The front door opened and as soon as he stepped into the foyer, Cian froze where he stood. After a few seconds, he closed the door behind him, casting a wary glance in Christian's direction.

"I'll look into it since the last one I received from Brooks was of dismal quality." Ben replied quietly before he looked over at Cian as he entered. Smiling at the sorcerer, he bowed his head before he turned to head back to his office.

A more curious gaze met Cian's wary one. " I remember seeing you outside of my Father's private room. You must be Cian Carmichael. I'm Christian Black." He had a faintly friendly air though not overly so, displaying more of a curiosity about Cian than anything else.

He nodded to Ben then forced himself to approach Christian. He held out his hand and said, "Yes, I am. Your Father told me about you. Welcome."

Christian's fingers curled to his with a quiet strength, giving his hand a firm shake before releasing it. "He told me some about you as well, and I've been wanting to meet you. Anybody that can shake up the halls of my Grandfather's abode is a decent one to me." As he chuckled, a glint of good humor showed in his eyes.

A faint smile graced Cian's lips. "It was not my intention, but there are some things we cannot control in this world."

"Intention or no, the old man deserves a bit of shaking up now and then. My Father does too, occasionally he gets a little too stuffy as well. You want to join me in the study for a drink?"

Cian couldn't help but laugh then. "Yes, I could say the same about Mael." He nodded slowly. "After you."

Chuckling with him, Christian moved across the entry way to the side hall. Entering the study, he headed straight for the liquor cabinet. "I know where my Father hides the good stuff. If you haven't yet, get him to drink a couple of glasses some night. You'll enjoy the consequences."

Grinning, he crouched down and pressed a hidden button under the ledge of the cabinet. The bottom door opened to reveal a dark bottle which Christian grabbed.

Cian cocked an eyebrow at him. "Dare I ask?"

"Do you want the full details or just the general gist?" Christian's grin had a mischievous hint to it as he moved to the open bar. After grabbing two glasses, he opened a small jar and put one sugar cube in each glass. Opening the bottle, he poured a small amount of the greenish liquid into the glasses. He picked up both of them then moved to Cian, handing him one.

Taking the drink, Cian sat down in one of the overstuffed chairs. "Now that you've gotten my curiosity up, the full details."

Joining him, Christian settled in a nearby chair. A quick swirl of the glass insured the sugar dissolved as he took a small sip of the strong licorice flavored drink. "Absinthe makes my Father so mellow that you can do just about anything you want to him. If you keep him plied well enough, you can spend hours...," Christian trailed off at that point, the grin still on his lips.

Cian chuckled softly and took a drink. He closed his eyes and a slight shiver slid through him. "Mm," he murmured, "I'll have to remember that."

He was letting Cian in one of those little known secrets about Mael. When Cian closed his eyes, he studied him quietly, a gleam of appreciation in his eyes for the golden hair and fine physique. "I can see why my Father is attracted to you, Cian. You don't mind if I call you Cian, do you?"

The sorcerer shook his head slowly. "Thank you, and Cian is fine."

"I really wasn't sure what to think when I heard about all of this, you know. Most times Father hasn't had much luck with personal things." Sighing quietly, Christian shook his head before he took another sip. The liquor had the effect of relaxing his body to the point he shifted in his seat, almost sprawling in the chair. "I haven't seen any evidence of sorcery though so I think Nigel is really off base on that one."

Cian opened his eyes and looked over at Christian. "Sorcery? They really think I've enchanted the prince?"

Christian nodded slowly to him. "They need to think of some reason the Prince of London would take up with a sorcerer and vampire hunter. Sometimes they just don't figure there might not really be a real reason." Shrugging, he took another sip.

"I think he and I both tried to figure that one out and we simply gave up," Cian chuckled. He swirled the drink in the glass, peering through the green liquid. "I really must remember this. Beats red wine any day."

"The first thing I noticed was the look in his eyes when he talked about you, Cian. It said quite a lot." Chuckling at his comment, he said, "It has a nice little kick to it. Which is why I like it."

"And what look was that?" Cian asked as he downed the rest of his drink. A hard shudder hit him and he closed his eyes.

Christian spoke in a quiet musing tone. "Something I've never seen him. Almost as if he were a young teenager in love." Glancing over at Cian, he smiled, seeing the shudder. "Just be careful not to drink too much at first, alright?"

"No trouble in that," Cian said as he let his head fall back. "One glass is enough, I think." He sighed. "I had a hard time accepting what I felt for him, for many reasons. But the more I saw him, the harder it was to deny."

"You love him then, don't you?" Christian's voice remained the same quiet tone as he continued to study Cian in great detail. Finishing his own glass, he set it on the stand near him.

"Beyond all doubt. He means the world to me." A smile crept across the sorcerer's lips.

His dark gaze roamed freely over the beautiful features, relaxed by the Absinthe, and a faint smile curled Christian's lips. "My Father is a lucky man, and I hope you love him enough to stay with him through the worst of times. He's been disappointed too many times in that, I think."

"There's no danger of that," Cian said quietly. "And the most beautiful diamonds come from the darkest of places."

Christian folded his hands against his stomach, remaining relaxed half sprawled in the chair. "What about yourself, Cian? I have to admit I'm curious about you. I have to figure falling in love with my Father gave you a very hard time."

"Yes, it did. I tried to distance myself from him, but considering that I needed to work with him in dealing with the rogues, I didn't have much choice. I am no different than any other man, Christian. I just happen to be a sorcerer and a hunter. Nothing more than that."

"Sorry, Cian, I have to argue with you on that. You wouldn't have captured Father's interest if you were like every other man. I've known him for too many years and it takes more than a pretty face to interest him."

Cian chuckled. "Perhaps because I'm a sorcerer? Or is it that hunter aspect?"

Laughing, he said, "Some how I doubt that very much. I'm willing to bet there's a great deal more to you than a beautiful face, body and hair. A hell of a lot more."

"Not enough to entice a vampire prince, I would imagine. Yet somehow it worked out that way." A cryptic smile curled Cian's lips as he settled further down into the chair with his eyes closed.

"Hence why I find myself so very curious about you. Especially since I've figured any rumors about sorcery were untrue." Smiling faintly, he simply continued eyeing Cian with his own interest.

Cian opened his eyes and pinned a black gaze on Christian. "I cannot change what I am."

Christian tilted his head slightly as he frowned a bit. "I didn't ask you to, Cian. I'm only curious, that's all."

"Aside from the rumors surrounding our relationship, what makes me such a subject of everyone's curiosity?"

"I don't know about everybody else's curiosity. Only my own, and mine is just on a personal level. Mael is my Father, and while I've only lived here off and on for the last few years, that doesn't mean I don't care about him." He maintained the level gaze on Cian's face, staring into his eyes.

"I can understand that," Cian said with a slight nod. "I would be the same if I were in your position."

"That's why I wanted the chance to talk to you. So you might understand where I'm coming from better." Slowly standing from the chair, he moved towards Cian, offering him his hand to help him stand up. He already figured the Absinthe was probably affecting him quite a bit.

Cian looked up at him and took his hand. As he stood, he felt himself sway the slightest bit. "Damn," he mumbled.

A faint smirk curled Christian's lips, knowing Cian was probably horny as hell by now. Chuckling, he move to slip his arm around his waist. "Careful there. Your first taste of Absinthe can be a doozy."

"Now you tell me," he laughed. "Where is your Father anyway?"

The question made Christian snicker. "I'm really sure Father will thank me for this later. I believe he's in the throne room right now."

"Hm, really..." A lopsided smile settled on Cian's lips as he pulled away and started for the throne room.