In Which Roddie Displays His Good Sense

February 18, 1181

To the great delight of Roddie's brother Cuthron, Seoth had at long last admitted that his pretty eldest daughter was of an age to be courted--but not without rules, which was why Roddie had been forced along as a reluctant chaperone when Cuthron had been deemed to fit the stringent requirements. It was to both their great fortune that on the day Cuthron chose to call, Seoth and his son had ridden out to his choice vineyard to replenish his supply of wines. It was a monastery-run stretch, within a day's journey but beyond the eastern border into that stretch of unclaimed land between Naroni and Dovia, so the chances of the innkeeper returning before Eleara had been escorted safely home were slim. As a result, Cuthron could be so bold as to lay a kiss on her hand; had Seoth been there, Roddie would have likely spent the afternoon sandwiched between the pair at all times, not a touch of lips or fingers or even breath permitted.

Eleara beamed with a warm smile as Cuthron lowered her hand. It seemed that Roddie's brother wasn't the only one pleased with Seoth's surrender. "I've been looking forward to this."

"You and me both."

Roddie tried not to fidget. At least they were honest with each other, he guessed, even if it was in that awkward, nervous fashion that seemed the standard for new sweethearts between fourteen and twenty. He didn't understand it, really. If anything about you would be a deal-breaker, wouldn't it be better to show that card and get it done with before either party could get hurt?

"Uh, so... would you like to go for a walk?"

Eleara nodded. "A walk would be nice."

Ever prepared, Eleara's mother stepped out from behind the counter and handed her a coat. "Just try to be home in time for supper, all right? Boys, you're both welcome to eat with us if you like."

"We may take you up on that." Roddie guessed that Cuthron's smile was meant for the mother, but his gaze could not be pried from her daughter. "Thank you, Mistress Altharaine."

"Oh, please. Call me Laureina." She surveyed Roddie's brother with an open-minded but nonetheless scrutinous eye as Eleara put on the coat. Roddie took that as a good sign for Cuthron. She was cautious, as any parent of a fifteen-year-old girl would be, but not unwilling to acknowledge that her daughter was now more or less a woman, and was therefore entitled to at least some degree of independence. "Now, you two have fun. Roddie, would you care for a snack or a drink while we wait?"

"Eh?" Of course he never thought to pass up free food. But... "I thought I was supposed to go with them?"

"If Eleara's father asks, you did," she promised with a wink her daughter's way. Roddie took that as full license to perch his ass on one of the bar stools. "But since he's not here, I think we can give them a bit of privacy. Cuthron, I know you won't try anything objectionable."

Cuthron's face was as red as any wine Seoth might have been purchasing that moment. "Laureina--"

"Take an endorsement for what it is, dear. Eleara's been helping out here long enough to know how to deal with unwanted attention, and I've seen enough of you to know you're a gentleman besides." Huh. Roddie would have to pass that bit of information on to his mother. She'd be relieved to know that being stepbrother to Jadin hadn't ruined Cuthron's public behavior as she'd feared. "Now run along, before you get too used to the heat of this place and the thought of outside becomes unbearable. And Eleara, be a dear and pick up your father's boots and the cobbler's? I've already paid for them."

"Yes, Mother."

Eleara took Cuthron by the hand--something Roddie doubted she'd try in front of Seoth--and led him to the exit. Cuthron left with a quick wave to Roddie, as well as a hurried "Thank you, Mistress Altharaine" as the door shut behind him.

Laureina shook her head as she joined Roddie at the counter. "So much for him calling me by my first name. One of the things you should enjoy about being a child--you're a person, not a title."

"Maybe. It would be nice if my mother let me have wine whenever I want it, though." Laureina laughed. Roddie leaned back and peered toward the door. "You're sure you're all right with Eleara and Cuthron being alone?"

"Of course. Sure, your older brothers may be a handful, but I can vouch for their character. Your sisters are all lovely too. You probably hear more bile about the marriages than you ought to, but none of that matters; the fact is, your parents raised you kids right."

