The Men of Ramshire

by Diane Lennox

  Yuri looked to Ezra. “What do you think, boss?”

  Ezra sighed. “I think I’m pissed at that kid, but I understand what Pasha is saying. If he can get his act together, he probably would be good for Pasha. Just… I want you to keep in mind that he won’t be the only one who would make sense. Don’t pin all your hopes on him.”

  “I won’t,” Pasha promised. “And I’m not just wanting to change my style because of him, I really do think I’ve outgrown it. I’ve been wearing the same shit since high school.”

  “Alright,” Ezra said. “I’ll leave him in your hands, Yuri.”

  “Excellent,” Yuri said with a grin. “I’ve been wanting to get my hands on you for a while.”

  “As hot as you are, Yuri, I would prefer my first time to be with someone who isn’t my brother,” Pasha teased.

  Alice snorted and started giggling merrily along with Ezra.

  “Pervert,” Yuri said and flung a pillow at Pasha, but he too was grinning away. “But yes, I’ll make sure you’re so hot Soren will regret being such a dick to you.”

  “Good. That’s exactly what I want,” Pasha said, mirroring Yuri’s almost evil looking grin.

  It was in that moment that Pasha felt a surge of affection for his brothers, laughing and grinning and just being themselves once again. He knew things were about to change now that Ezra seemed to have made his mind up about Yuri, but despite how awkward it was going to be, Pasha knew, in his gut, it had to be done. The lack of change is what made their relationship turn strange and had Yuri rebelling against Ezra. They had to grow and change, all of them, so that they could become even stronger. It was the only way they were going to be able to stand up against Rex when the time came.

  ~~~~~

  “How did things go with Ezra today?”

  Evgeni Desjardins looked across the dining room table to his older brother. Yves, Julius, and himself had just sat down to enjoy their late dinner.

  “Good, for the most part,” Evgeni replied and took a bite of his salad. “He surprised me quite a bit with the secrets he was hiding, and one of them, unfortunately, I will need Marius’ continued help with. He’s definitely not the sweet ‘Golden Boy’ I was expecting.”

  Yves cocked an eyebrow. “No?”

  “No. I mean of course he’s still sweet and kind, that hasn’t changed, it’s not as if he was faking that, he just has far more darkness than I expected hidden in there as well. If Marius and I can successfully draw it out he’s going to be amazing.”

  “It’s not like you to throw around the word ‘amazing’ lightly,” Yves said.

  “And I’m not now either. Ezra has a lot of potential, it’s just up to him whether he chooses to use it or not. If he plays this role the way I have envisioned he’s going to outshine Jasper and Killian.”

  “You’re getting my hopes up, Evgeni.”

  Evgeni smirked. “Mine as well, and we may be let down. No matter what though I’ll make sure he can play the role sufficiently well.”

  “I know you will. Are there any secrets you can share with us?” Yves asked, a tiny little grin dancing across his elegant face.

  Evgeni’s own grin grew as well. There was much he’d have to keep to himself, but he did have one secret he knew he could get away with sharing. “It seems our Ezra really does fancy Marius. Lazarus too. Though I really don’t know what he sees in Marius, he comes across as far too cold and pompous for my liking.”

  Julius chuckled. “You just don’t like him because he’s probably just as clever as you are and could give you a run for your money.”

  Evgeni rolled his eyes. “There’s no point in being clever if you don’t intend on using it. Besides, I already got him to crack. All I had to do was mention that Lazarus could swoop in and steal Ezra from him. He sure didn’t like that.”

  Yves groaned. “Don’t bug Marius, Evgeni, he’s the best stylist we’re ever going to get. I know you appreciate his talent, at least.”

  “Yes, he’s talented, but I don’t like him. And I won’t stop pestering him. With a stone-face like that he’s just asking for it,” Evgeni said then took a sip of his wine. “What do you think of Ezra fancying Lazarus though?”

  Yves’ eyes narrowed a little. “I know you’re going to try to make this about Rafe.”

  “I could, but for now I want to focus on Ezra. Would them being an item be a problem for you?” Evgeni asked. He knew a relationship between Ezra and Lazarus could definitely be a bridge in helping Yves accept Rafe and Paris if he played his cards right, but now was definitely not the time.

