A Brother's Price

other couples were gathering. How odd that the only time a woman and a man could be completely alone was in front of so many watchful eyes.
    “Jerin,” a woman’s voice said, making him turn. Kij Porter stood beside him, smiling. She indicated Summer with her chin as she extended her hand. “Your sister has given me permission for this dance.”
    He glanced to Summer, surprised. Summer gave him a helpless look, as if the older, politically savvy woman had outmaneuvered her. Corelle was nowhere in sight, apparently scouting out the rest of the men.
    Jerin rested his hand on Kij’s warm fingertips and allowed himself be led out onto the dance floor. She took him to the opposite end from where Eldest Whistler waited with Cullen for the music to start. They were deep in conversation, and didn’t notice him joining the dancers.
    “Do you remember your grandfather Prince Alan-non?” Kij asked.
    “Yes.” Out of habit, he avoided giving out too much family information.
    Kij seemed annoyed by the evasive answer. “He lived to be very old?”
    “Nearly seventy.” Jerin reminded himself this wasn’t a country fair; it would be safe to discuss family here. “He was fifteen when my grandmothers…” He swallowed the word “kidnapped.” With the Queens’ coaching, they had come up with a “sweeter” version of his family’s history. He substituted in the word “… found him. We lost him to a fever three years ago.”
    It was an important breeding point that none of his family had died of a weak heart, stroke, or other inherited illness. Only disease and accident had winnowed their ranks.
    “I see,” Kij said. “Why didn’t he ever try to contact the Queens?”
    “‘After the public executions of his mothers and sisters, he didn’t see any point.”
    “Ah. Yet you saved Princess Odelia’s life. Wasn’t that a betrayal to his loss?”
    Jerin blinked in surprise. “Betrayai? No.”
    “He was said to be trained in the ways of k’lamour” Kij said.
    Jerin blushed and ducked his head.
    “You know what that means?” Kij asked.
    “It’s not really a proper thing to talk about,” Jerin murmured, glancing to see where Eldest was in the shifting couples.
    “He passed this to you?” Kij pressed.
    “The paths of pleasure?” Jerin whispered, to quiet her. The music was coming to an end, and he didn’t want be overheard. “Yes, he and my father told me. Please, talking about sexual union isn’t the proper thing to do.”
    “On the contrary. A woman should know what she’s getting.” Kij all but purred, taking firmer hold of his hand.
    The dance, though, ended with bows. He spotted Co-relle coming toward them to claim him back. He gave Kij a false smile, tugged free his hand, and met Corelle halfway. Kij, infuriatingly, trailed alongside him.
    “I would dance with Jerin again,” Kij stated, putting out her hand to him.
    Corelle took Jerin’s right hand with her own, blocking any move to claim him. “I’m sorry, but we need to spend Jerin’s time wisely. A second dance would be impossible.”
    “I don’t know if you realize, little mushroom, how important my family is and how much you would gain by courting us.”
    “Your family of old controlled the portage over Hera’s Step,” Corelle said in a bored tone. “Your grandmothers bankrupted your family building the lock to replace the portage when it was destroyed by sabotage during the war. Through marriage and other means, you’ve reclaimed a controlling interest in the lock. Second to the royal family, you are the oldest recorded family, noted when a brother was married to the second generation of the royal princesses. You are not considered, however, the oldest noble family, as you gained your title through service to the crown—lending money—and not by marriage. In fact, you are one of the few noble families that never married a royal prince.“ Corelle flashed a grin. ”Unlike ours. Good day.“
    With that, Corelle turned Jerin away from Kij and led him across the room.
    “That was rude,” Jerin whispered after he got over his shock.
    Corelle still smiled smugly. “Perhaps. I’me not going to have any sisters-in-law looking down their noses at us. They’ll see as equals, or not at all.”
    “We’re not going to get four thousand crowns if you insult everyone that dances with me.”
    “Perhaps.”
    “How did you know all that, anyhow?”
    “Her sister Alissa told me most of it. She went on and on like I cared.