Page 58 of Seducing the Sorcerer
“Aye?”
“You’re a lovely man.”
“Oh aye? Is that you talking? Or is that the magic?”
“It’s me.”
Morgrim reached for Fenn’s hand. Fenn let him take it, let him entwine their fingers. Now that was nice. It was affectionate.
“It was so good.” Morgrim sounded more like himself again, more in control, less gushy.
Suddenly Fenn was grinning. “It was. And we did it. And nothing bad happened. Did it?”
“True. Although with magic the results aren’t always immediate. But you’re right.”
“Aye.” Fenn had meant to leave it at that, but somehow found himself adding. “So, you still want to send me away?”
Morgrim settled more comfortably against Fenn’s shoulder. “I never wanted to.”
Fenn waited for the but, but it didn’t come. He glanced down, but Morgrim had his head on Fenn’s shoulder, eyes closed, hair partially shielding his face. Well, if there was any more talk of sending Fenn away, he’d deal with it when it happened. The reasons Morgrim had given for sending him to this estate out east—there’d be horses, this other magician would make a better teacher—seemed thin. Fenn couldn’t help thinking there might have been another reason, something along the lines of “you’re a temptation and I don’t think I ought to have you”. He hoped that particular reason was well and truly vanished. If Morgrim mentioned it again, perhaps Fenn would suggest spanking again. That might shut him up.
All the same, Fenn felt as though there was a conversation to be had, because if he was staying, he ought to come clean. About himself. About his past. Because telling was the right thing to do. It was what a decent man would do.
The problem was, he really didn’t want to. He didn’t want to spoil all this with a sordid tale of prison and disgrace.
Only he had to, didn’t he? And risk seeing the frown come down on Morgrim’s face, forbidding as that portcullis, risk Morgrim being angry and saying “you should have told me this before” and “this changes everything”.
“Listen,” Fenn said, slowly. He felt reluctant as a horse that doesn’t want to drink eyeing a bucket of water. “Got something to tell you. Something I reckon you ought to know.”
“Oh?” Morgrim sounded instantly sobered, apprehensive even. He glanced up, wariness back in his face, alongside that hawk-like vigilance that made him appear so terrifying. He took his hand out of Fenn’s, lifted himself for a moment and hitched his trousers up, like he was putting away vulnerability. “Go on, then.”
Chapter 11
Fenn took a deep breath.
“Well, it’s this: the first time we had dinner, you apologised for Mandillo. Remember? You didn’t need to, but it was right decent. And I told you I’d already left. And I had. I’d already lost my home. Reckon you ought to know why.”
“Oh?”
“Aye.” Fenn closed his eyes and said, in a bit of a rush, “Truth is, I went to prison. Two years. For stealing. And after that I couldn’t stay on Mandillo. Couldn’t face the way people looked at me. My Mam and Da were dead by then. So, I went to the mainland and I been here ever since.” Fenn opened his eyes. Waited, wincing slightly.
“Ah,” Morgrim said.
“Right.” Fenn waited some more, but nothing else was forthcoming. “That all you going to say? ‘Ah’? Don’t worry you none? Me being a thief? An ex-convict?”
“Fenn. I already knew.”
Fenn opened his mouth and closed it again. Because of course Morgrim had made enquires. And Fenn had wasted his time agonising over that confession for weeks. Like a right dolt. And he was relieved, of course. But there was also a small part of him that wished Morgrim could have heard it from him first.
“Yes,” Morgrim was saying. “I couldn’t have you staying here, likely meeting Aramella, meeting Jasper, without knowing a bit more about you.”
“Right. Well. And since you haven’t kicked me out, I’m guessing it don’t worry you too much, then?”
“It was more than twenty years ago. You’ve not stolen anything since. Well, not and gone to prison for it.”
“I haven’t.”
“Well, then. You’re hardly a hardened criminal.” Morgrim glanced at him. “But I would like to know, because I can’t imagine you stealing anything. Did you? Did you do it?
