“I can imagine,” Charlie said. He really could. But there was no one, male or female, human or dragon or otherwise, who could break his curse. He shut all that unpleasantness away and focused on Robin, gesturing to the green and gold egg that was first in the case. It shimmered with purple iridescence. “How about the Emerald? The chocolates inside are a mix of creams and jellies, all berry flavors.”
“That sounds good. And she’ll love the look of it.” Robin pointed. “I’ll take the biggest one. How do you open it, by the way? Just smash it? Seems a shame to do that to something that looks more like art than food.”
“Well, in case cracking it against something hard doesn’t seem like enough of a ceremony, each egg comes with a wooden mallet and chisel to help with the process.”
“Outstanding.” Robin pulled out his wallet. “She’s going to get a kick out of this.”
Charlie packaged the egg in a wooden crate, standard for the large sizes, then rung Robin up and put the crate into a large shopping bag. “If anything isn’t to your satisfaction, just let me know when I get back. I am about to be out of town for almost a week. That’s why the cases look a little bare. I haven’t been adding any new stock.”
Robin laughed. “I can’t imagine how it won’t be to Theo’s satisfaction. It’s chocolate filled with more chocolate.”
Charlie shrugged good-naturedly. “You never know. Thanks for coming in. Please stop by again sometime.”
Robin lifted the bag as he backed out the door. “I have a feeling we might become regular customers. Have a good evening.”
“You, too.” Charlie watched Robin head off down the street. The Goblin King, right here in Shadowvale.
Not that surprising, he thought. He wasn’t exactly Joe Average Dragon himself. Of course, no one knew who he really was.
Just like no one in the dragon community knew what an embarrassment he was about to become.
One of the great things about owning a bakery, besides how happy Nasha’s products made people, was how early the shop closed.
Since she started work at 4 A.M., no one expected her to be open late. In fact, Nasha had recently started leaving around two instead of staying until the end of the day, letting her employees close up. That usually happened a few hours after she left. Sometimes she left sooner, depending on how depleted the day’s stock was. No point in hanging around if the shelves were nearly bare.
It wasn’t unusual to be completely sold out by two in the afternoon, especially with the lunch rush that often came in. Lots of people stopped in for dessert, or to get something to take home to their families for after dinner. The blackberry pies were especially popular.
There was always a little prep and cleaning to do for the next day, so that gave them another hour of work or so.
Today, however, Nasha was feeling particularly sorry for herself. The darker-than-usual clouds didn’t help. With her mood being what it was, she’d left as the lunch crowd started to peter out.
She drove straight home, put her purse and Em’s egg on the steps into her house where they’d be protected if the rain started, then went directly to the stables and Domino. Even though he wasn’t her horse, she’d grown up with the supernatural creature and thought of him as hers as much as her father’s. She was the only person, outside of her dad, who was allowed to ride Domino. That lifetime relationship was the reason she wasn’t afraid of him, either.
Even Falstaff, her father’s groom, kept a safe distance from the creature when he could.
To Nasha, the enormous animal with the sleek black hide, eyes that sometimes glowed red, and the ability to snort fire and smoke from his nostrils was the same giant goofball that rolled around on his back when spring was in the air and liked to headbutt her for sugar cubes. She found it completely endearing that he never acted that way for anyone else.
For all that was dark and dangerous about him, she found comfort in his company.
He whiffled at her as she approached, bringing a smile to her face. “Hiya, Domino. Yes, I have treats for you. Would I come see you and not bring you something sweet?”
She fished a couple of sugar cubes out of her pocket and offered them to him on her palm.
He found them immediately, his velvety lips soft on her skin. She patted his nose, then stroked her hand down his face. “How are you, big boy? Did you have a nice day?”
Done with his sugar, he blew air out of his nostrils with a soft whinny that sounded like an affirmative answer to her.
“Did Falstaff brush you?”
He nodded, then tipped his head to see her better.
With one hand on the side of his muzzle, she kissed his face, inhaling the smell of him, a combination of horse and smoke. “I’m glad you had a good day. Mine wasn’t so hot.”
She leaned her forehead into him. “Just feeling sorry for myself today, that’s all. You know how it is.”
He snorted again, as if confirming he did.
Domino’s gentleness almost made her feel worse. She sucked in a ragged breath, realizing she was on the verge of a big cry, something she hadn’t done in ages. Something she honestly never wanted to do again.
It was silly being that pathetic. It made her feel weak. She didn’t like that. She was, in layman’s terms, heir to the throne of Famine. Granted, not exactly the kind of throne most people aspired to succeed to, but there was no denying it was her destiny. She ought to live up to it with the right kind of attitude.
Her father didn’t sit around and cry and feel sorry for himself.
She dug out a few more sugar cubes and put them on her palm. Domino took them without a fuss, gobbling them down. She stared up at the fearsome steed. “Don’t tell anyone how pathetic I am, okay?”
He snorted. She took that as his agreement.
“Maybe later we’ll go for a ride. If Dad doesn’t need you.”
She loved to ride at night through the Enchanted Forest. It wasn’t really that dark at night due to all the phosphorescent mosses that grew on the trees, but it was a place most avoided, herself included. Unless she was on Domino’s back. He was built from that kind of dark, sinister magic and when she was with him, she had nothing to fear.
To be honest, the Four Horsemen had been born from that same brand of menacing magic, which meant she had it in her veins, too. She could probably walk through the Enchanted Forest at night by herself and have nothing to worry about.
Why had that never occurred to her until now? Funny how life made sense in bits and pieces instead of all at once.
Something about having a kinship with the Enchanted Forest made her feel a little tougher. Less like she needed to curl up into a ball and cry. She needed to own that tough feeling more often. Maybe not when customers were around. Nor should she mention she found the Enchanted Forest to be her safe space.
In general, the citizens of Shadowvale didn’t regard the Enchanted Forest as an empowering kind of place, which she understood.
Maybe if she could remember who she was more often, she wouldn’t feel sorry for herself the way she had been lately.
Domino shook his head, snuffling at her and nudging her with his nose.
“That’s enough sugar for now, you big goof.” She patted his side as she smiled up at him. “Thanks for listening. See you later.”