If he was lucky, Nancy would come out soon, the way she had last time, in search of her pet. But after a few minutes, there was no sign of her, and Dash remained seated at his feet, occasionally wagging his tail but otherwise utterly quiet. It seemed that he, too, was prepared to wait.
Momentarily, Richard considered going to Nancy’s room to return her property to her, but then he recalled the last time he had seen her at this hour and how much sleep he had lost as a result.
Not to mention that if he woke her up, they’d have to go over how ridiculous he looked when the puppy ran up to him. Pity was the last thing he wished to see in Nancy’s eyes.
Perhaps it was best if he just let her be.
“Fine. You may stay with me—just for tonight. Do not make this into a habit,” he mumbled with a sigh of defeat.
It seemed the dog understood him perfectly because he stood up and waited for him to step aside before he trotted into the room. Richard half-expected he’d have to scold Dash or issue warnings on what to do and what not to do, but the dog merely trotted to the rug by the fireplace and settled on it.
Right in front of where Richard had been seated while he drank.
Momentarily, he regretted his decision but swallowed any reservations he might have had, opting instead to return to his whiskey and the warmth of the fireplace.
Surprisingly, Dash made no fuss, and it appeared that all he needed was some company. The air between them was as silent as it was meant to be, but Richard could not keep himself from filling it.
“Do not mistake this for friendship,” he stated. “This is merely… a truce. You are currently in need, and I am prepared to provide you with what you need on the condition that you do not make it a habit of coming to me when those moments arise. I will not enable such behavior. Do you understand?”
Dash simply blinked, and Richard immediately felt foolish.
“Wonderful. I am talking to a dog now. How low can one man sink?” he mumbled to himself as he downed the contents of his glass.
When he looked down at the dog again and met his blank stare, his mouth seemed to move without his permission.
“I… I apologize. I have no treats for you this time. Perhaps you should just sleep. I’ll do what I can to reward you appropriately in the morning. Provided that you are on your best behavior. Does that sound to your liking?”
Dash yapped softly, and Richard took it as a sign of approval.
“Good. You may sleep now.”
Slowly, Dash lowered his head to rest on his paws and within minutes, fell asleep. Richard scoffed at the sight, wishing he could find rest as easily as the dog had.
“Lucky beast,” he muttered and knocked back another drink.
Strangely enough, the air around him changed, and he felt more comfortable than he had previously. He stared at the dog, noting how his brown and white fur shone in the warm glow from the fireplace.
And perhaps, for the first time, he could see why his wife liked the mutt so much. If this was the sort of feeling that surrounded the puppy, he understood why she valued him greatly.
Somehow, Richard also fell asleep on the settee next to Dash.
In the morning, he woke up early and found the dog already awake, staring at him.
The dog stood up when he did and obediently followed him to the door without a fuss or a sound, slipping out when it was opened for him.
And perhaps Richard could send word to the cook to have him prepare an entire chicken for Dash.
No one would have to know.
ChapterNine
“Duchess. Mrs. Silverstone,” Richard’s voice came from the doorway of the library.
Nancy was so caught up in conversation with Mrs. Silverstone that she hadn’t even heard his sturdy footsteps echo across the hallways of Wexford Castle.
He leant against the doorframe, far more casually than what he had made Nancy accustomed to. It gave him a lightness she had not seen in him before.
Nancy couldn’t help but notice he was in more casual wear too, having shed his typical coat, and only donning his vest and white shirt, with its sleeves rolled. The way the sleeves tightened around his sculpted forearms…
