Page 53 of Redemption of a Prince

Nikki shook her head. “That sounds like a lot of work for no good reason.”

Zeke grinned at her. “I agree, but then I have another plan. If it’s Christmas in July, we need presents. And I know just how to get them.”

* * *

Openingboth doors at the same time, Zeke unveiled his plan to Nikki. “A craft room.”

“A craft room? You do crafts at the mountain home?”

He shrugged as they walked inside. “Sometimes. Depends on who’s here. My mother likes to craft sometimes. Lydia does, too. My brothers and I all have a couple of times a year, because what do you get a king and queen? You make them something, at least when you’re young. Now we tend to go with gag gifts. Something funny.”

“I saw the pictures of the gingerbread houses you guys did last year. That looked like fun.”

Zeke shrugged. “It could have been. Should have been even, but I tend to be kind of a loner these days. I’m trying to do better. I see my brothers with their wives, and I want that. I want to be a part of everything again. They all had fun. Gid and Kari won. First year in forever that my mother’s team hasn’t won. Makes sense since my father is the judge.”

“I’ve heard other people talk about how you seemed more serious as you got older. The assumption was that the gravitas of your future became more real to you. I knew better, but never said so.”

“I think it was more the change in my future. Not even the adoption necessarily, but that I wouldn’t be taking over for my father. I’ve accepted it, but I’m trying to be better about coming out of my shell.” He sat on a stool next to a counter-height table stained with paint and glitter from projects long forgotten.

Nikki walked around and sat across from him. “You have been the last couple of days. You seem different up here than in New Ancora.”

“Maybe because there are fewer eyes on me. Fewer people waiting for me to be perpetually grumpy. Fewer people scrutinizing my every move. Both in the house and offices and media. Maybe that helps me relax.” He rubbed a finger over a streak of green paint. “Or maybe it’s being here with you. My family has never said anything about me being different here.”

She reached out and covered his hand with hers. “Whatever the reason, I’m glad you’re different here.”

He took a breath and shook off the melancholy. “Me, too. Let’s look around and see what supplies are here. Then we can each decide what we want to make.”

She hopped down off the bar stool. “How will we keep it a surprise?”

As he pulled open a drawer full of paint brushes, Zeke thought about that. Looking around the room, he had an idea. “We move the screen between two of the tables and promise not to peek.”

“That’ll work.” She started hunting through the room.

“Let’s take ten minutes to explore the room. I’ll leave while you gather everything you think you’ll need. After you put it on your table and cover it, we’ll trade. Then we have an hour to do the projects.”

Nikki was too busy searching a cabinet to answer. He took the sort of grunting noise she made as agreement.

He dug through a bucket full of half-deconstructed feather boas - not real ones - that Lydia likely used at some point. She’d made a lot of feathery projects for a while. What could he make for Nikki? She didn’t strike him as the feathery type.

Putting the lid back on, he moved to the next bucket then continued to work his way around the room.

“You know it’s been half an hour, right?”

He turned to see Nikki with a drop cloth draped over a table. There were clearly supplies already underneath. The screen had already been moved.

Zeke looked at his watch. “I guess it has been. You’ve already figured it out?”

The grin on her face made him smile. “Yep. Now I’m gonna leave. You have like five minutes to get your materials together then I’m coming back in.”

An idea had slowly been coming to him. He wouldn’t want it for himself, but he had a feeling it would be perfect for Nikki.

It took him ten minutes to find everything he needed. He covered his table then called Nikki back in.

“Thank goodness. It’s cold in the hallway.” She shuddered and rubbed her hands up and down her arms.

He’d made sure the heat was turned up in the craft room a couple of hours earlier. It was comfortable, if a bit on the cooler side.

“Ready to do this?” Nikki asked as she went to her side of the screen.

---