The Gladiator's Master by Fae Sutherland

Author:Fae Sutherland [Sutherland, Fae]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Gay, Fiction, Romance, Historical, Social Science, Gay Studies
ISBN: 9781426892295
Google: fouNUdennjMC
Amazon: B005GFAIDI
Publisher: Carina Press
Published: 2011-09-18T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twelve

Caelius paced along the cliffs, letting the breeze off the sea soothe his throbbing temples. The funeral procession had been a long affair, made all the more distressing by the greed of Valeriana’s family. They seemed to have little care that she was gone. Their main concern had been whether or not Caelius would sever ties with them, making them lose access to his wealth.

He glanced down at the sleeping babe in his arms. “My sweet boy. I promise you I will not let them poison you the way they did your mother. You will have only good thoughts of her. I will make sure of it.”

It disturbed him more than he could say that they could be so callous on this day of all days. But Valeriana was well and gone now, if not Caelius’s lingering guilt, and he’d think about what to do about her family on another day. At least Gaidres had seemed to pick up on his distress earlier. His expression had become more and more forbidding as Valeriana’s family had approached him one by one, until they ceased coming altogether after one look at his gladiator’s face.

He needed to stop dreaming. Even if, gods willing, he was able to find a way to soothe Gaidres’s hurt enough that he stopped seeking death, he’d never win Gaidres’s heart.

He had thought he would give Gaidres some peace from his presence, and since he knew that Felix wouldn’t allow him to bury himself in his work today of all days he had gone to pace the cliffs to think. He had a rare moment of time on his hands and this was the best way he knew to soothe his thoughts.

“One day all of this will be yours, Faustus. This is a true home.”

Caelius looked around, noting all the small details that separated this place from his uncle’s. The bright splashes of color from pots of fall flowers, the song of the sea in the background and the warm light spilling across the paved stones he’d played on as a child. Faustus stirred in his arms, chirping a greeting as he blinked his eyes open and turned his little face away from the breeze. He brushed his lips over the babe’s forehead. He had missed him all day and holding him now eased his spirit even more than the walk.

“I was beginning to think you’d never wake.” He nuzzled his nose against Faustus’s soft cheek.

The scrape of a sandal on the ground caught his attention and his heart picked up. He no longer wondered how he always knew it was his gladiator and not someone else. Caelius turned, watching as Gaidres’s steps slowed when he spotted Caelius walking with Faustus cradled in his arms. The concerned expression on Gaidres’s face made his heart warm. His lover glanced around, but no one else was about and after a moment’s consideration, Gaidres approached.

“Dominus?”

“I thought after the fiasco of the funeral, you would prefer to be left alone.” Caelius moved forward to meet him.

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