Page 12 of Dance with the Dragon Duke

Though the movement in the corner of his bed was minimal, it still jerked him out of deep slumber. He sat up in near-darkness. Most of the candles had burned out, but a few flickered dully.

He squinted at the bundle of fur curled up in a ball at the foot of his bed.

“I didn’t mean to wake you,” Tomorrow said quietly, hugging her knees to her chest. “This bed is so big, I thought if I kept down here out of your way, you wouldn’t even notice.”

He grunted at her, his thoughts clearing listlessly. The room was warm, but she was shivering under the heavy fur. Tonight wasn’t the first time someone had made an attempt on her life, he remembered. He understood better than most how the weight of constant threat could press against a person and deprive them of peace.

“You’re seeing monsters in the shadows?” he guessed.

“Yes.” Another full-body shiver shook her.

“But I’m scarier than those monsters,” he reminded her.

“Scariest monster around. Imaginary or otherwise.” Her grin was hidden by the fur, but he heard it in her words.

When he laid a hand on her slender shoulder, she startled.

“I’m not going to hurt you,” he soothed. He pulled her quaking body up the bed, toward the pillows. With his tail, he tugged down a corner of the covers for her.

“I really didn’t mean to be such a bother—”

“Shh.” He helped her under the blankets, his uncoiling tail tucking the bedding beneath her chin.

She stopped shivering. Just like she’d promised, she took up hardly any space at all. He slid down beside her. The moment his cheek reunited with his pillow, he fell asleep.

Chapter 4

Dark

Despite the interruptions early on, Dark awoke from the most restful slumber of his life. His tail felt a bit numb at his back, but that was a common occurrence. He often rolled onto it during the night. It was nothing a few stretches couldn’t make right.

Tomorrow’s slight form nuzzled into his side. He froze there, not wanting to disturb her. Her cheek lay on his arm, its weight insignificant but her skin so satiny soft it gave him pause.

She wore only her linen shift, and like all of her clothes, it was too big for her. The lacy straps slipped down her arms, showcasing creamy skin and the constellation of freckles gathered on her shoulders and just below her throat. He wondered, if he followed each bronze star that dotted her flesh, would it make a sky sign he recognized? He loved constellations and the stories they told. His knowledge of them had been one of the reasons he’d chosen the Lunar Province for his home. Their court favored the stars as much as he did.

What stories did Tomorrow hold?

A light rap at the door called his attention away from the woman in his bed.

“Enter,” he said, voice still thick with sleep.

He’d expected to see the maid, coming to collect laundry and deliver more coal for the stove, but Margot stuck her headinside. Brunette curls tumbled from their pins, evidence of a very eventful night. She wore an apron pulled hastily over her day dress.

“Morning, Dark.” She shuffled inside, hoisting two pails.

Dark squinted at her. “Aren’t you a little too high up the chain of command inyourhouse to be doing a maid’s work?”

She lumbered to the stove and pulled open the ash door using a thick mitten removed from her apron pocket. “Clever you. You caught me.” The smirk she sent him was full of mischief. “I wanted to check on you after last night. You had that dagger in your leg and all, but you seem well now.Very well.” She glanced at Tomorrow’s sleeping form and waggled her brows at him.

Dark slid a hand under his neck, propping up his head. “And?” he prompted, sensing there was more to it. There was always more with Margot. Margot and Susan were on a very, very short list of people he trusted, so he tolerated their games—mostly.

She shot him a wink. “When I heard Tomorrow’s bed was empty this morning, I bet Susie she was in yours. Now I get to go collect the half-piece she owes me.”

Margot raked ash and debris into one of the pails. She added fresh coals to the stove from the second pail.

Tomorrow stirred and stretched in the bed beside the duke. “Margot?” she said dreamily.

“Yes, love?” Margot said, chipper as a songbird.

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