The Solstice Mistletoe Effect (11 page)

to help him come up with a solution.

By making him react with his heart, his father had

helped him see what was more important than the facts.

Magnus almost giggled. He never would have thought it

would come to this; he was going to make a decision based

on feelings and emotions rather than what he knew to be the

facts. No decision had ever felt better.

“What are you talking about?” His father’s cheeks got

even redder.

“I’m talking about priorities.” Magnus couldn’t suppress

his triumphant grin. “I’m talking about doing what’s right for

my little family.”

“You can’t be serious!” His father opened his mouth to

say more, but Magnus lifted his hand to stop him.

“I’m very serious. And I don’t want to talk about it

anymore.” Magnus pointed at the midsommarstång, which

was still lying on the ground. “We have work to do and a

solstice to celebrate. Please promise me we can focus on that

over the next few days.”

“But….” His father took a deep breath.

“No buts. Promise me.” Magnus needed to hear the

words.

“Okay.” His father was clearly reluctant, but that didn’t

matter. What mattered was that he kept his promise so they

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could have some peace and quiet. Magnus was realistic

enough to know that this wasn’t the end of it. He’d have to

deal with his father after the celebrations.

They erected the midsommarstång with a minimum of

fuss and in total silence. Between the two of them, it was

easy to slot the bottom of the pole into the special concrete-

reinforced hole. Very soon, it stood upright, the large

horizontally suspended ring hanging from the colorful ropes

that were attached to the top of the pole. The light breeze

made it swing back and forth in gentle movements.

The next few hours were spent decorating the outside of

the house with the various garlands and wreaths that his

father had prepared earlier. While Magnus was on the roof,

his father tied several leafy branches over and around the

front door. The hammering as his father fastened them

securely was a well-known sound for Magnus, and he lost

himself in childhood memories as he was finishing his part

of the job.

After a late lunch, they continued with the inside of the

house. With Lance’s and Jakob’s help, they placed vases

with fresh flowers throughout the house. Not a single room

was left out, so that they would be reminded of the beauty of

summer wherever they went.

Once that was done, they tied the remaining greenery

together into bunches using string that they’d covered with

colored ribbons. In a ceremony reminiscent of Christmas,

they hung these bunches upside down over all the doorways

in the house. Even though there was no tradition about

kissing under these little bouquets, Magnus and Lance

gladly used the excuse of having mistletoe around. They

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managed to steal quite a few kisses in several out-of-the-way

locations upstairs.

For those few moments, Magnus managed to forget that

there were still issues to solve between them. Lance seemed

happy to go along with it, and Magnus decided not to look a

gift horse in the mouth. Trouble was sure to catch up with

them soon enough.

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82

Chapter Nine

LANCE was ready for the family evening they had planned.

He’d hated to spend the morning and most of the early

afternoon apart from Magnus. Decorating the inside of the

house with him had been the highlight of Lance’s day so far.

That was just sad. This was supposed to be their family

holiday, but somehow the attitude of Magnus’s parents had

meant they’d had to be almost as careful as when they were

out and about in Mistletoe.

“That should be it.” Magnus looked around the upper

floor one last time, checking that bunches of greenery hung

over every door.

“Yes, I’m afraid there aren’t any more doors to decorate.”

Lance was only half joking.

Magnus had been so distant last night and had this

morning in the kitchen that Lance had begun to seriously

worry about what was going on in his lover’s mind. But when

he’d come inside after finishing the exterior house

decorations, something had changed. Magnus had been less

withdrawn. Lance hoped this was a good sign.

But good sign or not, Lance had taken advantage of the

similarity between mistletoe and greenery bunches being

hung above doorways. He’d found Magnus to be a very

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willing participant in the kissing. The Mistletoe Phenomenon

was apparently still alive and kicking, and it worked at the

summer solstice just like it had at Christmas. It boded well

for tonight.

“Come on, let’s go downstairs and find out what’s for

dinner. The sooner we can finish eating, the sooner we can

start the private part of our evening.” Magnus grinned like a

little boy about to unwrap his Christmas presents.

“I’m right behind you.” Lance wasn’t going to miss the

opportunity to watch his lover’s muscled ass move in those

tight work jeans.

“I bet you are.” Magnus winked, making Lance blush

with having been found out, but Magnus turned around

obediently and led the way.

The formal dining room table had been set, and Lance

was slightly uncomfortable at first. But Jakob’s presence

made a big difference, and they were soon all enjoying the

wonderful food. Jakob was very excited about tomorrow’s

activities,

and

Magnus’s

father

told

stories

about

Midsummer Eve celebrations in Småland, where he’d grown

up.

The main course of kåldolmar, cabbage rolls filled with

minced pork and rice, served with boiled potatoes and

lingonberry jam, was delicious. Lance was so stuffed he

wasn’t sure how he was going to make it upstairs. But he

couldn’t resist all these interesting new foods.

