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Jade scratched her dogs’ fur one more time and stood up to leave the room. Once she stepped into the hallway, her eyes darted to the door of the Royal Apartment, where Liam’s security detail took their positions at last. With a smile, the queen began to whistle a Christmas Carol and ambled to her private chambers. Although she no longer argued with her husband about his tendency to work overtime, it didn’t mean she gladly endure the long hours of waiting for him to come back.
“Your Majesty,” Bastien bowed and the other guards followed suit.
“Hello, everyone.” She then turned to Bastien. “Bas, did my ears deceive me or were Liam and the guys rehearsing to sing at Christmas brunch to cheer up Elise and Leo’s twins?”
“I cannot confirm nor deny that information, ma'am.”
She narrowed her eyes jokingly. “Really?”
The guard looked ahead, barely blinking.
“If it’s a surprise, it’s okay. I promise I won’t tell or try to record it again. I just need to know when to ensure Elise will be awake to see it. The chickenpox leaves her a bit tired.”
“I have no information of when it will happen, ma'am.”
“So it is true.”
“That’s classified, ma'am.”
“Okay…” Jade grinned. “Will you please remind my husband to include Silver Bells in the repertoire? It’s very soothing and one of Elise’s favorites lately.”
Bastien glanced at the queen from the corner of an eye and nodded in response.
After giving the guard a gentle pat on his shoulder and biding everyone good night, Jade walked into the apartment made her way to the ensuite.
“Finally!” She said, shutting the door behind her. “I thought you’d never—”
Her eyes narrowed at her husband reading what looked like official documents as a pile of paperwork rested on his bare stomach.
“You’ve got to be kidding me…” She grumbled.
“Is everything alright, my love?”
“That depends… Are you going to ditch me for work again?”
“I’m afraid these documents can’t wait,” he apologized.
Huffing, she kicked off her shoes and stormed into the room, heading towards the walk-in closet.
“Jade, you weren’t here when I arrived.”
“Because I just put Elise to bed and took Bowie and Shirley for their night walk!” The queen shouted while she pressed a roll-on serum under her eyes and began to massage them with her fingers. Maybe that would help her relax.
“I assumed you were working late too. Your schedule is always busy in December.”
“I think you’re missing the fact that I have bigger priorities than planning fancy parties and socializing with nobility nowadays, Liam,” she implied, leaning against the threshold.
His eyes widened. “What is it? Is Elise okay?”
“She’s fine.”
“Well, if Elise is okay, then what do you mean?”
The queen folded her arms and glared at him.
After a few seconds of silence, it finally hit him. “Oh…”
“Are you still going to keep working?”
“Five more pages to go.”
“It’s almost midnight, Liam. The kingdom can wait until you get to the office tomorrow.”
“My love, I have to review next year’s budget for each duchy before the holiday festivities.”
Jade closed her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose. From the very beginning, she knew marrying a dutiful man would be no walk in the park. Yet, she didn’t think she would miss battles against paperwork so often.
“Fine. Next time anyone asks me again why I’m taking so long to get pregnant again, I’ll tell them to ask you,” she said, marching back to the closet.
“Oh, come on! You know if we have sex now, I’ll crash right after,” Liam shouted.
“Face it, Rys. You’re getting old,” she joked.
“Hey!”
She giggled.
“Besides, we can’t conceive a child the way we’ve been doing lately.”
“Funny…” She then strolled back to the bedroom. “I don’t recall any complaints from you whenever I’m on my knees giving you head. Plus, you always seem to have extra energy at the slightest hint of lube, toys, anal…”
Liam heaved a sigh. “I know what you’re doing and why you’re doing it. But I need you to be a bit more patient while I finish these. Please.”
Jade huffed and sat down on the plush chair next to the bed. Dr. Ramirez did mention the hormones would increase her libido. She never said anything about getting impatient. Was it included in the mood swings package? Hm…
She looked back at the bed, where Liam calmly read the documents. This was so unfair. How come she was there, half naked, so needy and he was still looking into documents? How dare he?!
Just then, she stood up and went to the walk-in closet once more, returning with a strawberry and vanilla body butter in one hand.
“I’ll be damned if I go down without a fight…” she murmured.
Sitting back on the chair, Jade pushed her robe aside to reveal her legs and lack of underwear. With a nice portion of the butter in her palm, she warmed it between her hands and then massaged her leg on the ottoman with firm strokes.
As she switched legs, a gentle shift on the mattress caught her attention. Pretending not to notice it, Jade proceeded to warm the thick cream between her hands and apply it to her leg. Her hands ran up and down her thighs when his physical closeness became more evident.
“Aren’t you supposed to be looking into finance budgets, Your Majesty?”
“There is an urgent matter I must attend to now. Otherwise, it will be too late.”
“Too late?” She arched an eyebrow. “What could be so important right now?
"Well…” Liam kneeled before her, placed some of the body butter in his palm and reached for her foot. “You’ve been forgetting to massage your feet, my queen,” he said as his hands kneaded the sole of her foot.
“Have I?”
Her gaze followed the path his hands made on her left foot and ankle.
“You spend all day walking around in high heels. Even though all shoes are custom-made for you, I believe your feet still need proper care,” he whispered.
A mischievous grin spread on her lips as the king lifted her foot to kiss its bridge and switched to the other foot.
“I do forget to moisturize them sometimes…”
“We can’t have that, Your Majesty.”
“We certainly can’t.”
As his lips brushed over her ankle and trailed upwards, her breath quickened.
“Is it okay if I take care of your legs as well?” His eyes darkened as he waited for her answer.
“I guess there are other parts of my body that require your attention, my king,” she murmured, spreading her legs.
“Let’s see what I can do about them.”
With her head lolled back while his tongue lapped on her center, a satisfied grin formed on her lips. Jade (plus vanilla-scented butter): 1 x Paperwork: 0. Victory had never been so sweet.