Midnight approached like a held breath.
I'd spent the entire day cleaning my apartment—not because I cared what they thought, but because I needed something to do with my hands. Something to distract from the churning in my stomach and the weight of what was about to happen.
Elinor seemed to sense my nerves. She'd taken up residence on the back of the couch, watching the door with the intensity of a tiny, judgmental sentinel.
At 11:47, I felt him first.
Caspian. A cold brush against my consciousness, a whisper of presence just outside my window. I turned, and there he was—perched on my fire escape like some kind of gothic gargoyle, red eyes gleaming in the darkness.
"The door was unlocked," he said through the glass.
"It's always unlocked for you, apparently."
He almost smiled. It w