"Tell them that. They sometimes wonder." She laughed again. Roddie decided he liked her; she reminded him somewhat of his mother, at least when he got glimpses of his mother as someone other than his mother. He hoped that meant she and Cuthron would get along if his courtship of Eleara progressed. "I only know Eleara through Cuthron, and Artan because Maddie is my cousin, but going by them, I think you and Master Altharaine raised your kids right too."

"Always good to hear. Perhaps I ought to introduce you to my second daughter, if you're interested."

"For courting?" Roddie shuddered. "No thanks, I'm not really ready for that. But I'm sure she's very nice."

"Not ready, hmm?" He nodded. A laugh in her eyes, Laureina gave him an understanding shrug. "Well, everyone can always use friends."

"That's true. Plus I think that when I am ready for courting, I'd rather court a girl I was friends with first."

"Oh?" She seemed a little surprised, a little curious--not quite unpleasantly so, but enough to inquire. "Wouldn't you be worried about ruining the friendship if it didn't work out?"

"Not really. I mean, it would probably be difficult at first, but I'd like to think a good friendship could survive that."

Laureina didn't look quite convinced, but she smiled all the same. "Well, I hope that works out favorably for you, then. But what if you decide you like a girl you're friends with, but she doesn't feel the same way about you?"

"Move on, I guess." She raised an eyebrow and he wondered why he had to explain this to her. She was a smart, worldly adult lady and this was only good sense. Then again, not many grown-ups seemed to have good sense, and maybe those who did were so used to the others that they just assumed the natural human state to be crazy. "I mean, no one says love has to go both ways, right? And it's pretty nasty to put that kind of pressure on someone. I guess I'd maybe tell her I needed time to get over her, but after that I'd hope I could still be her friend."

"And that's very mature of you." Her head nudged in approval, though some trace of doubt still lurked in her posture. "Though I should warn you that many people aren't content to be nothing more than friends with members of the opposite sex."

"Then those people are idiots." There was no other explanation. Sure, from what little he knew about love, it probably hurt, possibly a lot. But he did know quite a bit about friends--and while avoiding love didn't seem like the dumbest thing a person could do, they'd have to be pretty damn stupid to pass up a chance for a good friend. "If the prettiest, smartest girl in the world wanted me to be her friend, I'd be happy to be just that. She probably has hundreds of admirers anyway, but everyone could use a friend."

"Very true. I hope you never change your mind there--though just between you and me, I wouldn't doubt that you'd make the prettiest, smartest girl in the world very happy if she wanted you as more." Laureina stood and made her away around the counter, ruffling his hair as she passed, just like his mother and sisters did. "Now, I hope you like cinnamon biscuits. I made three batches this morning, and I could use a smart kid like you to figure out which recipe tastes the best."

NEXT CHAPTER:

In Which Jadin Offers an Easy Fix

January 4, 1177

"...and so the old man looks up at him and says 'I built every bridge on this river with me own two hands, but they don't call me Searle the Bridge-Builder, do they? I've speared every whale that swims past me boat, but they don't call me Searle the Whaler, do they?' Then he takes a drink, looks up and laments 'But you fuck one goat...'"

The rest of the bar burst into a chorus of bawdy, half-drunken laughter, much to Jadin's delight. Even his brother of the same name had to stifle a snort. Even Ashe had to smile. Oh, Xeta's jokes never failed.

As they hysterics died down to scattered chuckles, Searle shot a pleading glance toward Sparron, who pretended not to notice--as did Jadin. He was getting a bit tired of this. One of these days he'd just have to tell Searle that he knew. Not today, though; no sense making a scene at his friend's bachelor party, even if it was just between him and his brother.

"Jadin, you know I love that joke as much as everyone else does, but would it kill you to use someone else's name for once?"

