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to arrive to the party? I’m afraid Finch has fallen ill, and I won’t be able to enjoy the evening

until I’ve personally seen to his recovery.”

Several of the kitchen staff gasped. Hugh had to sympathize. Finch had always been a paragon

of health and responsibility, and to hear that he was out of commission on the most stressful

night of the year had to be shocking.

Emma’s cheeks turned pink. “O-Of course, sir.”

“Wonderful!” Hugh smiled, hoping to set them all at ease. “I appreciate it. Now, to bring Finch

to bed.”

Finch moaned.

One of the younger members of the staff—a willowy young man with innocent eyes and a

round face—went bright red and looked away.

How bizarre.

“Thank you all for your hard work tonight,” Hugh said as he removed his foot from between the

doors. “I won’t keep you any longer.”

Not a single soul acknowledged his comment as the elevator door closed. They watched in

silence, some very pale, some exceedingly flushed, but all wide-eyed. It was concerning, to

say the least. The stress must have been getting to them, too. Hugh would have to see to it

the entire staff received extra vacation time, lest they all start to collapse on him. But that would

come later. Finch was his immediate priority, and he would not allow himself to be distracted.

“What a strange evening,” he said to himself as Finch’s scent filled the enclosed elevator.

Wanting more, Hugh nuzzled the top of his head. “Finch, I’m not sure what it is you’re wearing,

but this scent… it’s simply irresistible. You must wear it more often.”

“No,” Finch croaked.

“Well, I suppose you’re right. If you were to wear it all the time, it would lose its allure.” Hugh

breathed it in deep, hoping to commit it to memory. “Ah… how divine.”

The elevator opened onto the correct floor, admitting Hugh into the servants’ wing, where

Finch’s quarters were located. It was an easy walk to Finch’s door, but Hugh found himself

reluctant to leave the cabin. It was small, and while it wasn’t sophisticated, its walls were made

of an alluring metal finish that scratched a dragony itch inside of him. What’s more, the space

was enclosed, and in it, every breath he took was thick with Finch’s scent. Perhaps it wouldn’t

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