Page 42 of His Princess

Kit was similar to his dad in a lot of ways, but there were differences, too. He wasn’t as tall, even though he’d hit twenty-one, and he had a creamy complexion. He had a clean shaven, wholesome face, and his innocence poured off him in waves. He did inherit Derek’s dark hair, thick eyebrows, and nose, though.

Kit smiled first and held out his hand to me. “Hey, Colt, it’s been a while. Where have you been hiding?”

I snorted and ignored his hand, dragging him into a manly hug and slapping him on the back. “Kid, you know me and your dad, we’re always busy.”

He chuckled. “Yeah, you guys don’t seem to stop.”

“What about you?” I poked him on the shoulder after I’d taken a step back. “I’ve heard you’re smashing your college grades. Your dad hasn’t stopped gloating about you.”

“Shut the fuck up,” Derek grumbled, but the proud grin that slipped onto his face said something different. He didn’t deny the truth, that he was very pleased with Kit’s work ethic.

Kit’s cheeks bloomed a ruddy red and he laughed awkwardly. “Well, you know. Gotta get good grades to get a decent job these days.”

“How’s Sky?” I gestured for them to come in and closed the door behind them, since the winter air was flooding in, before leading them toward the dining room. At the mention of his younger son, Derek’s mouth twisted in disappointment.

“Who knows? The boy never answers his phone,” Derek said.

“He talks to me.” Kit shrugged. “You scare the hell out of him, Dad. You’re always bitching at him about backpacking instead of going to college and try to threaten him into coming home.”

Derek rolled his eyes. “Backpacking won’t get him a good job, and the experience is useless, no matter what he says. Make money, then take a vacation.”

I let them argue it out, knowing it was a sore subject and I probably shouldn’t have brought it up in the first place. My attention was caught at the doorway to the dining room as Quin walked in and all conversation stopped.

Derek strode straight over to Quin, grabbing his shoulders gently and placing a kiss on each cheek. “My beautiful host! How are you?”

Quin giggled, and I stiffened, jaw tightening more than it needed to, but who could blame me? Derek was a charmer, and he had men and women eating out of the palm of his hand.

“Hey now, careful, Derek. Quin is my wife.” I stalked forward and curled an arm around Quin’s waist, giving Derek a pointed look. “Keep your paws off my baby girl.”

Derek chuckled and held up his palms at me as he took a step back. “I couldn’t resist. Quin’s gorgeous.”

“Yeah, yeah. He’s mine.” I shooed Derek off and walked around him with Quin attached firmly to my side. When we stopped in front of a frowning Kit, I waved at him. “Darling Wife, this is Derek’s oldest son, Christopher?—”

“Kit,” he interrupted with an exasperated sigh.

He knew I did it to annoy him. Especially since I had my own ongoing battle with Matthew, I thought it was funny.

Inching closer to us, Kit held out his hand to Quin with a curious stare. “It’s nice to meet you, Quin. You’ll have to excuse me. When Dad said that Colt had a new wife, I expected....” He trailed off, clearly unsure how to proceed without being rude.

“A woman?” Quin offered with a laugh.

“I’m not saying you aren’t. I mean.... What are your pronouns? How should I address you?” Kit’s cheeks darkened to a shy red and he ducked his head. “Shit, am I messing this up? It’s just that up until now, I’ve only seen Colt with women. I’m messing this up.”

Quin shook his head and stepped out of my hold to pat Kit gently on the shoulder. “Don’t worry. You’re fine. I use he and him pronouns. I identify as male, but when it comes to Colt....” He peeked at me with a soft smile that had my insides turning warm. “I’m his wife, his baby girl, and his princess.”

Kit laughed. “Right, that makes sense.”

Derek walked over to Kit and gripped the back of his neck. “So, Quin, what have you cooked tonight?”

“It’s in the oven.” Quin perked up at the mention of food.

Since joining his cooking class with Morgan, he enjoyed experimenting with making meals, and he was getting good at it, too. Now I was excited to get home and see what he’d made for dinner. Then there were workdays, where I would wake up to a big breakfast before he would pass me a lunch box with food he’d made and send me off with a kiss goodbye. It was the perfect marriage. So much so that I was considering ways to find Bethany to serve her divorce papers so I could make Quin mine legally.

I’d bought a ring for him last week and it sat hidden in the bottom drawer of the desk in my den, waiting for the opportune moment for me to get on one knee and propose.

“I seasoned a lamb roast with a side of vegetables.” He gestured toward the table he’d set earlier. “Everyone sit down while I get the food.” He spun in his red high heels and plopped a kiss on my mouth, despite whining at me before about messing up his makeup. “You’re such a tease, Husband. I’ll be back in a moment.” And then he was off in a swirl of his polka-dotted skirt.

“Do you need help?” Kit called, but all he got in return was a laugh and a “Don’t be silly, you’re a guest. Sit!” from the direction Quin had disappeared.

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