Kaelen went completely still, his hands resting flat against the leather of his belt as Julian's words settled into his brain.
He thought back to Rowan—not just the flushing, panicked mess from earlier today, but the way the aide had always met his gaze back when they were in the capital, and even when he looked at him across the drawing room the previous day.
The way he had clutched that massive fur mantle as if it were a priceless treasure, and the quiet, breathless way he had insisted that Kaelen be the one to pay him back…
The pieces of the puzzle instantly slammed together in the commander's mind, a sudden, unyielding wave of realization hitting him right in the chest. Rowan didn't just want to get rid of his virginity. Rowan wanted him.
"I see..." Kaelen murmured, his voice dropping into a rougher, completely serious register as a rare, intense focus settled over his features. "He liked me. That's why he…" But was that truly it?
