Skaia (76 page)

It was Thaddeus’ turn to smile. For a moment, he could almost see Glaucus and Skaia playing. Then his smile disappeared, and he looked around to be sure Thaddia and Crassus were not yet near. “Speaking of sheets, have… have you taken him to bed yet?”

“
No.” Glaucus met his father’s eyes. “And I don’t think I will, either.”

Thaddeus was surprised. Even if Glaucus had no feelings for Skaia, the slave’s looks should have been tempting. “Why not?”

Glaucus hesitated, staring off at the garden and pulling his thoughts into order. “It would imply I can be more to him than I can. I don’t want to treat him like Nicea.”
Like he’s just a whore.
He finally looked back to his father. “And I don’t want to hurt him.” Drawing a deep breath, Glaucus readied himself to confess. “Most importantly, Father, I don’t want to be so close to him anymore. I think… I think if I had sex with him, he could seduce me again.”

My exact thoughts,
Thaddeus realized. He no longer blamed Skaia, but wondered how the boy accomplished his magic. Not through sex
.
Skaia had become competent this past year, but Nicea was much more skilled. And yet the young Greek most certainly did not evoke the same feelings.

Thaddeus was about to ask Glaucus’ opinion, but his other children were approaching the table, laughing, followed by Thera and Kaleel. So instead, Thaddeus turned his attention to the younger members of the family.

“
I’m so excited, Father,” Thaddia said. “Will I meet young men tonight?” she asked hopefully. “A possible husband?”

Both,
Thaddeus thought—but they were not likely to be one and the same
.
“There will undoubtedly be young men at the party, Thaddia,” he admitted. “I doubt I would consider any of them marriage prospects for you, but you may practice your charms on them.”

Thaddia smiled. “I will woo them all, Father,” she said gleefully. “And my suitors will be seeking you out.”

Thaddeus returned her smile, but sincerely hoped she would not be so successful.
And it’s too late to speak to Meera now…

Crassus was the next to speak out. “Can I take Kaleel? He wants to see everything, too.”

At almost the same moment, Thaddeus and Glaucus both said, “No,” and ended up laughing together.

“
Why not?” Crassus insisted. “Aren’t you both going to take your slaves?”

“
I’m not,” Glaucus declared.

“
Nor I,” Thaddeus added. “Not to a party.”

“
Why not?” Crassus whined. “Dia is taking Thera. And Kaleel wants to go.”

Glaucus looked up, but left answering to his father.

“
The decision is not up to him,” Thaddeus answered, as he turned to stare at the young slave. “Do not ask such things again, Kaleel,” he said sternly. “It is not your place, and I will be forced to whip you.”
I will certainly not allow another son to humiliate the family by caring so foolishly for a slave.

The youngster was obviously intimidated by this direct confrontation. “No, Master. I won’t. I’m sorry, sir.”

Thaddeus softened his voice as he turned back to Crassus. “When you are a man, you can do as you choose. But for now, I will decide who does, and who doesn’t, attend adult parties.”

Crassus still pouted, but answered obediently. “Yes, Father.”

When the children were gone, and the slaves were removing plates and platters to the kitchen, Thaddeus leaned toward Glaucus again. “Are things not going well between you and Skaia?”

Glaucus shook his head. “It may not be what Skaia wanted, but it’s what must be. We are defining a new relationship—one more suitable to my needs. Skaia will learn, and the awkwardness will pass.”

It was precisely what Thaddeus had hoped for in the beginning, when his concern had been only for his son. He continued to press Glaucus. “Do Skaia’s wishes mean nothing to you?”

“
Skaia’s wishes?” Glaucus snorted. “I’ll never hurt him on purpose, Father, but I’ll never put his wants above my own needs.”

Thaddeus nodded.
Exactly what I had hoped my son would learn. Strange then, that I let Skaia and my father change my mind.

Skaia fumbled with the toga, trying to get the bright stripe of color to fall gracefully. Glaucus stared down at him, kneeling on the floor at his feet. “This seemed far easier when we were children,” he remarked.

“
We only used bed sheets back then, sir,” Skaia said, smiling. “It’s these stripes of color that cause the problem.”

In time, Skaia had arranged the fabric to his satisfaction, and he held the polished metal for Glaucus to see himself.

Glaucus looked at his reflected image and laughed softly when he moved his arm. “This should be fine. As long as I don’t move. I wish I hadn’t lost those damn pins.”

“
Pins, sir?”

“
Yes, they were ones especially made for the purpose. I certainly wish I hadn’t lost them.”

