Viya's POV
I deliberately chose pants for the Blackwood family dinner—black dress pants paired with an elegant cream blouse.
Luna Margaret would disapprove of the pants, of course, but they would shield my knees when the inevitable punishment came. After three years of marriage to Lucius, I'd grown smarter about these things.
I requested an Uber, watching snowflakes begin to fall as I waited outside my apartment building. When it arrived, I noticed immediately how cold it was inside the car. The driver had his heater running at minimal levels despite the bitter winter chill outside. I hugged my coat tighter around my body, my breath visible in small clouds.
After several minutes of shivering, I finally asked, "Excuse me, would you mind turning up the heat a little?"
The dr
