Ava’s POV
That night I slept like a baby.
For the first time in quite a while, my body gave in completely. The exhaustion from the day—the school, the cafeteria conversation, the drive home, the way Corren had carried me and taken me in his room—pulled me under as soon as my head touched the pillow. No restless turning. No half-awake thoughts circling the same conflicts. Just deep, unbroken sleep that lasted until the sound of my bedroom door opening cut through it.
“Small madam, you are late to school.”
The maid’s voice was urgent but carefully controlled. I sat up fast, heart already racing, and looked at the time on my phone. She was right. I had overslept by nearly forty minutes. The calm of the night before vanished in an instant.
I threw the covers aside and moved quickly. In th
