~Lyra~
The weather was clear and golden today. Gia proposed for a short walk in the garden. She’d been fussing with her brand-new camera for a while, snapping picture after picture of me like I was her personal model.
“You’re so beautiful,” she murmured, practically beaming. “It’s impossible to take a bad photo of you.”
I smiled at her. “Only because you’re so good at taking them.” Then I asked gently, “When will you be leaving, Aunt Gia?”
She handed the camera off to a maid and took my hand, leading me over to a little round table nestled beneath the trellis. We sat, and she said, “I’m not going anywhere. Not until after you give birth. Kael’s buried in work at the royal hall, so someone has to stay by your side. I’m happy to be that someone.”
Emotion caught in my throat for a beat.
