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She sighed and slumped against the wall. This wasn’t going well.

For a few minutes, she stood there, debating if she should try talking to him, but Darien wasn’t in a good headspace. He was upset, not just because of her decision to shower in her old bathroom, she knew, but because of his house, too, and Mortifer being taken. He hadn’t even given her a chance to explain herself. The last thing she wanted was to try to talk to him and wind up having a worse argument.

She drifted into her bedroom and left the door open an inch.

This would be one horribly long night. But she needed sleep—desperately. Darien wanted her to start caring more about herself, and her tattoos glowing on her arm confirmed that was exactly what she should do.

She would try this again tomorrow.

The hourhe spent beneath the stream of water—scalding hot—cleared his head and made him realize he was being a total fucking asshole.

Darien came out of the bathroom—hair wet, skin damp. He chucked the towel he’d wrapped around his waist onto the bed and grabbed a pair of boxers, gray sweatpants, and a white shirt from the dresser. As soon as he had them on, he was out the door and walking down the hall.

He paused in front of Loren’s room—heroldroom. The door wasn’t fully shut, the glow from the lamp on her end table slanting through the crack.

She was already asleep.

“Fuck my life,” he muttered.

He stood there for a few minutes, debating what to do. There was no way he’d wake her up, not when she was this exhausted, but the last thing he wanted was to sleep in his bed—theirbed—without her.

So he lay down on the floor.

A few seconds passed before he heard the padding of approaching paws.

Bandit appeared by his head. He peered down at him with crimson eyes, his chops floppy from this angle.‘Are you a dog now?’He cocked his head.

‘Well, I’m in the doghouse, so yeah, I guess.’

Bandit tilted his head again before turning and leaving. Probably to seize the rare opportunity to sprawl across the king-size bed by himself.

‘Bye,’Darien called.‘Thanks for the support.’

But the dog came back a moment later, a pillow in his mouth.

He dropped it on Darien’s face before pancaking on the floor beside him, paws kicking him in the side and snagging his shirt.

Darien grabbed the pillow and stuffed it under his head.‘Thanks.’

‘Do you think she’ll stay mad at us for long?’

‘I hope not.’If she did, he really would get on his knees this time. Crawl. Beg. He had no shame when it came to her.

He turned his head and looked at her closed door. He was so close to it, he’d roll right into it during the night if he wasn’t careful.

‘Goodnight,’Bandit slurred, already half-asleep.

Darien shut his eyes, hoping tomorrow would be better.‘Night, Bandit.’

57

The Duchess

YVESWICH, STATE OF KER

Travis woke up slowly. gradually.He had never been a morning person, and although he could remember shit-all about anything, he had the feelingawakewas the last thing he wanted to be right now.

Voices. He was hearing voices. Male and female.