The Solstice Mistletoe Effect (3 page)

get what he needed. “Please, fuck me!”

With a moan, Lance poured some more lube over his

rock-hard cock before closing and dropping the bottle.

Magnus spread his legs and pulled up his knees to present

himself fully. He needed his lover inside him, wanted that

most intimate of connections so badly.

Lance’s eyes lit up as he stared at Magnus’s most

personal place. He put his hands on Magnus’s inner thighs

and stroked toward his waiting hole in a slow, teasing

caress. Moving closer on his knees, his hard cock bouncing

with his movement, he placed the dark cock head against

Magnus’s spasming opening and pushed inward.

“Shit.” Lance stopped and closed his eyes.

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“Fuck!” Magnus didn’t want to wait and pushed back,

making Lance sink deeper.

Lance gripped Magnus’s thighs for support and surged

forward, making Magnus’s opening burn with the sudden

stretch.

“Yes.” Magnus started rocking his hips. “Just like that.”

“God, you’re going to make me lose it way too soon.”

Lance closed his eyes.

“Not. Waiting.” Magnus was too far gone to care. “Just

fuck me. We can take it slow next time.”

“Next—time?” Lance’s eyes widened, and he surged

forward until his hips touched Magnus’s groin.

“Yeah.” Magnus was losing the will to talk. “Once isn’t

enough this morning.”

“Fuck, that’s hot.” Lance pulled back and started

thrusting, making both of them groan with delight.

Magnus looked into Lance’s eyes as his lover sped up,

keeping the thrusts deep and smooth for long minutes.

“Don’t hold back.” Magnus needed to come and didn’t

want Lance to stay behind.

Sweat formed on Lance’s forehead as he started

pummeling Magnus with such power that it made the bed

squeak.

“Yes!” Magnus slid one hand toward his aching cock,

relying on Lance to keep his legs spread. He was so close

now.

“Ungh.” Lance pushed in and out a few more times, his

rhythm becoming irregular.

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Magnus’s hand closed around his cock, and three

strokes later, it was all over. He arched his back and shot his

release across his chest and abdomen, the ecstasy making

him dizzy. His spasming hole clenched around Lance’s hard

cock and set off his lover’s orgasm. Spurts of hot semen filled

Magnus until Lance collapsed on top of him.

Putting his arms around Lance to hold him as closely as

possible, Magnus looked at the tousled head of hair on his

chest.

“Jag älskar dig.” Magnus breathed in the scent of their

combined sweat and loving with a deep sigh. “I love you.”

“Love you too, baby.” Lance slid his hands around

Magnus’s middle and snuggled in. “So much.”

THE restaurant was everything the website had promised.

Wooden paneling and a low ceiling gave it a cozy and

intimate feel. Pots of plants and a few well-placed screens

created islands of romantic isolation in the candle-lit room.

Most tables were already taken when the hostess led them

toward the one in the back corner that Magnus had

requested. By the time they reached the cloth-covered table,

Lance was visibly uncomfortable. He didn’t look left or right

and was too pale.

“What’s wrong, Lance?” Magnus held his lover’s chair,

expecting him to sit down.

Instead, there was an audible gasp from two

neighboring tables, and Lance flinched. What was that all

about?

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“I don’t think I can do this, Magnus.” Lance was still

standing and looked as though he was ready to bolt.

“Do what?” Magnus looked up when there was a hiss

from the table closest to them. Magnus looked at the couple

sitting there and was shocked at the disapproval he saw on

their faces. What was wrong with these people?

“This. I’m really sorry, Magnus, I know you went to a lot

of trouble to get a reservation here, but I don’t think I can

enjoy our dinner with these people staring at us as though

we don’t belong here.” Lance looked at the floor, hiding his

eyes.

“It bothers you that much?” Magnus turned to the man

at the next table. “Do you mind, sir?”

“Actually, I do.” The man lifted his chin in defiance. “I

don’t think anybody here wants your kind to flaunt your

lifestyle like this. We’re not in New York or Los Angeles. I

wish you’d leave us alone and go back to where you came

from.”

Magnus was dumbstruck by the level of animosity this

total stranger threw at them. Before he could recover, Lance

stepped closer as if he was looking for protection.

“Let’s go, Magnus.” His voice was no more than a

whisper. “I don’t want to deal with this here as well.”

“As well?” Magnus turned his head toward Lance, the

rude stranger already forgotten. “What do you mean ‘as

well’? Who else has been giving you problems?”

“Not here, please. I need to get out of here. I’m really

sorry, but can we please go home?” Lance still hadn’t looked

up.

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It made Magnus so angry he almost decided to stay and

fight for their right to enjoy a quiet evening like every other

couple here. But Lance clearly wasn’t up to it at the moment,

so he turned toward their waiter to let him know they’d be

taking dinner home. There was no way he was going to give

up on a nice meal, even if they had to serve and eat it at

home.

He was going to get to the bottom of Lance’s extreme

reaction when they were safely at home. It was probably

related to whatever had been depressing Lance recently.

