Chapter Eight

An hour later, I was down in the dining hall when my lovers joined me. They came straggling in—first, Rath and Xae, then Kel and Taroc. I grinned at them as they sat down with Nex, Finn, and me.

"Good morning," I said.

They returned the greeting, then Rath asked Nex, "Why aren't you eating with Evina?"

"I got up early to work on the house," Nex said.

"So, you're really moving to Fress?" Rath grinned broadly.

We were all friends with Nex, but Rath was closest to the Tytra. And even he never expected Nexhavaren the Great (self-proclaimed) to choose a mate.

"Yup." Nex grinned back. "I never thought the day would come when I settled down with one person. But now, I can't imagine a day without her."

"I'm happy for you, Nex," Rath said.

"In a human village." Keltyr shook his head. "I think that's even harder for me to believe than you settling down."

"Evina wants to continue to look after the kids," Nex said defensively. "And I want her to have whatever she wants."

"Hey, that's great." Kel held up his hands. "It's just a funny turn of events."

"I'm glad you'll be living there," I said to Nex. "If the Corrupter finds out that they're back and decides to go after them again, he'll find you waiting."

Nex's grin went wicked. "Waiting to kick that motherfucker's ass."

"You might start a trend," Taroc said. "A lot of us own property that we visit. Maybe more lords will decide to live outside the citadel."

"I don't know about that," Finn said. "Nex is in a unique situation. The rest of us know that we're stronger here. Plus, we have a staff to cook and clean for us." He lifted his mug to a passing Creen in salute. "I'm not leaving that behind."

"Some of us don't mind looking after ourselves," Taroc said, then glanced at me. "Or others."

I grinned at him, then mouthed, "Daddy."

Taroc grinned back.

"Aw, that's cute," Nex drawled and rolled his eyes. "The Super Sex Team takes care of each other."

"Hey, you can't say shit like that anymore, Mr. I-want-her-to-have-whatever-she-wants," I said.

Nex snorted. "Fair enough." Then he perked up. "Ah, there's my girl now."

We turned to see Evina, a beautiful Ladrin of the Bear Clan, come into the dining hall with the children. They were surprisingly bright-eyed for a bunch of kids who had lost their families. Some of them were even smiling. As Nex got up to go to his girlfriend, I searched the little faces for signs of depression. But children truly were more resilient than adults. They didn't dwell as we did. They had cried for their loved ones and then got up to discover that they were still safe and had other people who loved them. They would be fine.

It was a little sad for me to not see Sally among them. But she was royal now and doubtless smiling up at her new daddy as they ate breakfast together. Daddy. Oh, great Goddess, that word would never be the same for me. I had to stop using it in reference to children.

On a more somber note, the Emperor would lose his Sally one day. But at least he would have a couple of centuries with her. Humans on Varr could live to be around 200, maybe longer if they had someone like the Emperor looking after them. Still, that would be the blink of an eye for a Varraen like the Emperor. I pushed the thought away. There was no point in worrying about a natural death that wouldn't happen for another two centuries. I needed to fight to prevent the unnatural deaths brought on by the Corrupter.

Then Caleb walked in.

I smiled at him, but then quickly turned back toward the table and my lovers. Taroc was staring at me. He nodded. I nodded back.

"So, since you two ducked out of training yesterday, we'd better double up your pell time today, Ember," Xaedren said.

"What?!" I jerked my head in Xae's direction. "But I'm tired."

"Just because he wasn't training, it doesn't mean he didn't get a workout," Taroc drawled.

"Yeah, we all know you fucked all day," Keltyr said. "You don't have to rub it in."

"And you don't have to punish him for it," Taroc said, looking at Xae.

Punish. Oh, Goddess. My face went hot. That spanking was one of the most erotic experiences of my life. I couldn't wait to go back to Taroc's little love nest and misbehave.

"Ember?" Xae's growl yanked me out of my thoughts.

"Huh?" I asked.

"I asked if you truly weren't up to training."

"Oh. I can handle a little while. Just not double. Please, Xae."

Xaedren looked from me to Taroc, then grunted.

Taroc sent me a secret smile that spoke volumes—he was the only one who could punish me.

Oh, Goddess.

"All right, we'll do an hour of swordwork, then work on our magic," Rath said.

"Agreed," all of us said together.