Rezkin watched the discourteous, juvenile performance with dark eyes. His immature antics were an attempt to avoid shame in front of his friends. The young warrior was considering plans to hunt the man down tonight in his bedchamber and fix the problem. With his arrogance and massive ego, Tieran was sure to become a terrible duke. The kingdom would be better off without such a man in power. Rezkin would have to check into the age of the current duke and inquire about his health. Given time, the young Tieran might learn some humility. He nearly grinned when he thought of all the ways he could teach the young lord.

Ladies Joselia and Meriana both ran up to Rezkin, each grabbing on to an arm. Rezkin drove off his instincts to throw the women away from him, but kept a close eye on their movements. He did not want to fall victim to a dagger through the ribs.

“Rezkin, that was amazing,” said Meriana with fluttering lashes.

“I never thought to see Tieran cowed. I have never seen anyone put him in his place before,” Joselia tittered excitedly.

Meriana continued speaking as soon as Joselia took a breath, “I was so scared. I actually thought that you were going to kill him for a minute there!”

Shaking off the anxiety of the moments before, Tam laughed and said, “Don’t worry about that. Rezkin is harmless. Well, unless he needs to kill someone, I guess.” As he said the last, he furrowed his brow at his own contradiction.

“Oh?” Meriana said with a thrill. “Have you killed many men?”

Rezkin struggled to follow the rush of words coming from the excitable women. “I have killed many,” he replied honestly.

Joselia’s eyes widened. “How many? Were they all bad?”

“Of course they were all bad,” Tam replied. “They were bandits who attacked us on our journey.”

“Have you killed any women?” Meriana asked curiously.

Rezkin glanced over to see Frisha standing alone and pouting as though she had been forgotten. She scowled at the two ladies clinging to his arms and hanging on his every word. Extricating himself from the women, Rezkin said, “If you will excuse me, ladies, I believe Lady Frisha would like to return home to change her dress.” Rezkin strode over to Frisha and bowed slightly before offering her his arm as was the proper way to escort a lady. Frisha blushed and smiled coyly.

Tam followed several paces behind Rezkin and Frisha, content to let them have some privacy. They walked in silence until Frisha asked, “Why did you call me Frisha Marcum? My surname is Souvain.”

“General Marcum has named you his heir. You now have the honor of using his family name,” Rezkin answered.

“Oh,” she said. Frisha finally worked up her courage and remarked, “You called me your girlfriend.”

Rezkin cocked his head as he looked down at her imploring brown eyes. “Well, you are, are you not?” he asked.