Pel was silent for a moment and then admitted, “I’ve never been worth gossiping about before. Not like that. I wasn’t even thinking outside of the castle.Thiscastle.”
Ah.Tor had been precipitous again.
“Sorry,” he said with a sigh. “I’m afraid that’s one of the downsides that comes with being involved with the High Prince.”
Tor couldn’t change that, even if he wanted to.
“Hey,” Pel said a bit sharply. Tor looked at him, startled out of his brooding. “I know who you are.”
Tor couldn’t help but smile. Yes, he supposed Pel did.
The visits passed… just like normal. Tor’s life might have been entirely rearranged, but the rest of the world was just as it had always been.
Maybe Tor and Pel’s eyes caught and held a little more often than they used to, and maybe Tor realized he was grinning a bit more than he should, but no one seemed to notice. Most people wanted to talk about the archery competition, having either been there themselves or heard all about it.
Tor was unspeakably glad that Pel had let him explain himself, and they could now discuss the day without any bad feelings. Pel seemed altogether earnest when he agreed that it had been a lovely day. Tor made sure to praise the other man as often as he could get away with, and although Pel occasionally rolled his eyes at him, he looked pink-cheeked and pleased.
On their way back to the castle, Pel observed, “That seems mostly to have worked.”
Tor grinned at him. “No reason that it shouldn’t have. It’s totally normal, and we’re just adding personal fun later, right?”
Pel laughed. “Right. I certainly don’t want anything personal in front of anyone else.”
Tor crossed exhibitionism and voyeurism off his mental list of things that they might consider at some point. Honestly, it hadn’t seemed likely that Pel would be interested. Tor had tried many things at least once, but he was looking forward to figuring out what they liked together.
Back at the stables, they groomed their horses, Pel consented to having lunch together, and then they went off to train with the guards.
And by sheer dint of doing exactly what they normally did, they made it through the day just as they normally did.
At dinner, Bavil and Larexa looked at them a bit carefully, but Tor reminded himself that they’d competed together and then avoided one another assiduously afterwards. It was unlikely either of Pel’s siblings had guessed how the night had ended.
He turned the pages for Larexa at the piano as usual, and he and Bavil managed to discuss the competition without ever once addressing how Tor and Pel had made it weird.
The King only suggested once that Tor had gone easy on his son and that was why Pel had won.
Tor laughed. “Not at all. I was beaten by a superior opponent fair and square. I was definitely not expecting two arrows at once, and that’s on me. I’ve never been up against anyone who’s both so fast and so accurate.”
The King didn’t seem willing to contradict Tor out loud, and Pel shot Tor a look of gratitude that he then schooled to an immediately neutral expression. Bavil started talking about the patrols by the river to further inspect the embankments, and the competition didn’t come up again.
Tor hadn’t given a lot of thought to what it would actually be like in Tond. He’d intended, he remembered with a snort at himself, to sweep in here, sweep Pel off his feet, and sweep out again. He hadn’t expected to be embroiled in family politics, to care about the farmers, or to want Larexa to be the best defended princess ever.
And he’d never expected Pel. He kind of wanted to shake all of them until they admitted just how wonderful Pel was… but that wasn’t the quiet support Pel had asked for. Tor wouldn’t let King Forex sling insults, but otherwise, he could try to respect Pel’s wishes. And maybe, if Tor was here longer, he could just sort of… bridge the gap between Bavil, Larexa, and Pel, even if he wasn’t overtly interfering.
Tor could hope.
He was more anxious than ever to get through the evening, though, and it was a huge relief to be able to escape back to his rooms. He found that he’d made a tactical error in not clearly defining what happened next, though. They’d agreed Pel’s room wouldn’t suit given its proximity to his family, so if they were meeting somewhere, it would be here in Tor’s rooms. Tor was a fool for not having issued a formal invitation, though. What had he been thinking?
He rolled his eyes at himself. Hehadn’tbeen thinking, or certainly not with his head. He’d just assumed thatof coursethey would get together this evening, because he wanted that more than anything. An actual invitation would have been clearer—and more polite.
Would Pel come on his own? Would he second guess everything?
Goddess, why was this so complicated? Tor couldn’t go talk to him or send a letter or something, because that would qualify asnot subtleagain. Although—
His eyes caught on the two mugs of fella-root and a plate of biscuits that sat on the table in the sitting room. Popping his head into the bedroom, he found that the bed had been made with fresh sheets, there was a pitcher of water with two glasses on the table by the fire… and a small bottle of oil had been placed on the bedside cabinet.
So…not subtle, then.
Still, Tor hadn’t caught a hint of it out with the farmers and villagers today, and he didn’t think any of the servants had looked at them strangely.Someonehad figured it out—or at least figured out that Tor was entertaining. That was probably the simplest explanation. Tor wasn’t sure how long they could reasonably hide it, anyway, but it was definitely a reminder that servants were observant.
