The thought of that makes me uncomfortable.
“Hardly, Briar. Silas speaks to his close circle and rarely to anyone outside of that. Your reputation spread fast because of your skills and power.”
“Is that what we are calling it?”
He nods, continuing, “Silas is extremely guarded and doesn’t trust people easily. It’s taken us years to get as close as we are now.”
I raise my eyebrows. “Oh, I’ve noticed.”
Larkin huffs a laugh, and I flinch at the sound. I see his head tilt back, and the bright sunlight reflects off his white hair. His shoulders relax a bit, and he lets loose of the reins, stretching his arms.
“We hated each other when we first met,” he adds. “I think I knew Silas all of fifteen minutes before he punched me in the face in a local bar.”
My mouth slightly parts. “You’re joking.”
“Nope.” He laughs to himself at his own memory. “I drunkenly hit on Fenmore and spilled a bit of ale on her. It made Silas upset, if you can imagine.”
“You can flirt?”
“Of course, that’s what you take away from that story,” Larkin huffs, cutting his eye toward me. “I do have a life, Briar.”
“Were you and Fenmore an item? I don't mean to draw attention to it, but Warrick is always the one who’s around her.”
“No,” he shakes his head. “Silas pretty much killed any chance of that happening after Fen had to pull him off me. It alsodidn’t help my case that she was drenched in ale.” He cringes. “After that, Silas and I became friends—sort of—and I thought it would be too inappropriate and uncomfortable for me to pursue anything further.”
“I’m sorry it didn’t work out between you two,” I respond. “She’s great.”
“Fenmore is fantastic. She’s strong, fearless, and stunning, but I promise I’m not lonely.” Larkin laughs. “I can fill my time with others.”
“Who? What’s her name?” I can’t help but ask.
He angles his head in my direction. “Who said it was a female?”
“Oh. I’m sorry, I just assumed that since we were speaking about Fen, you preferred women.”
“It doesn’t matter to me. I like someone for who they are as a person,” Larkin smiles.
I nod and smile in return. “Oak would really be furious that you said he wasn’t your type if he knew that.”
We both boom a laugh.
“So, Maines and Oak are together?” Larkin asks.
I shrug. “They’re something. But yes, I’d say they’re together.” I pause. “She...had a thing for Barlowe before Oak.”
Larkin tenses. “I see.”
“They grew apart when he left for the Northern Training Camp on the mainland, so to my knowledge, it never turned into anything deeper. They had different wants at the time, but you know, everything happens for a reason,” I add.
He doesn’t respond, and I watch his knuckles tighten around the reins at the mention of my brother.
“How long were you at the camp?” I ask, hesitantly.
He stares forward, and that familiar composure creeps back as I watch his shoulders cave inward. His harsh face returns, andany ounce of entertainment he was experiencing moves past me like the fading breeze.
“Why won’t you talk to me about anything regarding my brother?”
“Because it’s not your business,” he bites back.
