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.William was very kind to let him in and try to find a master forhim, and Harte was sweet to stick up for him and help him, butthey weren t his friends.And he d do well to remember that before he let them hurt him.Opening the door, he passed Harte and lay down on the bed.74 AT HIS THROAT, A PROMISE Is everything all right? Harte asked, sitting tentatively on theside of the bed. Just feeling a little under the weather, Ellis said, turning ontohis side and away from Harte. Oh, okay. Ellis thought the other slave would leave, but he just got ontothe bed and stretched out behind Ellis, a slender arm curving overhis waist.Ellis furrowed his brow and tried not to think of how thegesture seemed so natural to Harte.Giving and receiving affectionshould never be so easy for a slave.It was a complication. Master was worried about you last night, Harte whispered,snuggling closer. I was, too. Why? I was perfectly fine. Ellis felt Harte shrug. You didn t seem fine.And Master wasreally mad at Alastair for the way he treated you.He thought thatyou& you know, liked it.But then he said he talked to you andyou didn t& Letting his silence answer for him, Ellis wondered exactly whatHarte was getting at.What did it matter whether he liked it or not?He d done what the master had said to do, and then he waspunished for it by not being allowed to be with them the nightbefore. I wanted to stay with you last night, but Master said thatMaster Alex had invited us to his bed.And when I came to getyou, Master stopped me because he said you wouldn t want to benear Alastair that way again. It doesn t matter, Ellis told himself.Even if that was the reasonhe d been left alone, his previous decision still stood.He wasgetting too attached to a fleeting thing.That never boded well, andespecially not for a slave.75 AT HIS THROAT, A PROMISE It is not my place to decide whether I want to be aroundsomeone or not, Ellis said stiffly. Maybe, but it s Master s place, and he made the decision foryou.I also think he s a little angry at himself. Unable to help himself, Ellis asked, Why? After a frustratingly long pause, Harte finally said, I thinkand he didn t say this, but I know him well enough to think I mright I think that he liked seeing you get roughed up a little.Helikes it rough, you know.So that s why he didn t tell Alastair toback off when it was kind of obvious he was being too forceful.And I heard him tell Master Alex you were fragile I wanted totell them that you weren t, not by half and so I think he wasworried about hurting you, and letting Alastair do it took some ofthe onus off of him.Remember what onus is? Ellis nodded dumbly.Harte might seem a little thoughtless attimes, but he had a pretty good grasp on master-slave relations.Ellis hated that the master thought him fragile.He rather thoughthe was quite strong.He would just have to prove himself.Harte started tugging at the hem of Ellis s sheath, and when itwas bunched around his hips, he put his hand flat on Ellis s belly,rubbing in small, smooth circles. Does that feel okay? he askedgently. Feels good, he said truthfully.He wasn t sure if it wasHarte s words or his actions, but the tight knot of bitterdisappointment loosened just a little.Harte turned him onto his back, and Ellis went willingly.Heshouldn t be upset at Harte for doing the best he could.Differentslaves adapted differently, he d seen a hundred different copingstrategies since his servitude had begun.76 AT HIS THROAT, A PROMISEThe circles grew larger and Harte s hand caressed and soothedhis stomach, but it never turned into a more intimate touch, and hewas glad for that.Harte just kissed him softly on his cheek, toldhim he was beautiful, and eventually, Ellis fell asleep.* * *He woke up to the sound of his door opening.A quick groperevealed that Harte was still in his bed, so it had to be William inthe room.Feigning sleep something he d learned to do in his first fewweeks as a slave in order to give himself more time to adapt Ellislistened as William approached the bed and gently shook Harteawake.Ellis felt that cold feeling return; William wanted Harte inhis bed, not Ellis s. Wha& ? Harte murmured, smacking his lips.Ellis could tell the exact moment when Harte realised it was hismaster waking him, because he sat up straight and said, Do youneed me? No, Harte.How is he? There was a silence during which Ellis was sure they werelooking at him.He breathed as evenly as possible. I think he s okay now.He didn t say anything, but I think hewanted to be with us last night. The master sighed reproachfully
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