Selene's POV
The room went silent.
Aldric's hand froze mid-gesture. The older woman with the pearl earrings took a step backward, her mouth open. And Jaxon, by the window, turned fully toward me with an expression I couldn't name. Not anger. Not warmth. Something closer to interest, held carefully in check.
I stood in the doorway in my charcoal pantsuit, sweat still drying at my collar, and realized I had no plan for what came after the door.
"You." Aldric recovered first. His voice was flat. "This is a private meeting."
"I know." My heart was hammering. "But I couldn't stand outside and listen to someone decide Jaxon's future without saying something."
Aldric stared at me. Then at Jaxon. Then back at me.
"You're the one who rejected him." A fact. Boring. Beneath discussion.
"I kno
