"What?" he said innocently. "My lady you wrong me. I'm just being welcoming."
"You're hardly the welcoming type." Lady Rhaelynn said with a look of disdain.
"What?" Soren repeated mildly, lifting both hands in surrender. "I've always been the welcoming type. You mistake me for Daeron. I am merely exercising basic hospitality. Surely that is still permitted in this palace?"
Rhaelynn's lips thinned. "Hospitality does not require familiarity. Men and women should keep their distance from each other."
Daeron chuckled, swirling the wine in his goblet though it was still early for it. "Relax, Mother. If Soren wanted her, he would have already stolen her away by now. He has always been efficient and can rival me in the number of women he's bedded."
Soren shot him a look. "Pls brother, I can't compare to your debauchery. And you speak as though you're proud of that."
"I am," Daeron replied unapologetically. "Efficiency is a virtue."
