~CHAPTER SEVENTY NINE~
Time passes faster than I expect.
By the time I check the clock again, hours have gone by and Hardin should be home any minute now. The casserole is ready, warm in the oven, and we even made fresh orange juice to go with it.
The chef carefully finishes setting the dining table.
The entire house smells wonderful—warm spices, melted cheese, roasted meat. Outside, the sun has begun to dip lower in the sky, the evening light casting a soft golden glow through the large windows.
Footsteps echo from the staircase.
I look up.
Valentina appears, descending slowly with that same composed elegance she always carries.
She pauses near the kitchen entrance, breathing in lightly. “Those smell good,” she says.
I smile automatically.
“I made enough,” I reply warmly. “Wait
