Chapter One #2
“Sure. The trucks are coming now. Off-loading can always use extra hands. The weird thing is that most of the stuff will be eaten by this time tomorrow.” Krys smiled and walked toward the kitchen, where the trucks were using the hidden drive to pull up outside the catering kitchen.
Having Reynal, Azreen, Benko, and Neekil working meant the unpacking took minutes instead of an hour.
The goblin pastry chef arrived and grinned. “I will begin. Those special treats have to be assembled at the last minute. I will work on the others after I get the mousse set.”
“Thanks, Habbah.” Krys grinned.
“I love that you have folks who like evening weddings. So much more time than noon ones.” Habbah walked over and started getting pots on the stoves and stacks of butter on the stainless steel counter. She was a woman on a mission, and that mission needed an empty kitchen. “Out!”
Krys laughed and shooed the others out.
Neekil asked, “What treat?”
“Something for the dessert table. It’s an experiment. Don’t worry about it.” She waved it off.
There was a cackle from inside the kitchen.
Krys moved them away from the sound of the amused goblin, and they returned to the yard when the trucks with the tables arrived. Wedding prep was underway.
Neekil looked around with a grin, bowed, and headed for the shadows.
Krys sighed and looked around at the thirty round tables, eighteen oblong tables, the sweetheart table, and the cake table.
Tomorrow, all the linens would be placed and the tables set, but things were so much easier with the tables and the endless stacks of chairs set on the side. Tomorrow was soon enough to cast the solid air spell on the grass to give everyone the feeling of grass, while not sinking into the grass.
Krys chuckled as she looked at Vaia. “The best thing about this is that I just go to bed, and tomorrow, here I am.”
“And you give us room to be newlyweds in the morning. You are an excellent housemate.” Azreen chuckled.
Reynal took her hand and walked her into the great room, where the mantlepiece held court. He slid a hand into her hair and kissed her. He smiled. “Benko is making me that statue in miniature.”
She blushed. “You are going to keep it in your office?”
“Yes.”
“Are you sure?”
“Absolutely.”
She looked up at his tawny skin, the smile, and the dark expanse of his eyes. She caressed his cheek and used a grip on his neck to pull herself up to him.
The kiss was intense, and she was breathing hard when he finally lowered her to her feet.
He stroked her hair back from her forehead. “If you had an idea of what I wanted to do with you...”
She smiled, stepped back, and held her hands out, one over the other, until the upper hand gripped the lower.
He shuddered. “Yes.”
She grinned. “Keep a good thought.”
“You don’t want to wait for a wedding?”
“Reynal, I am already a representative of control and focus considering my family history.”
He grinned. “So, you would not have an issue anticipating the wedding night?”
“I think if you are going to commit to something, you should get some practice in.” She watched him lean toward her. “But not when I have to work the next day.”
He growled softly, his eyes glowing strangely for orbs so dark. “So, after tomorrow night?”
“Uh, you are going to be busy showing that dignitary around, right?”
“He can manage on his own.”
Krys chuckled. “So, then logistically, my place or the Grunwald mansion?”
“I think the mansion will do. I will run it past Vaia. She will figure out a way to distract Azreen.”
She could see the couple just behind his shoulder. Azreen lifted his wife in his arms, and Vaia gave a thumbs-up as she was carried off.
“They were behind me.”
“Yup.”
“My great uncle was grinning.”
“Yup. Of course, he was. He had his wife in his arms.”
He smiled and knelt, his wings behind him like a cloak. “Krys-Alys Bright, will you marry me?”
She blinked. “Is this because of the offer of sex? If so, I would totally do it without the proposal.”
He reached into his pocket and pulled out a box. He opened it toward her, and she stared. “Oh. My. That looks like the down payment on my house.”
He smiled. “I am good at investing. It lets me buy the important things for important people. So, is that a yes?”
She looked into his eyes and felt the same tingle she did every time their eyes met. “How long do you think I will last?”
“I think we can get a solid three hundred years with each other.”
“Well, for one of your kind, I will get what I can get and plan for what mayhem we can go through together.”
“Is that a yes?”
She inhaled and exhaled slowly before saying, “That’s a yes.”
He grinned and took the ring, sliding the enormous sapphire wrapped in gold filigree on her finger. She looked at it and felt the weight. Krys leaned in and kissed him. He got to his feet and swung her around.
He pulled away and said, “I know fun and games are off the table for tonight, but can we just cuddle?”
“Do you want to go over the spreadsheets first?”
He grabbed her with an arm around the waist and held her against him. “Ah, Krys, you know what I like.”
He chuckled and held her against him as he walked up to the second floor and down the hall to the end, where her bedroom was located.
She opened her laptop, showed him the spreadsheet, and that she was under budget.
He hauled her toward the bed, eased off her exercise clothing, and then used his mouth on her from lips to knees to demonstrate his appreciation for a well-executed budget.
If this was cuddling, she was looking forward to foreplay.