Chapter 27 #2
“I missed you.”
“I missed you, too,” she replied as Eugene barked and tried to wiggle his way in between our legs. Birdie laughed. “I missed you too, Eugene.”
I wound my hand up around the nape of her neck and tangled my fingers through her long hair, pulling her mouth to mine.
What started as a slow and intimate kiss quickly stirred a hunger inside my chest. Her lips moved with mine at a quick pace and she ran her tongue along the entrance of my mouth, asking for entry.
I walked her backward, stopping when I felt her ass hit the edge of the desk.
I grabbed her hips and set her on top of the desk as she opened her legs so I could slide even closer to her.
As our kiss grew faster, I let my hand move up her torso and under her sweater.
I gently grabbed her breast. I had missed the way that my body responded to hers.
The way that, even though we hadn’t known each other for very long, I knew her body and already had it memorized.
I loved the fact that just the mere touch of my skin on hers had her panting and wanting more.
I pulled the lace cup of her bra down, freeing one of her perfect breasts, and rubbed the pad of my thumb back and forth across her perky nipple.
“Knox,” she moaned.
“Mmm,” I responded.
“I want you so badly,” she said between kisses, “but I promised Oliver we wouldn’t fuck in his office.”
I pulled my head back quickly and looked her in her eyes, questioning if I had heard her correctly. “You what?” I smiled.
She let out a soft laugh, which made her free tit bounce in my hand. That did not help the situation in my pants.
“After he brought me up and told me that we could talk in here, he joked as he left that I had to promise we wouldn’t have hot make-up sex in his office.”
“So what you’re saying is we could have hot ‘I love you’ sex in here?” I asked as I nipped the side of her neck.
She let out another one of those soft moans that I loved so much.
“Plus, your family is waiting downstairs to start Christmas Eve dinner.”
I knew she was right, and I knew that we needed to get down there, but I didn’t want to leave. I wanted to finish what we had started so badly.
“I promise that once we get back to your house tonight, I will more than make up for the lost time,” she said, her hand on my chest.
“Let’s get down there then and get Christmas started,” I sighed. “I’m just going to need like five minutes before this goes down.” I gestured to the dick that was making himself known by the bulge in my pants.
“Poor thing,” Birdie laughed as she grabbed and rubbed at it.
“Baby, you are not helping,” I moaned.
“Sorry.” She gave me a salacious smile.
“Can you pass the bowl of sunflower seeds, please,” Belle asked her mom, Freya.
Freya’s cheeks turned red as she grabbed the small glass bowl that sat in front of her daughter and placed a little pile of the seeds on Belle’s plate.
“Belle, I’m begging you to please not throw the kernels on the floor like we do outside in the summer,” Freya whispered into her youngest daughter's ear.
Belle let out a high-pitched giggle and nodded. We were gathered around the long formal dining table in the grand dining hall for Christmas Eve dinner, Freya and her two girls joining us for the family dinner before the official party started.
I couldn’t have imagined being there and being as happy as I was.
When I woke up that morning, I was dreading every moment of dinner and the party later that night.
But with Birdie beside me, and us working through all the logistics of everything that had taken place over the last few months, I didn’t think that I could be any happier.
“Bernadette,” Evelyn said from across the table, “Oliver told me that you are going to be the new art curator here at the palace?”
“That’s the plan.” Birdie grinned. “We agreed that after the holidays, I could start.”
“Oh, that’s wonderful. I’ll make sure my secretary sets up a meeting with your secretary after you’re all settled in. I have a few pieces that I would like to move from the country house to here, and then there are a few that I would like to sell.”
“That sounds great.” She smiled warmly at Evelyn and then leaned over to me and whispered, “Holy shit, I’m going to have a secretary. What kind of world is this?”
“Welcome to being a part of the palace staff. It’s a fucking trip,” I laughed into her ear.
“So, are things official with you two?” Rosie asked from beside me.
I looked from Rosie to Birdie and then grabbed Birdie’s hand and placed it in my lap.
“Yes,” Birdie answered before I could. “We’re as official as Knox would like to make us, I think.”
That wasn’t true. At least not yet. I wanted Birdie to be in my future forever.
I wanted her to not only work for the palace and the royal family, but I wanted her to be an official part of the royal family, at least as much as I was a part of the royal family.
I wanted her to officially be mine in every way there was.
And I planned on making that known soon.
“Ugh!” Rosie huffed, and I gave her an inquisitive look. Was she upset that Birdie and I had worked things out? This was going to be tough if the whole family wasn’t on board.
“Rosalind,” Evelyn chastised. “Don’t be a sore loser.”
“Sore loser?” I asked, looking between the two of them.
“Don’t get me wrong,” Rosie said to Birdie and me. “I’m super happy that you guys are together. I’ve wanted an older sister more than anything. I just needed you guys to hold out getting together until after Oliver’s coronation.”
“Well, they didn’t, and that means you owe me, little lady.” Evelyn winked.
“Oh my God. You two are the worst,” I rolled my eyes, not meaning a word of it.
Birdie threw her head back with a hearty laugh. “Sorry, Rosie, the heart wants what it wants, when it wants. I’m sure you’ll understand one day when you get older.”
