The following morning...
Blackwood Manor was filled with the comforting aroma of freshly brewed coffee and buttered toast.
Sunlight poured through the dining room windows, chasing away the gloomy weather from the previous day.
Elara walked downstairs wearing a simple cream-colored dress, her hair tied into a loose ponytail.
She stopped at the dining room entrance.
Sebastian was already seated.
A steaming cup of coffee rested beside him, but he wasn't reading financial reports as usual.
Instead...
He was waiting.
When he saw her, he quietly folded the newspaper.
"Good morning."
A smile spread across Elara's face.
"Good morning."
Mrs. Hayes noticed the exchange and hid a grin.
"He's waiting for her now," she thought.
"How things have changed."
---
Breakfast was unusually pea
