Cynwrig took off his coat and then helped me with mine, placing both in a cleverly concealed cupboard to one side of the elevator. Once Lugh’s coat had joined ours, Cynwrig said, “I remotely turned the heating on, but it may take a while for the space to warm up.”

“I’ve worked in much worse conditions, trust me,” Lugh said.

“If you’d like to work in an office, there’s several down the hall to our left. Help yourself to any stationery that you need.”

Lugh raised an eyebrow. “Here’s perfectly fine, unless you want me out of the way for other purposes.”

Cynwrig laughed, the sound so deep and warm that desire skittered across my skin. “I’m actually intending to whisk your sister upstairs, if neither you nor she has any objections.”

“She certainly doesn’t,” I said, voice dry. “And my brother has no say.”

“But he’d certainly be grateful if you did. Otherwise, she’s going to be pacing the floor telling me to hurry the fuck up.”

I laughed, though it was nothing but the truth.

“Then I shall ensure she’s occupied for several hours at least.” He tugged me forward. “Oh, and feel free to help yourself to anything you need in the kitchen or bar, Lugh.”

He nodded and walked across to the U-shaped sofa that dominated this central section, his somewhat absent expression suggesting he was already working on the translation task even if he hadn’t yet got the book out. Cynwrig hustled me across the vast space to the stairs on the right.

“How many bedrooms does this place have?” I asked.

“Six—three on each side. All ensuite.” He cast a wicked look over his shoulder as we headed up the stairs. “And all fully soundproofed.”

“I take it past lovers were... vocal?”

“Some,” he said easily. “But the soundproofing is also in place for everyone’s comfort. My parents no more want to hear their children having sex than we want to hear them.”

“How many siblings do you actually have?”

He cast me a wry glance. “You haven’t googled already?”

“Didn’t occur to me.” We clattered up the stairs together. “I take it past lovers have?”

“Mainly those who weren’t elf. It’s usually one of the reasons they rarely lasted more than a week.”

The first floor remained a vast and airy space, thanks to the double width of the hall and the fact that the walls to our left weren’t full-length plaster to the vaulted ceiling, but rather a third glass, which allowed the light from the building’s main windows to filter through the rooms into the hall.

“In this day and age, with so many weirdos about, googling the background of a date is pretty common practice,” I said. “Why do you consider it grounds for splitting?”

“Because if they want to know anything about me, all they have to do is ask. If I’m fucking you, I’m into you, so questions are acceptable.”

I raised an eyebrow as he opened the door to the room at the very end of the hall. “So, if you’re not fucking them, questions are unacceptable?”