Page 23 of Fox of Fox Hall

Conall leaned back again, appearing casualalthough his study of Fox was anything but. “You heard me givinginstruction to the trainees?” he asked at last, after leaving Foxto be irritated and warm and shivering. “About practicing over andover, conditioning the body so it, so the muscles, will respondwithout conscious thought?”

Fox indulged in the freedom to glare at him.“You’re saying that I am responding as I have been trained to? Butyou aren’t attacking me,” he added in confusion a second later, andthen, as he understood, murmured, “Ah,” and felt very silly.He had just thought that Conall acted cautiously because life atcourt had taught him to. He had forgotten about himself.

“You’re thinking a great deal. Always, butespecially now.” It was said so gently. “As you do your thinking,I’d beg you to consider that I don’t expect you to be anything butFox. That is, whichever Fox you feel like being.”

Fox stared at him, and blinked, and stared somemore. “I don’t know what to say to that either,” he admittedfinally and could hear his own frustration.

Conall looked around them, then back at Fox.“Your sewing didn’t work to distract you. Did you want to talkabout this more or do you need something else to keep youoccupied?” Nothing changed in his voice or in his posture and yetsomething in how he paused made Fox glance down over his body, hisbroad chest, his open thighs, the heavy base of his tail, beforegetting caught by his gaze again. “Would it calm you down to suckmy cock?” No one else would have heard him. “Or I could return thefavor,” Conall suggested next. “Or, if you like, I could eat outthat sweet hole of yours.”

Whether they could hear him or not, there wereothers around, and this was not some rowdy tavern full ofstrangers. Fox reached out to slap a hand over his flailing tail.Heat rushed through his cheeks.

“That blush,” Conall sighed, “is better when Ihave more light to see it. The color really brings out thosefreckles. Do you have any elsewhere? I couldn’t tell bycandlelight.”

“Conall.” Fox didn’t mean to sound like ascandalized city dweller finding a group of field hands splashingabout naked in a creek. He had lived in the capital too long. Allthe same, he felt himself holding his doublet collar in one hand ashe replied, shocked and breathless. “Of course I don’t! I hardly goaround bare to the sunlight. Do you?” he demanded, then immediatelyimagined Conall naked and warmed by the sun.

He had been successfully distracted again. Hedidn’t mind as much as he should have. Conall really was clever andscheming in his own way. It was enough to make Fox feel damp inintimate places.

He cleared his throat before looking Conall inthe eye. “Fine,” he agreed without admitting anything about thestate of his underclothes, “but you aren’t knotting my mouth.”

Conall’s whole body jerked with surprise at thewords but he gave Fox a gracious nod. “Not unless you beg,” heagreed.

His easy manner did not hide the challenge inthe words.

Fox’s lips parted. “I’ve never begged that fromanyone.”

A statement that some might have said reflectedpoorly on the king. Fox didn’t apologize for it. Conall wouldn’thave cared anyway, and Fox had other things on his mind. Conallstood up and stretched. He had stopped to remove his court clothingbefore coming down to approach Fox, and Fox really had gottenprudish in his time in the capital, because Conall’s undershirtleft his arms and much of the area around his collarbone bare, andthe combination was possibly worse than nudity.

As though no one else was around to observe andmake assumptions, Conall extended a hand to help Fox to his feet.Fox resisted the urge to glance around guiltily, which would makeany assumptions worse, and took Conall’s hand, although he releasedit once he was up. He got his tail under control, shoved his sewingthings beneath his arm, and headed for the stairs.

Conall followed shortly behind him, keeping asmall distance between them.

“I hear,” he began as they reached the stairs,his tone suspiciously purposeful, “from several sources, that theking was set to have me spar with Byr Drashnal and you talked himout of it.”

Fox paused and glanced up to Conall when Conallwas level with him. “I didn’t talk him out of anything.” Hewhispered it. “I said Byr Drashnal would be tired from traveling,which he was. And I knew you hadn’t had much rest either.” That wasan even softer whisper. “And I didn’t like how they would havetaken pleasure in it. It wasn’t about sport to them. It was abouttesting you.”

“And that matters?” Conall took the bundle fromFox and continued up, leaving Fox to gaze after him then slowlyfollow.

“It does when….” Fox gestured though Conallcouldn’t see it. “It does when it’s cruel and this would have been.You don’t deserve that.”

Conall reached the landing at the top of thestairs and stopped. “If you were like them, or wanted to be, youwould have said nothing. You’re a sweet creature, Fox, even if youdon’t like to think so or have forgotten you are.” He turned enoughto give Fox a look that made Fox stumble on the last step and thencaught Fox’s hand to keep him upright. Fox’s thoughts spun. Hislegs felt weak. He stared up blankly while Conall pulled him tosafety. “You worry over my lack of caution, butyouare theone who’ll face the brunt of their—of his—displeasure. Yet youspoke,again.”

Words failed Fox. He shook his head because hehadn’t done anything to compare to what Conall had done.

Conall tugged him close, in plain view of anyonewho might choose to come up the stairs, although most of theresidents of Kaladas were still at Saravar.

“Forgive me for seeing that you were unhappy butnot acting sooner.” Conall was careful and quiet and sharp anddeadly, watching Fox intently while urging him to follow him intothe shadow provided by the curtains around the window. “I thoughtit was because of him and not that you were starved forkindness.”

“Conall.” Fox meant to be sharp inreturn, but the bundle slipped from Conall’s hold, abandoned to thewindowsill, and then Conall’s arms were around Fox and Fox’s voicewent breathy.

“May I be kind now?” Conall asked gravely, histail curved to Fox’s waist.

Fox chose to address Conall’s chest, which waseasier than raising his head. “Kind?” The question was as shaky ashis limbs. He tried to laugh. “Not moments ago, you were teasing mewith offers of your mouth.”

“Oh, that wasn’t teasing.” Conall pressed a kissto Fox’s forehead, surprising Fox into looking up. “Shall I proveit to you?”

“You keep saying these things to me,” Foxcomplained, petulant or peevish, or worse,starvingexactlyas Conall had said. He was kissed for it, then kissed again when heopened his mouth and trembled as if he’d never been kissedbefore.

Conall didn’t acknowledge Fox’s complaint aloud.He turned them, he must have, although Fox didn’t notice until thestone wall was at his back and the edge of the window was againsthis shoulder. Conall lifted Fox off his feet a second after that,obviously pleased when Fox brought his legs up around him withoutquestion. The muscles in Fox’s thighs protested, exhausted from anight of vigorous fucking by a mountain. Fox ignored them and heldConall tighter.

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