He saw the brief expression of disbelief cross Rose'she face, realized she'd held the lamp first. His smile grew a little sly and he said, "Unless you want to take it from him, poppet. Then you can be my mistress."
He hid his anger and resentment at being kept from his lamp by paying attention to the large dog, beringed fingers carefully burrowing into the wiry hair of the Wolf hound as his chin and cheeks were licked. He could put on a good air of disaffection but he wanted his lamp so badly.
"Oh, I don't know, my muscular master," he said breezing. As if it didn't matter if it were a day or a decade. "What year is it, anyway?" Offhand curiosity.