8. Soren
SOREN
I was late for my dinner with Jude, and a part of me was worried he would change his mind about me as I hurried down the stairs.
Once again, I was decked out in the finery Halo House had provided, but the way I looked was the last thing on my mind.
I’d been so excited to visit Jude, and then, on a whim, I’d used the computer in the library to look up information about Belvaria, only to find no mention of me at all.
I should have been relieved that news of me having been to jail hadn’t made the media there, but I ended up feeling depressed that the royal family and the country I’d been prepared to dedicate my life to serving had forgotten all about me.
All day I’d been a mess, until Aaron had shown up to check on me.
He might not know exactly why I’d been sad, but he’d reminded me that my life was here in California now, in Headland Bay.
It was useless for me to dwell on the past and all the things that had gone wrong.
I needed to focus on the present and on the man who could guide me to be the best commoner I could be.
“Soren,” Phoenix called, breezing into the hall and clasping his hands. “Aaron told me you changed your mind about your date. Does this mean you’ve forgiven me for not telling you about Jude’s past? It wasn’t my story to tell, you know.”
“It’s okay. I was overreacting because of something else, but I’ve had a proper talk about it with Aaron. You don’t think I’m too late, do you?” I chewed on my bottom lip and shifted my weight from one foot to the other. If I messed this up, I would never forgive myself.
“I doubt it,” he said. “Besides, a good Daddy is patient with his boy, and Jude is the best, so I’m sure he will wait.”
“But I’m almost an hour late.”
His smile widened. “You really want this date, don’t you?”
“Yes. Since my life has turned into a whole mess, I’ve not wanted anything as badly as I do this. He said he can help me turn my life around, Phoenix. I need him to show me how to become a commoner.”
“A commoner?” Phoenix frowned.
“Oh, I’m sorry. Did I say that wrong?” I chuckled uneasily. “In my country, it perhaps means something else. I meant to fit in.”
“I see. Well, don’t worry. Jude called me earlier. He’s waiting another hour for you.”
But that hour was almost up too. “Where’s Aaron?” I asked, rushing by Phoenix. “He promised to take me.”
“Before you go, Soren—” Phoenix caught my arm, a rare move for him to touch me, but as soon as I stopped moving, he released me. “There’s something you should know about Jude.”
I groaned. “Oh God, don’t tell me he’s been to prison twice.”
“Of course not. Jude’s an honest, responsible person, and he’s also a close friend of mine.”
“Oh?” I had no idea what he was getting at, and he wasn’t making it easy by talking in circles. He was also wasting the limited time I had left to make it to Jude’s place.
“You should know there’s a lot more than he told you about how he ended up in prison. It’s not for me to tell the story, but not everything is as it seems.”
“Are you saying he was innocent?”
Phoenix smiled and took a step away from me. “If you need a ride home, call me, though I doubt you’ll need it. Jude will bring you home when you’re finished.”
“Aren’t you going to answer my question?” I pressed.
“Have a good evening, Soren. You have the opportunity to flourish under the care of one of the best Daddies you’ll ever find. Don’t squander it.”
Great. Now he was hellbent on being just as mysterious as Jude had been about this prison thing, but from his reaction, I guessed that I was correct and Jude hadn’t been guilty of the crime he’d told me about. Why had he taken the fall for someone, and why hadn’t he told me the full truth?
Aaron was waiting for me in his car when I hurried out of the house. He got out quickly and opened the passenger door for me.
“Where’s Phoenix?” he asked, staring back at the house. “He’s not seeing you off?”
I shook my head as I slid into the car. In the little time I’d spent around him and Phoenix, it was plain that Aaron was into the other man.
“We already spoke inside.”
“Okay.” Disappointment colored his tone, but I waited until we were well on our way before turning to him.
“When are you going to tell Phoenix you’re in love with him?”
“What? Who says—”
“Don’t bother lying. Everyone in the house knows it.”
For a few seconds he didn’t answer, then he said, “If everyone can see it, doesn’t this mean he also knows? Why hasn’t he said anything? It’s been five years already.”
“Five years!”
And here I was going on a date at the home of a man I’d only met three times! If I were back in Belvaria, protocol would have demanded that he be investigated and cleared before I could even be alone with him. Being a commoner sure made for easier dating.
“Enough about us. Tonight is about you. Are you certain this is what you want?”
“Why? Do you think I’m making a bad decision?”
“No,” he said, though he sounded reluctant to admit it. “Jude really is the best Daddy you can find.”
Comforted by his admission, I relaxed in the seat and stared through the window.
The sun had begun its slow descent, streaking the sky with soft bands of gold and peach.
The closer we came to the beach, the prettier everything became.
Palm trees leaned toward the road, sea grass shifted in the breeze, and glimpses of blue flashed between the houses.
Aaron slowed and turned onto a quiet coastal road lined with charming homes.
A few moments later, he pulled into the driveway of a two-story house with weathered blue siding, white trim, and a wide porch wrapping around one side.
Warm light glowed through the windows, and flower boxes crowded the railing beneath them.
“This is Jude’s?” I asked.
“Yep.” Aaron switched off the engine. “His workshop is in the back.”
I looked back at the house, surprised by how quickly I loved it. It was smaller than any place I had ever called home, but there was something warm and inviting about it, like it was the sort of house where people were expected to come inside, take off their shoes, and stay awhile.
I could hear the waves rolling in nearby.
“It’s practically on the beach,” I said in awe.
Aaron smiled. “You like the beach?”
“Love it. My father said I take after my mother. She’s from here, you know. It’s why I moved here after…everything.”
“It’s a lovely place. Do you want me to go in with you, or are you okay?”
I unbuckled the seat belt quickly. “I’m okay to go up alone. It’s not like no one knows where I am in case I turn up missing.”