"Sorry bro--most common name in the country and whatnot." Jadin tipped back another sip of beer and winked at him. "Anyway, enough jokes." He slung one arm over Ashe's shoulder and raised his mug with the other. "To Ashe and Rona--may their daughters be as generously endowed as their mother, and may their sons be as prone to waking up in the sex pond surrounded by women's clothing as their father!"

"Here here," cheered Lonriad as anyone with a surviving drink took a swig.

Even Sparron chuckled. Across from him, Isidro glanced over to Jadin's table and frowned. "Ashe, do you mind telling us why your face matches your hair? Still trying to convince us all it wasn't what it looked like?"

Redder than ever, Ashe slumped onto the table, dragging Jadin's arm with him. "It really wasn't..."

"Then why don't you--hic!--share the details?" piped up Jadin's drunken stepbrother from beside Sparron, rendering Ashe's blush short-lived as a sickly white took over. Knowing Cuthron, he'd only tagged along for a glimpse of Seoth's pretty daughter--never mind the fact that her father would never let her work during a bachelor party--and now he was filling Eleara's void with liquor. Stupid kid.

Jadin reclaimed his arm and shook a finger at him. "Because they're so wonderfully insane that they'd blow your tiny little mind, that's why."

Bernardo snorted. "No, it's just because it was what it looked like. Not much else it could've been, is there?"

Back at the bar counter, Rona's brother Abrich shrugged. "Not from the sounds of it. That reminds me, though--Ashe, why did you tell my sister that you were a virgin?"

...eh?

Casimiro gaped and Setran spat forth his last gulp of ale. A little bewildered, Jadin turned to the bridegroom and stared. He would've guessed Ashe to be the last man who would lie to his betrothed. "Why--?"

But Ashe--embarrassed, maybe a little angry--had focused on Abrich. "She told you?"

Lonriad squinted. "It's true?"

It couldn't have been... could it? This was a man he'd had to teach how to shave, after all. "Ashe?"

Ashe said nothing.

"Well." Bernardo picked a berry off the plate in front of him and popped it into his mouth. "Now I'm really wondering about what happened at the sex pond."

"Christ, enough about the sex pond." That was something Jadin had never thought he'd say. "Can't you see that we have a serious problem here?"

Ashe blinked. "We do?"

"Yes!" Some of the others looked a little confused too. Not that everyone could be an expert, of course, but he'd thought someone might have been able to back him up. Oh well. "Look, you're getting married tomorrow. You're going to have sex with Rona tomorrow. And she's never had sex either, so she'll be expecting that you know what you're doing--and don't say it's all right because she won't know the difference, because women talk.

"And guess who Rona will have been talking to? Her sister, plus Hilla and Riona. Now, Xeta's married to me and... well, I sure knew what I was doing the first time we fucked." Trying to avoid Ashe's scandalized look, he turned to Bernardo. "'Nardo, you're a handsome man; you had a lot of sex before you married Hilla, right?"

Bernardo nodded. "Sure did."

"And Riona's married to Izzy. Is? I realize that yours isn't the most fuckable face out there, but you slept with other girls before Riona, didn't you?"

"Whenever I could afford it."

"See?" He turned back to Ashe, who looked like he was fighting back some nausea. At least he got the gist of it. "Rona's been hearing all of that. Even if she knows you've never done that before, she'll still be expecting all of that."

Ashe swallowed and took to studying the scales of the fish in front of him. "I see."

Poor kid. No man should have looked so put-out on the eve of his wedding. Good thing this had an easy fix. "Seoth! One more round on me."

Nodding, the innkeeper gathered some fresh mugs as the guests exchanged excited smiles. Jadin took the collective moment of distraction as an opportunity to tug at Ashe's sleeve. "I have a plan."

His friend squinted. "What sort of plan?"

"A simple one. After we finish our drinks, I'm taking you to a brothel."

