“I don’t think he’ll forget that punishment for a while.”
“Definitely not, Master,” Dante grumbled.
I gave them a few minutes to eat, feeding Everly myself. The conversation moved to mundane things. Dante brought up the fact that Everly’s birthday was in a few days, something we’d all started planning for. No one mentioned anything that had happened last night.
“I’d really like to thank Everly for continuing to feed us meat although she won’t eat it herself,” Ian said, keeping the mood light.
“I second that,” I told her, lifting my glass in a toast.
“Well, as much as I don’t like doing it, I love you guys more.” She chuckled.
With that perfect segue, I decided to broach the subject I’d been pondering all day. “Speaking of love…” I said, drawing all eyes to me. “We would like the two of you to move in,” I said, setting my glass on the table. “Permanently.”
Everly looked at Dante. Dante looked at me. I knew it came as somewhat of a surprise, but it couldn’t have blindsided them too much.
“If someone wants to raise an argument as to why they disagree, now’s the time to do so.” I stared at Dante, waited.
His eyes dilated and I noticed some of the tension ease out of his posture.
I glanced at Everly.
She had no verbal response, either.
“Since the day you got here, you haven’t been merely houseguests,” Ian said, taking the conversational baton. “And no, we’re not prone to making rash decisions. We certainly aren’t starting now.”
Still nothing from either of them.
I looked directly at Dante. “Are you opposed to the idea?”
He set his fork down, wiped his mouth, sat up straight. “No, Master.”
“You?” I asked Everly.
“No, my Liege.” Her voice was soft, but I could hear the emotion churning.
She was showing more emotion than any of them, so I waited her out. A second later, she didn’t disappoint. My fork clattered to my plate when Everly threw her arms around my neck, buried her face there.
I held her closer, pressed my lips to her cheek. “I love you, fairy princess.”
“I love you, too, my Liege.” She leaned forward, pressed her lips softly to mine.
Not allowing too much time to pass, I looked at Dante, waited until he met my gaze. “I love you, too.”
His eyes widened. I had yet to reveal that to him, hadn’t intended to do so in such a public forum the first time, but I didn’t want to wait.
Dante swallowed hard. “May I … uh… May I be excused?”
“No.”
His surprise was etched on his face.
“I’m not asking you to say it back,” I told him. “I simply want you to know how I feel.”
“I love you, Dante,” Everly chimed in. “I hope you’ve always known that.”
“I have,” he said, meeting her gaze. “I love you, too.” As he said the words, his eyes slid to mine. I knew he was including me, but he didn’t address me directly. I would give him a pass because I fully intended to discuss this in detail later. Privately.
“Well, now that we’ve got that out of the way,” Ian joked, “arrangements can be made.”
“Arrangements?” Dante asked.
Ian’s full attention shifted to him. “I’ll schedule someone to clear out your house, bring all your things here.”
Dante shook his head. “I’d like to do that myself.”
“Not an option right now,” I told him.
“Then we’ll wait until it is,” he said firmly.
I patted Everly’s hip. “Would you please excuse us, fairy princess?”
“Of course, my Liege.”
When she reached for the plates, I put my hand on her arm. “It can wait. Go on up to the library. Don’t get dressed.”
“Yes, my Liege.” Everly quietly slipped out of the room, giving us the privacy I’d requested.
I tipped back the rest of my drink, set the empty glass on the table, then pushed to my feet.
“Basement, Dante,” I said over my shoulder as I walked out.
Ian followed, as did Dante.
When we gathered in the seating area, I pointed to the center of the rug. “Kneel.”
I took a seat on one sofa. Ian took the other.
“Now we can discuss this openly,” I told him.
He lifted his gaze. “I don’t want pity.”
“Good,” Ian said. “And we’re not in the market for blatant defiance.”
There was a hint of emotion in Dante’s eyes. I figured that was what Ian was going for. Dante was obedient, he wanted to be, but that didn’t make him emotionless. There were times when it was necessary for him to work through the issues, discuss what was bothering him.
Now was one of those times.
“Never mind,” Dante said, dropping his gaze.
I glanced at Ian, nodded. He got to his feet, walked over to the storage closet.
When he returned, Dante hadn’t moved. I stood, took the item from his hand while he went back.
“Hands and knees,” I instructed. “Spread your knees wide, slide your arms beneath you, hands between your thighs. Shoulders and head on the floor.”
