Page 3 of Triplets for the Dark Elf

Instinctively, I check over my shoulder to see if Mas– if Miothro is there. He’s told me to stop calling him Master, but not as many times as he’s teased me for enjoying the smell of fresh parchment.

I try to ignore the stab of disappointment when he isn’t there. He hasn’t come downstairs all day, but I do know that his father, Mr. Dinobo, often stays for most of the day, and Miothro is typically in good spirits after he leaves.

Not to say he isn’t normally. I’ve never worked anywhere with a dark elf quite like Miothro. He’ll come down here, sometimes a few times a day even, just to talk to me. Never has he raised his voice or his hand or tried to use his status against me.

Sometimes I don’t know what to think of him.

If nothing else, I am grateful that I work at his shop now. It is much better than the club where we first met. I think I’m better suited for stocking shelves than dancing in front of leering elves.

I only took a job at La Cour because I thought it was safer than most others. Working at a dark elf estate is dangerous depending on the master, and most clubs have almost no rules. At least at La Cour the patrons have to pay for a night with us, and for me, looking as plain as I do, it was rare.

Maybe I should be insecure about my thin frame and simple features, but on Protheka, it’s a blessing.

I saw Miothro the second he walked into the club. He has this aura about him that drew me right in, not to mention his sharp indigo eyes and his thick black hair that he styled carefully back in a bun.

To say he is handsome would be an understatement.

And also inappropriate.

Maybe it was because I was staring at him the entire time, but I kept catching him looking at me. Normally, I didn’t care for customers to do so, but a small part of me – that still struggles to admit this – was thrilled by him.

Until that moment was ruined.

“Go get your master, sweetheart,” a chivdouyu that I recognized leaned in and whispered as I danced through the crowd. Unfortunately for me, I couldn't say no, and I had to get my master.

But Miothro saw it all. Before Almu could whisk me away – for what I was sure was malicious intent if the glint in his eye was any indication – he approached.

“I’ll give you double, “ he said over Almu.

To this day, I am still surprised he did this. I do not think I am worth it. Nor do I think I was worth him buying out my contract the next night when he showed up at the club again. But he told me he needed a shop girl, and I wasn’t going to argue with him.

Still, for a k’sheng, a merchant, to overstep the caste above him such as Almu was, is dangerous. Miothro told me that night after he brought me back to this shop that he didn’t regret the scene he caused.

And more than that, he has since assured me that he doesn’t regret his purchase. Even though Miothro has never touched me. Not the night he bought me – when he brought me back to the shop, fed me and sent me home – and not any other time we’ve been alone.

He’s more of a gentleman than even the humans in this city.

Maybe I should have stopped thinking about it nearly eight months later but I haven’t. I will never forget all that he has done for me. He saved me from abuse, that I am sure of, and he took away the possibility of future abuse by bringing me here.

In exchange? All I have to do is stock shelves. For that, he feeds me, houses me, and pays me. If I hadn’t already felt inadequate when we met, I would’ve learned to by now. But Miothro has a way of making me believe that I am not less than.

He is a kind elf, patient and understanding. He’s gone out of his way to purchase my favorite fruits when they are in season and he even protected my sister from her dark elf master. All things he didn’t have to do.

But that is the kind of elf he is.

I don’t think others see it, though. He is so stoic all the time, keeping his distance, but I know he has a good heart. It just comes out in his actions. I hardly even had to look for it to see it there.

Maybe that’s why he is so much more handsome than other elves, too… His soul is more pure, and his heart is kinder. It’s only right that his appearance matches that.

And that it does.

The door to his office swings open above me, and I blush furiously as I hurry to finish putting away the ink without spilling it. I hadn’t realized I’d been so caught up in my memories that I forgot to continue.

“It was lovely to see you, Father.” I hear Miothro’s voice by the counter, and I pop up, turning to face the two dark elves.

“Go see your brother, will you?” I notice the way Miothro’s face tightens at that, but I don’t dare speak. His father’s gaze sweeps to me, and he smiles. “Nice to see you, Annalise.”

“And you as well, Mr. Dinobo. Have safe travels!”