Page 6 of The Prince's Sacrifice

Maybe this relationship really could be a good thing for both of them.

Pel squared his shoulders and admitted, “I’m glad you’re here.”

A slow smile spread across Tor’s face. It was Pel’s favorite, the one that lit up his eyes. This one was just for Pel, or that was what it felt like.

“Me, too. You don’t know how much.”

If it was anything like what Pel felt, he thought hedidknow.

“Meet me later?” Tor asked, expression open and hopeful.

“Of course.”

“I mean, not just in an hour or so to go visit the farms.”

Pel laughed. “I knew what you meant.”

“After dinner?” Tor suggested. “Again?”

“Yes,” Pel agreed.

They had some good habits formed for spending a lot of time together, and Peldefinitelywanted to add intimate moments to the list. He straightened his clothing again, got distracted by one more kiss, and finally hurried out of the room.

There was no one in the hallway, thankfully, but he wondered how long it would be until someone noticed. Would the staff keep it to themselves? Or would it be spread about everywhere as soon as the first person figured it out?

But Pel baulked whenever he thought of his father finding out. In theory, Pel catching the eye of the High Prince was a good thing—the very thing that Forex had asked Pel’s siblings to do, in fact. But hehadn’tasked Pel, and that wasn’t an oversight. He wouldn’t be able to imagine Tor bonding with Pel, andthatmeant that Pel had gotten in the way of Forex’s scheme.

It was a losing proposition all around. But Pel wasn’t ready to give Tor up, not before he had to. Tor was the first person who’d taken the trouble to really see Pel, to actually get to know him. He was irreverent and too smart for his own good and surprisingly kind andsohandsome. Pel couldn’t imagine finding someone else who possessed even a fraction of his attributes.

Pel had never met anyone like him, and Pelwantedhim. For once in his life, he wasn’t going to do the smart thing. He was going to keep Tor for as long as Tor allowed it. He was going to enjoy himself, and he was going to build lots of memories for that inevitable time once Tor left.

They weren’t all about sex, either. Although those parts were fabulous, they were still spending as much time together during the day as they used to, visiting with the citizens, training with the guards, defense lessons with his sister, and lunch and dinner together—though dinner was with the whole family and was generally a trial.

If there was a little more smiling, well, that surely wasn’t that unusual. If there was a little more touching, especially when they weren’t being closely observed, that could simply be between friends.

They rode out to the farms and villages and checked in with everyone. The worst of the rain had finally ended, and alltheir inspections of the embankments and the reports from the guards and the citizens was that all was well on that front.

Some of the crops had been washed out, which had everyone worrying about the upcoming winter, but it was so much better than it would have been if Tor hadn’t used his magic to prevent the embankment from bursting. Tor was still getting thanks for that, and he somehow managed to both accept the gratitude graciously and acknowledge everyone else who’d worked to set everything to rights or provide ongoing inspections.

When they’d first met, Pel would have assumed that was disingenuous, but now he could recognize it was simply how Tor was. He would never know what it was like not to possess an abundance of magic, but he didn’t rub it in people’s faces. He used it to help guards and Pel’s sister train and to save people from disaster.

He could be like King Forex and rarely leave the castle, use his magic for his own gain, and work at drinking himself into an early grave.

But no, Tor was out here with Pel, inspecting the embankment for further signs of failure, listening to grievances, and learning about what concerned the citizens of Tond.

Everyone expected Pel and Tor to show up together now. They could cover twice as much ground and get twice as much feedback if they went separately, but no one ever proposed that.

“It will be strange doing this on my own again,” Pel confessed one morning as they were heading back to the castle.

Tor shot him a look. “Planning to start fighting with me again?” Then he grimaced. “Sorry, that was unworthy.”

They’d fought because Tor had kissed Pel while drunk. He’d made a comment about not doing it if he were sober, which Pel had taken to mean he wouldn’t have been interested if drink wasn’t clouding his judgment. But since it turned out Tor had only meant he hadn’t asked or considered thepossible ramifications, Pel wasn’t inclined to hold it against him anymore.

“I mean, I’m notplanningto,” Pel teased, stretching out the word. “But have you met us? How long do you think we’ll possibly make it without another fight?”

Tor let out a surprised bark of laughter. “Fair enough. I like to think that we’re sorting things out as we go, though.”

That was Pel’s hope, too. After all, if he thought about how they’d snapped at one another on the road to the castle when Tor had first arrived in Tond… They’d made so much progress.