All he got for his trouble was a horrified stare. Most men would have given him a hug for that. Then again, there wasn't much a man could consistently expect from an oddball, and Ashe was about as strange as they came.

"Oh, you're one of those romantic types. Tell you what: we're still going, but you don't have to do anything. Just watch me pleasure the ladies and try to pick up as much as you can. And since we're going to be brothers, I'll even commentate for you. How does that sound?"

"Uh... thank you?"

He didn't sound convinced, but that hardly mattered. Whether Ashe knew it or not, he would be thanking him later.

"You're welcome. But the next time I ask about your home planet, I want some real answers."

NEXT CHAPTER:

In Which Searle Meets the New Addition to the Madhouse

August 16, 1173

"Who's the cutest baby in the world?" Searle cooed as he landed a tickle on the stomach of his freckly, blue-eyed niece. "Is Lyssa the cutest baby in the world? Yes she is! Yes she is!"

Giggling, Lyssa turned away and looked up instead at her doting father. Jadin smirked. "My little girl is so modest."

From the couch, Riona snorted. "How the hell do you have a modest baby?"

"Her mother's a lady, that's how!" Jadin snapped back at her. "Unlike somebody I know. Good luck ever getting married, Ri."

"Oh, because modesty is supposed to land me someone like you? In that case, no thanks."

It had only been a matter of time before this started up again. Searle grimaced, sharing an annoyed glance with the baby. Your papa and auntie are idiots, you know? He got the sense that she did, too.

Jadin lifted his eyes from his daughter just long enough to send a glare Riona's way. "Well, if you can't be modest, then could you at least be quiet? Aldara isn't running her mouth off, in case you haven't noticed."

Their stepsister shuffled in her seat, unamused--and Searle didn't even have to look at her to know that. If ever was a girl with a dagger-like gaze, it was Aldara. "If I seem quiet, it's just because I'm trying to figure out why your tiny brain needs such a giant head to go with it. And why do you care if we're quiet and modest, anyway? It wouldn't be a problem if we were men, would it?"

And it figured that this would be starting up too.

"It's different with men, all right?"

"Oh really? How so?"

"It just is."

"It just is? That's your argument? My God, you're even dumber than--"

"Hello, chowderheads!"

She was cut off by the arrival of Lonriad, obnoxious and insufferable as always, but more than welcome as far as Searle was concerned. He loved his siblings--all of them--but they did make the task difficult, especially with their reoccurring feuds. At least Lonriad was just bothersome for the sake of being bothersome.

"Hello yourself, beetlebrain," muttered Riona under her breath.

Bouncing Lyssa up and down in his hands, Jadin nodded toward their younger brother. "Where the hell have you been, brat?"

Lonriad shrugged and closed the door behind him. "I don't know, but I can tell you where I haven't been. I haven't been egging houses, that's for sure--and especially not Cord's house."

"Awww, does someone's sweetheart have a sweetheart?" Searle teased, but the words were too close to home for his full enjoyment. Sparron had scarcely said a word to him since Lyssa's birth, and now he'd sent his own father off on some fool's errand to find him a wife. He should have thought this through. He'd been so sure he knew what he wanted, but now... well, there was nothing worse than a limbo. Even Sparron at his worst was better than no Sparron at all, and who needed a wife when he had a father who loved him--regardless of everything?

But even in the uncertainty, there was one thing he could count on--namely, that his idiot siblings wouldn't know one of his moods if it waltzed in front of them wearing one of the baroness's magnificent corsets.

"Maybe--but not me. I don't have a sweetheart." Lonriad clasped his hands together and nodded, grinning widely all the while. He always had been a terrible liar. "But no matter. I just thought I'd better let you know that Father's back."

The disarray of Searle's universe snapped back into some semblance of order. For the first time in a week, the smile on his face was more than a charade. But how had his father returned so quickly? This didn't make any sense. "Already?"

"Uh-huh." His little brother's stupid smirk widened. "And guess what he brought back with him?"

