Trevor didn't argue. The smile he gave Lucas was brief and wicked, the kind that didn't belong in morning light but suited him anyway. Then he stood.
"Come on," he said, offering his hand again. "We need to change. Your brothers are due in an hour."
Lucas raised an eyebrow. "And Caelan?"
"Gone. Left before sunrise. There was a matter in the capital requiring imperial theatrics."
Lucas took his hand with a sigh, rising from his seat with the kind of learned ease that only came after deciding that today wouldn't destroy him, at least not before dessert.
Trevor led him down the corridor, fingers still loosely interlaced, the kind of casual touch that said everything too plainly for court etiquette. But no one in the manor dared to comment. Not after what happened to Jason.