  “No,” Yves said, his long fingers wrapping around his wine glass. “But before you say anything, Lazarus is not like Paris. He’s well respected in this city, even if he is greatly feared as well. Also, he’s already been a patron of our theatre for quite some time without any problems,” Yves said then smirked. “In fact, I think it would be a good little scandal if Ezra got together with him, or Marius, or even both. Everyone would be talking about it, that’s for sure, and doubtfully in a negative way.”

  “The ‘Golden Boy’ seduced by danger, it would make a sexy headline,” Julius chimed in.

  “It would,” Yves agreed. “Though I’m surprised he would be interested in Lazarus in that way. I thought Ezra would be more inclined towards Lazarus’ sons, specifically the long-haired twin.”

  “Like father just said, he likes danger,” Evgeni said, still grinning away. He enjoyed gossiping far too much.

  “So long as he doesn’t get himself into any trouble all will be fine,” Yves said.

  “He won’t,” Evgeni said with a wave of his hand. “All three of them are rather private men from what I know, I’d be shocked if they caused any sort of real scandal.”

  “Yes, and I never thought Rafe would cause a scandal either,” Yves said bitterly and took a sip of his wine.

  “Like I said, give it time, Yves. The idea of what he wants and the reality of it may not line up the way he was hoping it would. Let him figure it out on his own. I think I’m going to call him tonight, see how he’s doing. I’ll probably tell him to start courting Paris too, which I know you don’t want, but the longer he puts it off the longer it will take for him to figure out that it’s not going to work.”

  “Mm,” Yves hummed, not sounding entirely impressed, but it didn’t seem like he was going to argue it.

  “Anyways, back to the play, how are your leads doing?” Evgeni asked. He said what he needed to about Rafe for now, it wouldn’t help to agitate Yves further by continuing on with that subject.

  “Not as well as I’d like. The pair of them are both having difficulties being more sweet and innocent. They’d better figure it out though, if Ezra performs as good as you think he can they’re going to be blown out of the water.”

  “You don’t sound terribly sad about that,” Evgeni said, hoping Yves wouldn’t react negatively somehow to the rather bold statement.

  Yves shrugged. “They need to learn they’re replaceable, especially if they can’t be versatile. The same goes for Ezra though. If he can’t play darker roles he won’t be able to be lead.”

  “True,” Evgeni said, intrigued by Yves’ response. It seemed he really was serious about getting rid of them if they couldn’t step up. Though Evgeni knew it was one thing to say something like that and another to go through with it. He’d have to see when the time came.

  The rest of dinner passed by with simple conversation about the play and the theatre in general, and once it was done Evgeni excused himself to go to his room and call Rafe.

  He sat on his bed, phone ready in his hand, but found himself looking around his room. Ezra was right – he didn’t feel comfortable. Though perhaps that was a failing on his part, he was the one who left, after all. It was also his choice to stay away for so long. Perhaps he should start decorating and at least make it look like he was staying permanently because even he didn’t entirely believe it. He still felt like he’d be leaving in a couple weeks to go back to an
other country.

  Evgeni set his cell phone down on his bed and exited his room to go downstairs, making his way to the kitchen where Kai was just finishing cleaning up their dinner.

  “Master Evgeni,” Kai greeted with a bow as soon as he saw him. “Do you need something?”

  “Yes, if it’s not too much trouble, I know you’re about to leave for the day,” Evgeni said, feeling a little guilty now about bothering his maid. He hadn’t even considered that Kai would technically be done his work day in a couple minutes when he had his sudden desire to get his help with decorating.

  Kai just gave him a ghost of a smile. “I don’t have any urgent plans for the evening.”

  “Alright, but feel free to say no. I was hoping you could help me gather some sort of arrangement from the garden to put in my room. Just one vase would be plenty,” Evgeni said.

  “It will be mostly greenery, there aren’t very many flowers out yet,” Kai replied.

  “That’s alright, I just wanted something from our garden.”

  Kai nodded. “Give me a moment to finish here and I will help you.”

  “Thank you, Kai, I really appreciate it,” Evgeni said then exited the kitchen so he could gather his shoes and coat from the front door. He assumed he’d be going out the back exit with Kai to their gardens.

