Amielle grabbed hold of her wine and sat at the table. Farkas followed suit and sat in the chair opposite - only he dragged it around so they were sat next to each other, their arms touching on the table. Amielle felt her whole body tense, even nerve on fire, waiting for a brush of his skin.
He took a deep drink and then spoke at last. "Have you ever been in love?"
She nearly spat her drink all over the table. Gods, she wasn't prepared for this sort of conversation. And to what end was he asking? Was this some sort of confession? She dared to hope. Or had he come to her for advice about wooing another woman? Now she definitely would never be prepared for that.
"Why do you ask?"
He shrugged one shoulder. "Just curious. I've never been. I think Vilkas was once but he never worked it out."
"Oh." She thought about herself at eighteen, flushed with excitement at a first love she thought would last forever. "Yes, I suppose so." He was looking at her for more details. She never talked about it to anyone, not even her sister, but she found herself starting the story nonetheless.
"When I was eighteen, I fell in the love with the Captain of the Guard's son, Amasius. We'd played a lot as children but he had been away for years in the Imperial City training with the royal guard. When he came home, we started spending time together again. He told me he found me fascinating - that he thought I was different from the other women he had met in the Imperial City. And I believed him." She took another glug of wine. The memory stung the back of her eyes.
"Then what happened?"
"We were together for nearly a year. We were...close. Closer than we should have been. My parents always made it clear that they expected my sister and I to be 'pure' for our future husbands. But of course, like a fool I believed I would marry Amasius and that we would rule Cheydinhal together. And then my father found out. Not that we'd been sleeping together thankfully, just that we were very much intending to marry."
Farkas was leaning into her. She could feel his warmth against her left arm. It took all she had not to wind her fingers through his. "What did he do?
She took a deep breath. This part shamed her. This part stuck with her more than the year she had with Amasius. Those memories had long scabbed over and flaked off, leaving only a small raw spot behind.
"My father told me that I had a choice. He would allow me to marry Amasius but I would have to forsake my claim to Cheydinhal. He would see that I had a townhouse in the City and I was to live out my days there with a new family and occasional visits from my old one. Or..." She hesitated, afraid Farkas would think less of her. "Or I could leave Amasius and become the Countess of Cheydinhal."
F!DB/Farkas + Barbas: A Dog's Loyalty 5/?
It was exciting and a little terrifying.
Amielle grabbed hold of her wine and sat at the table. Farkas followed suit and sat in the chair opposite - only he dragged it around so they were sat next to each other, their arms touching on the table. Amielle felt her whole body tense, even nerve on fire, waiting for a brush of his skin.
He took a deep drink and then spoke at last. "Have you ever been in love?"
She nearly spat her drink all over the table. Gods, she wasn't prepared for this sort of conversation. And to what end was he asking? Was this some sort of confession? She dared to hope. Or had he come to her for advice about wooing another woman? Now she definitely would never be prepared for that.
"Why do you ask?"
He shrugged one shoulder. "Just curious. I've never been. I think Vilkas was once but he never worked it out."
"Oh." She thought about herself at eighteen, flushed with excitement at a first love she thought would last forever. "Yes, I suppose so." He was looking at her for more details. She never talked about it to anyone, not even her sister, but she found herself starting the story nonetheless.
"When I was eighteen, I fell in the love with the Captain of the Guard's son, Amasius. We'd played a lot as children but he had been away for years in the Imperial City training with the royal guard. When he came home, we started spending time together again. He told me he found me fascinating - that he thought I was different from the other women he had met in the Imperial City. And I believed him." She took another glug of wine. The memory stung the back of her eyes.
"Then what happened?"
"We were together for nearly a year. We were...close. Closer than we should have been. My parents always made it clear that they expected my sister and I to be 'pure' for our future husbands. But of course, like a fool I believed I would marry Amasius and that we would rule Cheydinhal together. And then my father found out. Not that we'd been sleeping together thankfully, just that we were very much intending to marry."
Farkas was leaning into her. She could feel his warmth against her left arm. It took all she had not to wind her fingers through his. "What did he do?
She took a deep breath. This part shamed her. This part stuck with her more than the year she had with Amasius. Those memories had long scabbed over and flaked off, leaving only a small raw spot behind.
"My father told me that I had a choice. He would allow me to marry Amasius but I would have to forsake my claim to Cheydinhal. He would see that I had a townhouse in the City and I was to live out my days there with a new family and occasional visits from my old one. Or..." She hesitated, afraid Farkas would think less of her. "Or I could leave Amasius and become the Countess of Cheydinhal."
"You chose to leave him?" Farkas guessed.