Already? "You don't mean..."

Lonriad nodded. "She's in the front with everyone else. Cuthron's putting the moves on her, by the way; you might want to get in there."

He winked, then turned around and pulled open the door, stepping out with Jadin at his heels and the girls close behind. Searle hung back aways--partly to shut the door, partly to avoid the mutterings of "I still can't believe he asked for a betrothal" and "I still can't believe Father actually agreed to it" and "I still can't believe you idiots are my family". His siblings were good about being supportive when they knew he could hear them, but they didn't understand--not that he wanted them to. Understanding would require knowing.

"Ah, there you kids are!" Sure enough, it was his father's voice he heard as he filed into the front room behind the others. "Now all of my babies are here. All eight thousand of them. Oh, sorry--" As Searle filed in after Jadin, his father's hand fluttered toward his stepmother's stomach "--eight thousand and one."

By the corner bookshelf, Falidor hoisted little Alina to his shoulder and looked across the room, his eyes landing squarely on a redhead with her back turned toward the newcomers. "Eight thousand and two."

Searle's heart shot upwards and wedged itself in his throat. Was this... her? He would have called out to her if it hadn't been for that rapid pulse beating against his vocal cords. All he could do was jerk the corners of his mouth upwards on the off-chance she turned around.

"She has a nice ass," Jadin whispered back to him, sending a wary glance his wife's way as he spoke. After a quick look, Searle couldn't argue with him. He'd forgotten how pleasant the female form could be; he'd been so devoted to Sparron for so long that he'd hardly allowed himself to look and felt guilty whenever he did. But yes... yes, she did have a nice...

"Anyway, I hope you children didn't get into too much mischief while I was gone." Searle's father pried his free hand from Nora's midsection and waved an accusing finger toward Riona. "Your stepmother has already informed me of the bakery incident, young lady."

Annoyed, Riona turned away from him, her eyes rolling so far back that all Searle could see were whites and vessels. Jadin snorted. "What is this 'bakery incident'?"

Their father shook his head. "I'll let your sister answer that at her own convenience. Lettie, my apologies once more for bringing you back to this madhouse."

The redhead laughed--clearly, heartily, not trying to be charming be achieving it nonetheless. It was a relief to hear the sound. Sparron never laughed if he could help it. "No worries, Uncle Severin. Besides, you promised me my own castle after a few months, and damned if I'm going to let you back out of that deal."

Raia and Lonriad shared an appreciative glance. Their father pulled his wife a little nearer and chuckled.

"Lettie, might I remind you that the castle is only an accessory?" He laced his arm under Nora's knees and hoisted her onto his lap, grinning to himself all the while. "It and my son are something of a package deal."

"Yes, and at least he sounds agreeable--not to mention, interesting."

Interesting? Searle gulped. Surely he hadn't told her...

"Of course, he might need to prove it by speaking up at some point." She placed her hand on Searle's stepbrother's head, turning his gaze away from her breasts; if not even a kid who was still in his 'girls are icky' phase was immune to them, then they must have been impressive. "You said he was a lot of things, but you never mentioned him being shy."

At the side of the room, Raia caught Searle's eye and nodded her head toward the newcomer, Alina following suit from Falidor's arms. Awkward, Searle looked toward his father, who winked. "Well? Stop standing there like a piece of furniture and go talk to her."

Transferring his daughter to a one-arm hold, Jadin reached back and grabbed Searle by the shoulder, pulling him forward. Searle brushed off his hand and shuffled toward the girl, who turned to face him. She wasn't quite pretty--freckly and strong-jawed and hard-eyed--but there was an undeniable something about her that robbed him of any desire to look away. Only one other person had ever captivated him so. "Uh... hello."

"Hello yourself." She tilted her head to the side, all the room's light catching her eyes at the most rapturous of angles. She had the same blue eyes as Xeta, but it was unbelievable just how different they looked on her. "I take it you're Searle?"

