Chapter Thirty-Two #3
Eli fetched a clean towel from the bathroom, laid it out on the bed, and smiled as he indicated for Austin to lie down. He promptly tugged off Austin’s trackies, leaving him in briefs, and warmed oil between his palms before beginning circular motions against Austin’s calves.
“Is Tristan working?”
“Hal asked him to be there for the marriage and to oversee the agreements between the delegations. I have a feeling he’ll regret asking Tristan to be a peacemaker when he sees what a bad mood he’s in.”
Austin wondered what Tristan in a bad mood looked like. He’d seen flashes of anger, but never ill humour. “Did he really storm around, or was that just a turn of phrase?”
“He really stormed around.”
“I like storming around when I’m in a bad mood.
It puts me in a bad mood that he can’t come ashore here,” Austin said.
Then, aggrieved, he continued. “It is very annoying.” Though last night, he’d been so exhausted that he’d barely made it up the path to the house and hadn’t had much time for being irritated.
“I was too tired to storm around last night.”
“You can always storm around after I’ve finished massaging your legs.”
Austin grunted.
Eli massaged each calf thoroughly, then moved smoothly up to rub the muscles of Austin’s thighs before going still. Austin peeled one eye open and peered, practically purring from how much he’d been enjoying himself.
Eli half smiled at him, but the smile faded into a troubled look. “Am I part of your court, Austin?”
Austin frowned.
“Tristan hired me to attend you, and it’s a position I wouldn’t trade for anything.
I mean, to think I could have ended up working for Hal buttering up all the delegations going through while listening to his lectures on justice…
” Eli shuddered. “I also could have ended up returning home to the fighting pits, where I’d be expected to butter up any man or monster who wondered past with a bit of money, listening to even more inane lectures on gambling and which races are the strongest…
At least the fighting would be entertaining if I did that, though I am far from popular there after—well, after my trial.
” Eli’s amusement was gone entirely now.
He leaned forward, eyes intent on Austin.
“I think you enjoy more than my service. I think you enjoy me, too. I’d like to be part of your court.
It really is good fun getting to boss around all of Tristan’s Troop.
They think they’re the top of the pecking order, and then little old me from the fighting pits comes along and I outrank them.
But…” His eyes flicked to Austin’s throat and darkened.
“If I’m in your court, then I get to be more to you than just service.
And that means I won’t give that stone back. ”
Austin’s hand went to his throat. Eli leaping on him and ripping the choker off flashed in his mind. “I was in the middle of taking it off,” he said.
Eli inclined his head, neither belief nor disbelief in his eyes.
“You’re asking me to pick you over peace of mind.”
“It was really ugly on you,” Eli said.
Austin tensed. “It wasn’t bad.”
“That’s the main reason I took it off you like that. I worried Tristan might not want to be with you if he’d seen it—”
Austin thrust upwards, grappling Eli onto his back. He caught him by the throat and pinned him to the bed, a furious growl bubbling up his throat. “I am not ugly.”
“No,” Eli agreed. “You’re beautiful. Suited to delicate chains of silver and gold, and little sparkling gems. Anything big like that just looks stupid trying to compete with you. You know how ridiculous it looked on your throat like that.”
Austin had thrust that choker and the fist-sized emerald to the back of the jewellery box from the outset because that style didn’t suit him, and the dark stone had looked even worse in place of the emerald.
“Austin?” Tammy opened the door. She hesitated in the doorway, taking in Eli’s pinned form with Austin’s hand on his neck, the towel laid out on the bed, the oil next to it.
Eli’s oiled fingers were on Austin’s bare legs.
She blinked once, and Austin swore she pushed the entire scene from her mind in real time.
“I have to go. The signal here isn’t good enough for what I’m doing.
” She put a sheet of paper on his dresser.
“This is your witness statement. Liam will likely end up in custody for a few days, and we’ll need you for court in order to get him out, so no disappearing for a few weeks. Anything else while I’m here?”
Austin looked down at the pinned Eli.
“I need an ID for Eli.” Reba flashed through Austin’s mind. Should he get an ID for him too?
Tammy acknowledged Eli’s existence with a glance. “Alright. I’ll call Liam for the details and get things in motion.”
She left, and Austin released his grip on Eli’s throat. He hadn’t actually squeezed, and the skin was smooth and unblemished.
“If you ever call me ugly again, court or not, I’ll make sure Inx knows that he outranks you.”
Delight bloomed across Eli’s face. “Deal.”