Page 42 of The Duke and the Disciple

But this... the burn behind her eyes... the twisting ache in her gut... She wanted none of it.

You’re a wulf. Act like it.

Aesylt adjusted her furs tighter against her face and left the shelter of the barn. She didn’t look back, but the moment she exited, she knew she was being watched, and by whom.

“Ah, Aesylt. I’m so sorry. You heard that?” When she said nothing, he continued in a rush. “I thought the barns would be more private.” Rahn sighed, starting after her. “But I was hoping to speak toyouabout something actually.”

“Oh?” Aesylt continued her swift march across the stones. She nodded at some of her brother’s men, stationed around the perimeter for herprotection, which only made her feel worse.

“Any reason you’re practically running?”

Aesylt sucked in a bracing breath and slowed near the old yew at the center of the courtyard. “It’s rather cold, if you hadn’t noticed.”

“When is it not?” Rahn caught up and jogged into place beside her. “Is now a good time to talk?”

There was nothing to say but yes. She had no good reason to refuse—no explanation for why she felt the pervading need to put as much distance between her heart and Rahn Tindahl as possible. “Let’s... step under the eaves at least,” she muttered.

“I thought perhaps inside? Since it’s so... cold, as you say.”

“This will do fine.” Aesylt spun once she was under the covering. Her heart skipped and pattered at the sight of the man, flush-faced and solemn.

“Are you all right?” Rahn came closer, his head tilted and his eyes wide with genuine, maddening concern.

“I’ve just come from speaking with my brother, and I’m... tired.”There, she thought. Not a lie.

“Ahh.” Rahn cleared his throat and shrugged. “I thought later, since tonight looks to be cloudy, we might stay in the apartments and go over our past charts, search for commonalities as we did with the bowman.”

As you did with the bowman, because I was too emotionally bruised to take part.Aesylt nodded. “Sure. Yes.” She glanced over her shoulder, toward the nearest entrance.

Rahn noted this with a frown. “Good. We can begin, say, after supper?”

“Yes.”

“Splendid.” He rubbed his hands together and brought them to his mouth with a shiver.

“Was that all?”

“No, there is one more thing.” His brows creased, his hands falling away. “I’ve given some thought to what you told me last night about the curricula and Niklaus. It would be unprofessional of me to allow it, and it is my duty, my responsibility as the lead of this cohort, to find an alternative that satisfies the requirements without compromising the researchers. Do you understand?”

Aesylt squinted one eye. “And do you have one? An alternative?”

He held out his gloved hands with a sheepish half smile. “I’m working on one.”

“Hmm. So you keep saying.” A deviant streak rushed across her chest, offering temporary easement to the ache that hadn’t left since she’d realized what was happening in the barn next to her. “Well, you needn’t worry, Scholar. I’m not interested in an alternative.”

“You’re...” His brows fused. “Not?”

Aesylt plastered a smile on her face. “No, in fact, the more I’ve thought about it, the more I’m looking forward to it.”

The disappointment in his expression was a hollow victory, but it made the smile on her face turn real.

“We both are. So trouble yourself no longer.”

Chapter10

Drums of War

Rahn had been staring at the drafting page for the better part of an hour. He’d focus on one constellation until his eyes blurred the lines into an ink-smeared puddle, then move on to another, making no meaningful progress. Mostly he was trying not to pay mind to the nervous giggles coming from the other room, where Aesylt and Niklaus were reading through the coitus curricula. Niklaus had arrived nearly an hour after Rahn’s testy conversation with Aesylt in the courtyard, and he seemed in no hurry to leave.

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