“That was very nice of you to arrange a lesson for Conrad,” Roger said as he set the teapot down.“He seemed to enjoy himself?—”
“I’m sorry I misjudged you,” Sage blurted.He fisted his hand and pressed it hard against his thigh, the other gripping the arm of the chair.He was certain he looked as uncomfortable as he sounded.Roger looked up at him in surprise, jaw slack.Neither of them said anything for a moment, and it only made Sage’s heart beat faster.That was not the apology he was waiting to hear, but it had to be said before anything else.There was no going back now.
“Oh,” Roger finally managed, with a tight yet encouraging nod.
“Wyndham never said those things about you.I did.I’m certain he’s already told you as much, but it’s only fair to hear it from me.I wish I could tell you I never meant them.Or that I only said them to hurt you, which I did.”Sage dropped his gaze to his lap, swallowing hard before he looked up again.“I only knew you as the lad we all made fun of in school.And then, when I noticed how you’d taken so much of Wyndham’s attention, I said whatever I could think of to try and come between the two of you.”He huffed out a bitter laugh.“A lot of good that did.”
“I see,” Roger offered with far too much understanding.
Sage crossed his arms and hunched forward in his chair, unable to look at Roger for what he said next.
“You’re not dull or stupid.You’re not a waste of anything.I suppose after working so closely together, Wyndham was able to see in you what the rest of us had to wait until after your wedding to find out.”
“And what is that?”
“You’re intelligent, kind, and proper wonderful with your magic, and running a house, and everything else that you do.”Sage winced.“And that you really were meant for Wyndham.You were meant for each other.”
Sage pushed up out of his chair and kept his arms tight across his chest as he moved away from the desk, his back to Roger as he stared up at the shelves full of books without really looking at them.
“I do not expect you to actually forgive me for the things I’ve said,” he admitted quietly.“But for what it’s worth, I will always regret saying them.”
A light touch on his arm brought his attention to where Roger had come to stand beside him.
“I think you’ll find it’s worth a great deal more than you realize.”
