Page 39 of Little Doll

“That’s so lovely of you, darling,” Ren said. “But it’s late. I’m sure you want to get little Astrid here to bed. And you shouldn’t be walking around the countryside at night. I am only doingit myself by accident! I can go the rest of the way alone.”

“Well, if you insist,” I replied with worry.

“I do, dear. I do insist. But what time shall I see you on the morrow?”

“How about seven P.M.?” I asked. I didn’t know how I would manage dinner with the family at that hour, when sunlight might still be in the sky. But I knew Fane would arrange it for me.

“Seven P.M. it is!” Ren agreed happily. She reached out and rubbed my arm. “It was lovely to meet you, Nova. I’ll be seeing you soon.” She gave me a wink and turned and strode quickly away. She hurried off into the gathering fog down the road and soon she had all but disappeared into the nighttime dismals.

“Nova! Where have you been?” my brother Draven cried. He swept me into his arms and pulled me against him in a warm, tight hug. My arms slid around him easily, glad to hug him back.

“I’ve just been here, brother. As always!” I said cheerfully, taking a deep breath of his scent. He always smelled like rosewood and sunshine. How I had missed him.

“I feel like I never see you anymore,” he said softly, his breath moving wisps of hair against my face.

When he released me, I stood back and held him at arm’s length so I could look at him. He towered over me, even taller than Fane. He was also bigger and more muscular. Also unlike Fane, his face was tan and healthy looking and although he wore his hair long like our brother, he was blonde like our mother. His smile, as always, was wide and silly, reminding me of a happy, sloppy golden dog. But, despite the silliness of it, it was also devastatingly handsome in the purest of ways. His blue eyes sparkled with mischief always.

I had missed him, too.

He made a big show of escorting me to my seat at the table as though I were a visiting queen. Fane was already seated at the table, and I noticed him rolling his eyes and bestowing the same glower that he always gave to Draven. I laughed as I took my seat and made just as big a deal out of thanking the kind gentleman.

The main Blackmoth House dining room had no windows, so it wasn’t too difficult for Fane to arrange a dinner there in honor of my new friend. My father seemed happy to hear I’d made a new friend. Mother was cross and suspicious. Cleo took her seat at the head of the table opposite Costel and observed us all quietly.

7 P.M. came and went, with no one coming to call.

At 7:30, I began to squirm in my seat. Fane watched me with a look of mild confusion.

At 8 P.M. Mother insisted we eat.

By 9 P.M. the members of our family besides Fane and I had all drifted away from the table and Ren never showed up.

He walked behind me and slid out my chair, taking my hand in his. Together we roamed the windowless corridors until we could be absolutely certain that all remaining glimmers of sun were absent from the sky and then we ambled out to the garden. As soon as I stepped out into the moonlight beneath the roses, I fingered the leaf in my pocket which Ren had given me and I began to cry.

“Oh, Little Doll,” Fane said, sweeping me into his arms. I fell into him and sobbed bitterly for a brief moment. He took my hand once again and led me to the bench by the fountain. The self-same place I’d been languishing when I first heard the voice of Ren Ripley the night before. It seemed like so very long ago.

“Why does it matter to you, so?” he asked as we took a seat side by side.

I tipped my head and rested it on his shoulder. “I don’t know,” I said, breathing a ragged sigh. “I suppose it doesn’t. I’m just so… Lonely.”

“Nova, I’m so sorry!”

Chapter 17

Nova

My spine straightenedand instantly my spirits lifted. Fane and I shifted toward each other so that both of us could look behind us. Ren Ripley stood just beyond the gate, having let herself in.

“I lost track of time again,” she said, blushing. “I apologize for missing the dinner that you were so kind to invite me to. Could you ever forgive me?”

I bounced to my feet and practically frolicked around the bench to where Ren stood and threw my arms around her. She returned the embrace, and we laughed and spun in a circle. “Of course, my darling girl,” I assured her.

We separated, and she gave me the sweetest of smiles, reaching out to whisk a loose curl of my hair out of my face. The brush of her fingerson my cool skin sent a thrill of invigoration down my limbs and I shivered.

Fane had come up beside us and observed us with the interest of a cat in his eyes. “And you must be the mysterious Ren Ripley, I presume?” he asked, extending his hand, palm up.

Ren’s smile cooled slightly, but still she showed her affection. She placed her small hand into his and he kneeled regally, placing his lips upon her flesh. I noticed her eyelids flutter as she peered down at him from beneath her rich fringe of lashes. She retrieved her hand when he lingered a little too long. “Yes, that’s me. Apologies again, for my tardiness. And you are?”

“Fane Westminster,” he said with a dramatic bow. He placed his hands on my shoulders, giving me a squeeze and a little shake. “Older brother to this little minx.”

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