ELRETH

She didn't even bother keeping her footsteps quiet on the trail. If Aaryn was out there, watching, she wanted him to know where she was. Just in case he came back.

Or maybe he was back at her cave already? Waiting for her?

She picked up her pace, but she wasn't even halfway across the meadow outside the royal cave when she heard heavy footsteps behind her.

Her heart thrilled as she turned… to find her father walking towards her in the dark. Eyeing her warily.

He was out of his feast clothes and just in his leather trousers. She didn't want to think about what he'd been doing in the hour since she'd seen him, or why he was still up.

"Are you okay, Elreth?" he asked quietly, the moonlight cutting shadows under his jaw and cheekbones. "Interesting night."

Apparently this was the night she was seeing people with new eyes. She stared at him, and had a sudden glimpse of why her mother always smiled when she saw him.

She knew he was handsome—even now. Her friends had only stopped giggling about him in the past couple years, and she suspected they'd really only stopped doing it in front of her. Reth Orstas Hyrehryn was what her mother called a heartthrob.

The humans had strange phrases, but that was one Elreth now knew was very appropriate. Except, not about her father.

Ew.

But she smiled at him and something inside her gave a little. She knew he was strong. The strongest, in fact. But when she looked at him, all she saw was her dad.

"Elreth?" he said, coming to a stop in front of her. "Are you… did you talk to Aaryn?"

She nodded, swallowing and swallowing.

She was almost twenty years old.

She was Queen.

She was far too old to fall into her father's arms and blubber like a cub.

But when he stepped right up, his massive shoulders hiding her from the rest of the world, that was exactly what she wanted to do.

"El?" he murmured, his forehead lined with worry.

She looked away from him to get herself together, and blew out a breath. "Yes, we talked."

"And?"

"And I don't want to talk about it."

Her father raised a skeptical eyebrow. "I smell a story."

"I don't want to tell it. Not to you."

"Why not?"

"Because it's even more embarrassing to tell you."

"Ah. Your pride, Elreth. I warned you—"

"I gave the signals, Dad, and he said no. Now, do you want to continue this conversation about your eldest daughter mating a disformed wolf?" She expected him to be stunned. And probably roaring angry.

She did not expect a shrug, and a calm, "Yes, actually, I do."

Her mouth dropped open. "Do you understand what I just said, Dad? I said I gave him the signals. Aaryn. My best friend. I offered to mate with him. The act. It."

"And my guess is he very much wanted to do that, but chose not to for reasons that you don't understand?"

She gaped at him. "You knew? How he felt? You knew that?"

"Elreth, sweetheart. Everyone knew that. He's been in love with you for years."

She couldn't breathe. "THEN WHY DIDN'T YOU SAY ANYTHING?"

"Believe me, I wanted to. Watching him ache for you, and you just being clueless was about as much fun as having my tail on fire."

"Dad, seriously?"

"Seriously."

She swallowed. "Who else knows?"

"Everyone," he said baldly.

Something inside her shriveled up. "You can't mean that."

"I do, sweetie. I'm sorry. But… for those of us who know the signs, it was… very obvious."

She turned away from him for a moment, staring at the mountainside above her home, overwhelmed with embarrassment, and fear, and anger, and… She didn't even know what.

"Well, I guess I have even more to be embarrassed about tomorrow then," she said between her teeth. "I can't believe you didn't tell me."

"Your mother thought it would be better if you learned—or worked it out—yourself."

She whipped back around to face him, cursing the tenderness on his face when she was feeling fragile and weak. "Yeah, much better. I just made a complete fool of myself because I had no idea what I was walking into and…"

"He said no?"

"He said no. And he left."

"Was he aroused?"

"Ew! Dad! You are so gross sometimes!"

Reth chuckled, but his amusement faded quickly. "You are your mother's daughter in this, Elreth. What males and females do together when they love… it isn't embarrassing. It isn't shameful. It's wonderful. The most fulfilling a relationship can be when it's… balanced. I've been praying you'd find that with Aaryn for years."

"Well, apparently the Creator said no," she snarled.

"He said no because he said I didn't want him, I wanted "this"." She put air quotes around the word.

Reth nodded. "Your mother is much wiser than I sometimes give her credit for. Tell me, Elreth, did you try to dominate him?"

"What? No!"

He arched one eyebrow and she folded her arms. "I am not describing the things I did with a male to my father."

"Why not? I can offer you better advice than any male your own age—trust me, they have yet a lot to learn, most of them. Plus, I will be honest with you. I have no need to prove myself to you. Who would be better to shed light on this for you?"

"Dad! I can't… Ew!"

"El," he said softly, gently. "Grow up."

*****

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