‘Then I am flattered that he brought out your finest,’ Hokanu said smoothly. As he regarded her, he seemed to see past the way her hair was arranged, and more than the cut of her robes; on an intuition akin to Arakasi’s, he reached past nuance to touch her heart. ‘You are a Lady with an instinct for clear vision. Did you know I shared your distaste for caged birds?’
Caught by surprise, Mara laughed. ‘How did you know?’
Hokanu twirled his wineglass. ‘Your expression, when you described Lady Isashani’s sitting room in the Imperial Palace. Also, Jican once mentioned a suitor had sent you a li bird. It lasted two weeks, he said, before you set it free.’
Unwittingly reminded of her piercing frustration concerning Kevin’s dilemma, Mara strove not to frown. ‘You are most observant.’
‘Something I said troubled you.’ Hokanu set aside his glass. He leaned forward on his cushion and laid a narrow hand on the table. ‘I’d like to know.’
Mara made a gesture of frustration. ‘Just a concept introduced by a barbarian.’
‘Their society is filled with fascinating concepts,’ Hokanu said, his rich, dark eyes still on her. ‘At times they make us seem like stubborn, backward children — entrenched in our ways to the point of blindness.’
‘You have made a study of them?’ Mara said, intrigued and openly showing as much before she thought to guard her face.
Hokanu seemed not to care, for the subject fascinated him also. ‘There was more to the Emperor’s failed peace effort than our people understand.’ Then, as if regretting that mention of politics might sunder their moment of rapport, the Shinzawai heir brushed the matter aside. ‘Forgive me. I did not mean to remind you of difficult times. My father understood that you had a beleaguered night in the Imperial Palace. He said it was to the honour of the Acoma that you survived.’ Before Mara could wave the comment away, he gave her that direct look which unnervingly stripped away her reserve. He added, ‘I should like very much to hear what happened from your own lips.’
And Mara saw his hand move slightly on the tabletop; with the uncanny perception she seemed to share with him, she knew: he longed to take her in his arms. Tremors touched her as she imagined the firm feel of his warrior’s body. He was more than attractive to her—he understood her, with none of the cultural barriers or emotional raw edges that spiced her relationship with Kevin. Where the barbarian reacted to her dark Tsurani nature, and brought her relief through humour, this man across from her would simply know, and his unstated promise to protect became a potent combination.
Again Mara realized she was staring, and that some sort of reply to his request was required if the emotional temper of their meeting was not to overturn into passion. ‘I remember a lot of burst birdcages,’ she said with a forced attempt at lightness. ‘Lord Hoppara joined his forces with mine, and the attackers who stormed his apartment found no victims to hack up. They spent their fury on Isashani’s li birds and a good deal of purple upholstery. The next day, the lady’s bird catchers ran their legs off chasing fugitives.’
Disappointed to be diverted from the personal side of the issue, Hokanu’s brows twitched into the faintest of frowns. His eyes had an exotic tilt, and the expression made him look haunted. ‘Lady Mara,’ he said softly, and his intonation caught her like an ice-cold chill in the heat, ‘I may be overbold in presenting myself in this fashion, but circumstances in the Empire have forced changes none of us could have anticipated even a few short months ago.’
Mara set down her wine to hide the slight shake in her hands. She knew, oh, she knew what he was leading up to, and the feelings that warred inside her were too wild a tangle to sort out. Lamely she said, ‘What do you mean?’
Hokanu read her confusion as plainly as if she had shouted. He leaned forward on his cushion, for emphasis. ‘My brother was lost upon the other side of the rift, and I am left to assume Rulership from my father someday.’
Mara nodded, her own emotions twisted tighter by the grief she sensed inside him, left over from Kasumi’s sudden loss. The boys had been raised as brothers, and Hokanu’s pain ran deep.
‘When I first met you . . .’ Hokanu overcame his inner sorrow, and his lips curled wryly in a smile. ‘I will confess, Lady, I felt regret when I first saw you.’
Startled into the release of sudden laughter, Mara said, ‘You have an odd manner of making a compliment, Hokanu.’
His smile broadened, and his eyes lit in shared pleasure as he saw the flush on her face, ‘I should rephrase that, lovely Lady. My regret was particularly fierce because the occasion happened to be your wedding.’
Mara’s expression changed to bittersweet reflection. ‘There was a great deal of regret involved with that marriage, Hokanu.’ And the thrill happened again, with the unspoken knowledge that he knew, without her needing to explain.