“Great work today, little beasties! We'll be ready for opening day, no problem. Now go play with wolves or something. We’re off to start dinner.”
No one comments on our joined hands, but Aili frowns when she sees me looking. “I don't want to be eaten by wolves.”
Well, now…I can't exactly blame her, can I? Lark is teasing, but Ylvara’s name does meanplace of the she-wolf, and those other animals did come rather close.
Lark lets go of me to gather several abandoned items and collect Eevi’s pram, so I offer my liberated hand to Aili.
“Come with us, then.”
The girl hesitates, maybe not expecting to get her way. Then, tentatively, she comes over and takes it. Lark's jaw pops open before he snaps it shut again. The others head off for pre-dinner adventures, and with a quick glance at Aili, all he says is, “Okay then. Home we go.”
Hugo gives an enthused squeak to send us on our way. It's all of thirty paces to the rear of the cottages, but the mood is adventurous. That's what counts.
“Can I sleep with you tonight, Val?” Aili asks.
“No, you have your own bed,” Lark answers for me.
“Where’s Val sleeping, then?”
“Good question,” I mutter.
Lark rubs the back of his neck, his cheeks flushed from the cold. “Uh, I put your stuff in the main bedroom,” he says, not quite meeting my eyes. “I hope that’s okay with you.”
He busies himself opening the cottage door, avoiding the confusion surely written across my face. Isn’t the largest room already his?
Once inside, the cozy warmth of the cottage welcomes us. Lark gestures for us to pass him. “I can sleep out here on the sofa, of course,” Lark offers.
Aili's pout returns. “But Eevi sleeps with you. She'll wake us up, plus her crib will be in the way of my coloring table.”
I glance at the living area—crowded already with everyone's books and random items. It seems wrong to force Lark and an infant to sleep out here, taking up space meant for the whole family. It’s already full with just the three of us here.
“Lark, you should stay in the room.” I swallow before continuing. “I—I can sleep on the sofa.”
Lark tilts his head, an eyebrow raised. “You?”
“What? Am I too good to sleep on a sofa?” I shoot back a little defensively.
Except,souls to the Deep, I really am. Princesses do not sleep on sofas. But no, I’m not Princess Talvie here; I’m Val.
I can do this.
Aili scowls. “Aren’t you engaged?”
“We told you, sweetheart, that's not real,” Lark gently reminds her.
“Duh,I know,” Aili huffs. How one girl puts that much sass into three measly words is a mystery. “But everyone else is supposed to believe it. What if the breakfast lady sees her sleeping there? Or if muskrat-face comes again? Or when Juho falls asleep in here—like always—he'll be on her bed.”
Lark rubs his temple, considering this. “First, we agreed to stop calling Sentry Niemi ‘muskrat-face,’ remember? And second, you kind of have a point about people seeing one of us sleeping out here. But we aren't getting breakfast delivered anymore, so the risk is lower.”
Despite his words, worry flickers in his eyes.
A brief silence falls, broken by Eevi’s soft coos from the basket. Right—I forgot the littlest one again. I am so terrible at this.
“Aili is right. Eevi needs her room, and you need to be with her, Lark. I'm clueless about what a kid needs in the middle of the night.”
Lark’s gaze meets mine. “We…could share. It’s a large bed. Or I can take the floor, if you prefer.”
Ah,storms. I thought I was unnerved by the teasing, shameless flirt version of Lark, but this uncertain version is so much worse. My hands want to smooth that wrinkle between his brows. Maybe run through the unkempt hair that tumblesforward when he tugs off his hat to squeeze in his hands. Touch those fuzzy ears again that made his eyes flutter.
