, no being worried about what he’d think of my body or if I was doing something right. We had a kind of harmony in bed. It was about each other, togetherness, the experience and climax, all of this making the togetherness more meaningful. Even out of bed.
It was amazing.
Actually, Apollo was amazing. Tender, sweet, forthcoming, funny, and tender was worth another mention, especially the way Apollo did it.
And that was to say, the way he did it was just the way he was.
Sure, there was an arrogance about him that I most likely came with his position in society and his family. But also it just came naturally. A man of his looks, wealth, status and intelligence, this could happen. And with Apollo, it did.
That said, this was simply one small nuance of his personality. The rest, or the Apollo he gave me, was so much more.
An example being, it had been three days and he’d made his point about wanting me to meet his kids and he didn’t mention it again. No pressure. I was a ten minute horse ride away, but he was a busy guy and he still split his time between me and them and didn’t utter a word.
Nothing.
He just did it. He didn’t bitch. He didn’t push.
I had to admit, I loved that.
Actually, I was realizing there were a lot of things I loved about Apollo and as I smoothed my hands over my nightgown at my hips, I knew I was excited to walk into the room and be with him. I didn’t care if we made love, if we just talked, if we didn’t talk and just cuddled.
I just wanted to be with him.
I never thought I’d feel that way about a man. Not again. I was done with all men after Pol.
So to feel that way about Pol’s twin was crazy.
But as the days slid by, Apollo was making it crazy-beautiful.
On that thought, I wandered out of the dressing room into the bedroom and stopped.
He was in bed, smack in the middle, sitting up. He had the duvet to his waist, his wide chest on display, his dark hair was a mess from riding to the house and he hadn’t even bothered running his hands through it to give it some order.
He also had a sheaf of papers in his hands, his eyes to them and there was something about his big guy, muscled, powerful, commanding masculinity amongst all that cream, yellow, peach and eyelet that made my mouth water.
Then again, whenever I saw him, my mouth watered.
And also, there was the small fact that I knew he was naked under that duvet. Apollo never went to bed with clothes on unless he was doing it in the middle of taking them off.
His head came up, his eyes instantly slid down my body then they moved up and when they made it to mine, I said softly, “Hey.”
His face shifted to that tender look I felt in my belly and around my heart.
“Come here, dove,” he said softly back.
I went there. While he tossed the papers to the nightstand, I lifted my nightgown to my hips and crawled into the bed on my knees. When I got to him, I threw a leg over and straddled his lap. His hands came to rest on my ass as my eyes found his.
“I’ve changed my mind about preferring you pressed to me, sleeping naked,” he declared, his fingers accentuating his point by gliding over the satin at my ass.
“I have a lot of kickass nightgowns you’ve been missing out on, sweetheart,” I replied.
“Mm,” he murmured, this noise also hitting me in my belly but in a different way.
His eyes dropped to my chest and his hands started sliding up my sides.
I caught them at the wrists and he looked back to me.
“Baby, we’ve gotta talk.”
That was when he did what Apollo always did.
He wrapped his arms around me, pulled me close and gave me what I asked for instantly.
“About what, poppy?”
God, I loved it that he could be this way.
I put my hands to his chest. “About three things. Then we can move on to the good stuff.”
His lips twitched, his arms gave me a squeeze and he said, “Go on.”
“Well,” I started. “It’s come to my attention that your boys are kind of…” I hesitated, “active at the main house and in the village.”
His head cocked slightly to the side. “Active?”
“Very active.”
“They are indeed active, Maddie. Though I’m thinking I don’t understand what you’re truly saying.”
“Hans has slept with Loretta.”
“And?”
“And, Loretta’s my ladies maid.”
“Yes?”
I stared at him, then said, “Well, Hans is one of your men and a friend of mine. And he’s around the house, not often but he’s around.”
“This is true,” he stated, patient but bemused.
Okay, surprisingly it seemed I had to explain this to him.
I moved a bit closer, sliding my hands up his chest to curl my fingers on his shoulders and I shared, “He’s been here twice since Loretta came on board and he hasn’t even looked at her. She’s crushing on him big time—”
“Crushing?” he queried, his brows drawing together.
“She likes him.”<
br />
“Ah,” he murmured, his brow clearing.
“It’s awkward,” I told him.
“She shouldn’t have taken him to her bed.”
I blinked.
Then I said, “Actually, I was thinking you might have a word with the boys so they would be more discreet and by that I mean appropriate and by that I mean they might wish to go further afield when they’re selecting their, um…play partners.”
This time, Apollo stared at me.
Then his arms convulsed around me and he burst out laughing.
When he was down to chuckling, his arms came from around me so he could frame my face in his hands. He pulled my mouth down to his and gave me a brief, hard kiss with his still-chuckling lips before he wrapped his arms around me again and stated, “You amuse me, poppy.”
“I was being serious.”
He was still chuckling, but he blinked while doing it. “Pardon?”
“I was being serious,” I repeated. “See, it’s kind of…” I searched for a word and found it. “Uncouth for the hot guys of the manor to go around having their fun, leaving a trail of broken hearts in their wake. There has to be somewhere else they can go to get their…” I struggled again to find the right word. “Fun.”
“And waste time astride a horse when they could be riding something else close to home?” he asked with mild disbelief.
My eyes got big, his lips curved into a smile, and I opened my mouth to speak but he beat me to it.
“This is the way it is here, Maddie.”
“I—”
He put his fingers to my lips and whispered, “Quiet. Please?”
I was quiet but only because he said “please,” I really liked that he said it and I also liked his deep voice wrapping around that word.
He made sure I was quiet, removed his hand so he could wrap his arm around me again and went on.
“The people of this world are very free…” he paused, “sexually. The Vale, there are more strictures than Lunwyn. Fleuridia, less. But here, men and women enjoy each other openly and frequently. If Loretta has feelings for Hans that are not returned, that’s unfortunate. But it happens. Does this not happen in your world?”