Total pages in book: 41
Estimated words: 38048 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 190(@200wpm)___ 152(@250wpm)___ 127(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 38048 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 190(@200wpm)___ 152(@250wpm)___ 127(@300wpm)
It was a family favorite and it was usually gone by the end of Christmas Eve night. Kelli didn’t even know why she was making it—there was way too much and since she was the only one drinking it, it was probably going to sit in the fridge for days. With a sigh, she added more rum. Her kids always joked that she added too much but this year there was no one to tell her not to overdo it. So she might as well make it as boozy as she wanted.
She was about to add even more when she heard her suite’s front entrance door chime.
“Now who could that be?” she muttered, putting down the bottle of rum and wiping her hands on the red and white Christmas apron she was wearing.
She knew who she wished it was…but she had pretty much given up hope that Klaus was going to show up at her door. He had made it pretty clear that things were over between them and she never expected to see him again, except maybe if they happened to pass each other in one of the corridors. But the Mother Ship was a big place—about a fourth the size of the Moon, which it orbited. So there wasn’t much chance of that…
The door chime rang again, and Kelli pushed the sad thoughts out of her head and hurried to get it.
“All right!” she said. “I’m coming, I’m com—”
The words died in her mouth as the door slid to one side revealing Klaus.
The big Kindred was wearing tight black leather trousers and a red shirt, which somehow went well with his green skin. He was holding a beautiful bouquet of huge white flowers that looked a little like Magnolia blossoms. They were exuding the most heavenly scent Kelli had ever smelled—it was like honeysuckle and lilac put together, she thought.
But it wasn’t the flowers she was focused on—it was the male holding them.
“Klaus?” she asked, making his name a question. “What are you doing here?”
To her surprise, he dropped to his knees right there in her doorway.
“Begging your forgiveness, sunshine,” he said and held out the flowers to her. “Please can I come in and talk…just for a minute?”
“Well, sure…” Kelli felt flustered. She’d spent some time thinking how she would tell him off if she saw the big Kindred again. But his abject display dispelled any lingering anger she had towards him—well, most of it, anyway.
Klaus got off the floor, after handing her the flowers, and came into her suit.
“You can have a seat on the couch,” Kelli told him. “I’ll go put these in some water. What are they, anyway? I’ve never smelled anything like them.”
“They came from the Sacred Grove.” He seemed slightly subdued, as though something had changed him somehow. Though as yet, Kelli couldn’t tell if the change was for the better or not. “The Goddess gave them to me,” he added.
“Okay, I’ll just—what?” She stared at him, not sure if she’d heard him correctly.
“I’ll tell you when you come back,” he said mysteriously. “Er, do you have anything to drink? I could use something strong if you have it.”
“You came at the right time,” Kelli told him. She took the bouquet of big white blossoms into the kitchen—or the “food prep area” as the Kindred called it—and found a tall crystal vase that had been a gift from her children on Mother’s Day when they bought her a dozen red roses.
Once the blossoms were settled and happily drinking water, she got two mugs—one much larger than the other—and filled them both with the boozy eggnog. She had a feeling she might need a drink to hear what Klaus had to say almost as much as he needed a drink to say it.
She carried the mugs out to the living room and handed him one. He was already seated on the couch beside the firewall where green and blue and gold flames were dancing. He took it gratefully and nodded his thanks before taking a big drink.
“Whew!” His eyes went wide and he stared into the mug as he licked his lips. “What’s in this stuff? Fireflower liquor?”
“No, just rum—a lot of it.” Kelli settled beside him and took a dainty sip from her own mug. The eggnog was just like she liked it—plenty of nutmeg and enough rum to make your eyes cross. She looked up at Klaus. “You said you have something to say?”
“Yes, I do.” He took a deep breath and then set the mug of eggnog down on the side table beside the couch. Turning to Kelli, he leaned forward and clasped his hands between his knees. “I came to say how sorry I am…and to try and explain why I was such a massive shaft the last time we were together.”