That would give Tor more than enough time. Then people couldguesswhere he’d gone, but they wouldn’t be certain. He thought most people would probably think of Marwila first, which meant by the time they finally eliminated all other options and showed up in Tond, the courting would be well established. He had a reputation for being able to seduce people for a reason. It couldn’t be that much different to court someone than to get them to fall into bed with him, could it?
He knew Ada was worried about Pelun’s feelings getting involved, but Tor had always been good at making his intentions clear. Courting was different than bedding, yes, but surely Pelun wouldn’t imagine Tor could be instantly smitten. And Tor was handsome and good in bed—but like he’d told the others, that wasn’t a sound foundation for a marriage. Plus, Pelun had to be in his late twenties; if he was anything like Tor, he wouldn’t be interested in marriage yet. They’d get to know one another better while Tor was there, and the courtship had to seem real, but it didn’t have to be more than that. By the time Varex acknowledged the foolishness of his plan, no doubt they’d both be happy to be let off the hook.
Tor didn’t intend to wind up married to anyone due to outside pressures of any sort, be they his brother or a lover who made assumptions. Ada seemed to be making the best of her situation, but it wasn’t one that he would wish on anyone.
He had a plan to execute, which he was going to do with the help of a reluctant Ada and a rather amused Rin, who really was a good sport.
They spent a couple more days with the children, Tor making sure that he seemed very reluctant to leave, and even inciting Par and Hena to ask their father if Tor could stay forever and ever.
This gave several people the chance to remind him that he was meant to be heading towards Vayrin and for Tor to show what he hoped was an appropriate amount of reluctance to finally resume his journey towards that particular realm.
Ada hugged and kissed him, and the children clung to him and asked him to take them with him.
“That would be great, but I bet you’d miss your father, wouldn’t you?”
Little Hena nodded her head even as Par said, “It would be fine to visit for a little while. People travel all the time.”
“So they do,” Tor agreed gravely, because Par looked altogether serious. “But I’ve actually been sent on a mission, and it’s one I need to do on my own.”
Par shot him a look of deep suspicion. “Then why are all these people with you?”
Ada snorted a laugh and tried to cover it up unconvincingly with a cough. Rin didn’t even try to look serious.
“That’s a very good point,” Tor agreed, struggling with his own smile. “These are, uh, people who are assisting me.”
“We could assist you!” Par said staunchly.
“I’m sure you could,” Tor agreed, “if I were traveling for fun. But the fact of the matter is that I’m supposed to be courting someone. It would be a little awkward to bring children with me, even children as lovely and engaging as you are. Do you understand?”
The two of them exchanged looks. Hena didn’t look like she understood at all, and her bottom lip trembled. But Par nodded after a long moment.
“I suppose. But if you’re going to send everyone else away once you get there, you could send us away then, too.”
“But where would you go?” Tor asked. “It wouldn’t be much fun to be on your own, would it?”
Hena shook her head immediately, dark eyes wide as she fumbled for Par’s hand, but Par looked genuinely as though he was considering what he could do on his own. He took his sister’s hand, though, and let her cuddle up next to him.
“Tell you what,” Tor said, blurting the offer out. “When I come back, I could stop by, and we could see if your father would be all right if you came to visit. It would be more polite for me to bring you to Alossa, you know, than to invite you along to someone else’s realm. That’s just good manners, right?”
Now happy again, Hena released her brother and skipped over to her father and tugged on his tunic. It was dark green and threaded with gold. To give the man his due, he didn’t look even slightly perturbed by the grasping fingers, just smiled down at his daughter.
“We can visit with Uncle Tor, can’t we?” Hena asked.
Now King Stronex looked as though he’d been trapped between a rock and a hard place, and as Ada shot Tor a glare, it occurred to him that this was probably the sort of thing you talked to the parents aboutbeforeyou proposed it to the children.
Par said gravely, “I would like to visit Nexa.” He turned to Stronex and said very seriously, “May we, Father?”
Tor tried to undo the damage he’d caused. “We’ll have to check in when I get back. I’m not sure how long I’ll be, and it’s possible that you, your father, or I will be busy.”
Now everyone was looking at him like he was an ass.
“But I’d be really happy to try to make it work!” he finished awkwardly.
Rin raised an eyebrow. Tor suppressed a sigh. Father material, he was not.
King Stronex said, “We will discuss it at a later time. Prince Torex needs to be on his way. Make your bows to him, children.”
They did so, and Tor bowed back. He was glad they weren’t so formal all the time. He wondered if Terila liked children bowing to her. It seemed like she would.
