tell you about. Yesterday someone tried to kill Selene.”
“You probably should have started with that,” said Arrogan dryly.
It was relatively quiet in the house, and Will heard the front door open even though he was upstairs. “We’ll have to talk more later. I think Selene’s home.” He dismissed the limnthal before Arrogan could reply and jumped to his feet.
He took the stairs two at a time, and when he got to the bottom, he was only faintly disappointed to see that Blake was letting Seth into the entry hall. To be honest, he was glad to see his friend, but Selene had already been on his mind, and it was hard for anyone else to compete. “Seth! I’m glad you came.”
His young friend looked at him with a vague air of unease. “Are you sure it’s all right?”
“Of course!” Will gestured toward the parlor door. “Why don’t we go sit down? Supper isn’t ready yet and Selene isn’t back, so you may have to wait a short while before you can fill your stomach.”
“I don’t need to eat,” said Seth quickly. “I could just give you the news and head back to the dorm.”
“Ridiculous. You were one of my first friends at Wurthaven. You’ll be fine once you get to know my wife better.” Will sat and gestured to a cushioned chair. “So, what did you find out?”
Seth sat but his posture remained stiff. “Father recognized the boots immediately. They belong to a gentleman named Lewis Arberry—”
“Belonged,” Will corrected with a rueful look.
His friend swallowed, then continued, “According to Father, he’d been a regular customer for many years. He’s—he was—the third son of Viscount Arberry, and apparently he fell on hard times a while back. He’s been getting those boots resoled for quite a number of years.”
“You’re a wonder,” said Will. “I couldn’t have figured out who he was if it wasn’t for you. What do you know about the family? Where are the viscount’s lands? Was it the son who was in financial difficulty, or his father?”
Seth threw up his hands. “I’m the son of a cobbler, Will. I know next to nothing about nobles other than those I’ve met personally here at Wurthaven.”
The sound of the front door opening again announced Selene’s arrival, and Will smiled. “That’s fine. I know an expert on the topic, and I’m fairly sure that’s her coming in the door.” He winked and added, “I hope you’re hungry.”
Chapter 12
Tender pork loin served over a bed of bitter dandelion greens kept Will’s attention while Selene and Seth became acquainted. For all of his previous resistance to hiring a cook, Will couldn’t deny Jeremy’s skill. The pork had been roasted in a sweet sauce with some sort of fruit that had been rendered almost impossible to identify. Plum? It might be grapes. Will couldn’t be certain, but he knew that he approved of the pairing of sweet pork with the tart, astringent dandelion greens. In another dish, there were long beans waiting to be sampled, decorated with yellow dandelion flowers, which were much sweeter than the greens.
Jeremy and I are going to have to have a talk after this, thought Will, smiling around another mouthful. Then he glanced up at the heretics seated at the table with him. Seth was too nervous in Selene’s presence to eat much, and she was doing her best to help the cobbler’s son relax with an endless stream of small talk and polite questions about his family.
Eventually, he could take no more. “Let him eat,” Will grumbled.
Selene’s glance in his direction was one of annoyance, but ever mindful, she returned to their guest. “I am keeping you from eating, aren’t I?”
“I’m enthralled, Your Highness,” Seth answered hurriedly. “Your curiosity about my humble family is flattering.”
Selene frowned, then looked at Will again. Will translated for his friend. “She asked you to forgo the formalities. You’re a guest in our home.”
Abashed, Seth dropped his fork and bowed his head. “Please forgive me, Your H—Selene.”
“None of that either,” mumbled Will around a mouthful of food. “Just eat. Trust me, she’s nicer than she looks.”
Scandalized, Selene rocked back in her chair, her eyes wide. “And what does that mean?”
Will shrugged, continuing to chew. The food was too good to spoil by swallowing hurriedly. The air grew colder as he masticated, and by the time he finally cleared his throat to answer, Seth was becoming visibly anxious. “I meant—that as lovely and beautiful as you are—your true nature is even sweeter.”
Her cheeks colored. “Oh.