I suddenly feel very awkward about the intimacy of our seating arrangement, so I quickly turn away and raise my wine to my lips, taking another big sip. Mahl, amused, gestures towards a Gamma who quickly comes over to give me a refill.
“Oh –“ I say, surprised as the wine fills my glass. I quickly thank the Gamma before Mahl dismisses him with a wave. “I’m sorry,” I say to Mahl, a little embarrassed. “I don’t mean to get drunk –“
“Do it,” he says, raising his eyebrows. “If it pleases you.”
I c**k my head to the side a bit. “Surely,” I say quietly, with a little smile, “you would not want to present a drunk Queen to your court on her first day?”
“What I want, Everleigh,” he says, leaning closer to me and making my muscles tense, “is for you to be comfortable. If that means drinking your
