Page 22

Clean and dry and dressed once more, they headed across the corridor to Molun and Arvus’s room.

“I thought you might like to try somewhere that wasn’t our rooms,” Brannal said as he knocked on the door and then pushed it open.

It had become very clear that these three didn’t stand on much ceremony with one another.

Their rooms weren’t quite as large as Brannal’s, but they were still of a decent size. In addition to having books, a desk, and comfortable chairs in front of the fire like Brannal did, Molun and Arvus also had a lot of plants arranged on stands by the windows and also peppered throughout the room. There was a seascape hanging over the fireplace, there were wind chimes hanging from the ceiling and—Perian peered closer. Yes, that was definitely a fountain in the corner, because there was the sound of trickling water.

“Are you doing that?” Perian asked, gesturing towards the fountain.

Molun grinned. “Yup. It’s nice, right?”

He looked so proud of himself.

“Extremely nice,” Perian assured him. “Thank you for going to so much trouble.”

Dinner had been laid out at the table, candles lit in lieu of lamps—Perian assumed for the ambiance—and everything looked lovely.

“Thank you for having us,” he said.

“I promised to buy you dinner, didn’t I?” Molun said, grinning at him.

Brannal groaned.

“Does this actually count?” Perian questioned. “It looks a lot more like asking the kitchen staff to prepare something. Did you even bring it up here, or did they do all the work?”

Molun pouted, and Arvus suggested that they all actually sit down and eat, or they’d never get past the flirting.

“That’s the most fun part,” Molun said, but he did sit down with the rest of them.

Perian scoffed. “Not at all. The most fun part is you telling me immediately and in full detail about what I hear was a disastrous attempt for the three of you to elevate your relationship.” Perian even waggled his eyebrows theatrically.

Molun burst into laughter, Brannal groaned, and Arvus just looked amused.

“Why? Why are you like this?” Brannal wanted to know, but he couldn’t quite hide his amusement.

Just as Perian had known he would, Molun launched into a highly colorful detailing of their encounter. Occasionally, Brannal would intercede with an objection—generally in the order of, “It absolutely did not happen like that!”—and Arvus would make a quiet correction that deflected a little bit of Molun’s absurdity and got them back on track. But it was a story full of affection, and Perian nudged Brannal’s leg with his own. Brannal nudged him back, so Perian was pretty sure he wasn’t actually upset. For all they were friends—or maybe because they were—Perian was quite sure Brannal could shut them down if he needed to.

Perian had hoped that just this sort of silly story would set them all at ease and would reassure them that there was nothing they needed to hide. Oh, Perian didn’t think he was suddenly going to be caught up in a matter of days to years of friendship, but he hoped they could get past anything that was big and gaping so they all felt comfortable. The three of them made sure to ask him questions that were designed to keep him included in the conversation.

Molun’s flirting was over the top, but he didn’t try to take it further. Arvus was watching him and Brannal a little more quietly, and Perian suspected he was still making sure that everything from yesterday had been resolved.

That was one thing about living here in the castle—or maybe just being Perian here in the castle. When he stopped and thought about how long he’d been here, it really wasn’t that many days. It felt as though so much had happened and his life had changed completely . But it had been barely two weeks.

Wow.

Brannal nudged him, and Perian looked up to see they were all looking at him, a bit concerned, probably, given that he’d just gotten lost in his head.

“Sorry,” he apologized. “I just realized I’ve only been here for a couple of weeks. A lot has happened in that time.”

They all stared at him for a moment, like everyone was doing math in their head.

“Huh,” Arvus said simply.

“Feels like you’ve been here forever,” Molun said cheerfully.

From him, it sounded like a compliment.

“I’m glad you agreed to stay,” Brannal told him.

The sweetness of the sentiment almost overrode the fact they still hadn’t really talked about what that meant .

Perian had agreed to stay, and they’d originally said “to explore what was between them.” But that definitely didn’t give any sort of certainty. Not that there was any certainty in life. But… would Perian be here in another week? All right, he was pretty sure the answer to that was yes—they’d talked about Brannal being gone in a few weeks. But what about in a month? Six months? A year?

He wanted everything figured out, but of course, they’d actually only known one another for a couple of weeks, and Perian had been pretty out of it for almost half that time. It probably was too early to make any sort of decisions about the future, and Perian feared it was too early to even ask about the future. But he… he really did want . He wanted this more than he thought he probably should given that aforementioned “only a couple of weeks” detail.

