~15~
The receiving roomadjacent to the family dining hall was far from ready, so Nic skipped protocol and had everyone simply convene at the dining table. Wizards and familiars sat or mingled, sipping from the sadly mediocre wine Nic had discovered. She sipped hers and barely avoided wrinkling her nose at the unfinished sharpness. Gabriel flat refused to buy anything from Elal, so she’d have to find a decent alternate source of wine. There was no point in setting up a livable manse and serving excellent food, only to have it accompanied by terrible wine. Something else for the list.
“Nic!” Quinn held out a hand to Nic, squeezing it warmly when Nic took hers. Sage, looking a bit tired—and no wonder with all the windows they’d glassed in—nodded to Nic and wandered off discreetly to chat with Wolfgang and his familiar. Quinn tugged Nic off to a quiet corner. “Do you have a moment to catch up?”
“It might take more than a moment,” Nic replied with a smile, “but yes. Lord Phel has some other business and might be some time yet.”
“So what is he like?” Quinn widened her pretty blue eyes and mock shuddered. Or maybe the shudder wasn’t faked. “He’s terribly powerful, I can sense that much, but is he cruel to you?” Her gaze drifted to Nic’s healed throat, and she lowered her voice. “There have been rumors.”
“What rumors?” Nic asked, laughing as if entirely amused by the possibility.
Quinn glanced about. “That you tried to run.”
“Really?” Nic rolled her eyes. “And how would I have accomplished that?”
With a relieved smile, Quinn relaxed and laughed. “Well, I certainly don’t know. And it’s clearly not true, because here you are, duly bonded to Lord Phel.” Her statement held a hint of a lilt, an unasked question.
“I am,” Nic replied firmly. “And most content to serve my wizard in every way possible. Also, I’m Fascinated by him, which means I couldn’t have run, even if it occurred to me.”
Quinn gave her an odd look. “But Fascination isn’t real.”
“Are you sure?”
“They said so at Convocation Academy,” Quinn replied. “Why would you doubt our teachers?”
“My maman believes it’s real.”
“Oh, well, Lady Elal.” The way Quinn said that had Nic raising her brows.
“What do you mean?”
“Nothing, really,” Quinn hastily reassured her. “You know how it with the lords of High Houses, though, especially powerful ones like your father.”
Nic did and didn’t, but before she could probe more, Quinn continued, speaking rapidly. “So, what’s it like? I mean, don’t get me wrong, I’m grateful to be working with my sister. We’re lucky to be so compatible, and our bonding keeps everything in the family.” In a perhaps unconscious gesture, Quinn ran a hand through her chin-length curls, her gaze going to Sage, whose fair hair was elaborately coiled for dinner. “But I wonder what it’s like to be bonded to a wizard who is also your lover,” she finished wistfully. Then her gaze sharpened on Nic’s face. “Or does that make it worse?”
Nic had no idea how to answer that. “I have no basis for comparison,” she offered, but even as she said it, she knew with crystal clarity that she wouldn’t change a thing. She loved the partnership she and Gabriel were forming, and she couldn’t imagine now dividing their erotic interplay from the magical variety. “He is not cruel to me, quite the opposite,” she added, wanting to get that particular question answered. She laid a hand over her belly. “And it is lovely to have my husband, the father of my child, also be my wizard. There’s a satisfying unity in that.”
“I’ll bet,” Quinn replied, then made a face. “My family wants me to be bred. Sage has the list of matches for me.”
“Oh,” Nic said, feeling like she should say more, but what was there to say?
Quinn nodded, as if Nic had said something important. “Sage has promised to pick a man I’ll like. She suggested that she pick one who could partner with both of us—our family will want her to produce heirs, too, after all—and that way our children would be more siblings than cousins.”
Nic didn’t ask Quinn how she felt about that idea. It was clear on Quinn’s face, and besides, how a familiar felt wasn’t important.
“She’s a good sister,” Quinn added on a sigh. “And really very considerate of me.”
“Does she think that if the pair of you share a lover or husband, it would keep you closer?” Nic asked on impulse. Something she probably would never have asked another familiar before.
Quinn gazed at her in predictable shock. “Why would Sage give any thought to that?”
“She’s a good sister,” Nic echoed. “Maybe she thinks if she chooses someone for you both, that she’s protecting you. And it wouldn’t occur to her that you might want to choose someone for yourself.”
Quinn blinked. “I don’t get to choose someone for myself.”
“Not even off the list?” Nic prodded, a part of herself standing back in surprise. “What if you asked Sage to let you meet the candidates, get to know them, and then tell her which you like?”
“How would we possibly do that?” Quinn asked, bewildered. “That’s if I even dared ask.”