Sebastian visited again two days later. This time he arrived in the early evening, unannounced but clearly intentional. I was in the library when Mrs. Hale came to get me. When I entered the living room, Lucian was already there, standing rigid by the fireplace like a coiled spring.
“Aurora,” Sebastian greeted me with that warm, fatherly smile that always caught me off guard. “I wanted to check on you again. You look lovely today.”
I found myself smiling back despite the tension in the room. “Thank you. It’s nice to see you.”
We sat down on the sofa while Lucian remained standing, arms crossed, watching every interaction with dark, jealous eyes. Sebastian asked about my days, what books I’d been reading, and whether the garden was helping with the loneliness. I answered openly, feeling
