Page 53 of Suffer No Fools
"He's the sweetest young man, isn't he?" she chirped as she looked over the delicate handkerchiefs and fancy shirts that had been damaged or no longer fit.
"He is," Tovey said. "We'd like you to make him something nice from these, if you could."
"Let me guess, by Solstice?" Her gaze sharpened to a point. "That'll cost you."
"We'll pay—"
"Not money," Gulde said. "Allora's been harping on meeting with the emperor, but she says Vadim won't let her anywhere near. I said she should speak to you two, but then she said you should come to her."
Stan snorted. That sounded about right. Allora always had taken her elder status too seriously. She acted like she wasabove the other islanders. It didn't surprise him that she would look down her nose at the emperor himself.
"I'll meet with her," Tovey said, "and ask if she's willing to come to the sentinel oak conference room with all of us."
"You'll share your results no later than tomorrow morning," she said. "I'll have your estimated completion date then, too."
"You drive a hard bargain." Tovey grinned. "I'll talk to her tonight."
That left Stan to find their dinner. He and Tovey parted ways at Petri's food stand. Tovey continued to the cave entrance beyond the sentinel tree. The route was still dark and twisting, but it was shorter than going through the sentinel oak to the tunnels. Stan watched him go, grateful he didn't have to contort his shoulders to fit through the narrow passages leading to Allora's cavern.
Petri loaded a tray with bread bowl stew and a few caramel candies they'd made for Solstice. They also gave Stan a large bowl of vegetable salad, all vegetables out of season.
"Trin and Renald are growing a garden behind Vadim's new house," Petri shared when Stan asked. "They harvest crops twice a day. It'll only last until the rains come, but we'll take it!"
"Damn right we will," Stan said. "Renald has a knack for growing things, eh?"
"He does. Trin's picked it up equally fast, and she's good with cloth, besides."
"Cloth?" Stan grinned. "Gulde's playing us, isn't she?"
Petri shook their head. "I don't know what game you're playing, but if it's with Gulde, there's a good chance she'll win."
"I think she already has." Stan bowed his head as a farewell and raced home, careful to hold the tray steady as he stepped over roots and vines trailing over the path.
Thankfully, he didn't have to knock on the door. Hugo was sitting on the front porch, waiting. He let Stan inside, and they silently danced around each other as they set the table.
"Where's Tovey?" Hugo asked once they had everything laid out.
"Running an errand."
"When will he be back?"
Stan heard the telltale sound of Tovey scraping his boots on the mat in front of the door, and then he was inside. "Now."
"We need to talk." Hugo motioned Tovey over as soon as he took his boots off beside the door. "While we eat. I don't want the delicious food to get cold."
"Is this about earlier, in the hold?" Stan asked.
"Yes."
Tovey met Stan's gaze, and his cheeks darkened. "It wasn't ... we weren't ..."
"I know." Hugo put his spoon down and crossed his arms over his chest. "Frankly, I'm disappointed. I want you to give me wild fantasies when you return. Marks on your bodies. Handprints. I want to think you've been railing each other the entire time you're gone."
"Where is this coming from?" Tovey asked. "We don't even kiss on our dates."
"You two have some weird rule about what you can't do alone with me."
"We do," Stan said. "Would you rather we didn't have that rule?"