  As promised, once Kai was finished with the dishes, he found a pair of gardening sheers then put on his coat and shoes and went with Evgeni to the back garden.

  The Desjardins family garden was very large and very beautiful, even in the winter time. It was planted in such a way, many years ago, when the manor itself was still quite new, that it could be enjoyed in every season. Evgeni remembered that Kai once told him that he wasn’t the best gardener, but that this garden was surprisingly easy to maintain so long as one had at least an intermediate understanding of gardening, which of course Kai had. The man didn’t give himself enough credit in Evgeni’s opinion.

  They had only just got outside when Evgeni immediately saw what he wanted.

  “These!” He cried excitedly and hurried over to a wild rose bush. They were a horrendously bright pink colour, but Evgeni didn’t care, they’d look perfect in his otherwise colourless room.

  Kai let out a soft chuckle. “They are quite beautiful, aren’t they?” He said and came over with the shears. “These ones are called ‘winter hearts’. Perhaps these paired with a few sprigs of the silver bone sprouts and the tall autumn grasses would look sharp.”

  “That sounds perfect,” Evgeni said with a huge grin. It would make for a very bold arrangement.

  He helped Kai as best he could, mainly just holding the greenery as it was cut, then the two of them went back inside to arrange it all in a large vase.

  “There,” Kai said, stepping back to look at the finished product. “What do you think, sir?”

  “I love it,” Evgeni said, bouncing a little. “Thank you, Kai.”

  “It was my pleasure, Master Evgeni. Would you like me to help you bring it upstairs?”

  “No no, you head home to go be with your brother. I’m sorry for keeping you late.”

  “It was no trouble, sir. Have a good evening,” Kai said with a bow of his head then headed off.

  Evgeni gently took the vase in both hands then carried it carefully to his room, setting it on the little coffee table where Ezra and him sat earlier. It looked almost silly, being the only spot of real colour, but Evgeni was pleased with it all the same. It finally felt like something of him was in there, even though the flowers technically came from the family garden. He supposed it was just the idea of it. He made the effort of getting the flowers and the arrangement was something he knew only he would like – it would be far too bold for his brothers or father.

  With that all settled he returned to his bed and picked up his phone to call his younger brother.

  “Good evening, Evgeni,” Rafe greeted, sounding a little tense, or perhaps tired.

  “Good evening, Rafe. I was just calling to check in with you. How are things going over there?” Evgeni asked and got cozy on his bed.

  “One moment, I’m just going to go into the guest room,” Rafe said and a few moments later Evgeni could hear a door shut. “There. Sorry, didn’t want Soren to listen in. He and Pasha almost got themselves into trouble today.”

  “What happened?” Evgeni asked, eager for more gossip.

  “Well you know how I told you a while back how Soren liked this vidder called Draconia? Well Pasha is Draconia, and Soren had a bit of a meltdown over it. As did Pasha probably, judging by the way he ran out of Soren’s house nearly in tears when they found out. Anyways, Soren didn’t sleep at all last night, which probably didn’t help his mental state, and when he saw Pasha at school today he just dived at him and started wrestling him. It was insane. Then he dragged Pasha off to talk somewhere and refused to tell me what happened. All I know is that when he returned he looked angry and ashamed, or possibly embarrassed. I’m just happy neither of them are sporting black eyes.”

  Evgeni smirked. “So you got your first taste as to what it’s going to be like being close to wilder men.”

  “I think so,” Rafe said with a suspiciously fond sounding sigh. “A part of me was embarrassed by them, but another part was endeared, as stupid as that is. I’m also now stuck with Pasha’s lunchbox. I think I may see if I can help Shar Warrick fill it, I know he enjoys food and I’m sure he’ll need some cheering up. I have a bad feeling whatever Soren said was too cruel even for him, he’s not usually the type to be ashamed.”

  Evgeni’s smirk faded into a little smile. “You sound very endeared indeed.”

  “I am. They just… I feel better around them, more myself, and perhaps more open as well.”

  “That’s good, that’s the way friendships should make you feel. And what of Paris? Have you spoken to him?”

