Torian gave me a pleased smile. "Good call, Keir," he said. "Make sure Aspen gets you home in one piece, ok?"
Which meant gate. I knew it did, but I wasn't sure my friends had figured that part out yet. I also didn't really want to tell all the court's secrets, so left it alone. Yet as we walked back home - me with my arm over both of "my" girls - the rest of the guys were finally talking.
Not bragging, not testing each other, but actually making an effort to get along. Aspen and Rain kept our conversation to the weather and flowers while we headed back, but the moment we were on the elevator, they switched so fast, I knew they had to be on the same page.
"I think Keir gets in the way," Aspen said. "Tor can't relax around him because he's trying to impress him."
"Is that..." Rain tapped her head.
I looked over. "Wait, do you know those things?"
"You mean if he's being a dumbass because he's horny?" Aspen asked me. "Not exactly. I mean, he can tell me, and I can get like, feelings? More than emotions, but not literal sensations. More like anxiety, happiness, and warmth all mixed up. Or fear and lust. You know, things that shouldn't go together unless you have more information."
"So he likes Keir?" Rain asked.
Aspen scoffed just as the car opened on the top floor. "I thinkthatis obvious. The problem is he doesn't know. So yes, he does, but he's trying to figure it out."
"I would think that part's easy," I said. "Either you like someone or you don't."
Aspen gave me a weary look. "Sure, toyou. He's not you..." She paused to unlock her door, then opened it and swept an arm out, indicating we should go first. When she closed the door behind us, she kept going. "Keir, my brother didn'tgetto like people until he got here. Then, he knew he liked girls, because he was told he had to. A woman would make an heir; he was the prince, so he needed lots of them. Bastards would do."
"Shit," I breathed.
She nodded. "And my brother had his pick of all the girls he wanted when he got here," she said. "Oh, he thought it was his due, but he also hated the ones who wanted to sleep with him. He was so sure they all were looking for a leg up, or to use him, or for him to give them stuff. You know, assuming they were the fae equivalent of gold diggers."
"And Harper probably convinced him he was right," Rain added.
And yet I was actually thinking about the implications of that. If Torian had only known attraction to be a thing that increased his value in the monarchy, then of course he'd be straight. If he'd been told everyone wanted to use him, he'd see the maneuvering of men hoping for his attention as court politics and nothing more.
Realizing what this meant, I headed over to Aspen's bed and dropped down on it. "So what should I do, Asp?"
"Huh?" She looked at Rain as if hoping for a hint.
"With your brother," Rain clarified.
I just held up my hand. "Is my flirting with Torian bothering him? Making him think I'm trying to get something? I don't know. Do I need to leave him alone, become just a friend, or something else?"
Aspen moved to her dresser and pulled out a set of clean clothes. "I don't know." Then she turned her back and lifted her shirt over her head without shame.
But Rain? She shoved my chest, pushing me back onto the bed. "Don't look at my girlfriend while she's changing!"
"I didn't know she was!" I tried to explain even as I pulled Rain over me and up against the wall. That let me turn my back to where Aspen was changing. "Now if you want to strip, I'm sure we'd both enjoy that."
"Now is when you kiss him," Aspen giggled.
So she did. Rain leaned in, pressing her mouth to mine, but instead of pulling away quickly, she paused - and then opened her lips. Oh, I took that invitation greedily. I didn't care if she was gross with sweat or anything else. Personally, I thought she smelled amazing, and I liked the way she was just a bit disheveled after her practices.
It made me want to push my hand into her brown hair, so I did. When I kissed her, she pressed in, unintentionally grinding her entire body against mine. I could feel my dick getting harder, so I pulled my hips back enough to keep that from happening. What I didn't do was stop kissing her - until the bed dipped.
Immediately, Rain and I both looked back to see Aspen there, grinning at us. "Move up, Keir. We girls need a pillow."
I shoved one of her pillows higher, making a backrest, then slid myself into place. Opening my arms, I made it clear I had enough chest for both of them to use. Surprisingly, they did. Rain took one side, then Aspen curled up on the other, looking at each other across me.
"So," Aspen said, "whatever you did with my brother? It worked."
"Do I want to know?" I asked. "More importantly, should I be jealous that you got to do it first?"
Rain rolled her eyes at me. "I gave him a hug."
