Moonsong Glacier inugagulliq ⋒

The panther turned his face away, pleased to be complimented but easily flustered by praise. Still, he made no effort to deny or downplay his worth. A grateful smile played on his face.

"I feel her strength," he said earnestly, but that was all he had to say in response.

"I will bring Valiant to you," he told her, shifting the focus back to his cousin to avoid further discomfort. "He does want to be wed — to be a husband. But I fear he will resist talk of match-making. He must expect he will simply trip and fall into true love one day."

It was not a thing that Dutch scorned by any means, but he did not think much of his cousin's prospects. The man was too guarded. Too quick to pull away. There was a risk in the true pursuit of a woman that the other man had not yet been willing to take.