How long did it take until you knew? Perian’s father had always said he fell in love with Perian’s mother immediately, that he’d known right away. That had made perfect sense to Perian as a child, but as he’d grown up, he’d come to think it was a bit of romantic smoothing over of details and reality.

Now, he wasn’t so sure. Maybe it had been outside of his experience before. He wouldn’t go quite so far as to say love at first sight, but as Perian got to know Brannal, a strong attraction and a desire for so much more had sprung up very quickly.

He’d asked his father once if it was worth loving his mother, knowing now that he was going to lose her so soon. His father had assured him all the loss was well worth it for the moments they had together, that the memories sustained him.

That was not exactly the future Perian wanted, but… perhaps it was a future he could live with if he enjoyed his time here with Brannal to its maximum. Maybe it wasn’t a lifetime kind of feeling; it was hard to judge that. But it was fueling what the two of them were experiencing right here and right now. It was fueling heated encounters, soft moments, long chats, and even misunderstandings, fights and anger—but also the willingness to work them out, to keep trying, to strive for more.

Maybe it wouldn’t be years and years. But even years and years had to start somewhere, and Perian really liked this beginning.

Brannal squeezed Perian’s shoulder.

“You’re quiet,” he murmured.

Perian had lapsed again, and Molun and Arvus were politely discussing something as Brannal got his attention.

“Sorry,” Perian apologized. “Still trying to wrap my brain around only having been here for a couple of weeks. And I’m not sure the time I spent in your bed should count.”

“I think that time should definitely count,” Molun put in, proving he was listening after all.

“The injured time,” Perian qualified. “I’m counting all the sex twice.”

Molun snorted, and Brannal and Arvus rolled their eyes.

“Speaking of the sex—” Molun started.

“Here we go,” Brannal said, sounding resigned but amused.

“Very subtle, baby,” Arvus told him.

“—what’s the most unusual sex you’ve ever had?”

Perian eyed him. “Out of curiosity, what is the purpose of this question? Are you trying to make me or Brannal uncomfortable, or is this an audition?”

Molun crowed with laughter, and even Brannal let out a huff of amusement.

“Inquiring minds want to know,” Molun told him, eyes sparkling.

“I’m very sorry to disappoint you,” Perian said, “but I haven’t had very unusual sex.”

“We can fix that,” Molun volunteered.

“I mean, my father and I lived in the country on a relatively secluded estate, and there wasn’t really anyone around for me to have sex with.”

Molun sat up straight, looking alarmed. “ No one?”

The rest of the table cracked grins at how disturbed he looked at this prospect.

“Not everyone came to a castle full of hot people when they were sixteen, Molun,” Arvus pointed out.

“When did you have sex, then?” Molun demanded.

He seemed genuinely distressed by the idea of this lack in Perian’s education.

“When I was sixteen, actually,” Perian admitted. “No castle, but my father brought me to town.”

“And you sneaked away to have sex!” Molun crowed triumphantly.

“Not at all.” Lip curling, Perian teased, “It was even better.”

Molun leaned closer, biting his lip. “I am on tenterhooks.”

“My father brought me to a house of pleasure, actually.”

Molun practically fell out of his chair. “No!”

Perian hummed an affirmative. “He knew there weren’t options near our home, and he wanted to make sure I understood what sex was, figured out what I liked, and knew how to have it safely and happily. My introduction into the world of shared physical pleasure was very thorough.”

Molun blinked twice. “Wow. Your father sounds awesome.”

Perian smiled, a little sad, but mostly happy with the fond memories. “He really was. He tried his very best to raise me well. I think it was sometimes hard on his own, but he always insisted he was happy to do it. When I was little, he came to the city on his own, but once he thought I was old enough, he brought me as well.”

“I don’t think any stories can top that,” Molun said with a contented sigh.

“But you’re going to tell them anyway.” Perian was sure.

Molun grinned at him. “Of course.”

Brannal snorted and rolled his eyes, but he looked fond. Arvus just looked indulgent.

So then Perian learned about everyone’s first time, starting with Molun’s very vivid account of a neighboring boy and the stables before he had discovered the joy of the variety here in the castle. Arvus had also come from a small town, though not as isolated as Perian, and he hadn’t actually had sex until he arrived at the castle at the ripe age of eighteen.

“And was instantly smitten with me,” Molun said proudly.

