They hummed in response.“I’d hardly consider my own magic elegant.”
Conrad laughed.“You are impossibly elegant, Torquil.”
They grinned and gave a mock bow.“Thank you.But Silas would certainly argue with you if you called him or his magic elegant.We have another fae-human on the Council, Miss Gloucester-Stone.She’s lovely, but I doubt she’d describe herself as elegant.”They paused.“What I’m trying to say is that elegance does not determine whether magic is good or valuable or worthwhile.And I suspect that you have a great deal to contribute, common magic or no.”
Conrad couldn’t help from beaming.“Thank you.”
They quirked another smile at him.“Your history may be different from the rest of us, but that doesn’t make you ill-fitting.If you understand me.”
“I do.”
“Good.Now let’s go see if everyone has finished changing for dinner, shall we?”
Conrad’s heart felt light as he followed them back inside the house and into a sitting room.His heart felt even lighter when he spotted Sage talking to Keelan and Silas.He approached the group and brushed a hand through Sage’s hair.“How was your walk?”
Sage stood and bent down to kiss him.It was their first kiss and, frankly, unremarkable: a swift peck on the lips.Conrad knew it to be a public announcement of sorts.And he found himself pleased by how easily Sage had settled into his role.Sage pulled back and gave Conrad’s plain cravat a tweak.“It was dreadful.I nearly ruined my shoes in a puddle.If Keelan and Silas hadn’t saved me, I’m quite sure the one little walk would have ruined the entire trip.”
Conrad chuckled and nudged Sage back to his seat.“Thank goodness for your rescuers,” he said, leaning his forearm on Sage’s shoulder and grinning at the other two.
Keelan was looking between them with a happy expression.“Silas is very good in a crisis.”
Silas shook his head, amused.“And how was your afternoon?”
“It was good.Long.I worked on spells with raw materials.Wyndham said raw materials work well with my magic, although I’m not sure how he knows.”
“He’s good at sensing,” Silas explained.“Probably the best on the Council, if I’m honest.”
They went into dinner, where the group described their walk.There were a number of complaints about the pace the Ladies Fitzhugh had set.Cyril was as put out about the state of the path as Sage had been.But Harriet had strong opinions about her hosts staying inside while their guests had ventured out.
“I’ve barely seen either of you since I stepped foot in this house,” she proclaimed.
“You’re sitting right next to me,” Roger muttered.
She lifted her nose haughtily.“I shall require your attendance tomorrow.”
“What are we doing tomorrow?”Roger asked warily.
“You’re the hosts!”she said, exasperated.“You tell us what we’re doing tomorrow.But, it must be outside and it must be everybody.”She turned a beady eye around the table, as if daring anyone to refuse.
“If the weather permits,” Wyndham said, “perhaps we can dineal frescoduring the day.I can send word to the kitchen to prepare us something suitable.”
Harriet beamed.“Excellent.”
“But I must request that we have chairs or blankets or something,” Cyril said.“I’m sure I couldn’t bear to get grass stains on my clothing.Don’t you agree, Mr.Ravenwing?”
Sage looked startled to be addressed directly, but he gave a prim nod.“Indeed.I would very much like to depart here with my clothes intact.”
Emrys snorted.“Is that the same thing you’ve asked Conrad?The poor fellow will have his work cut out for him in that case.”
“My condolences to your spouse,” Sage replied crisply, “if you cannot be trusted to discard their clothing in a careful manner.”
“He can’t,” Torquil said, taking a sip of wine.“And it isn’t just clothes either.You wouldn’t believe the number of cravat pins and hair combs that get lost on the floor or in the bedclothes.The man has no patience whatsoever.”
“Can you blame me?”
Wyndham groaned.“Must you discuss my brother’s proclivities while we’re eating?Or at all, for that matter?”
“I rather think he deserves it,” Keelan chuckled.
