Page 28 of It’s A Little Bit Bunny (Fangs on Ice #4)

Twenty-seven

Jules

“N obody has ever hugged me before.”

“ Ever? ” Nikolai pulled back, warm brown eyes wide with shock.

“Well, I can’t remember being hugged,” I clarified, unable to tear my gaze away but needing to look away from him. Now . “Maybe my mother. But not in the last four hundred years.”

“I’m sorry for overstepping. If you hate it, I—” His voice broke off, when he realised I was still holding onto him and not letting go.

“Please, can you… this feels…”

My gaze dropped to his throat, covered with stubbly hair. It bobbed, a strangely mesmerising movement.

“So, it feels okay for you?” he asked softly.

“Yes. It’s intriguing. And also kind of scary.”

“Scary?” Nikolai scrunched his nose. “It shouldn’t feel scary to be hugged, maybe it’s better if—”

“No.” I interrupted him again. “Please. Good scary.” I tightened my hold, painfully aware of how warm and solid his body felt.

He smells so good.

“You want me to keep hugging you?”

“Yes!” I said it with so much enthusiasm it made him chuckle, his chest moving against mine.

“Okay. Tap me on the shoulder when you want me to let go, yeah?”

I nodded against his collarbone. “Not going to lie, but I needed a hug, too, Jules.”

“Did you have a bad day?”

“I had a few intense weeks,” he explained.

“I’m sorry.”

“It’s not your fault. Feels good to be here, finally,” Nikolai whispered next to my ear.

“I agree. It’s nice to have you back.”

“You know, nobody has told me that in a long time. People are usually happy to see me go.”

“Why?” I couldn’t keep the anger out of my voice.

“Because I am a grumpy asshole, Jules. Nobody likes that.”

“I like you.” The words left my mouth before I could stop them.

Letting go of him, I took a step back and focused on straightening my clothes to give myself a moment.

“Can I offer you something to eat or drink back at my house? Or both?”

“Yeah, that would be great. I came here straight from training. I’m…” He gave me that half smile again that made my stomach drop. “I was going to stop at a bakery and bring some stuff. But I forgot. I was too excited to see you.”

“You’re hungry? Come on, Bunny. Let me feed you.”

Something flickered in his eyes. If I didn’t know better, I would have said it was lust.

“You don’t have to, I’m alright. I can eat when I’m back home. It’s my fault. I drove straight here like I was on autopilot or something.”

“I want to feed you.” I beckoned for him to follow me. “It’s difficult to explain, and I am not saying this so you feel sympathy for me, yes? But I have only ever fed myself and my animals. It is good to do this for you. It makes me happy.”

“I want you to be happy.”

I stopped dead in my tracks. My shoulders dropped away from my ears. I tilted my head at him.

This beautiful human is so utterly adorable.

“I want you to be happy, too, Bunny,” I said. “Come.”

“Your house is so beautiful,” Nikolai said from behind me as I led him across the entrance hall and into the kitchen. His voice was filled with awe. “I love the living walls and the old furniture. Reminds me of the house I grew up in. My mother is an antique dealer.”

I didn’t know what to say. Family was a topic I didn’t want to discuss.

“Did you grow up here?”

“No, Bunny. I grew up in my mother’s castle.”

“Castle?”

I could hear her voice in my head, warning me not to give her secrets away. But this was my story, and I wanted to share it with this wondrous human.

“My mother is the Elven Queen of the Zeitelmoos.”

“Seriously?” Nikolai blurted out. “So you are, like, a prince ?”

“I suppose you could say that. I haven’t seen her or been to the court in over three hundred years, though.”

“Oh, I’m sorry. That must be hard.”

“Thank you, Bunny. I think I am used to it now.”

“Still. I’m super close to my mum. I couldn’t imagine not being in touch with her.”

For a moment, I wanted to ask if he had told her about me. But I thought the answer would disappoint me, so I didn’t.

Back at my house, I made a quick lunch for Nikolai and brewed some coffee for us.

“Thank you so much. That looks so good.”

He likes it!

Maybe it was a little sad how happy his praise made me, but I didn’t care. I soaked up every last morsel of his affection.

“I made some cookies today and pie…as if I knew you’d visit.”

“You made cookies? The idea of you baking is fucking cute, Jules.” He grinned at me as we walked across my kitchen. “Do you have an apron on when you bake?” he asked me.

“Are you teasing me?” I couldn’t help but grin back at him.

“Maybe a bit.” He leaned his hip against my countertop, standing so close his warmth seeped through my shirt. “But the idea of an Elven prince wearing an apron while he bakes cookies for me is pretty cute.”

“I do, indeed, have an apron. I even sewed it myself.” With a wink, I placed the cookies on a plate and added some dried fruit and nuts.

“I’ll have to work this off in the gym tomorrow but I might have to try a cookie.”

“Please do. Are you sure, though?” I tried to see his stomach. From what I remembered it was flat and perfect.

“Yeah.” Nikolai giggled. I wanted to lie down in the sound of his laughter, to bathe in it like in warm sunlight. “I train hard to stay in shape.” He snatched a cookie from the plate and munched it in one bite. “Oh my God, Jules, they’re amazing! What’s in them?” Nikolai took another.

“Chestnut flour, dried raspberries, and white chocolate,” I said. Watching him eat made me happy.

I’m feeding him!

“Hockey is a tough sport. We burn tons of calories, but ideally you want to fuel your body with whole foods, not cookies.” He leaned in even closer, his sweet breath fanning over my face. “Unless they’re as delicious as these.”

“Can you grab two glasses and some water, please?” I asked him in a choked voice. I wanted to run away. Hide. And bury myself in his embrace.

I’d never let go again.

“Sure.” Nikolai pushed away from the counter, got the glasses from the cupboard, and then grabbed a pitcher of water.

He knows his way around my kitchen. Why does he make my heart so happy?

“Maybe we can sit outside? The weather is so nice.”

“That’s a great idea, Bunny.”

Nothing in my life prepared me for the way this man smiled or what it did to me.

We settled on the garden swing, so close I only had to reach out a bit to touch him again.