A half-hour wait at the bar and a short drive later, they

finally arrived at their house. Magnus put the food onto the

kitchen counter, leaving Lance to do the unpacking and

distribution onto plates. He lit the fireplace, put some

candles onto the table, and switched on some soft music.

Then he opened the bottle of wine they’d bought and poured

them each a generous glass. There, all set.

Lance brought in their appetizer, and they sat down to

eat. It was unusual for Lance to be quiet for as long as he

had been, so Magnus broke the silence.

“You’ve got my full attention. I know those people at the

restaurant weren’t very friendly, but I’m wondering why your

reaction was so strong.” Magnus put down his fork, done

with his appetizer, and focused on Lance, who didn’t look as

though he’d eaten much at all.

“I’m sorry.” Lance leaned back in his chair. “I know I’ve

ruined the evening you’d planned for us….”

“That’s not the point!” Magnus sighed and leaned

forward to capture one of Lance’s hands. It was cold and

clammy. “Yes, I would’ve liked to spend a nice evening with

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you, but not at the expense of your comfort. I suspect that

there’s more to this than I realize, and I wish you’d tell me

what’s wrong.”

“This isn’t the first time people have reacted to us like

those couples did. I guess it’s just getting to me.” Lance

gripped Magnus’s hand more tightly. “I never thought it

would bother me this much. But between some of the

parents at Jakob’s school staring at me every time I drop

him off or pick him up and some of the comments Jakob’s

had to endure from his classmates, I guess I’ve just reached

my breaking point.”

“What?” Magnus tried to make sense of this new

information, but he was too surprised about what he’d

apparently been missing to be successful. “You’ve had

problems with them? And they’ve bothered Jakob? Why

didn’t you say something?”

“I don’t know.” Lance shrugged. “I guess I thought I

could manage on my own. I didn’t want to bother you while

you were trying to get used to a new job and a new life.”

God, what an awful situation. Magnus didn’t even know

where to start. He wasn’t good at this emotional stuff to

begin with, and this was more serious than he’d thought.

The fact that Jakob had to deal with it at school was bad

enough. But Lance telling him that he didn’t want to “bother

him” with something that had made Lance suffer hurt

Magnus deeply. It was a clear sign that they needed to work

on the level of trust between them. Building a relationship

was turning out to be even more difficult than Magnus had

thought.

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Chapter Three

LANCE was shaking with emotion. Dealing with prejudice

against gay people was one thing, but remembering the

comments Jakob had gotten about Lance being a housedad

was almost worse. After all, he’d made a choice not to work,

a choice that many others made as well and were not

necessarily ridiculed for.

“God, älskling, I don’t even know where to start.”

Magnus looked at him with enough worry in his eyes to

make Lance regret having answered his question.

“I know, that’s why I didn’t want to bother you with it.”

Lance shrugged.

“But don’t you think it’s better if we face those problems

together?” Magnus frowned. “Whatever it is, it affects the

both of us, doesn’t it?”

“Some of it does, yes. But you have so much on your

plate… I just didn’t think it was worth adding to your

stress.” Lance wasn’t even sure that Magnus would

understand his concerns about being a housedad.

“And your stress, which is due to this situation, is less

important than mine?” Magnus’s eyes widened.

“Well, you’re the breadwinner in this family, so it’s more

important that you’re relaxed and able to do a good job.”

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That was what it came down to for Lance. He was less

important, like he’d feared when he’d made the decision.

Would he be able to live with that?

“Huh? Since when is being the breadwinner more

important than being responsible for running the household

and doing a huge part in raising Jakob?” Magnus frowned,

clearly not understanding the point Lance was trying to

make.

“But without the money, we can’t survive.” Why didn’t

Magnus get that?

“There’s always a different way of earning money, but

there’s no way of replacing your health. And while we’re at it,

I’d like to know why you think earning money is the more

important job in a family in the first place?” Magnus looked

really angry.

“Because it is.” Or was it?

“Do you really believe that? Or is it what you’ve been

told by your parents?” Magnus stacked the used dishes,

readying the table for the main course.

“Both. Actually, it’s what most people still believe, even

though women’s lib has done a lot to change public opinion.”

Lance followed him into the kitchen and took the plates with

their main course from the oven, where he’d put them to

keep the food warm.

“Okay, you’re right, unfortunately that’s still true.”

Magnus followed him back into the dining room, and they

sat down to enjoy their veal in white wine sauce. “What

about your decision to quit your job and stay at home with

Jakob, though? That felt right, didn’t it?”

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“It felt right for me, yes.” At least it had done at the

time.

“And what’s wrong with doing what’s right for you as

long as we can afford it?” Magnus stopped eating for a

moment and leaned forward, his eyes blazing silver-blue fire.

“Nothing’s wrong with it, not between you and I. But

others have a different opinion, and even though the job of

housewife seems to be more recognized today than it used to

be, apparently the job of housedad still has a way to go.”

Lance was quickly losing his appetite.

“I don’t care what others think. If this arrangement is

right for our family, then we should stick with it.” Magnus

wiped his mouth and took a sip of wine.