Tony started laughing. Maybe he could. Maybe he'd never been afraid of tall, dark and brooding.
"I do not brood." Gavin declared and sipped his tea.
"Child, she can't interpret what you don't show," Aurelius told Gavin over my head.
"Reah, how would a High Demon stack up against a Spawn Hunter?" Tony was only chuckling now.
"I have no desire to find out," I snapped. If I had anything suitable at hand, I might have thrown it at him.
"What's a High Demon?" Lok was watching and listening with his usual inscrutability.
"Reah." Several voices said at the same time.
"Reah, it is decidedly inconvenient to have to search constantly for you." Corolan showed up, his arms crossed over his chest.
"You could have sent mindspeech," I said, trying to make myself smaller.
"Would you answer?"
"Yes. All those times, you would have gotten something from me, if you'd just bothered."
"Stars have mercy," Corolan rubbed his forehead.
"Who is this?" Lok said.
"Corolan, uh—what's your title?" I asked him. I couldn't say concubine; that was demeaning and didn't fully explain what he was. Well, now he was my lover, too, and I still didn't know how to explain it.
"Special advocate to the throne," Corolan looked at me. "Reah, I want to glare at you. Perhaps chastise a little. Wylend has court, or he would be here himself."
"I know. But leather pants over here can't be alone for a click without getting into trouble." I jerked my head in Lok's direction. Lok lifted an eyebrow at my statement but remained silent.
"And you should consider explaining things to Radolf, he thinks he did something wrong," Corolan continued.
"Oh, for heaven's sake, is he still there?" I asked.
"He's probably in Queen Lissa's kitchen on Le-Ath Veronis, preparing a meal. Badly."
"Let's go," I slid off the stool. I didn't know he'd taken another job. Truly. I thought he was still cooking for Wylend. All of us, Lok included, were taken to Le-Ath Veronis by Aurelius, who volunteered.
"Honey, what's this about you cooking a bad meal?" I stood in Lissa's palace kitchen staring at Radolf, who was grumbling and stirring batter—much too hard.
"Reah, where in the universes have you been?" Radolf dumped the bowl onto the island and nearly ran toward me.
"I had to go kill Ra'Ak spawn. You didn't do anything wrong."
"Heart's love, don't scare me like that again." Radolf put his arms around me and rocked me gently.
"Hon, just send mindspeech next time, all right? I'll answer, even if I'm mad."
"I will. I don't suppose you'd help me cook?" He stood back and looked at me.
"I'm starved. I haven't had anything to eat all day. What are you making?"
"Ox-roast. And I'll feed you something while it cooks."
"Sounds good." I wrinkled my nose at him.
"I love you," he said, leaning in to kiss me. And in front of at least eight other witnesses, I told him I loved him, too.
Radolf, Corolan, Aurelius and Lendill were all there, sitting and eating tiny sandwiches and fresh oxberries while Radolf cooked and I offered advice. Radolf teased me. Fed me a berry. I sat between Aurelius and Lendill, with Corolan on Auri's other side. I wasn't surprised when Tory walked in and sat beside Lendill.
"Baby, why didn't you tell me you were coming?" He sounded hurt.
"I didn't know until a few minutes ago."
"Will you sit with me?" I looked at him and sighed.
"Yes." I slid off my stool and went to him. Lok, who sat apart from us at one end, watched the whole thing with hooded interest.
"Do you know about the Dragon Warlord?" I asked him, even as Tory pulled me off the stool beside him and settled me on his lap.
"The Dragon Warlord is my many times great-uncle," Lok sniffed. Tory pulled my hair back and kissed behind my ear. He knows that drives me crazy and initiates the linking.
"Really?" I was starting to feel it, heat suffusing my body. "Drake, Drew, is your father available?" I gasped and sent mindspeech at the same time. Drake, Drew, Dragon and Crane all appeared in the kitchen. "Lok here," I was breathing with difficulty while Tory kissed down my neck, "is your many times great-nephew, Dragon." Lok stood up, startled.
"My many times great-nephew?" Dragon's inscrutability could eclipse anyone's, Lok's included. And Crane was right behind Dragon in that respect.
"How is the Dragon Warlord here?" Lok whispered.
"Uh, somebody else explain," I breathed when Tory's hand brushed a nipple through my fleece shirt. Tory skipped both of us to his bedroom.
"Reah, baby, I just," Tory was pulling my clothes off as fast as he could. Then his came off. Tory is perfect. Perfectly proportioned for his height, with wide shoulders and well-muscled everything. He never finished his statement. Both of us were so heated by the time we were undressed we made love as quickly as we could. High Demons had what was termed the linking, and the desire feeds off itself until lovemaking is a frenzied affair. We both fell asleep afterward.
"I am First among the Saa Thalarr," Dragon held out his hand. "We are an immortal race, chosen to combat the Ra'Ak."
"Reah killed eleven spawn earlier," Lok nodded.
"Reah is High Demon. They have the ability to fight spawn and the Ra'Ak as well. It is the way they are made. Saa Thalarr also have ways to fight them. We are recreated for that purpose."
"Is this the Crane General?" Lok nodded toward Crane.
"Yes." Dragon smiled. "And these are my sons, Drake and Drew. I have another son, Dragon Taylor, but he is with his mate at the moment."
"I haven't had anyone to spar with for months," Lok winced. "I feel out of practice."
"We can take care of that," Crane grinned maliciously. "Easily."
"Baby, wake up," Tory kissed me gently.
"Huh?" I cracked an eye open.
"Baby, I love you. And I'm an idiot. Tell me you'll overlook that." Tory rubbed his nose tenderly against mine.
"Tory, what will you do if it happens again?"
"If I make you pregnant?"
"Yes. I don't even have an empty birth control chip, now. Karzac removed it since it was drained."
"If you get pregnant again, I'll be screaming with happiness from the top of the palace. Your grandfather will hear me and jump for joy."