Dessert consisted of ostkaka, the Swedish version of

cheesecake. It was flatter than its American cousin and

eaten warm. Lance had chosen fruit to go with it, while

Magnus and Jakob added ice cream. Magnus’s parents had

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the traditional jam with it. The gentle taste of almond mixed

with the tartness of the fruit, and Lance was in heaven after

the first bite.

His enjoyment didn’t last long. The shrill sound of the

doorbell startled him.

“Who could that be?” Mr. Carstens got up to get the

front door.

“Good evening, Mr. Carstens.” The female voice was low

due to the distance, but it made Lance’s hair stand on end.

What the hell was Sigrid doing here—again?

“Oh, hello, Miss Nilsson. What a nice surprise. We

weren’t expecting anyone, but you’re always welcome. Please,

do come in.” The front door was closed, and Mr. Carstens

preceded Sigrid into the dining room.

“Hello, Miss Nilsson.” Mrs. Carstens got up and greeted

Sigrid as though she was a long lost relative. “Won’t you

have a seat? Can I get you a coffee?”

Lance couldn’t move. Magnus hadn’t said a word and

wasn’t moving either. Jakob stared at the stranger, clearly

puzzled by her presence.

“Thank you for the kind offer.” Sigrid smiled at Mrs.

Carstens. “But I’m not sure if I can stay. It all depends on

the answer to my question.”

“What question is that?” Mr. Carstens had pulled out

the chair at the end of the table and remained standing while

he waited for her to explain.

“It’s a personal question for your son, actually.” Sigrid

turned toward Magnus and batted her eyelashes. Did she

really think she could impress him like that? “Is there

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somewhere more private we can go, please? I’d like to talk to

you. It won’t take long.”

“There’s nothing for us to talk about that requires

privacy.” Magnus’s back was stiff, and he didn’t look

comfortable.

“How do you know that? You have no idea what I want

to ask you.” Sigrid straightened her already straight

sundress.

“Whatever it is, my family is going to hear about it

anyway, so you might as well ask it in their presence.”

Magnus hadn’t moved an inch.

“Are you sure?” Sigrid flipped her long blonde hair back

in a coquettish gesture.

“Very sure.” Magnus raised his eyebrows slightly.

“All right, if it’s what you want.” Sigrid cleared her

throat before she finally accepted the chair Mr. Carstens had

pulled out for her and sat down. Right next to Magnus. “I

think I already told you the other day how happy I am that

you have finally returned home. We’ve been apart for far too

long. I know that it was necessary so we could establish our

careers, but I think we’ve both done that. Which means it’s

now time for us to start our lives together.”

Huh? Start their lives together? What was the woman

talking about?

“We’ve already proven we’re a good team professionally.

Not just in the past, but as recently as this week, when we

talked about the next polar expedition at the university

yesterday. Your ability to raise funds and inspire academic

excellence in our colleagues meshes well with my talent for

public relations and reporting results in a way that’s

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accessible for non-scientists.” Sigrid took a deep breath.

“And, as you know, Magnus, we’ve remained very close

personal friends over all the years that we’ve been apart.”

“I will agree that we work well in a professional context.”

Magnus’s voice was gravelly, his hands fisted on his thighs.

“But that’s as far as our relationship goes.”

“Oh, but I disagree.” Sigrid shook her head. “We’re more

than work colleagues.”

“I think that’s a matter of interpretation.” Magnus didn’t

look like he was going to budge on this. The whole situation

was just too weird for words, but his lover’s steady

resistance to be pulled into Sigrid’s plans was a relief.

“Well, you can interpret it all you want, but the facts

speak for themselves.” Sigrid straightened her back and

looked right at Magnus. “We work well together. Our talents

complement each other, and we make a good team. The

university has asked both of us to go on the next polar

expedition, giving us more opportunities to show what we

can do. We get along on a personal level and have been close

friends for many years. What would be more natural than to

formalize this relationship, to start building a life together?”

“What?” Magnus paled, and Lance felt the blood drain

from his own face, while Jakob whimpered. This couldn’t be

happening.

“Why are you so surprised? You’re going to have to

settle down at some point, and starting a family is a natural

part of that process. I’ve discussed this with your parents,

and they are in total agreement.” Sigrid looked triumphant.

“Magnus, I love you and it’s time we got married. We’ll make

a wonderful couple. We can work together, build our careers

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together, and when the time is right, we’ll have children

together. They’ll go to the best schools and it won’t interfere

with our careers.”

Lance was dizzy and suddenly nauseous. Dinner didn’t

agree with him any longer. He was going to lose it. Magnus

just stared at the woman, mouth slightly open.

“No.” Jakob shook his head, short blond locks

bouncing.

“It’s not your decision, child.” Sigrid turned toward

Jakob and narrowed her eyes at him. “You aren’t even

Magnus’s son, so it’s none of your business.”

“No!” Jakob rose from his chair, tears in his eyes. His

hands shook. “No, no, no.”

“Shut up. It’s time you grew up and stopped being a

pest. Your uncle is destined for greater things than raising

children. You’ll be sent to boarding school soon enough.