He nodded. A hint of a smile on her face, she thrust out her hand and held it toward his mouth, not letting it drop until he'd left it good and kissed. "I'm Lettie. You might remember me from the royal wedding."

He did now. She was his cousin, his Aunt Renata's daughter, sister to the current squire and the former squire and Lorn's squire as well. Her brothers probably didn't know her all that well, but he guessed they would get the chance to do so now. At least... as long as she...

Without warning, she took him by the hand and dragged him toward the door to his father's study. "I think we have a lot to talk about."

NEXT CHAPTER:

In Which Nora Answers with a Question

March 30, 1165

Given the circumstances, Nora was surprised at how at ease Alsina seemed with the two-day-old twins, but then again, perhaps it was a relief for her to be around a pair of small people who were so new to the world that they couldn't even sense that anything was out of the ordinary. The poor babies, born during such a time of turmoil for the family--their father's recent death, their aunt's encounter that could very well have been rape for all anyone knew. At the very least, she supposed that things could only get better for them now.

At least, she hoped that things could only get better for them now.

"They certainly do like you," she tried to assure her younger sister as she eased the older of the twins, Ceira, to her shoulder, "and the older two miss you, you know. I hope you realize that you're welcome to visit whenever you like."

Alsina nodded. "I know. Thank you."

Nora locked eyes with baby Ceira, then smiled and gently placed her in her crib with a quick kiss on the forehead. Behind her, Alsina did the same with Esela. She then trudged away, the hem of her dress leaving a just-noticeable trail on the somewhat dusty floor. Cuthron clutched at his aunt's skirts as she brushed past him on her way to the couch, but she paid him no notice; pouting, he turned back to his toy ark.

It was heartbreaking, just watching the girl. She had easily been the most spirited of the five children, more rambunctious and irrepressibly wild than Nora and their three brothers combined. Their mother had always laughed and claimed it would be cold day in hell before anything ever stalled Alsina; Nora had never been so grateful that where their good, kind mother was, she could not test that theory.

Shaking her head, she crossed the room to the couch, stopping only to ruffle her son's hair. She took a seat on the couch next to her sister, then grabbed the girl's hand and gave it a light squeeze. "So... how are things?"

Her question was met with silence. For a good minute, all she could hear was Cuthron's playful banter between Noah and the animals, the wife lying abandoned on the other side of the ark.

Even that ceased shortly. Cuthron took to squirming in indignation as he realized that neither his mother nor his aunt was speaking. "Auntie Sina?"

Nora closed her eyes; she was proud that her son was a bright young child, but she might have preferred that he hadn't picked up on this uncomfortable tension. "Go back to your toys, love."

One eye still on the little boy, she glanced toward Alsina once more. Her sister's hands were in her lap, the fingers on her right fidgeting with the wedding band on her left. It was twisted upwards... downwards... upwards... Nora could no longer stand to watch it. At last, Alsina let the ring slide back into position, then sighed.

"I lost it."

The neutrality of her voice invoked a sudden dryness in Nora's mouth. What could she say to this? 'I'm sorry'? 'Congratulations'? Either one seemed fitting--similarly, either one seemed most shockingly inappropriate.

Indeed, the only way she could think to answer was with a question. "Uh... have you seen Arydath?"

Alsina nodded. "I saw her yesterday. She was very helpful."

Nora frowned. "Does Aldhein know?"

"Uh... not exactly."

She raised an eyebrow; Alsina was not known for giving such vague answers, but perhaps that had only been the Alsina of Old. "What do you mean, 'not exactly'?"

The younger girl shrugged. "Well... no 'exactly', I guess. He doesn't know."

"I see," muttered Nora, absent-mindedly curling a lock of hair around her finger. "What are you going to tell him?"

Alsina took a moment to think about it, then answered, "Maybe he just won't notice."

In a more clearly positive situation, she might have laughed. "Believe me, dear, he'll notice. You have to tell him."

