Page 25 of Club Royal: Calendar Collection

Ozzie did, though he didn’t stop the bouncing, and Christian grabbed his hand and opened the door with his free hand.

He led him into the playroom, his gaze taking in what he’d done with the room.

He had done it all himself, too. He hadn’t wanted anyone else to see it before Ozzie did.

It had taken him a few days, and luckily, with it being the Christmas period, Ozzie had been too tired to play, or Christian would’ve had to find an excuse as to why he couldn’t use the playroom.

“Almost there,” he murmured, bringing Ozzie into the centre of the room. He stepped behind him and let go of his hand but rested both his hands on his shoulders. “Open your eyes, Ozzie.”

He knew the moment he had because there was an intake of breath and then nothing. He squeezed his shoulders. “Breathe, Ozzie.”

A whoosh of air came out, and then the bouncing started again. “Oh, my. Oh, my. Oh, my,” Ozzie repeated. His head darted from one side of the room to the other, his breath hitching with every new discovery. He took a step forward and paused.

“You can play, Ozzie,” Christian whispered to him.

He took another step and then turned to him. “Rex! I need Rex!”

Christian took his hand and pointed to the top of a tall tower. “He’s waiting for you.”

“REX!”

And off Ozzie went.

He would be pulled into playing soon, so while he had some time to observe, he settled into his favourite chair and watched.

He had gone way overboard with his gift, but Ozzie deserved it all.

And ‘all’ was a huge dinosaur park complete with soft, cuddly dinosaurs everywhere.

There were slides and swings and rollercoasters and roundabouts, and all were big enough to fit the ten-inch cuddly toys inside them.

At that moment, Rex was strapped into the rollercoaster and Ozzie was running him along it.

But there was still one more surprise for his little boy. Something that would take it from amazing to epic—at least in his opinion.

After a few minutes, Ozzie called him over, and Christian moved closer to him. “How’s it going, Ozzie?”

“Did you see Rex, Daddy? Did you see? He went over and under and over and under. He was soooo bwave.”

“He was very brave. Do you want to see something else?” Ozzie nodded, wide-eyed. Christian leaned to the side, flicking a switch on the side of the rollercoaster. It played some music, and a few lights flashed. “Do you want Rex to have another go or someone else?”

Ozzie looked around and raced over to the velociraptor. “Tori can do it!”

Christian smiled that Ozzie had already named his toys. “Fab. Strap Tori in then.” Ozzie did. “Now, step back and watch.”

Ozzie stepped to Christian’s side and wrung his hands together.

Christian pressed the button, and the rollercoaster started by itself.

It didn’t go fast—at least not as fast as Ozzie had been doing it by himself—but it went through all the turns and everything itself, giving Ozzie the chance to step back and watch his toy be taken around the rollercoaster.

When Tori was back at the start, it stopped.

“Again, Daddy! Barney wants a go!” Ozzie raced off again and brought back a brontosaurus.

They continued until all the toys had a turn on the rollercoaster, and Ozzie was beaming, but his eyes drooped.

“I think it’s time for a story and bedtime, little one.” Christian brushed his hand across Ozzie’s head. “It’s been a busy day.”

“But what about the other rides?”

“They’ll still be here tomorrow.”

Ozzie yawned. “Okay, Daddy. Do I have time to put the dinosaurs to bed?”

Christian fought a wince at how many there were. “How about they all have a slumber party on your beanbag tonight? It’s the first night in their new home, so they might want to be with their friends.”

Ozzie punched the air. “Yeah! Slumber party for the dinosaurs!”

Luckily, Ozzie’s beanbag was enormous, and Christian laid it down flat so the dinosaurs could lie on it without falling.

It still took a fair few minutes until Ozzie was happy with their placement, but then Christian took him by the hand and led him back to their bedroom.

Most nights, they would have a story in the playroom, but he thought the new toys would be too much of a distraction for his little.

He didn’t take his time getting him ready and into his pyjamas, and then they snuggled into bed, the cover over them, and Christian read Ozzie a story about a T-Rex who went to the moon.

Within minutes, Ozzie was fast asleep, and Christian closed the book and set it aside.

Before he turned the light off, he studied his husband.

There was as much innocence on his face in his sleep as there was while he was awake.

There wasn’t a mean bone in this man’s body, and Christian would protect him with everything he had.

Oscar might have been the best miracle he had ever been given, and he would never take it for granted.

“Sleep well, little one,” he said, switching off the light and pressing his lips to his forehead.

****

And that’s a wrap! Thank you for spending some time with my royal hooligans. My biggest hope is that this book was the perfect escape from real life, a world you could happily disappear into whenever you need a break.

But the party doesn’t have to stop here! The rest of the Sexy Sixteen are always getting into trouble, and if you’ve read Club Royal, you know what I mean! Come find out what other shenanigans they get up to in my Guarding Royalty…

A royal bodyguard must save his sister after her witness protection is compromised.

While navigating a new romance with the king’s personal assistant, the escalating threats against his family lead Dominic to uncover an elaborate plot orchestrated by a familiar face, forcing him into a deadly confrontation to protect everyone he loves.