Part 79 (1/2)
An hour later, Apollo walked into his study, where he'd been told Maddie had gone to await him to take her to lunch with his children.
He found she was indeed there, standing at the side of his window, for some reason peering around the opened curtains as if she was using them to hide.
Whatever she was watching had her full attention. He knew this because she did not sense his presence and thus turn to greet him.
As he approached, he took her in wearing her dress that was nearly the color of the deep green of Valentine's. But hers was knit, covering her from its rolled neck that went up to her jaw and down to the tips of her boots. Her extraordinary hair was mostly down, but the front and sides had been pulled away from her face and arranged in soft curls at the back of her head. The dress hugged her upper body magnificently, down to her waist where it flared into the skirt. But even the skirt clung to her figure, specifically her hips and a.r.s.e, and it did this in alluring ways that brought to mind the fact that he needed to order a mirror to be installed in his bedroom.
Or hers should she elect to remain in the dower house for longer.
They could move it to his when she moved in.
But he wanted her to watch herself as he was taking her a.r.s.e, something he greatly enjoyed but enjoyed more as she'd clearly enjoyed it.
Indeed, they could do much with a mirror.
And they would.
On these thoughts, he got close to her back and felt her jump when he slid his hands along her ribs.
She twisted her neck to look up at him and he smiled down at her.
”h.e.l.lo, my dove,” he greeted.
Her hand cut to her face, her finger extended over her lips, and she hissed, ”Shh!” before she turned to look back outside.
He felt his brows draw together as he moved his gaze to the window. Then he felt his lips curve up when he saw Hans speaking with Loretta out in the snow at the side of the house.
Hans was standing very close to the maid.
Loretta didn't like this and was pulling back.
Thus Hans had an arm around her waist, plastering her to his side, just as he had his neck bent so he could bring his face close to hers.
”They can hardly hear us, poppy,” Apollo pointed out, still looking out the window.
”I'm concentrating,” she told him.
”On what?” he asked.
”Reading Hans's lips.”
This surprised him so much he cast his gaze to the top of her hair.
”You can read lips?”
”No!” she snapped impatiently, not tearing her eyes from the window. ”That's why you have to shush so I can concentrate.”
His body shook with his laughter as he turned her resisting frame in his arms.
”Lo! I'm missing it,” she bit out irritably when he had her front to his.
”Perhaps we should let whatever-that-is play out without an audience,” he suggested.
”If we do, how can I report back to Finnie, Meeta and Bella?”
”You'll just have to ask Loretta what occurred when you have that opportunity.”
Her expression changed to frustration when she shared, ”She's being closed-lipped about the whole thing.”
He was again surprised.
”I thought you women nattered about these things freely,” he remarked and watched her eyes narrow.
”We women are vast in number, Apollo. Some do. And some, like Loretta, don't.”
He grinned down at her. ”All right. Then perhaps you should allow her to share, or not, as she wishes.”
”What's the fun in that?”
She had him there, so he didn't answer.
Instead he changed the subject. ”How's her injury?”
He felt as well as heard her deep sigh as she gave into his demand that she leave his man and her woman alone, something she had no choice but to do with the hold he had on her, and she knew it.
Then she answered, ”Healing nicely.”
”And has she recovered from the incident?”
Her eyes slid to his shoulder as she replied, ”That maybe isn't healing so nicely.”
”It frightened her,” Apollo deduced, and her gaze came back to him.
”It would anyone, Lo,” she noted. ”Those things were creepy and there were a lot of them.”
He did not need the reminder of Maddie and her women out in the snow with a lot of ”creepy” things.
Alas, he had it and they were discussing it, as they should. Avoiding it was not healthy.
Therefore, he pointed out, ”She went to that forest of her own accord, poppy.”
”She did,” she agreed. ”But that s.h.i.+t was extreme.”
This was terminology he'd never heard, not even from Maddie.
He still understood it.
”Then let's hope Hans can get through to her. If anyone understands s.h.i.+t that's extreme, it's Hans.”
”Good point,” she murmured, her gaze now moving over her shoulder as she twisted somewhat in his arms to look back out the window. ”I'll have to mention that to her.”