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It was good enough.

CHAPTER 12

MELCHOM

“How often do you have to feed?”

Melchom paused. He’d just arrived to his chambers with a couple of bags full of clothes for his human, but he hadn’t taken that long. He groaned. It had taken hours until he could guarantee he could extricate himself from the human’s hold without waking him up to begin with.

It angered him that he hadn’t gotten back quickly enough to wake Dove up himself.

“Why are you asking, Dove?”

“I should know these things,” his Dove said. He was still wrapped around the bedsheets, just beginning to stretch his arms, but it looked like he’d been awake for a while.

“You should?”

“Well, yeah, I’m your food supply.” The human scratched his nose then, lost in thought. “Fear supply? I don’t know. It’s too early for this.”

“Is it too early for this too?” Melchom placed the bags of clothes—mostly lingerie, he was not going to lie—in front of Dove.

His little human perked up, making grabby hands. Dove pulled the bag closer to him.

“For the record…” Melchom leaned against one of the bedposts. He didn’t want to think too long about the warmth spreading through his chest as he brought the human so much elation. “There’s not an answer to your question. I don’t think I’ve ever gone more than a few hours without feeding, but I’ve never fed because I was starving. Fear is always around these parts. It’s impossible not to consume it.”

“Right.”

He didn’t think the human had fully heard him. It was slightly annoying, but he let it go—for now, at least. If he set it under the right frame, he could find it amusing. The way Dove looked at all those lingerie sets with stars in his eyes helped.

“You shouldn’t pick anything white for our adventure today.”

“Why?”

Because he wasn’t sure how clean those hounds kept their paws. He also couldn’t ensure they wouldn’t try to scratch him once or twice.

“Because I said so.” Melchom snorted.

A quick sneak into his Dove’s head showed his pettier side coming through. Well, Melchom could just torture him with it when he realized his mistake.

His Dove settled on the last bag he’d grabbed. Melchom should’ve guessed the human would be enthralled by that one. Made of lycra, a tight crop top and culotte in white were covered in rather realistic flowers that popped out of it. It was the most extravagant piece he’d seen, which was how he knew it had been made with his human in mind.

“I’m wearing this.”

“Be my guest.”

“You should get a full-length mirror.”

“I should?” Melchom raised an eyebrow.

He wasn’t against the idea; he could certainly picture a myriad of ways to use one to his advantage. He still liked to make his Dove sweat, though.

“Yeah. You do want me to model for you, right? That’s the point of all the lingerie.” Dove shrugged as if it was completely inconsequential that he could read him. “Might as well make the most out of it.”

“You’re getting more and more brazen with your demands.”

A twinge of fear snuck past the facade his Dove was putting on. Melchom savored it before it disappeared, only to be replaced with more of that sass.

“It’s only fair, isn’t it? You’re getting more use out of me, too.”