A Brother's Price

wasn’t there before. Drat, they know what I did with their little brother !
    With that in mind, she cooled her greeting to Jerin to all that was proper. It was almost maddening, though, to be so close as to feel the heat of his body, be able to catch his light scent, and yet be unable to touch him.
    She scrambled to find a neutral subject to talk about, finally settling on, “I hope you had a good trip.”
    “Uneventful, which is always good,” Eldest said.
    Queen Mother Elder called for attention. “Our esteemed daughters-in-law, ladies of Avonar, welcome again to our dinner table. May we introduce you to our guests in our home this summer, the family Whistler.”
    As her Mother Elder named members of each family, Ren wondered if this was in some way a subtle cut on her mothers’ part. The Porters had been almost shameless in their pursuit of a royal marriage, making sure Keifer was always in Princess Eldest’s eye, and allowing Eldest to take discreet liberties with their brother. The Porters succeeded in their campaign, and reaped the re-wards of being in-laws to the crown, but Keifer had been a bitter disappointment. If Ren had her way, the Porters would soon lose their coveted position.
    Queen Mother Elder had finished explaining the Whistlers’ tie to Prince Alannon and his royal bloodline when Odelia appeared in the doorway. She smiled brilliantly at Jerin and hurried to his side.
    “Whistler.” Odelia gave a quick nod to Eldest, and then she caught Jerin’s free hand in hers. “Jerin! It’s good to see you here!”
    “You look well.” Jerin reached out to brush back Odelia’s bangs, away from where she had been struck. “Hardly a scar. No one could ever tell.”
    “Thanks to you.” Odelia beamed, looking more radiant than Ren had ever seen her. “Come, they’re sitting for dinner.” She swept him away without a glance at his sisters. “I’m sure no one will mind if you sit beside me.”
    As Ren gazed after Odelia in stunned amazement, Corelle whispered overloud to her sister, “I don’t know, Eldest—I think we better find some mighty big sticks, and soon.”
    “Yup,” Eldest Whistler murmured low enough so only Ren and her sisters could hear, and made a motion with her hand. The younger Whistlers nodded to their Eldest and hurried after Odelia and Jerin. Corelle cut off a middle Porter sister to claim the chair beside Jerin, and Summer flanked Odelia.
    Ren suspected if their guests had been anyone but the Porters, her mothers would have set the sitting arrangements back to the original plan. Since the Porters were their in-laws, however, the dinner could be considered “only family.” Whatever the reason, their mothers made no move to correct things. Perhaps Odelia had even counted on that; Ren could never understand the inner workings of Odelia’s mind.
    Ren took advantage of the change and sat Eldest Whistler beside her, wanting a chance to mend their friendship. They were, hopefully, going to be sisters-in-law.
    Kij Porter took the chair to Ren’s other side. As the first remove made its rounds, Kij leaned close and whispered, “Is it true? Their grandmothers married Alannon?”
    “Go look at his portrait upstairs after dinner and compare.”
    Kij made a noise of disgust. “That proves nothing.”
    “There’s a paper trail. Do you think we wouldn’t check? Besides, it’s not as if they came forward with the claim. Our paths happened to cross when Odelia was attacked, and the story came out.”
    Kij gazed down the table at Jerin. “He is certainly a pretty one. We were thinking of offering for Dirich Dunwood, but maybe we’ll go for royal blood instead.”
    Ren covered her dismay. She’d forgotten that her sisters-in-law had been quietly searching for a husband. She shot a glance at her Mother Elder. Were the Porters here not as a subtle dig at them, but to provide a way to marry Jerin off before Ren could get her sisters’ approval?
     
    After dinner they retired to the blue salon. There, Odelia and the Porter sisters vied for Jerin’s affection. Ren did not have the heart to press him, so she stood back and watched as Jerin flustered under the close attention. He flashed shy smiles at their compliments and witty remarks, but grew quieter and quieter.
    “Jerin’s had a long day,” Ren finally murmured to Eldest Whistler. “And he’s not used to this mobbing. Why not send him up to your suite?”
    “I’ll take him up.”
    Ren rested a hand on Eldest