Aurora's POV
"You're wearing that?"
Damien says it the moment I step out of the bedroom, not quite a question, not quite a complaint, sitting somewhere uncomfortably in between. I know that tone. I have heard it dressed up as a concern my entire first life.
In my first life, those three words would have sent me straight back to change. I would have tried four other outfits, come out apologizing for the time, and spent the entire drive feeling like I had already failed before the night started.
I look down at my dress. Deep green, simple, fitted in a way that is elegant without announcing itself. I chose it in twelve minutes this morning and felt completely settled the moment I put it on.
"Yes," I say. "I'm wearing this."
Damien holds my gaze a second too long. "It's a formal dinner,
