Chapter 27 #2
Then he went on, steady and reliably there.
“First, you’re my brother. You get my best work.
Not least because you really were a good egg about things with Hypatia early on.
Second, you should get to be happy. Third, Cammie is going to have the laugh of her life when she figures out you’re dating someone just like me.
” He hesitated for just a second there, and then bulled on.
“I would like, strategically speaking, to have things as stable as possible before she gets her teeth into it. Telling her and Hypatia at supper?”
Claudio nodded. “You first. Always. Besides, got a specific thing that will have her laughing.” He flicked his fingers. “Do the rest of the strategy then, who to tell in what order?” Orion nodded agreeably at it, then Claudio pressed the point. “Orion, why’d you hesitate?”
“Oh.” He turned a little pink. “Claudio, um. Does this mean you think I’m attractive?”
It was not a question that Claudio had ever considered in quite that light.
He sat with it for a minute. It wouldn’t help to rush.
Finally, he said, “He’s like you in a lot of ways.
I don’t know that it’s looks entirely, though turns out I certainly like his looks?
But I think maybe there’s a lot of me who wants someone who shares things with you.
Loyal, determined, entirely competent in the things he does.
Wide-ranging interests, the conversations have just been superb?
Who cares about doing it right, whatever that takes. That part? Very attractive, turns out.”
“And while Electra is in fact quite competent at her actual interests, and I’ll grant her loyal, none of that spark.” Orion shrugged. “Shall we go up and see the ladies?”
Claudio hopped off the wall. “Yeah.” He shook his head. “I don’t actually know if he duels these days. I did look up his records. He took both Protective and Martial magics, but he was doing logistics in the war.”
“Mmm. Give him a chance to brush off his skills then. Played bohort, I remember that, quite decently.” They packed up their things and walked up to the house together. Claudio went to wash and change.
When he came back down, Orion had been lurking by his office on the ground floor.
He fell into step behind Claudio as they went out to the terrace, where Cammie was gesticulating at Hypatia, articulating some particularly arcane detail of locational magic.
Any other day, Claudio would have thrown himself into the conversation as soon as he’d found his bearings.
Now, he just waited until she came to the end of a paragraph and looked up.
“So, Cammie. About broom closets?” She was quick off the mark, but he went on without giving her a chance to interrupt. “I see what you mean about being the one to bang your elbow on the broom handle. Also, the appeal.”
Both her eyebrows went up as she yipped in excitement and flung herself out of her chair.
She instantly turned into a stoat— now in her summer coat, all soft browns against the white stomach.
Then she skittered in a circle around him before he could feel her claws against his thigh.
He leaned down to give her arm up, and waited as she prowled from the crook of his elbow across the back of his shoulders, down the other arm, and back onto the ground.
Then she popped up again, entirely human. “Recently, too.”
He would not ask what she’d picked up by smell.
He had more sense. She’d absolutely tell him.
Also, he’d had three baths since Tuesday night, but he wouldn’t put much past her.
He took a breath and said. “I’m seeing Matty Lawson.
Matthew to you all, unless he says otherwise, please.
We’ve got a lot we’ve got to sort out. I want your help and ideas with that, please?
” The last bit was a hair more plaintive than he’d wanted.
But then Orion was clapping him firmly on the shoulder before going to pour drinks for both of them and eyeing whether Hypatia and Cammie needed a refill.
Hypatia tilted her head. “How recent? And how long have you had to get to know him?”
“The broom closet— and then his flat— were Tuesday. I was out all day yesterday and most of today. And we’ve been going for a drink for a couple of months now, after the Tuesday meeting.
” She knew Matty was running it. Claudio had talked about the various bits a few times.
Both because it was highly relevant to Hypatia’s professional interests, and because she’d helped him figure out how to approach a couple of shortages sensibly.
“Right. Sit down, start from the beginning.” Cammie went back to perch on the arm of the chair she’d been sitting on. “Good gods, when you do a thing, you do it thoroughly. And fast!” She sounded entirely approving. “When do we get to meet him in these new circumstances?”
Claudio glanced at Hypatia, who was technically the one who got to decide this, being the lady of the house here.
“I was going to say next Thursday, if it wouldn’t put anyone out, but maybe the Saturday would be better if we can manage it?
He wouldn’t have to work in the morning, and I’m not on call that night.
We could go late if we wanted. I can’t this week, I’m on call. ”
She tilted her head, obviously mentally reviewing six calendars and the current nanny scheduling, as well as the plans for food. “Saturday would be quite convenient, actually. Achilles was going to be out, and Eleanor mentioned supper with friends, too. Bring him, please. But more details, yes.”
Claudio took a deep breath, reached for the glass that Orion was holding near his hand. He started at the beginning, as much as he could, with what he’d learned about Matty so far. It came out to a tidy amount, which carried through to actually sitting down for supper.
Supper involved sorting out the strategy for who to tell and how to get Matty to meet the key people.
Not Mother, obviously. Everyone agreed on that.
But Thesan and Isembard, Claudio desperately wanted their approval.
The Edgartons, singly and communally. They had an excellent eye for people, and if they had worries, better to know now.
The rest of it focused on the larger stage of Albion, which none of them quite knew how to tackle yet.
As Orion pointed out, it was fundamentally a joint project, and Matty ought to get to have opinions about a lot of it.
They were, however, fascinated by what Claudio had learned about Hereswith Rowan and others on the Council who had walked at least a similar sort of path in the past.
By the time they split up for the evening, Claudio didn’t have many more solid answers. But he was absolutely clear that his friends— his brother, but all of them— had his back. They would be there and would bring every one of their considerable skills to helping this work out.