"He's not exactly attentive," Alsina mumbled, her voice both hopeful and resigned.

"Regardless, he still has to know."

Again, she took her time. They sat there for quite a while, their eyes fixed on the wall in front of them, until Alsina finally found something more to say.

"What can I do if he loses his reason for putting up with me?"

NEXT CHAPTER:

In Which Nora Finds Them Waiting

July 12, 1164

"Mama's home!" exclaimed Cuthron as he tottered toward Nora and leapt eagerly into her arms.

"Mama's home," she repeated, hoisting her son to her shoulder, "and you should be in bed. What are you doing up?"

The boy's sister waved from the couch, a matter-of-face grin on her face. "Papa said we could wait up for you."

Nora raised an eyebrow, her gaze shifting to her husband, who occupied himself with the fire in the hearth. "Oh really? Now why on earth would Papa say something like that?"

Sighing, Jothein gave the fire a few last prods before setting the poker back into place. "Because their Auntie Alsina has no tact, that's why--got them all worked up about everything that's been happening in the forests lately, she did."

That did sound like something her thoughtless sister would do. Nora scowled. "Remind me to smack that girl the next time I see her. You know, I almost wish Aldhein would indulge that silly crush of hers, just so she would have an outlet for her antics who happens to be over the age of five and a half."

"Well, I'll probably be seeing him tomorrow--I'll tell him you're eager to have him for a brother-in-law."

Her unchanged vision was the only indication that her bulging eyes had not popped straight from their sockets. "Hey! I didn't say that!"

Jothein merely chuckled, ignoring her annoyed glare. Shaking her head, Nora turned to their daughter. "Bedtime, sweetheart."

Aldara didn't so much as blink, which struck Nora as unusual; she was normally a rather fidgety child. "Mama... you didn't ride home by yourself, did you?"

What had Alsina said to them? She would have to ask Jothein for the specifics once the children were asleep. "I rode home with Uncle Falidor, of course, so you know I wasn't on my own for very long--you can see his house from ours, remember?"

The five-year-old didn't seem convinced. "You didn't go through any forests?"

Nora shook her head. Then, with a grin, she teased, "Even if we did, you know I'm scarier than anything in the forests."

"Amen to that," Jothein laughed as stepped toward her, "but don't worry, my babies--Mama knows not to go riding alone these days."

Still, Cuthron buried his face in Nora's hair, as though afraid she might suddenly disappear. "Mama."

"Mama's here," she assured him with a smile, "Mama's here, and you're getting to big to hold, you know that? My back's starting to hurt."

Giggling, her son wrapped his arms around her neck, then began to bounce squeamishly. "Down!"

Nora had to laugh. "First you want hugs, now you want space. You're a little young yet for mood swings, son."

"But he's getting older every day," mused Jothein as Nora set him on the ground.

"You really think so, Aristotle?"

He casually flicked a lock of her hair over her shoulder. "You and your sister are two of a kind."

"I should hope not," she protested, shuddering. "Not that I imagine either of us is as docile and ladylike as our dear mother would have hoped."

"I imagine your brothers more than compensate for the two of you in docility."

A fact she could not argue, she mused as Jothein gently ran the side of his hand down her face. "It's true that there is no gentler woman in all the land than Falidor."

"And yet, I hope you did the ungentlemanly thing and made him see you to the door of your house," Jothein mused.

Nora frowned. "I most certainly did not; I'll have you know that I was a perfect gentleman, and personally saw him to his door. I do know my brother, and he needs my protection more than I need his."

Shaking his head, her husband planted a quick kiss upon her forehead. "Darling, please--for my own peace of mind. Let him see you to the door from now on, all right?"

Indignant, she dug the toe of her shoe into the skirt of her dress. "Jothein..."

"Please," he echoed firmly, a seriousness in his eyes that she had only ever seen in the event of a death. "We need you."

NEXT CHAPTER: