That had gone shockingly well, given all the missteps Tor had made. And then what had he done? He groaned again, flinging his arm up to cover his stinging eyes. Tor had known from nearly the first time he’d met the man that he and Pelun had very little in common. They certainly didn’t approach relationships or liaisons in the same way.
They’d been slowly and painstakingly building their way to a totally unexpected friendship, and drunken Tor had destroyed it in one foolish moment of greed. Yes, he’d been incredibly curious to know what kissing Pelun would be like. Yes, the man had been incredibly tempting, coming to check on Tor and forgiving him for the terrible thing he’d done.
Unfortunately, drunken Tor hadn’t checked to see if Pelun was actually interested in him. Drunken Tor hadn’t considered that he’d been drinking most of the night and probably smelled like a sewer. Drunken Tor hadn’t thought about weighing the possible consequences if things went wrong. Drunken Tor hadn’taskedif he could kiss Pelun.
No, drunken Tor had just taken what he wanted, and that was never all right.
Drunken Tor was a fool, and now sober Tor had to deal with the consequences.
He couldn’t blame Pelun for throwing his drink at him, and he could only hope that if he apologized abjectly enough, Pelun would eventually forgive him. Again.
So Tor summoned a servant, who politely didn’t say anything about the fact that it looked and smelled like Tor had been bathing in alcohol. The tub was brought up and filled with steaming water.
As Tor sank into the bath, he groaned once more, feeling an intolerable amount of pity for himself. He laid his head back against the lip of the tub. The heat seeped into his muscles, and he couldn’t help but relax even as his mind circled around his foolishness over and over again.
He’d been trying to seduce Pelun since he got here, with a marked lack of success, but this morning, he hadn’t been thinking about succeeding at his goal, he’d been thinking about how much he wanted to kiss Pelun.
Because he’d seemed so very kissable. Even now, there was a part of Tor clamoring to do it again—to do itright. He hadn’t had enough time with those soft lips, with the feel of Pelun’s body beneath his fingers, radiating such appealing warmth even through his clothes.
Tor seemed to remember finding Pelun the most unremarkable of Unremarkable when he’d first arrived. He couldn’t quite track when that had changed and he’d wantedto kiss the man and pull him into bed instead—not just to pass the time but because he genuinely liked Pelun.
And he thought that Pelun was coming to like Tor—actual Tor—right up to the point that Tor had mauled him without asking while drunk.
Because he was afool.
There was really nothing new about him being a fool, but the potential consequences felt more severe. It had been a long time since Tor had made a real friend, someone who didn’t see the High Prince and wasn’t trying to curry favor.
Tor hadn’t expected to come out of this with a friend, and he surprised himself a little with the force with which he craved that, wanting Pelun and his serious attitude and his devotion to his people—and his unwillingness to accept Tor and his charm when he thought they were empty.
Only now Tor had been reckless and accosted the man. Pelun had fled after throwing Tor’s drink in his face, and that meant Tor needed to be clean, presentable, and perfectly sober before he issued his apology.
So he scrubbed himself scrupulously clean, working extra hard to ensure he obliterated every trace of alcohol. His head still didn’t feel great, but otherwise, he felt a lot more human after the bath. He climbed out carefully and toweled himself dry before shaving.
Reluctantly, he asked for something light to eat. He’d managed to mess up his sleep schedule entirely, so dinner was only a couple of hours away, but he needed to try to settle his queasy stomach before then.
The kitchens provided potato soup and a thick slice of bread that he managed to keep down. He also made himself drink several more glasses of water, thinking of Pelun the entire time.
Tor had messed up, and he desperately wanted to fix it, but… it wasn’t just because of Terila anymore. Should he leave before he got in any deeper? But if he did that, would he miss out on the chance of something unexpectedly real with Pelun? As terrible as it was to say, he didn’t think he’d ever spent so long with someone andnotslept with them, unless he wasn’t interested in them.
When he wanted, the other person typically wanted back, there was a quick romp in the bedroom, and then Tor was moving on to someone else. That kept everything safest for him and them, where no feelings were involved and no one got unreasonable expectations when it came to a High Prince.
He’d spent weeks with Pelun, andhe’d liked it. He didn’t want to leave—and he didn’t know what would happen if he did. If he abandoned his plan and went home, would he be escorted straight to Terila in Vayrin? Would he be given no choice in the matter?
Or if Tor refused unequivocally, what then? He’d mostly been joking when he mentioned being exiled to his sister, but whatdidhappen if you truly refused to do as your High King commanded?
Tor didn’t want to find out. He didn’t want to lose his sister or Rin—or Pelun. And wasn’t that a weird thought to contemplate? He’d only known Pelun properly for a few weeks, but he definitely wanted to know more.
Tor needed to be able to change Varex’s mind, and showing him how wrong his orders were was still Tor’s best chance at that. He just needed to make sure that his friendship with Pelun stayed intact, too—and the first step there was an apology.
He dressed with care for dinner, rehearsing what he could say to the man, only to discover that it was Pelun’s turn to miss the meal. King Forex was at first extremely annoyed, muttering about ungrateful children who weren’t aware of their filial or royal duties, but then he seemed to erase it from his mind.
His eyes, red-rimmed and glittering a bit too brightly, settled on Tor.
“Well, Prince Torex, how are you liking it here?”
His way-too-obvious glance at the two of his children who were seated at the table made it clear what he was really asking. For a wild moment, Tor was filled with the urge to tell him that there was absolutely no chance he would ever bond with any of the man’s children—but that was both incredibly rude and would hardly help Tor convince Varex he was seriously contemplating a bond with Pelun.
So then he was tempted to state his actual interest clearly—except that wouldn’t be fair to Pelun, especially right now, and Tor honestly wasn’t sure how the King would react. While a bond withanyof his children should have made Forex happy, the fact that he hadn’t urged Tor towards Pelun the way he had the other two was telling.