  “No, not really, I’m a little nervous to, especially when I’m not sure if I’m ready to court at the moment. I’m worried about upsetting him.”

  “I’m sure he’d still like to spend time with you. Why not ask him to join you, Pasha, and Soren on some sort of outing or gathering? He could probably help make sure those two don’t get into any serious fights.”

  “That’s true, and I was thinking of that. I do want to spend more time with him, just perhaps not alone right now.”

  “He’ll understand,” Evgeni said, knowing it to be true. Paris was quite smitten with his little brother, and while he knew Paris would want to be alone with Rafe, he knew Paris wouldn’t push. He also wasn’t going to push Rafe to start courting Paris either, regardless of what he said to Yves. He wanted his little brother to figure everything out at his own pace. “I also wanted to ask you about something else.”

  “What is it?”

  “Do you have a room to yourself right now? Or are you bunking with Soren?”

  “I’m in Soren’s room right now, why?”

  “I think, for the time being, you should make use of the Warrick’s guest bedroom. You both will eventually want some space and Soren will likely feel rude booting you out of his room. I say this because I think it’s going to take some time to get Yves to come around and I don’t want you to feel like your life is on hold until you can come home. I will make it happen though, Rafe, I promise.”

  “You’re probably right, and I think that’s exactly how I feel. Everything feels suspended in space right now.”

  “Exactly. Don’t let it. Do what you need to do and you can phone me any time you like, I’ll answer. I know it’s not going to be easy, and that you’re going to miss home, but you have a support network around you. Your friends will help you, as will Shar Warrick.”

  “I know. I just want my father.”

  “I know, but hopefully when you do finally come home, he’ll be an even better father.”

  “I hope so,” Rafe said. “And how are you doing? Are you settling in alright?”

  “More or less. I keep thinking I’m going to be leaving i
n a couple weeks, my mind doesn’t believe that I’m going to be staying this time. I had Ezra over earlier to work on things and he made a few comments on my bare room, so I decided to get some flowers from the garden to decorate. Now that I’m here permanently I should make it look that way.”

  “You should,” Rafe agreed. “How was working with Ezra?”

  “Very interesting. I wish I could tell you what’s going on in that mind of his, but I’m afraid I’ve promised to keep most of it a secret. The only thing I can say is that he admitted to having a thing for dangerous men. It seems he prefers being the flower prince in the relationship, though one that can put up a fight if need be.”

  Rafe let out a soft giggle. “It’s strange to think that would be his preference considering his stature, but I think it’s sort of cute. I’m sure some man would love to dote on him.”

  “Well he has two that he’s eyeing, and I believe both would. He has a thing for Marius Amberwood and Lazarus Kane.”

  “Lazarus Kane?” Rafe echoed, sounding shocked.

  “I know. I’m hoping it happens, because if it does, it may help our case. Yves doesn’t seem to have a problem with the idea of that relationship.”

  Rafe sighed. “Does he realize how ridiculous he’s being? Lazarus Kane may be better behaved, but he’s still a hunter!”

  “I know, I think it’s silly too, but I’ll work on it. I just have to do it slowly and gently. Your father can get defensive very easily when it comes to certain topics.”

  “I’m aware.”

  “As I said, I’ll make it work. The Desjardins clan will be close once more.”

  “I hope so.”

  “It will,” Evgeni reassured his brother again. “Well I think I shall let you go for now. As I said, you can call me at any time, for any reason at all.”

  “I know. I appreciate it, Evgeni. You take care.”

  “You too. Oh! And I’ll make sure Kai takes more of your stuff over, get the guest room ready.”

  “I will.”

  “Good. Goodnight, Rafe.”

  “Goodnight, Evgeni.”

  Evgeni hung up then lied back on his bed, staring at the ceiling. He hadn’t wanted to tell Rafe that it was going to be a while until he could come back home, but he wasn’t going to lie to his little brother either. Yves was definitely going to be stubborn and Evgeni didn’t want Rafe to wait on starting his new life with his friends, especially Paris. He still worried that what he said to Yves was true, about Rafe and Paris’ relationship not working out, but he hoped Paris and Rafe would figure it out – it just might involve unconventional methods.