Chapter 54
A Brotherly Beckoning
“Alright. Asher has sworn to at least five different people he will never bring bedbugs inside ever again. Antony is helping Luca learn the sword, and both Charlie and Penelope are studying together.” Tam closed the door to the Austice castle library behind himself as he spoke without looking at the lone occupant in the room.
“Eli just went for a nap, and I am going to sit with a cup of coffee and read my book. So Kat, don’t even think about—”
“Hi, Tam.”
Tam jolted and swung around to find Eric standing in front of the couches with one hand stowed in his pocket. He was clean-shaven, and his curling dirty-blond hair freshly washed. He wore a loose white tunic, with a long dark-brown velour coat to stave off the draft of the room, and tan pants.
Tam gaped at the king, then scanned the room to see if his sister or any other council members were present.
“Mind taking a seat so we can talk?” Eric asked while giving a halfhearted gesture at the couches behind himself.
Tam didn’t move. “Uh. I would, Your Majesty, but my sister sent a message saying—”
“She sent it so you’d meet with me. You’ve been dodging me for a few weeks now.”
Tam’s cheek twitched as he fought off a grimace. “I haven’t…”
Eric raised his eyebrows, his disbelief apparent.
Sighing in defeat and reaching up to rub the back of his neck, Tam averted his gaze. “Do we have to?”
Eric made a similar sound. “Probably.”
Dragging his feet, Tam made his way over to the leather couch, while Eric meandered to the opposite one and plunked himself down. There was no kingly aura about him in that moment, signaling that this would undoubtedly be a more personal conversation.
“Do you want me to call for Hannah to get you some coffee?” Eric offered awkwardly once they’d both settled.
Tam shook his head and pressed his lips together.
Eric nodded solemnly. “Alright.”
Silence bloomed between them.
“I—”
“Would—”
They both spoke at once, but Tam clamped his mouth shut again and gestured for Eric to take the lead.
The king dropped his chin for a moment, then leaned forward and placed his elbows on his knees with his hands loosely clasped. “I have had a lot of troubles trusting you because you work closely with your mother, and, until recently, you’ve been secretive about absolutely everything in your life.”
“The work my mother and I do serves the monarchy,” Tam reminded him warily.
Eric reached up to scratch his head. “I know. When I first was married to Kat, she and I had a few discussions on whether or not I wanted the duchess to stop doing that kind of thing altogether.”
Tam blinked. He hadn’t known that, but it wasn’t a surprise.
“You see…” Eric continued, pushing himself up to lean back into the couch, his gaze turning to the crackling fireplace.
“I wasn’t ever told about the work your mother did for my parents.
I found out about it on my own in a pretty awful way.
Back when I was missing, I had started questioning a lot of things I knew about your father because I was angry with him.
So all the sketchy businesses and deals with felons connected with your family seemed really duplicitous.
And because I only ever learned things by dragging them out of your mother and making my own inquiries and deductions, it has been really difficult building any sort of genuine trust with her. ”
Tam said nothing, but he did fold his hands together in an effort to warm them. He moderately regretted turning down the coffee. Once again he was hearing things that weren’t a surprise, but he hadn’t heard of before.
“I knew even less about you because you didn’t really talk much, and no one knew you. Even Kat, as much as I know you two care about each other, doesn’t have a full understanding of you, either.”
Tam tilted his head in acknowledgment of that point.
“I admit, I did not go into getting to know you with an open mind. So over the past few years I know we’ve danced around each other.
The most revealing bit about your nature was seeing you with my boys.
Though to be honest, Kat and I had our fair share of arguments about that.
I just… Again. Didn’t feel like I knew you.
And to let your children be around someone that you only really knew was involved in shady business… ” Eric trailed off.
Tam looked at the rug beneath his boots. It was a mix of red and blue with beige and leafy vines.
He tried to imagine letting someone like that be around Luca or Penelope… and found that understanding Eric’s side was a little easier than it had been in the past.
“I take it my father’s goodness was what won out in the end? Trusting that I came from at least partially good stock,” Tam mused aloud.
Eric gave a breathy chuckle. “Pretty much. It was the trump card. That and all the times you bailed Kat out of trouble or saved her.”
Tam bowed his head seriously at that.
“With what happened—with the first witch, and with Luca—I don’t apologize for thinking what I did, because I was technically right that he was the devil, but I do apologize for not speaking with you before assuming I knew everything.
Everything you’ve done over the years should’ve more than awarded you that much.
Especially when Eli was in such a horrible state. ”
At last, Tam locked eyes with Eric.
He could see the sincerity there.
“Thank you.”
Eric gave a close-lipped smile.
“I’m sorry that I didn’t try to talk with you more about what had happened, either.”
“I was pretty dead set against hearing anything you had to say, so I get it,” Eric confessed.
“It was…” Tam paused as he worked to form the right words. “The whole thing was a mess. We were all emotional, and tired, and confused. What matters now is we can keep this in mind should we be in another high-stress situation and—”
“Communicate better, and with more trust,” Eric concluded.
Tam bobbed his head in agreement. “And I’ll try to be more open about myself. Though I think I should start off by stating I don’t like crowds, or spending a lot of time with people. I like the quiet, I like staying home, and I like working on my own terms.”
“Yeah, some of that has become really apparent. Though your life of quiet is going to end very soon with that new baby of yours on the way.”
“I don’t know if you remember, but I did spend a lot of time with your children when they were infants,” Tam pointed out drily.
Eric grinned. “Oh, Tam. It is entirely different when it is your own kid, with your own wife who just had to suffer because of you.”
“Well I guess it’s a good thing Eli refuses to marry me until after our daughter is born.”
“Believe it or not, planning a wedding after giving birth might not be the peaceful experience you imagine it to be.”
“Speaking from experience?” Tam probed, knowing the answer full well.
Eric stretched out on the couch until he was fully lying down. “Not at all. But I do know the complete mess we were just having Antony. I can’t imagine also having to worry about a wedding.”
“You didn’t seem to worry all that much about your wedding at all, so I’m not sure where you’re getting this idea.”
“It was still stressful because Kat and I got caught—”
“And we’re done here!” Tam sprang to his feet. He really didn’t want to hear the details of the scandalous behavior his sister and Eric had engaged in that resulted in their rushed elopement.
Eric laughed, and Tam swiveled his boots toward the door.
“Do me a favor and don’t tell your sister I’m having a nap,” Eric called when Tam was halfway to the door.
“I won’t if you promise not to tell Eli I’m having coffee before dinner. She thinks it’ll keep me up at night.”
“Deal.”
Tam waved over his shoulder and exited into the hallway.
Because of how cold the library had felt, Tam had seriously underestimated how bitter the air outside the room would be. He hunched his shoulders and decided he would head straight to the kitchens to get his brew.
All in all, the conversation with Eric hadn’t been as painful as he thought it would be, and there hadn’t been any accusations bandied about. It would also most likely help the royal couple smooth out the remaining bristles from their feud months ago.
Tam felt a half smile tug at his mouth. Who knew? Maybe with Eli helping things along, he and Eric were in for a decent relationship after all.