Perian eyed them. “Wait, so you’re—”

“His first,” Molun declared proudly. “And ever since then, we have thoroughly enjoyed figuring out every single thing that we like together.”

They shared a smile that was more affectionate than sexual. Perian was so glad they’d found one another. And maybe a little bit envious. He wanted to be as established as these two were. But their story was a reminder that they, too, had started somewhere and grown into this.

And then they all looked at Brannal, who looked mostly resigned and a bit embarrassed.

“It’s probably better that you know,” he told Perian, “but I don’t want you to think it has any impact on the present.”

“All right,” Perian said, confused.

Brannal sighed. “You actually… sort of guessed earlier? It was just young adults playing around, it was never really anything.”

And the funniest, most objectionable person popped into Perian’s head.

“No,” he breathed. “Your first? Seriously?”

Brannal groaned. “Like I said, we were young. He was sixteen; I was eighteen. We spent a lot of time together since we both needed to get our fire under control. It was kind of… explosive?”

And Perian was lost in peals of laughter. Brannal seemed embarrassed by it now, so Perian really couldn’t be worried there was an underlying attraction left on Brannal’s side. He still couldn’t get a clear enough read on what Cormal was feeling, but if the feelings had been stronger on Cormal’s side than on Brannal’s, it might explain a bit about what was going on now.

Still, though. Brannal was thirty. It had been twelve years. If it was still lingering possessiveness or desire on Cormal’s part, it was time to get over it.

Perian was still laughing to himself as Brannal told him it wasn’t that funny.

“It’s so funny,” Perian muttered, but then he cleared his throat and attempted to be more supportive. “Seriously, though, I get that you were both young, and I didn’t mean to mock your first time.”

Perian might not like Cormal, but he didn’t mean to be an ass about this.

Brannal smiled faintly. “Thank you. We both enjoyed ourselves at the time, but it’s something I’d prefer to leave in the past.”

Perian couldn’t deny that he’d be just as happy not discussing Brannal and Cormal being together.

“I still don’t get it,” Molun said with a shake of his head.

Amused, Perian said, “So he’s not about to be invited into your bed?”

Molun shivered and raised a hand, allowing a tiny stream of water to flow into the cup in front of him.

“I’m water, he’s fire. We don’t really… mix.”

“Does it actually work like that?” Perian asked curiously.

Molun nodded his head emphatically, but the other two looked less certain.

“Not… exactly?” Brannal answered finally.

Arvus said, “Most people are not at all surprised to learn I can control earth.”

Arvus was solid and steady, so Perian nodded.

“And I am as excitable and flighty as my elements,” Molun offered.

Perian frowned. “But that’s not all you are.”

Brannal nodded. “Exactly. I think everyone here would agree that Cormal has a temper and seems like he’s a very standard fiery hothead. But would you describe Delana as excitable or willing to go with the flow?”

“I would describe Delana as a mountain,” Perian said promptly.

Brannal’s lips tipped up. “Exactly. You could perhaps describe her as very still, very deep water.”

“Or the undertow that will drag you under,” Molun suggested.

Yes, that worked too, but Perian got it now.

“But now you’re just finding ways to use their element to describe their personality.”

“Exactly,” Brannal agreed, smiling at him. “It’s possible there’s a certain broad affiliation and also that there are exceptions to the rule. It’s equally possible that people see what they want to see and discard the rest. It’s even possible the people themselves, consciously or unconsciously, conform to expectations.”

“Ooh,” Perian said, not having considered that. “You mean Cormal could have learned to control his temper better, but everyone expected him to be a fiery hothead, so he just went with it?”

Brannal shrugged. “I’m just saying it’s possible.”

It was an interesting idea, and they spent several more minutes going through Mage Warriors, seeing whether they matched their element or not, coming up with more outlandish ways to make them match, and then conceding it was probably complete nonsense and laughing into their cups.

“This has been really nice,” Perian told them. “I really appreciate that you were open to this.”

“Of course,” Molun said with a wink. “We’re open to lots of things.”

Brannal rolled his eyes, and Perian snorted because he’d kind of walked right into that one.

“Seriously, though,” Arvus said, “we’re very happy to have dinner with you anytime you like. Or to go into the city or dance in empty ballrooms, whatever you want.”

“Thank you,” Perian said at the same time Molun said, “Oh, can we?”

