Page 48 of Goblins Don't Count
“And Mad Dog?”
“He shouldn’t be around killing, not if he can’t control it. So he can help your sister with her stray pets she’s trying to find homes for.”
“Interesting.”
“How far off the mark I could be? It isn’t that interesting, considering how much interest I have in ruling a country.”
“But you are invested in keeping the peace. I hadn’t thought about music, but if Furia discovered a sudden love of music, the Music Master wouldn’t rest until she made certain she reached her full potential.” He gave me a sly grin that I couldn’t help returning.
“Poor Furia. Mirabel would devour her.” Everyone knew that you had to stay away from Singsong City’s music master, or she’d drown you in her music abyss. She was still amazing when she played at the piano bar, though.
He continued. “And of course, if there was an opposing neighborhood who threatened both Kendry and Mirus, they’d be forced to reconcile long enough to defeat their mutual enemies.”
“Of course. And Mad Dog? He should really work at an animal shelter?”
“My sister is incredibly good with rabid animals. I could assign him to her as her bodyguard.”
“You’re not worried that he’d kill her? You trust him with your sister’s safety?”
He smiled, showing sharp teeth. “He knows what I’ll do to him if she comes to harm. He would kill himself first.”
“What would you do to him?”
He tilted his head as he studied me. “Put him in a position of authority and duty in an office building, where he spent all his days with numbers and goblins to manage.”
“Oh. That doesn’t sound nearly as bad as I expected.”
“You’ve never tried to manage goblins before. Particularly bankers and accountants.”
“They’re horrible, are they?”
“Almost as horrible as the Goblin Authority.” He gave me a slight frown before he resumed his stirring.
I sat there, feeling all upside down and aching. “That was another warning. But ever since I wrote that letter, it’s been done. At least I got a parking pass out of it.”
He shot me a smile and took the potatoes I’d peeled, working so quickly, until he handed me a plate of steaming deliciousness, rich sauce over the slivers of buttery potatoes, with a side of sizzling lamb.
“Do you always cook dinner when you don’t come for sushi?” I asked as I stared at the two plates he’d prepared so quickly.
“Not always. Sometimes I skip dinner entirely.”
“Do your spider robots cook for you?”
“They can, but the food lacks soul.”
“Soulful food is important?”
“You are what you eat.”
“Hm. Then I’d expect you to have more greens.” I took a large bite and then lost track of the rest of the world. It was so good, so absolutely perfect. It tasted how his shampoo smelled.
When I’d gobbled everything up, I raised my head and realized that he was watching me with a slight smile. “What?”
He shook his head and ate his own meal, but not like it was the most amazing thing in the world. “Now that’s done, why don’t we look at blueprints for the court house?”
I beamed at him. “You happen to have blueprints of the court house?”
“I have blueprints for everything. I like blueprints.”
