So Theos smiled at Finnvid. “More time for fucking,” he said.
And Finnvid didn’t object. More than that. He stepped closer and wrapped one hand in the front of Theos’s tunic. “Good,” he proclaimed.
It was stupid. Theos had done enough to save a little face, and he shouldn’t press for more. His head knew that, but his hand moved on its own, finding a spot on the back of Finnvid’s neck as if it had no other resting place. Finnvid blinked hard, but didn’t pull away, and when Theos tugged, Finnvid shuffled toward him. Theos tilted his head down, and Finnvid tilted his up, and their kiss was warm and easy, like an established couple.
It was just for the audience. Theos knew that, and he knew he’d owe Finnvid a month without laundry duty in gratitude, but still his tongue savored the taste of Finnvid’s mouth, still his body drew closer and tried to find warmth.
And when Finnvid pulled away, his eyes wide, Theos’s cock swelled in appreciation and anticipation, no matter what signals his brain was sending out.
“Should we go?” Finnvid asked breathlessly, lacing his fingers through Theos’s.
“Aye,” Theos breathed. Finnvid had rescued him, making it look like he was driven off by lust, not humiliation. Probably Finnvid should never do laundry again. And if Finnvid actually followed through on the promise Theos’s cock hoped he’d made . . .
But as soon as they were away from the meeting room, Finnvid let go of Theos’s hand. No dramatics, just . . . the end of the contact. Finnvid had helped him, but now he was done.
They silently made their way back to Theos’s room, then pulled off their outer clothes and lay down in their usual places. Theos was beginning to believe the night was over and he could forget it all when Finnvid whispered, “Andros said that was because of me. He said you lost your rank because you defied the warlord and kept me out of the slave trade.”
“Andros is kind. Maybe I just wasn’t good at the job.”
Finnvid was silent for a while, then said, “I’ve told you about Varin. The greatest warrior in history?”
“Aye,” Theos said cautiously.
“I’ve told you some of his trials. You know the gods frowned on him and sent him deep beneath the earth, and another time the avalanche caught him, and later he had to rescue his son from the rock trolls.”
“Aye,” Theos said. He rolled over onto his side so he could look into the darkness where Finnvid was lying.
“But I haven’t told you about King Lordan, have I?”
“I don’t think so.”
“Lordan was Varin’s king, and Varin was a loyal subject. He fought for Lordan, and led his armies to many victories.”
“Lordan didn’t lead his own armies?”
“No. He stayed at home, safe and warm, and sent his soldiers out to do battle.”
Theos knew how Torians would deal with a leader who didn’t at least take part in the big fights, but Elkati were different. “Did Varin like that?”
“He accepted it. He was loyal, and Lordan was his king. But one day, while Varin was off on some adventure, Lordan came by his home and saw Varin’s wife. And she was beautiful, of course.”
They’d already covered that: how Varin’s mate had been a swan until the gods made her human, and how she’d kept her grace and beauty through the transformation. Theos hoped she’d softened a bit in the beak area, but hadn’t pushed for answers about that. When Theos asked too many questions, Finnvid tended to stop telling his stories, and Theos liked the stories. So he stayed quiet, and Finnvid kept talking.
“As soon as Lordan saw Varin’s wife, he was overcome with lust for her. But he knew she was a virtuous woman who wouldn’t be unfaithful to her mate. So he decided he needed to make her . . . What’s the word in Torian? For a woman after her mate dies?”
“You have a word for that? And, wait, do you meanVarinis going to die?”
“We have a word in Elkati, yes. And, yes, the king decided he should kill Varin so his wife would be free.”
“He’s going to kill Varin just so he can sleep with Varin’s wife? Does she even have a name? Does shewantto sleep with Lordan? Does Varin have todiejust so two other people can have sex?” Theos took a deep breath. Probably the story wasn’t worth getting quite this upset over. Still . . . “Do you begin to understand how ridiculous your Elkati system is?”
“Do you want to hear the rest of the story or not?”
“I don’t know. Does Varin die?”
“You’ll have to be quiet if you want to find out.”
Theos huffed, but then he lay still. He needed to hear the ending now that he’d heard the start.
