Tobi’s POV
I hadn’t meant to summon her, not like that. I’d asked for her. Quietly. Politely. Told Prudence I’d like to speak with Lila—if she was willing. If she had time. If she even wanted to see me. But of course, by the time the request reached her, it was “The prince has summoned you,” as if I were some cold-handed monarch who barked orders from a throne. Not a man who hadn’t stopped thinking about her since she walked out of my chambers.
I paced the length of the meeting room again, fingers twitching. The Bastion Alliance would be arriving shortly. I should have been reviewing protocol, finalizing my speech, making sure Oscar’s pardon went smoothly. Instead, I was stuck in my head.
Lila had looked like a vision this morning—in just a sleep shirt, but it was her eyes that haunted