“Yeah, right. I’m never falling in love.” Rosie made a face of disgust.
Preston appeared in the doorway, quietly approaching Isobel and leaning down to speak in her ear. A smile lit her face as she nodded. Preston straightened and disappeared again.
Isobel stood. “If I may have your attention,” she began, and we all quieted. “I was hopeful that we would have another guest joining us this evening, and I have just been informed that he has arrived.”
From down the table, I heard Freya gasp and Belle and Sadie collectively shout, “Daddy!” as a tall man with thick black hair wearing a military dress uniform entered the room.
The girls shot up from the table, running to their father, who leaned down to capture them in his arms. Freya stood, her shaking hand over her mouth, looking from her husband to Isobel with wonder and inquiry in her eyes. “How…”
Isobel crossed to Freya, taking her hand and guiding her toward Dante.
“After I saw you at the donation drive, I put in some inquiries and discovered that Dante’s mission was likely to wrap up this week.
Leroy and I decided to do what we could to help their team get home in time to celebrate Christmas with their families. ”
Tears were now streaming down Freya’s face, and at my side I could hear Birdie sniffling as well. I clasped her hand, swallowing back my own emotions as Freya now rushed into her husband’s waiting arms, their family of four grasped in a group hug.
There was barely a dry eye in the room as Dante looked over his family’s heads at Leroy and Isobel. “Thank you, Your Majesties. For myself, and on behalf of my men and women and our families; your kindness will not be forgotten.”
After everyone settled back in—a place setting appearing for Dante between his wife and daughters—and finished dinner, Isobel ushered us into the ballroom and announced that there would be music, dessert, and drinks.
I sent Eugene back to the cottage with one of the butlers, then sat with Birdie as we ate our servings of crème br?lée and watched Leroy and Isobel kick off the dancing to their favorite Christmas song, “The Christmas Waltz.” As I stirred a little sugar into my coffee, I felt the chair beside me pull out.
“May I sit here?” Vince asked.
“Of course,” I answered.
“Vince! Hi!” Birdie said, her tone nervous.
I hadn’t seen Vince since the night of the party at Lexington Manor, and I hadn’t responded to any of his text messages.
He had been very adamant that I was the reason Birdie had left and he wasn’t short on his feelings about it.
I wasn’t sure how he would feel about Birdie and I being together, and I was worried that I might lose one of my closest friends.
“I owe you both an apology,” he started.
“What? No. I need to apologize to you,” Birdie said.
“No, you don’t. I wasn’t there for you, Bee. I was solely focused on myself and my family and not on what you truly wanted, and I’m sorry.”
“Vince, I left without even talking to you and that was awful, especially after everything you and Bronson did for me. I’m sorry.”
“Thank you. Can we put this behind us?” he asked her.
“Of course.” She pulled him into a hug before he turned to me, worry lining his forehead.
“Knox, I’m so sorry for accusing you of doing something to Birdie and for questioning you.
I know the kind of man you are. I should have known that you wouldn’t have acted on any feelings toward Birdie unless they were the real deal.
Again, I was too focused on myself to even consider that you were hurting or upset. I’m sorry, mate.”
“It’s okay. I get that you were upset and looking out for Oliver.”
“So, we’re good?”
“Yeah, man.” I slapped him on the shoulder and gave it a light squeeze.
“So, this?” He gestured between the both of us.
“Yeah!” Birdie smiled from ear to ear.
“How are you going to make this work? Are you going to move to America?” he asked me.
I shook my head, unable to contain the pride in my voice as I said, “No. You’re looking at the palace's new art curator. Birdie is moving here.”
“No way! That’s amazing. Birdie, I'm so happy for you. Congratulations. We should throw a party to celebrate the new job.”
Birdie chuckled. “I think I’m good on attending any parties for a while,” she said, eliciting a snort from me.
Vince let out a bark of laughter. “Fair enough.”
The string quartet slowed down their upbeat melody to a soft version of “I’ll Be Home for Christmas.”
“Dance with me?” I asked.
“I would love to.” Birdie’s eyes were shining with joy.
I grabbed Birdie’s hand and pulled her to her feet and to the dance floor. Wrapping my hands around her middle, I pulled her close to me, and we swayed to the strings playing in the corner. Birdie set her hand on my pec and lay her head against the center of my chest.
As we danced, I thought back to the night of the welcome gala.
While Birdie was dancing with Oliver, I had wanted so badly to cut in and hold her close to me just like this.
I pulled her in tighter and kissed the top of her head.
I was so thankful that everything had led us to this, with her in my arms.
I was ready to get out of this party and take Birdie home and fully consummate this relationship. I couldn’t wait to take her inside my cottage and show her how much I had missed her and all of the different ways that I loved her.
“Knox…” Birdie whispered.
“Hmm,” I murmured, tightening my hands on her waist.
“What are you thinking about?” She pushed her stomach against my hardening cock.
I let out a shameful laugh.
“You. And how I can’t wait to go home.”
“Is that right?” She pulled back and looked at me with a heavy, amorous gaze. “I’m ready to leave whenever you are.”
“Let’s go,” I said a little too eagerly.