Skaia hesitated, feeling at the neckline of his tunic. “I have a clip, sir, to keep the neckline of my tunic from being so loose.” He removed it, allowing one shoulder to be exposed. “Perhaps it would work for you, sir.” He used it to carefully fasten the toga on Glaucus’ right shoulder. “Is this satisfactory, Master?”

Glaucus stared at his reflection again. He saw that the basic slave clip showed beneath the fabric on his shoulder, and thought that borrowing something from a slave was highly inappropriate for the occasion. He sighed loudly. “I need to see my father. He surely has extra sets. Come with me.”

Nicea answered the door to Glaucus’ knock, and bowed them in. Thaddeus was dressed, and Skaia immediately thought he looked very handsome. Thaddeus ignored him though, and turned to Glaucus, admiring the toga. “You’ve got it very well. Except for the shoulders—where are your pins?”

“
I seem to have misplaced them when I was packing.” Glaucus glanced back at Skaia, who was holding up one side of his tunic with his hand. “Skaia gave me one of his clips.”

Thaddeus smiled at the sight of Skaia’s body half revealed. “So I see. I have more appropriate pins however.”

Looking through the collection he kept in a small box, Thaddeus finally chose the set that Paulinus had given him long ago. Turning back to Glaucus, he fastened both shoulders of the toga. “These belonged to your grandfather,” he said solemnly as he worked. “Treasure them.”

When he was done, he stood back and looked his son over, motioning Nicea to bring the mirror. “You look much better, now.”

Glaucus stared at his reflection for several moments—even moved both arms.

“
You can’t be
that
active,” Thaddeus quickly laughed. “One of the purposes of the damn toga is to prove you don’t have to do anything for yourself.”

“
I know that, now,” Glaucus acknowledged, turning around and grinning at Skaia. “You shouldn’t have bounced on the bed so much. It never occurred to me I had to be so careful.”

Skaia blushed deeply. “I was just a child, and I didn’t know about such things, Master.”

“
I’m still going to blame him,” Glaucus smiled at his father. “I was an impressionable youth.”

Thaddeus laughed, and walked towards Skaia with the borrowed clip in his hand. As he rearranged the tunic and replaced the clip, he ran his fingers over the boy’s nipples, and his voice was very low as he whispered, “You look better than either of us.”

Skaia looked up in surprise, and blushed even deeper. He stepped back calmly, though he watched Thaddeus with longing in his eyes. Nicea noticed, and looked away quickly. But not before he was convinced of lingering feelings between them.

Thaddeus turned back to his son. “Are you ready? The litter is already here.”

They left, laughing together, and without another word to either slave.

Alone in the room, Nicea was the first to speak. “I think Master Thaddeus misses you.”

“
Does he?” Skaia asked, not convinced, and feeling very foolish for the surge of hope he felt. “He… he touched me when he put the clip back on my tunic.”

“
I saw,” Nicea admitted, “and I also saw how he looked at you when you came in with Master Glaucus.”

Skaia turned to face Nicea. “Really? You really think he was glad to see me?”

Nicea nodded, wondering why he was interfering. “I noticed too, how you looked at him. Is he… is Master Thaddeus one of those people you care for, Skaia?”

Skaia did not try to deny it. “It is very stupid of me, Nicea. I chose to be with Glaucus when Thaddeus gave me the choice. I… I thought it would still be like when we were children. But everything has changed now. Glaucus has become a man, without need for friendship with a slave.” Skaia fought the moisture building in his eyes. “And now Thaddeus has you. It’s all too late to change.”

“
The masters could change everything,” Nicea whispered, focusing his attention on picking up Thaddeus’ discarded clothing.

Skaia shook his head, thinking only of what he’d done to push Thaddeus away. He walked to the small table next to where the games were stored. “If you like, we can play a game now. Do you have a favorite?”

Nicea looked where Skaia stood. “One of Master Thaddeus’ games?  I have never even seen them.”

“
He doesn’t play with you?” Skaia asked in surprise.

Nicea shook his head. “I’ve never learned games… I don’t know how.”

“
Oh. I’ve learned all of them,” Skaia smiled. “I could teach you.”

Nicea still resisted. “Won’t Master Thaddeus be angry that we handle his things without his permission?”

“
He won’t mind. I promise.”

“
You know this because you trust that he does care for you,” Nicea said, looking Skaia in the eyes.

It was a statement of fact—not a question—and Skaia was unsure what to say. He
wanted
it to be true. “It… it’s just that I know him, Nicea. If all of our duties are done, he will not mind if we play, as long as we don’t make a mess.”

Finally, Nicea returned Skaia’s smile. “If we make a mess, I could clean up.”

With this first hurdle overcome, Skaia chose Bones, since it was just the luck of the throw, and easy to explain. The board was set up quickly, and soon the young men were laughing over nothing and talking easily.