Nikolas frowned. “What do you mean?”
“I like Aeroe.” He switched to Danish, thinking it might help his cause. “I’ve made friends, Alan and Ingrid.” He grinned. “I’ve even got a girlfriend in the library. We’re getting married, apparently. I like Ingrid. I don’t want to just leave now the winter’s come. She’s planned some things for us…I mean, I can’t just up and leave her now.”
Nikolas twisted in his seat, staring at him. Ben winced. “Don’t look like that. Of course if you say we go, then we go.”
Nikolas looked down. “If I say we go?”
Ben shrugged. “Nothing has changed, Nik. You still own me.”
Nikolas put his hand to Ben’s cheek, rubbing his thumb over the stubble. “Everything has changed, Ben. Everything.” He pushed his fingers into Ben’s hair. “You learned to speak my language. I still can’t believe it. You understand me now, saying this?”
Ben huffed. “Of course.”
“That’s…incredible.” Nikolas pulled him in and kissed him. “Maybe you say what we do now. You own me for a while, yes?”
Ben pulled away, giving him a wary look. Nikolas laughed at his expression. “Just for a few days more, while I’m still…overwhelmed by how much I missed you.” They kissed for a long time, parked up in the forest, the snow falling heavily. They’d have gone further, but it was unspoken between them that the leather was too cool to risk. Eventually, Nikolas pulled away and scrunched up his face. “I’m hungry.”
Ben huffed, incredulous. “I think that’s the first time I’ve ever heard you say that. Ingrid will have made enough for another…if…I mean…” Nikolas just tossed him the keys and climbed out to switch positions.
Nikolas was uncharacteristically quiet on the drive to Ingrid’s. He sat rubbing Radulf’s head, which was poked between the front seats, staring out at the passing island scenery. Ben reckoned the spirit of place thing was catching up with him; he had a lot of memories invested on this small stretch of land. When they arrived, Ben apologised for being so long and then introduced Nikolas, calling him Aleksey to avoid confusion. She peered up at the six-foot-four figure for a while then nodded. “Good, you’ve come home at last.”
Over the meal, Ben came to the conclusion his Danish wasn’t quite as good as he’d thought. He got most of what they were talking about, but if they forgot him for a moment, their speech sped up so fast he couldn’t keep up. He realised how slowly and carefully they both must have been speaking for him. Once Nikolas had overcome his natural reticence to delve too deeply into the sad events of his childhood, he seemed to realise Ingrid only remembered the good times, the times before Sergei and all the bad that came from him. Very quickly, they switched to English so they could include Ben, and Ingrid delighted in updating Nikolas on all the happenings on Aeroe since he’d been gone.
For the first time, Ben sat at a table and watched Nikolas eat almost like a normal person. It was quite a revelation. He didn’t eat as much as Ben, but he ate more than Ingrid. He looked up once to find Ben staring at him and deliberately took a mouthful of food, chewing it, his eyebrow lifting provocatively.
Finally, Ingrid asked the question Ben wanted to but hadn’t dared. “So, what’re your plans now, Aleksey? You can’t leave us again, you know. Aeroe wants her sons home and safe.”
Nikolas leant back in his seat and regarded Ben. Answering her, but still staring at Ben, he said in Danish slowly, “I’m thinking of restoring my family’s summerhouse. Living back on Aeroe has suddenly become more attractive.”
“Ah, poor Agna. But for us that’s excellent news. And Ben, what will you do now?”
Staring right back at Nikolas, Ben replied, “I think my Danish needs some more work. I think I might stay on Aeroe as well. Maybe Mr Mikkelsen will invite me to stay with him. I think I would like him to broaden my vocabulary.”
She clapped. “Then it’s all decided.”
They just smiled at each other. Apparently, it was.
PART II
CHAPTER NINE
Ben never regretted their sudden decision to stay in Denmark, despite what was to come, what was nearly the end of this tentative beginning, or—perhaps—the beginning of the end. He’d had no idea just how cold Aeroe could be. It didn’t help that for the first few days, they camped in Nikolas’s family summerhouse, a house designed for warm weather, which hadn’t been lived in for over thirty years. Hans, Nikolas’s caretaker, seemed distraught that the place wasn’t up to his employer’s standards. It was fortunate, he said, that his wife was still away, or she’d have been furious with him. Ben thought it was more likely the woman would be furious to see Nikolas return to “her” house, but only shared this thought with Ingrid.
Nikolas did his best to reassure Hans that he’d looked after the place as well as anyone could expect, but acknowledged to Ben that they couldn’t stay there. It was impossible, and by the end of the first week, they’d abandoned the idea and decided to rent somewhere more suitable for the winter months. Ingrid had made it clear Aleksey was welcome to stay with Ben, but he didn’t want to put her in an awkward situation, given what his favourite hobby was when Nikolas was around.
Renting during the winter on Aeroe proved ridiculously easy, as all the summer lodges were empty during the winter months. They chose a lodge on a lake in one of the island’s forests. It had been designed as a romantic retreat for a wealthy doctor in Copenhagen who’d entertained a succession of mistresses on Aeroe until ill health and old age had made him appreciate his wife more. It suited them perfectly, and they abandoned any pretence of being stoic soldiers, and opted instead to be what they were, lovers who’d been separated for some months and who wanted and needed to be alone together. The lodge had one large bedroom with a vast bed, one room downstairs, a hot tub on the deck, and was fitted throughout to an extremely high standard. It was totally private. From the tub on the deck, they could only see lake and trees. The cabin was heated by a sophisticated wood-chip furnace and under-floor heating, but also had open fires in both the living area and the bedroom. Ben could indulge his new passion for chopping wood and stacking it in Scandinavian-perfect woodpiles without having to actually rely on his fires for heat. They stocked up on food and alcohol, and after a few days, Ben couldn’t think of a single thing he would change about his life. It was a rather unique feeling, given what life had been like for both of them over the years.
One afternoon, perhaps also inspired by this sense of beginnings, lounging in the tub, flicking water out onto Radulf’s coat to make little freezing balls of ice hang off him, Nikolas muttered, “There’s something I have to tell you.” He took a large mouthful of wine and eyed Ben somewhat warily.
Ben pursed his lips. “You’re pregnant.”
Nikolas laughed but quickly sobered. “That might be easier to admit.”
Ben sat up. “You’re not sick?”
Nikolas waved off the suggestion. “Do I look sick?”
He didn’t, but Ben’s heart took a while to come back to its normal rate. Suddenly, he climbed out of the tub, grabbed a towel and went back into the lodge, shutting Nikolas and his news outside. He didn’t want to hear it. He had a feeling he knew what he was going to confess.
