All for One by Nicki Bennett & Ariel Tachna

Author:Nicki Bennett & Ariel Tachna [Bennett, Nicki]
Language: eng
Format: epub, pdf
Tags: gay, glbt, Romance, M/M romance, historical, dreamspinner press, nicki bennett, ariel tachna
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Published: 2010-02-04T05:00:00+00:00

THE next three days passed in much the same way as the previous one had, with sword practice for Benoît and much grumpiness for Perrin as he and the other musketeers resumed their duties. While Aristide returned to bed each night just before dawn and slept next to his other two lovers, he had not touched either of them in anything other than the most innocent of ways since the night after their first meeting with the Cardinal. Perrin and Léandre continued to take their ease with one another, but it frustrated Perrin to no end that the blacksmith had managed to drive this wedge between them. As a result, he was even surlier than usual with everyone but Aristide, leading to days of shortened tempers and constant spats.

“Enough,” he roared when Benoît once again failed to parry his feint. “Haven’t you learned anything from Emilien?”

“Leave off, Perrin,” Aristide interjected, stepping between the two men. He had consciously kept his distance from Benoît the past few days, focusing his attention on the recruits and leaving Benoît’s training to the musketeer’s sword master and his practice to Léandre and Perrin. Or to Esteban, the young Spaniard inviting Benoît to spend time with him far too often for Aristide’s liking. But then, Aristide had found very little to his liking the past few days, with no further information coming to light about the author of the slanderous letters. Not to mention the past few nights, which he suspected had much to do with Perrin’s frustration. “He’s already at least as skilled as the rest of the recruits, and he’s had far less time at it than they.”

Perrin bit back the sharp retort that rose to his lips, glaring at Aristide instead as he stalked away. He didn’t know why his fellow musketeer persisted in defending the man. It’s not as if Benoît noticed, or cared if he did. “You’re not going to get him in bed,” he muttered to himself, “so I don’t know why you keep mooning over him.”

“Hsst!” Léandre shot Perrin a hard glance, hoping no one else was near enough to hear the grumbled comment. He well understood the sentiment, though he’d done his best to make up the lack of Aristide’s attentions; in truth, he found himself rather wounded by the thought that he alone wasn’t enough to satisfy Perrin’s passion. “Don’t make things worse than they already are.”

“Worse?” Perrin hissed. “How can they get any worse? Aristide’s barely talking to us, isn’t talking to him, and we aren’t making any progress with the letters. Tell me what could be worse.”

Aristide could leave altogether. Léandre couldn’t voice the words, the distance the older musketeer had put between them already hard enough to bear. “You aren’t the only one suffering,” he said instead. “You don’t need to twist the knife any deeper in Aristide’s chest.”

“Why do you think I didn’t say it to him?” Perrin demanded. “I hate seeing him hurting this way and not being able to help. I don’t care what he decides.

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