Page 69 of Thomas
“I don’t mind at all,” Thomas said, sweeping a hand through the soft heft of his hair. It immediately fell forward again, but in a disheveled kind of way. “You’re okay with having breakfast together? I thought perhaps mornings were your decompression time—especially after the trip…”
“No, no, I’m alright.” Cameron looked down and saw that the piles were sorted. Indeed, there were two envelopes for Thomas. Cameron handed them to him. “These are for you, I believe.”
Thomas took hold of the envelopes, then tilted his head, regarding the one on top. “Huh. This is a letter from my younger father.”
“Oh?”
“Do you have a—Ah. Thank you.” Cameron had handed him the letter opener as he was speaking. Thomas used it to slit the envelope open. He removed the letter and began reading. Slowly, his brow furrowed.
There was another knock, then Lennon entered the room with Mira. They were both wrangling trays with coffee accoutrements, cups, the promised muffins and likely some fruit. The usual Ashford House breakfast fare. They madeefficient work of quietly setting everything down, then leaving Cameron and Thomas alone again.
“Is everything alright?” Cameron asked tentatively.
“It’s a fairly innocuous update on estate matters. Apparently, my little brother has begun feeding from his fiancé, Prince Alexander Ethan Kendrick.” Thomas rolled his eyes, then unceremoniously stuffed the paper back into its envelope. “Well, that should positivelydelightthe elder monster—having that particular arrangement not only administratively but biologically locked into place.”
“How old is your brother?” Cameron asked.
“Twelve. His skin has barely just developmentally hardened. My elder father treats my little brother like his golden lyre. Or rather, his surefire ticket into Eden’s uppermost sphere of purebred royalty and power. He’s exploited Oliver’s pretty face and forcibly prim demeanor to snag the most socially desirable purebred in our entire aristocracy. I am certain that the bastard is on cloud nine.”
With his arms folded, Cameron took all of that in, genuinely intrigued by it. He could have said any number of things in response (there was a lot there to sift through, truly), but his mind caught on a more innocent thread. “Do you think that your face isnotpretty?”
The overall tone of Thomas’s speech suggested that his father had saved the “more beautiful” one for the purpose of achieving his greatest desires. As if Thomas had been cast aside as an afterthought because he was lesser.
Thomas huffed, a cynical smile on his lips. “I am not grotesque, but I lack the… soft beauty and magnetism that both my brother and the viscount seem to have in spades. To my detriment, I am well aware that I look exactly like the monster that I despise—all stony, pale and sharp-featured. If we were castin a movie, I would be the villain, while Oliver looks the part of the virtuous hero that everyone empathizes with.”
“I disagree,” Cameron said with conviction. He gazed up at Thomas with his arms still folded, openly observing the tall man in front of his desk. “I feel that there’s an irrefutable elegance to your features—the straight line of your nose and jaw. Your high cheekbones and the weight of your dark lashes over the pale, enigmatic hue of your eyes. Perhaps your brother is pretty like a rose garden, but you are striking like an architectural marvel. A sleek and stately sort of beauty.”
Thomas stood there for several beats, batting those bold and ridiculous eyelashes. It reminded Cameron of a raven’s wings beating and brushing against a fresh blanket of snowfall.
“So…” Thomas finally said, “does this mean you find me physically attractive? At least in some ways?”
The revelation dawned on Cameron himself in that moment. He’d never really pondered it before now, but he nodded. “I do…” He hesitated. “Is this an uncomfortable admission on my part?”
“Not at all,” Thomas said. His smile shifted then, reaching his eyes and making them gleam. Softening his countenance. He held his hand out. “Are you having breakfast with me? Why are you hiding behind this desk?”
“I amnothiding, Thomas,” Cameron said irritably, standing. As he walked around the desk, he took Thomas’s hand.
“That desk feels like a barrier,” Thomas grumbled. “You’re always sat behind it when I come in here.”
“As if it matters,” Cameron countered. “Usually, you just come around to the other side.”
Thomas gently squeezed his palm before letting go as they sat opposite each other. The colorful and light meal was set on the small table between them. “Is my approach unwelcome?”Thomas asked, making himself comfortable. “If I don’t catch myself, I am the determined sort. You’ll have to excuse me.”
“Not unwelcome. You needn’t worry.” Cameron grinned as he filled their respective coffee cups. Usually, that sort of personality type irritated him. But with Thomas, he found that he liked it… or rather, he simply liked Thomas and the complex intricacies of his whole enigmatic being.
While Thomas waited for his coffee to be poured, he sat back and opened the second letter. After a moment, he scoffed and said, “This is a request from Wyatt to visit at the end of the month.”
“Perfectly timed.” Cameron picked up his coffee. “You didn’t even have to seek him out—just make certain your appointment doesn’t overlap with our evening at the bathhouse?”
“Oh, I won’t. I’m looking forward to that.” Thomas shook his head, astounded. “It is so very like Wyatt to request an audience almostimmediatelyafter seeing me. He was exactly the same way in university—eager, needy and hasty. I absolutely detested his hounding me for sex and attention. He made me feel as if I were a hare being chased by a hawk. Always hovering over me and swooping in when I least desired it. It was demeaning and exhausting.”
“That sounds like a nightmare,” Cameron said after taking a sip of his coffee. The liquid was robust, smooth and soothing in all the right ways. In combination with the snowy morning and his present company, it was perfect. “He shouldn’t behave that way now, at least, given your respective circumstances? And of course, you’ll never need to worry about that kind of behavior in this house, I promise you.”
Cameron took another sip, anticipating Thomas’s response. A sentiment of relief, perhaps? Instead, his angular jaw worked discreetly, then he reached over and picked up his coffee cup todrink. No response at all. It was odd, so Cameron decided to say as much.
“It’s concerning when you’re suddenly silent like this.”
Thomas brought his cup down to his lap and stared into the liquid. “Not every thought that materializes in my head should pass through the filter of my mouth. If I don’t say something, trust that silence is the optimum choice.”