This led, naturally, to them pushing the table out of the way and attempting to dance around the room. Arvus started humming, having already learned that lesson once with Perian, and Perian ended up in Brannal’s arms and made sure to apologize in advance. He did his best to put into practice what he had learned with Arvus, to let Brannal lead and to trust his body. It was actually really nice, and with Brannal leading, he didn’t have to worry about running into any of the furniture or into Molun and Arvus as they swung around the room.

“This is lovely,” Perian said, looking into Brannal’s eyes and letting the hum of attraction between them guide him. It felt like an intangible force connected them together.

Brannal smiled back. “It’s very nice. It’s why you can’t get rid of Molun. Despite all the absurdity, he still manages to come up with good ideas from time to time.”

“I heard that,” Molun called out.

“You were meant to,” Brannal called back.

It was the perfect way to end the evening. They made it through the equivalent of what was probably two or three more songs before Arvus said that was enough humming for the moment, and the evening broke up.

Molun proved that he could read a room, because he thanked them both for coming but didn’t actually renew the invitation to their bed. Perian was confident both that it was there unspoken and that it would be repeated later, but he appreciated that Molun had allowed the soft contentment to end the evening. Perian and Brannal headed back to Brannal’s rooms arm in arm.

“Thank you for thinking of that,” Brannal said once they were inside.

“I guess it’s really not that strange now that I realize it’s only been a couple of weeks,” Perian admitted, “but I feel like there’s so many people I’ve only started to get to know. This, uh, made me feel like I belonged, let me get to know them better.”

“They’re good people,” Brannal said with a nod. “Ridiculous sometimes, of course, but good.”

Perian grinned. “Yes, I noticed that. But I really do like them.”

“Good,” Brannal said, hands slipping to Perian’s hips.

“I also really like you,” Perian pointed out, allowing himself to be tugged closer.

“Even better,” Brannal said. His eyes were warm. “And you most definitely belong.”

He swooped in for a kiss.

Perian melted into the embrace and wrapped his arms around Brannal’s neck, bringing the proceedings to a halt because he’d forgotten that one of his arms had been burned.

There was nothing like a hiss of pain to mess things up.

“It’s fine,” Perian hastened to say.

“We should change the bandage and reapply the salve,” Brannal told him.

Perian frowned. “Well, we should do that, yes, but weren’t we in the middle of something?”

Brannal’s eyebrow raised. “Don’t you remember what happened last time we changed the bandage?”

Oh, right. Perian grinned at him. “True.”

So that was exactly what they did. They stripped, carefully unbandaged and cleaned Perian’s healing burn, and by the time they had it all bandaged up again, they were both thoroughly aroused.

“I think you should get on the bed,” Brannal said.

Perian got on the bed.

Brannal eyed him. “Now, we wouldn’t want to injure your arm, would we?”

Perian shook his head.

“I think you should reach your arms up and hold onto the bed frame so you don’t move your hands or arms. What do you think?”

Perian thought that was an excellent idea. His cock, jutting proudly, with pre-come now dribbling from the head, definitely agreed. Brannal smirked at him and then crawled onto the bed on all fours, caging Perian in.

“Do you think you can keep your hands there?”

Perian nodded.

And then, because Brannal was definitely a tease, he proceeded to kiss and lick and nibble all over Perian… except where he most wanted to be touched. Not that it wasn’t delightful in the other locations because it really was, but he didn’t just want to feel Brannal’s tongue flicking at his nipple or his teeth grazing along his inner thigh or a kiss pressed to the sole of his foot.

Every time Perian forgot himself and took his hands off the headboard, Brannal stopped what he was doing and just eyed him until he put them back.

It was endlessly frustrating.

And desperately, astonishingly arousing.

Perian lasted an embarrassingly short amount of time when Brannal finally wrapped his mouth around Perian’s cock. He surged forward, spurting helplessly before his body went lax.

“You are the best,” Perian mumbled at him.

Brannal laughed. “Thank you.”

Perian hissed as he finally released his hands and moved his arm, which of course alarmed Brannal.

“Are you all right?”

“M’fine,” Perian told him, sitting up. “Just bending the elbow and getting the blood circulating again.”

Brannal frowned. “I thought that was a good idea.”

“That was the best idea,” Perian told him promptly.

“I don’t want you to be hurt,” Brannal said softly.

“I still need to move my arm sometimes,” Perian reminded him practically. “Stop worrying so much.”

“I always worry about you.”

