Tristan's Loins by Karolyn Cairns

into. She made some notes
about the changes she needed to fix parts of scenes. It was more
than frustrating. Abandoning the book was not an option with
Tristan trapped in the story as he was. Somehow, she had to
backpedal and right all the wrongs she had made in his life to
insure his future.
    She looked up at the screen and touched a
key, making the screen light up. A gasp was smothered under her
hand to see him standing nude next to a washstand, washing his face
and chest. Seeing his taut, perfectly formed backside made her gnaw
at her lower lip. Did she have to give him such a perfect ass
too?
    Selene was mortified when he turned and she
got up close and personal with Tristan's loins, the much inflated
enflamed, and swollen region she seemed to linger over. His penis
was long and indeed considered big by any measure. She forced her
eyes away, unable to conceive she had spent so much time on the
man's privates. Rhiannon would have been pleased, should have been
pleased. She had ruined that for her heroine as well.
    Perhaps if she had not been so angry then?
Her earlier writing of the book bled of her rage over Jim's
treatment. It was as if she wanted to punish someone and took it
out on her hapless characters. The violence in the first five
chapters alone was unprecedented for a romance novel.
    She had meant to go back and temper it, but
now it was too late. The damage was done. She had made Tristan do
his worst unto his bride and set the tone for disaster. Happily
ever after seemed unlikely for them unless she made these changes.
An amateur writer never sees these things realistically when they
plot a story.
    Selene looked back at the screen, grateful he
was now dressed.
    "Do you like what you created, Selene?" he
asked in a scathing voice, laced with mockery, his blue eyes looked
up and narrowed. "Is this what you think about in your lonely bed
at night, Selene?"
    She stiffened from his tone, realizing he was
angry at her for abandoning him all night. That did not give him
the right to be nasty. Her eyes darkened with anger.
    "Somebody woke up on the wrong side of the
bed," she remarked and bristled from his amused laugh. "You were
created merely for the reader's pleasure, not mine."
    Tristan chuckled mockingly and gazed up at
the ceiling, a look of disbelief on his face. "Ah Selene, you would
lie even if I could see your face. We both know you lust for me. I
can hear you panting, even now."
    "Enough! This is hardly appropriate."
    "Where were you last night?" he demanded.
    "That's none of your business," she snapped
and glared at the screen. "You’re hardly in a position to demand
anything! I met some friends, if it's any business of yours. I do
not answer to you, Tristan!"
    He looked furious at her words. "You were
with a man!" he accused, his blue eyes livid. "Do not lie to me,
Selene. Who is this man you snuck away to see?"
    "I met Darcy and Maggie and a new teacher at
the school. His name is Axel. He just started working there,"
Selene said quietly and smiled at the memory of the kiss. "I like
him. There are you satisfied?"
    Tristan ignored her then, sitting down to
leaf through his workbooks. Selene could see her words bothered him
and wondered at it. Maybe he worried her getting involved with
someone right now would keep her from rewriting his destiny. Who
could know, he refused to speak to her after that. He went through
his workbooks quietly while she made notes.
    "Are you hungry?" she asked him finally,
unable to stand it anymore.
    Tristan looked up and she could see he was
still angry, but he nodded. "I’m starving. The pizza is all
gone."
    Selene felt sick to know she had let him go
on cold pizza the last day and a half. She pulled up the chapter in
Word and typed in something she hoped would bring a smile back to
his handsome face. When she hit save, she watched him stare at the
breakfast extravaganza in front of him in awe.
    She wrote in a western omelet, fried
potatoes, toast, and a pitcher of orange juice.