Arslan took another deep breath and pushed himself up from the seat.He was on his way to the door when Kefir finally managed to scrape together a few words.
“Are you disappointed in me?”No matter what the answer, he told himself it was better to know, one way or the other.
Arslan stopped.“Disappointed?”
“That I’m not what a lion is supposed to be.”Kefir kept his attention fixed firmly on his paperwork until he heard Arslan move back across the room to stand directly alongside his desk.
“Our traditions exist to make sure that lions treat the humans they take as pets kindly, Kefir, that a physically weaker species isn’t hurt when a lion gets…over enthusiastic.I’d much prefer you to be honest with him and find a way for the two of you to be happy than for you to try to pretend you’re something you’re not and for either of you to get hurt in the process.”
“I’ll never hurt him,” Kefir whispered.He’d have given everything he owned for the words to have sounded more certain.
“But…?”Arslan prompted.
Kefir tapped the end of his pen on the table.“I can protect him from other humans if I need to.”He had no doubt about that.The leather Ellery had used to bind at the club him was very pretty, but if Kefir had needed to escape from it to protect his mate, there was no way any of the restraints would have withstood the strain of a lion determined to get loose.
He glanced up.Arslan nodded for him to keep going.
“I know I’m not as large or as strong as the other lions.”He dropped his gaze, ashamed of that fact for the first time in his life.“If the pride turns against him then—” he swallowed rapidly, fear robbing him of his voice.
“You concentrate on your…on Ellery.I’ll see to it that order exists within the pride.That’s my place, not yours.”
Kefir nodded.
“Hundreds of humans have walked into this den since I took command of this pride.I haven’t lost one yet.Not even in those few months after Luther and Blaine first joined us.”
Kefir dipped his head a little, smiling at the exasperated look that flashed across Arslan’s face.
“Ellery will be perfectly safe here.”
Kefir offered his leader another little nod.“Thank you.”
Arslan walked toward the door, but, without Kefir even saying a word, he stopped again halfway across the room.“You still haven’t answered my original question.When do you plan to offer for him?”
“Soon,” Kefir said.As soon as he could gather the courage to face the fact Ellery might not give him the answer he wanted.
Arslan nodded before leaving.
Kefir had no idea how long he sat there, silently staring at all the family trees and lineages spread across the table in front of him.
When he felt himself being watched once more, he looked up, expecting to see Arslan back to remind him of something that needed to be taken care of before he could even think of asking Ellery to join the pride as his mate.
He jumped out of his chair when he saw his master leaning casually against the doorframe, as if he had already been there for quite some time.
“Sir!”
“Was it a nice place?”Ellery asked as he pushed himself away from the woodwork and stepped forward.
“Sir?”
“You were in your own little world—lost in your thoughts.”
Kefir nodded, too busy staring at Ellery to manage to speak.
“You know, a suspicious mind might think you expected to see a different man in the doorway when you looked up,” Ellery said.
Kefir nodded again.
Ellery raised an eyebrow.
