I want to give her something – a peace offering. Things do not need to be so difficult between us. It’s not her fault that she’s trapped here as my prisoner. Really, she’s just as innocent as poor Maeve, and she’d want me to make her time here comfortable.
Maeve would doanythingto help Dahlia feel more at home.
But it’s only when I arrive back inside my bedchamber and the bundle in my arms lets out a small bark, that I wonder if my sanity left along with the wedding invitation yesterday.
“Hush, Laelaps,” I whisper to the bundle.
Dahlia stirs beneath my bedsheets, humming softly.
Awkwardly, I clear my throat.
She bolts upright with a gasp. A nightgown covers her narrow frame – the same lacy thing I had the servants dress her in on the night she arrived.
She didn’t need servants last moonfall, though. Once we reached my tower, she woke up, undressed herself, and slipped into my bed without saying a word.
Although, she did mutter something under her breath as I slipped in beside her. Something about keeping my hands to myself or she’d gouge my eyes out while I slept.
“Sweet dreams to you too,” I’d chuckled before sleep claimed us both.
Dahlia blinks at me through sleep-filled eyes. When she notices the wriggling bundle in my arms, her brows draw together. “What is that?”
“A gift.” I move towards her. “I thought she might make your stay here a little more comfortable.”
“She?” Dahlia scoffs.
I place the bundle in front of her. The blanket falls away to reveal a small auburn-coloured puppy. It yips and stumbles against the bedsheets as Dahlia gasps, “Is that a puppy?”
I nod, unable to hide my smirk. “Someone in the castle was giving them away, and I thought you might like one.” That’s a lie. At the first light of the moon, I sent a squad of soldiers to the night market under orders to purchase and deliver me the sweetest-looking animal they could find.
I don’t know for sure if Dahlia likes animals, let alone a hunting hound, but considering how happy she looked with my horse, I thought she might prefer an animal friend to a bouquet of flowers.
Not that many flowers grow in the withered soil surrounding my castle.
“I didn’t realise demons kept dogs as pets.” She pulls the puppy into her lap. “Thought you’d want wolves or bats, or something scary… Wait a minute.” Scooping up the dog, she stares into its dark eyes. “Is this a demon dog?”
The puppy yaps and licks her face.
“It’s a dog…” I say, unsure how else to reply. “The same sort of dog you’d find in your palace, I suppose.”
“Really?” She smushes her face into the puppy’s, grinning. “She’s so funny-looking, though. Like a sausage.” The dog’s long body sags, as if offended. “The loveliest, sweetest sausage,” Dahlia corrects, and the dog perks up.
I narrow my eyes. If Dahlia wasn’t so obviously human, I’d wonder what magic she used to make the dog understand her. That, or maybe the dog really is a ‘demon dog’ after all.
Sighing, I shake my head. “I was thinking Laelaps for her name. It’s a strong name, and she?—”
“That’s the most ridiculous name I’ve ever heard,” Dahlia spits. “Laelaps?” she sneers. “Tell me that at least means something and you didn’t just make that up.”
My brows shoot up. “Well, I just thought?—”
“I’m naming her Pumpkin,” she cuts me off, smiling at the dog. “Because she’s orange and a lovely dog like her needs a lovely name,like Pumpkin.”
Pumpkin barks and licks Dahlia’s face again.
“Of course,” I sigh. Servants file in with their arms full of gowns, and I leave the bedchamber to let her dress.
Half an hour later, Pumpkin sprints out of my bedchamber with Dahlia close at her heels. “Get back here, you cheeky thing,” she laughs. Nestled in my large armchair, I peer up from my book to watch her.
A swallow lodges in my throat.