Perian was going to take that as a sign of affection rather than an insult.

“In this case, your worry is unwarranted. I would never be so bold as to assume you never need to worry about me again.”

And Brannal huffed a laugh, finally.

“Now,” Perian said, glad the mood had lightened. “What are we going to do about you?”

“Nothing that hurts your arm,” Brannal said promptly.

“We’ll cross hand job off the list for the moment,” Perian conceded. “I don’t think you want me to try it with my left hand.”

Brannal’s lip curled up.

“Blow job?” Perian offered. “I can do that without my hands.”

Brannal eyed him for a long moment, and then he rolled onto his back and looked up at where Perian was sitting on the bed beside him.

“What if you climbed up here?” he asked. He seemed almost… shy? “Would you like that?”

“So much,” Perian answered immediately. “At the risk of being obnoxious, I feel the need to ask anyway. Are you sure?”

But Brannal was looking at him with clear dark eyes full of hunger and warmth, a combination Perian was growing increasingly fond of.

“I’m sure,” Brannal told him. “There are still some things I need to figure out, but I’m positive that I want this. That I want you.”

Perian straddled him and then leaned down to give him a kiss, soft and warm.

“I want you too. So very much. And if I can do anything—or need to not do something—just let me know.”

“You can get the oil,” Brannal said, waving a hand towards the side of the bed.

His eyes were still bright and intent, so while he was clearly sidestepping Perian’s comment, he didn’t mind. Brannal had already said he was still working through this, and if Perian had his way, they’d have a long time to learn everything about one another. There was no need to rush, as long as they were both comfortable right now.

Perian retrieved the oil. He’d always been a bit impatient with this step, but he still remembered the advice he’d received from the owner of the house of pleasure when he was sixteen: preparation was important if you didn’t like discomfort, and most partners were solicitous. He slicked up Brannal’s cock and then used his messy fingers to quickly stretch himself, though he already knew Brannal’s cock would fit and feel wonderful. He remembered to put the vial back on the cabinet and not risk spilling it all over the bed.

He lined the two of them up and bore down. The head of Brannal’s cock breached him, and Brannal sucked in a sharp breath, fingers moving to clutch at Perian’s hips. Perian smiled as he drove himself down. He paused when he was fully seated, Brannal buried as far inside him as it was possible to get, filling him perfectly.

“You feel so good,” Perian groaned out.

“I was going to say that,” Brannal said, sounding a little breathless, and Perian loved that he’d been the one to make that happen.

“Everything’s all right?” Perian confirmed, because things had been good last time until they hadn’t been good at all.

“More than all right,” Brannal agreed, smiling at him, eyes soft. He squeezed Perian’s hips. “It’s wonderful, Perian, truly.”

Reassured, Perian lifted himself almost all the way off Brannal’s cock and then drove himself down again, reveling in the sensation of being filled by Brannal over and over again, the feelings seeming to peak higher and higher every time. Perian loved it, and from the sounds Brannal was making, he loved it too. Perian enjoyed it so much that his cock rose to the occasion once again. He scrutinized Brannal carefully, wanting to make sure he didn’t miss any signs of discomfort. Happily, there was nothing but pleasure in Brannal’s expression, growing more and more pronounced until he stiffened and came buried inside Perian, which prompted Perian to spurt all over Brannal’s chest.

Basking in the feeling of bliss, Perian slumped over said chest, collapsing on top of Brannal who let out a murmur of satisfaction. It was everything he’d wanted the first time, and he was so relieved there’d been no uncertainty or upset this time.

“Was that all right?” he questioned, just to make sure.

“That was amazing,” Brannal assured him, voice raspy and content. “It was so good.”

Perian was so glad. His body was buzzing, simultaneously invigorated and completely sated. It was the most perfect feeling.

He managed to wipe them a little bit clean and then curled up on top of Brannal, tugging a blanket over them. Brannal slung an arm over him, and Perian settled more firmly against him with a happy sigh, wishing that every day could be as good as this one.

He still wanted to learn how to defend himself. Cormal was dealt with for the moment, but Perian didn’t delude himself that everything was resolved between them. Renny still thought her dead brother was by her side constantly, and there seemed to be no good way to prove if that was true. And Perian still didn’t have permanent plans here.

But wrapped up in Brannal’s arms, both of them sated and happy, everything felt possible. Perian might not know what was coming, but he knew this was a future he wanted to fight for.