22
Hua
It was still dark when Hua picked herself up off the floor of Luca’s room. Jian had knocked on the door a few times in the night, but she told him to go away. If she saw his face, looked into the eyes that saw every part of her, the resolve she’d crafted would waver.
She’d put all of Piao at risk.
Inching toward Luca’s bed, she looked into his serene face, wondering what life would have been like without the Nagi, without the war. Would she have married Luca like her family wanted? They’d have been happy together, even if they wouldn’t have fallen in love. Life would have been a lot simpler.
She glanced over her shoulder to the door she expected Jian to barge through at any moment. He wouldn’t give up, but then, neither would she.
Luca Kai was a good man, a kind man, but they’
