I looked at him. "One feeding and she'd cancel the alliance," I said.
He nodded. "We've been talking to her for most of the time you've been gone."
"What's happening at the court to make her want to be rid of us so badly?"
Galen glanced back at Julian, who took the hint and said, "I think you need to handle things here and sleep tonight, Merry. Thanks for the offer of a cuddle, but you have other things you need to do more than me."
"We'll cuddle you," Rhys said.
Julian looked at him, frowning.
Rhys grinned. "I told you, Galen and I heard what you told Merry. If you're that desperate for some touch, Galen and I can do it."
Julian looked from one to the other of the men. "Thanks, but I'm not sure what's being offered."
"We'll put you in the middle," Galen said.
"Strictly as friends," Rhys said.
Julian looked at me then, and his expression was pained. I laughed. "You'll get your cuddle, but you will be stuck between two of the prettiest men around and no sex."
He opened his mouth, closed it, and finally said, "I want the touch, but I'm not sure if I should be insulted or complimented."
Rhys and Galen both laughed. "It's a compliment," Rhys said, "and we can send you back home with your virtue intact."
"Won't you be sleeping with Merry tonight?" Julian asked.
"Not tonight. Mistral hasn't seen her in two days, almost three, so we'll step aside for him. Not sure who the other man will be, but we've bunked with her recently, and I think tonight won't be about sex."
"I feel strangely fine now," I said.
Rhys gave me a look. "I still wouldn't push it. This is the first morning sickness you've had, so I'd take it easy."
"I didn't know you could get morning sickness in the evening," Galen said.
"Apparently you can," I said, and didn't elaborate on the conversation in the car. I reached up under my skirt for the tops of my thigh-highs. I wanted them off and then I'd brush my teeth. Strangely, I really wanted to brush my teeth soon. The breath mints that Carmichael had given me only went so far.
Mistral came through the door cursing under his breath. His hair was a uniform gray like rain clouds, but unlike Wilson's, his had always been that color. His eyes were the shade of sickly yellow-green that the sky turns just before the heavens open up and the tornado eats the world. It was the color his eyes went when he was very worried, or very mad. Once long ago when Mistral's eyes had been that color the sky had mirrored them, so that his anger or anxiety had changed the weather. Now he was simply more than six feet of muscled warrior. He was the most masculinely handsome of my men. He was very handsome, but you would never look at his face and think pretty, or beautiful. He was entirely too male-looking for that. He was also the only one with shoulders broader than either Doyle or Frost. Barinthus had him on sheer physical size, but there was always something about Mistral, Lord of Storms, that made him big. He was a big man who took up a lot of space. Now he was a big, angry man. The only thing I caught completely in the rush of very old Gallic was the name Niceven, and a few choice curses.
Galen said, "I take it Niceven wouldn't change her mind."
"She wants out of this alliance for a reason." He made a visible effort to master his temper and came to me. "I have failed you, Merry. You have to feed that creature of hers tonight."
"Let me try to talk to her," Rhys said.
"You think you can do what I could not?"
"I can tell her that Merry got sick tonight. Niceven's had children. Maybe she'll cut Merry some slack for that."
Mistral sat down on the bed beside me, face all concern. "Are you well?"
"I seem to be now. I guess I couldn't get by without a little morning sickness."
He hugged me very gently, as if afraid I'd break. Mistral liked his sex pretty rough, so to feel him hold me like I was made of eggshells made me smile. I hugged him back a little more firmly. "Let me brush my teeth and then we'll see how I feel." And that's what we did. I took the robe that had been laid on the bed into the bathroom, brushed my teeth, and took off the hose, and my dress. I came back out with the robe belted in place and the room empty except for Rhys. He was sitting on the side of the bed looking less than pleased.
"How do you feel?"
"Fine," I said.
He gave me a look.
"Really, I'm fine; whatever caused me to be sick seems to have passed."
"I'll have the cooks make a list of the food you ate tonight. Some women just can't eat certain foods while pregnant."
"Could your wife?" I asked.
He shook his head, smiling a little, and stood up. "No, I won't talk about that. What I will talk about is that Royal is outside. He seems genuinely embarrassed that his queen is insisting on this, even knowing you were ill earlier this evening, but he's worried that she'll call him home if he refuses to be a good little surrogate for her."
I came to him, putting my arms around his waist. He returned the favor, and with him only six inches taller than me the eye contact was comfortable. "Kitto made mention that Kurag is wanting out of our alliance, and Kitto is being careful not to give him any excuse for it. Is there something happening at the Unseelie Court that I should know about?"
"You didn't want to rule the Unseelie Court, so it's not your problem."
"That would be a yes. Something is happening."
"Not that you need to know about, though."
I studied his face, trying to read something behind the smiling pleasantness of it. "Why are the goblins and the demi-fey both wanting to sever ties with me?"