the possibility that if mademoiselle would care to keep him company during his nap; he might be able to must er the necessary energy to…
6
The doctor soon appeared and prescribed rest, warm broths, and steaming for Bobby's chest. Having nursed this same malady numerous times in the past two years since Bobby had been diagnosed as having "weak lungs," Zena was familiar with the regimen for the convalescence, and considerably relieved to be assured that the inflammation had not progressed to the stage of pneumonia.
Bobby and Zena both fell asleep after the doctor left, waking in late afternoon. Several hours later when Alex rose from his rest, he found Zena and Bobby in the young boy's room. Zena was relaxing in a comfortable chair and smiling delightfully at the chubby, dark-haired, rosy-cheeked three-year-old. Bobby was seated in the middle of the floor, happily surrounded by a vast number and variety of toys that Mariana had fetched from the nursery.
"I see Mariana has found the toys," Alex remarked as he entered the doorway. Zena turned to see her host leaning casually against the doorjamb, arms crossed on his chest. He was attired in elegantly tailored, pearl gray slacks and an immaculately white, open-neck shirt that partially displayed a muscular, dark-haired chest. The prince was undeniably virile, Zena noted with a small leap of her heart. It was impossible to remain impartial to his good looks.
"Yes, Mariana's been very helpful. Bobby hasn't ever seen so many toys," Zena replied quickly, attempting to
assume a civil equanimity in the presence of her boldly handsome seducer.
Whose toys were these? Zena pondered uneasily, recalling the prince's remark in which he acknowledged having children. Could his offspring be here at the dacha, Zena speculated uncomfortably, or perhaps he brought them out on visits? For some unexplicable reason, these musings evoked a sharp twinge of jealousy. Shaking herself mentally, Zena reminded herself pointedly that their acquaintance was of less than twenty-four hours. She was a silly fool to react in any way to Prince Alex's mode of life.
"I see my little sister's toys are once more of some use. Bobby seems to be enjoying himself," Alex said amiably. He pushed away from the doorjamb, moved into the room, sank down on the floor next to Bobby, and began assembling an intricate ferris wheel.
Inexplicably and despite her sober attempt to maintain an unruffled mental calm, Zena's disposition altered irresistibly to a most piquant cheerfulness. "You have a young sister?" she inquired with incisive interest.
"Yes, a younger sister and also two brothers and an older sister," the prince replied without looking up. Alex had captured Bobby's interest with the sizable ferris wheel and was guiding two chubby hands in manipulation of a small, wooden cross brace. "Perfect, Bobby," he encouraged as the brace finally slipped into place.
" 'Nother one, Papa. Bobby do 'nother one!" the excited young boy crowed in delight.
Zena turned crimson in embarrassment and rushed to explain, "Please excuse him, Prince Alex. Since our father died, he indiscriminately calls anyone in pants Papa. It's quite awkward."
"It's perfectly all right," Alex soothed politely, reassuring Zena, who Wiw m obviously distressed by the faux pas. God, it's an age since I've seen a woman blush, he thought. And it was devilishly pretty on her. The women he'd been entertaining himself with lately were too jaded, world-wise, and too beyond embarrassment to blush. It was a refreshing change from the scenes he was all too familiar with between a man with seduction on his mind and a woman prepared to be seduced. "When one has been raised," he continued, "with four brothers and sisters, all given to outrageous behavior, one finds nothing the least bit startling—least of all a three-year-old child. I'm sure he sorely misses his father," Alex added gravely, fully conscious of how fortunate he had been to
6
The doctor soon appeared and prescribed rest, warm broths, and steaming for Bobby's chest. Having nursed this same malady numerous times in the past two years since Bobby had been diagnosed as having "weak lungs," Zena was familiar with the regimen for the convalescence, and considerably relieved to be assured that the inflammation had not progressed to the stage of pneumonia.
Bobby and Zena both fell asleep after the doctor left, waking in late afternoon. Several hours later when Alex rose from his rest, he found Zena and Bobby in the young boy's room. Zena was relaxing in a comfortable chair and smiling delightfully at the chubby, dark-haired, rosy-cheeked three-year-old. Bobby was seated in the middle of the floor, happily surrounded by a vast number and variety of toys that Mariana had fetched from the nursery.
"I see Mariana has found the toys," Alex remarked as he entered the doorway. Zena turned to see her host leaning casually against the doorjamb, arms crossed on his chest. He was attired in elegantly tailored, pearl gray slacks and an immaculately white, open-neck shirt that partially displayed a muscular, dark-haired chest. The prince was undeniably virile, Zena noted with a small leap of her heart. It was impossible to remain impartial to his good looks.
"Yes, Mariana's been very helpful. Bobby hasn't ever seen so many toys," Zena replied quickly, attempting to
assume a civil equanimity in the presence of her boldly handsome seducer.
Whose toys were these? Zena pondered uneasily, recalling the prince's remark in which he acknowledged having children. Could his offspring be here at the dacha, Zena speculated uncomfortably, or perhaps he brought them out on visits? For some unexplicable reason, these musings evoked a sharp twinge of jealousy. Shaking herself mentally, Zena reminded herself pointedly that their acquaintance was of less than twenty-four hours. She was a silly fool to react in any way to Prince Alex's mode of life.
"I see my little sister's toys are once more of some use. Bobby seems to be enjoying himself," Alex said amiably. He pushed away from the doorjamb, moved into the room, sank down on the floor next to Bobby, and began assembling an intricate ferris wheel.
Inexplicably and despite her sober attempt to maintain an unruffled mental calm, Zena's disposition altered irresistibly to a most piquant cheerfulness. "You have a young sister?" she inquired with incisive interest.
"Yes, a younger sister and also two brothers and an older sister," the prince replied without looking up. Alex had captured Bobby's interest with the sizable ferris wheel and was guiding two chubby hands in manipulation of a small, wooden cross brace. "Perfect, Bobby," he encouraged as the brace finally slipped into place.
" 'Nother one, Papa. Bobby do 'nother one!" the excited young boy crowed in delight.
Zena turned crimson in embarrassment and rushed to explain, "Please excuse him, Prince Alex. Since our father died, he indiscriminately calls anyone in pants Papa. It's quite awkward."
"It's perfectly all right," Alex soothed politely, reassuring Zena, who Wiw m obviously distressed by the faux pas. God, it's an age since I've seen a woman blush, he thought. And it was devilishly pretty on her. The women he'd been entertaining himself with lately were too jaded, world-wise, and too beyond embarrassment to blush. It was a refreshing change from the scenes he was all too familiar with between a man with seduction on his mind and a woman prepared to be seduced. "When one has been raised," he continued, "with four brothers and sisters, all given to outrageous behavior, one finds nothing the least bit startling—least of all a three-year-old child. I'm sure he sorely misses his father," Alex added gravely, fully conscious of how fortunate he had been to
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