The front door clunks open and shut, then footsteps clip back along the hall…
My Master calls out. “Leave us for a while, would you, Ross.”
… and the footsteps continue beyond. The back door wheezes, then snicks closed too.
He slips arms around me, settling at shoulder and waist, holding me close as he presses lips to my forehead. “What would I do without you?” Fingers slide up, lacing into my hair.
I rest my cheek against his shoulder. “Master, you’ve spent most of your life so far without me, and I without you. But I don’t want to go back to that.”
“No.” He exhales, long and slow.
“Master…”
“Hmmm?”
“Can we go upstairs? I want to be with you for a while.”
“I like that idea.”
We make our way to the staircase together, but at the foot of the stairs, I hesitate, a shudder running t
