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“I would have thought Jace would be dead-set against it,” I said. “Especially after what happened to Gennadi.”
Magnus glanced to me again and gave a noncommittal hum.
That was it, though. He didn’t elaborate on his reasons for thinking Jace would be my ally.
“Speaking as someone who has, at various points in his life, been on both ends of that sort of play,” he said instead, “I can assure you that if it feels natural to you, and to Avenel, there is nothing at all wrong with whatever dynamic you would like to create between you. I’ve lived long enough and experienced enough to see that your pup is happy in his position, and I dare say several more you’ve probably contorted him into. Some people like that and find their greatest sense of purpose and satisfaction in surrendering their will to another. Some find great joy and a deep sense of connection with their lover by exercising complete control.” He arched one eyebrow subtly at me, telling me he’d seen that impulse in me. “Do not let the opinions of people who do not understand sway you from living and loving in a way that feels right for you.”
I blew out a breath of relief at Magnus’s words. I wanted him to say more, and I wanted to ask him more questions, but the others had lost interest in the tree and were heading back to us.
“I so could have jumped up and caught that branch,” Ox was laughing and elbowing Peter as they drew closer. “I wouldn’t even have needed a leg up.”
“It was snowing,” Peter protested, waving his arms wildly. “We were all dressed in furs and carrying sacks. It was hard enough the way we did it.”
“And everything was slippery,” Neil defended him with a laugh.
Jace laughed, but he didn’t add anything to the argument. He walked over to Gennadi and wrapped his arm around him from behind, holding Gennadi close to his body and kissing the side of his face.
I sucked in a breath. He held Gennadi and looked at him the same way I held and looked at Avenel. My heart beat faster. Was Magnus right? Would Jace understand Avenel being my pup because…because Gennadi was his?
“I’m eager to take a look at these cottages you’ve offered us,” Olympus said, moving past the others to stand near me and Magnus. “I have to say, I’m a little relieved we won’t be staying in the palace, or anywhere near that Jorgen Iceblade fellow and his people. I’m so far behind on how the rest of the frontier functions that I’m going to need lessons every night after the meetings to make certain I don’t make a complete fool of myself.”
“I won’t let you make a fool of yourself, Oly,” Lefric said, sliding up to Olympus’s side and hugging him. He laid his head on Olympus’s shoulder for a moment too. “I can school you in all sorts of things. Running a trading business, for example.”
Olympus made a sound and jerked his elbow into Lefric’s side, pushing him away slightly and making Lefric laugh. He then broke into a smile and scooped Lefric into his arms for a salacious kiss, right there in front of all of us.
Olympus might have been older than Lefric, but Lefric wasn’t his pup. Their relationship felt more like plain old lovers. Their fire and tension was different than the way Jace and Gennadi interacted. The way Magnus fondled and fawned over Peter and Neil when they took up places on either side of him was different too. I felt like there was a strong lesson to be learned in watching everyone’s dynamic, but I couldn’t put my finger on what it was, exactly. That every relationship was different? That Avenel being my pup was nobody’s business but ours?
If that was the case, though, did that mean I had to believe it was nobody’s business how any other man kept his pup? Had it not been any of my business that Yuri had beaten, abused, and chained Gennadi to his bed?
A sharp shiver went through me and I had to roll my shoulders to dispel it. I couldn’t think about the issue, not when there were quite literally dozens of other issues that needed everyone’s attention even more in the next few days.
“Avenel is making tea for everyone,” I said. “I can tell him to hold off for a bit so that I can show you the other cottages. And you can decide who will stay where.”
“That sounds like an excellent idea,” Magnus said, sending me a grin that hinted he knew where my thoughts had gone.
I pushed into motion, dashing into the house to tell Avenel the plan before heading out to begin the tours of the cottages. Avenel was more than happy to stay in our kitchen, preparing what would probably turn into more than just tea and snacks, while I gave the tours.
Everyone was impressed, thankfully. They appreciated the work Avenel and I had done and gave me compliments that I wished Avenel could hear. After poring over the two cottages, Magnus, Peter, and Neil, and Jace and Gennadi decided to take one, with a few of the men from Gravlock who had come to act as servants and runners, and Lefric and Olympus, Ox and Katrina took the other with a few more Gravlock men and a servant from Good Port who was there to help Olympus.
Within an hour, the men acting as servants had headed back to the dock to fetch everyone’s baggage, Ox and Katrina set out to poke around the city, and the rest of us returned to my and Avenel’s back garden, where two tables and several chairs had been set up, to enjoy the tea and snacks Avenel had prepared while we were looking at the cottages.
“So tell me, Sebald,” Magnus said once everyone was settled and Avenel was busy serving tea. “What do I need to know about King Sai, Hedeon, and the Kostya Kingdom that will help me ensure the Wolf River Kingdom gets what it needs out of these meetings?”
I laughed humorlessly. “We could spend a week talking about that and I would still have more to say,” I told him.
I was about to launch into the first few important things—the troubles that the Kostya Kingdom still faced after Gomez’s destruction and the deep prejudice against wolves that they had already seen—when Avenel finished serving tea and moved to kneel on the flagstones beside my chair.
Everyone went silent. Even the birds in the trees seemed to stop singing for a moment. If Avenel noticed the stir he’d caused, he didn’t show it. He was too busy glancing adoringly up at me.
I raised my hand to stroke his head and smiled at him before I fully registered the degree of shock being directed at us from some of my friends. The moment I’d been dreading for two months was here.
Of course, it was Lefric who blurted, “What is he doing?” in a tone of genuine questioning.
“Looks like he’s kneeling at his master’s feet,” Olympus replied as if it were all a joke and he was teasing Lefric. “You should try it sometime.” He winked and made Lefric blush.
The other Sons and Magnus saw the gesture for what it was.
There was no way around it. A man took responsibility for his actions, especially when they upset others.