Aaron frowned, reached into his glove compartment, and brought out a phone, which he gave me.
“Oh no, I can’t accept this.”
“Please do.” He pushed the phone back toward me.
“It didn’t cost much. I already did everything to get it up and running for you, and my number’s programmed in it.
You’ll feel much better knowing you have a way to contact me if anything goes wrong.
Not that I think anything will, but it should make you feel safer. ”
“Thank you, Aaron.” I slipped the phone into the crossbody bag I’d borrowed from Dean to carry my essentials—condoms, lube, lip gloss, painkillers, tissues, and a travel-size body spray.
“Condoms?” Apparently, Aaron had gotten a peek into my bag. “Didn’t Phoenix tell you that Jude doesn’t do sex with his subs?”
I quickly zipped up the bag. “He did, but I haven’t been laid in almost six months. It’s best to be prepared just in case.”
“But—”
“Thanks a lot, Aaron.” I didn’t have the words to explain that I’d felt something between Jude and me, and I didn’t buy that he wouldn’t have sex with me.
It might not happen tonight, but it eventually would, and I wasn’t going to say no.
If he fucked as well as he hugged, then I was in for a treat.
Aaron watched me walk up to the porch, and I waved to show him I was okay, but he didn’t drive away. I knocked on the door and nervously waited for half a minute before the door opened. Only then did Aaron honk his horn and drive off.
I barely noticed his absence.
Jude filled the doorway with his presence. From the inside, I could smell a blend of spices and herbs that made my stomach flip. Or maybe that was from the intense way Jude was looking at me.
“Sorry I’m late,” I said, clutching the straps of the crossbody bag.
“It’s okay. I’m glad you came. Is it okay to hug you?”
The tension eased out of my body as I nodded. “I’d like that very much.”
Jude wrapped his arms around me and gathered me to his chest. His hold tightened, and he made a satisfying sound, lifting me a little off my feet and making me laugh.
“I thought you’d changed your mind,” he said, setting me back on my feet.
“I did, but it wasn’t about you. Some family matters came up, and it made me sad for a while.”
“I see. Come in, then. I hope you’re hungry. We can start there and let me fill your belly.”
A thrill ran down my spine as I imagined this man naked, on top of me, filling me up.
I wasn’t kidding about how long it’d been since I’d gotten fucked by anyone, and I was partly late because I’d wanted to be prepared for anything to happen, mainly me on my knees, arms pinned behind my back while he drilled into me.
“I love your home,” I said, following him inside.
“Thank you.”
The entryway opened into a bright living room with wide windows facing the water.
A long wooden console stood beneath the windows, its surface smooth and dark beneath a vase of fresh flowers.
The coffee table had thick, rounded edges, and the bookcases along one wall stretched from floor to ceiling, all made from the same warm-toned wood.
There was a simplicity to the pieces that made everything about Belvaria seem excessive and unnecessary.
“I like your furniture,” I said.
“I did most of the work.”
“Most?”
“The sofa isn’t mine.” He pointed toward it. “Though I rebuilt the frame after one of the legs gave out.”
I smiled. “Wow, you’re very talented. When I was little, my brothers and I had heraldic relief carvings and marquetry as a part of our roy—umm, our education. I was never any good at it. In fact, I was never good at anything.”
“Hmm, I doubt that. Sometimes it takes a little longer to find out what you’re good at.”
The house carried his touch everywhere: a narrow bench beneath the staircase and shelves tucked into spaces I would have thought too small to be useful.
Back in Belvaria, I’d grown up surrounded by priceless furniture that people were afraid to touch and that was dusted several times a day.
Here, every piece seemed made to be used.
The thought made me love the house even more.
“Hungry?” Jude asked.
The smell coming from the kitchen made my stomach answer before I could.
“Before I say yes, what are the odds of you having sex with me tonight?” I tilted my head to stare directly at him while he searched my face as if trying to figure out if I was serious.
“You want to have sex with me tonight?” he asked carefully.
I shrugged. “Well, it’s been a while, and it’s safe to say I’m attracted to you. Don’t you feel the same?”
He frowned. “I do, but I don’t usually sleep with my subs.”
“I’m not asking about other subs. I’m asking about me.”
“Let’s eat,” he said, turning toward the kitchen.
Disappointment landed in my stomach as I followed him.
“Sex is a possibility if that’s what you want,” he said. “But not penetrative tonight. We have too much to discuss and get through. If you still want to after that, I can make you come in other ways.”
I grinned, perking up as he led me into the dining room, where a rectangular wooden table sat beneath a chandelier with a black metal frame curved around a wide wooden ring.
Candle-shaped bulbs glowed warmly inside it, reflecting off the polished wood and casting a soft, intimate light across the room.
It wasn’t grand or covered in crystal like any of the ones found in the several dining rooms used for different occasions at the palace, but I found it far more charming.
“Sit,” he said, pulling out a chair for me. “I’ll be right back.”
Jude made a couple of trips to the kitchen, bringing back a large bowl of spaghetti with a generous amount of red sauce and meatballs, as well as garlic bread, salad, and grated cheese in a small dish.
Sparkling water with lemon filled our glasses to complete the meal.
It was no seven-course meal the way the chefs prepared our meals in Belvaria, but very few things in this place were like my home country, which wasn’t necessarily a bad thing.
“This smells lovely,” I said. “Do you have a chef who makes your meals?”
Jude laughed. “What would I need with a chef? I live alone, and when I have a sub, we share the duties.”
“Oh.” I stared at the table, where the meal looked simple, but I doubted I could put it together. Would he change his mind about me if he knew how helpless I was in the kitchen?
“Tell me a little bit about yourself, Soren,” he said. “You have a foreign accent that I can’t place. Where are you from?”