Raine POV
The night air felt strangely calm at first — too calm, actually. The kind of quiet that creeps into your bones before everything falls apart.
Lucian and I were walking side by side, and for once, I was the one teasing him. It felt strange, laughing after everything that had happened, but I couldn’t help myself.
“So let me get this straight,” I said, smirking as I kicked at a loose stone on the path. “You’ve built yourself a whole scary reputation just because you can’t say please and thank you?”
He gave me that lazy sideways glance the one that could cut a person open and make them blush at the same time. “Ruthlessness commands respect, babydoll. Sweetness invites death.”
“Or maybe people just run away from your personality,” I shot back. “I mean, let’s face it, you’re not
