Isa’s POV
The walk back to the manor had been a quiet one. Nikolai walked through the woods ahead of me, looking back at me every few yards to make sure I was keeping up. He’d tried to take my hand at one point, but I’d refused him.
We were almost to the treeline; it was visible just ahead of us, the lights of the manor glowing behind it in the distance, when he stopped suddenly.
“Nikolai?” I called. Just as I reached him, he turned around on me, placing a hand on each of my upper arms.
Even in the dim moonlight I could see he was clenching down hard on his jaw, choosing his words before he spoke. “What is it?” I whispered.
“I love you, Isadora, but…” He exhaled as his eyes ran over me. “I’m about at my limit.”
I tried to take a step backward from him, a puzzled expression taking sh
