“Is he good to you?”
I lowered my face to hide my blush, not really wanting to answer. “He knows me well.”
“But are you happy?”
“Yes,” I said, though I didn’t think I could answer that entirely honestly either, without feeling some sort of guilt.
It was just nice to share news that normal people rejoiced over, and pretend it was all normal and fine, that someone was happy for me. Someone who wasn’t aware of how entirely complicated it had made my life.
45
THE POISONER
The delightful sounds of morning chatter buzzed from outside my door. Every morning, we would all meet for breakfast. Today, everyone was up later than usual due to the raw weather and poor insulation in the building.
I left the serenity of the sheets and wandered into my main dwelling. The overcast sky made the room seem duller. The fireplace still had ash from the night before, as I was too lazy to clean it. I would take care of that later. The tree still smelled lovely, proudly standing in the middle of the room with a few fruits left on it. The last remaining orange was my breakfast.
Another aroma teased my senses as I peeled my fruit.
I couldn’t help a small smile. “How nostalgic. Reminds me of old times. Though typically your tell is the cigarette smoke.”
Silas stepped out from the kitchen area with a cup of freshly brewed espresso in his hand. “Is that your way of asking me for a light?”
“What are you doing in my flat?”
“I wanted to see you.”
“So you let yourself in?”
“What if I never left?” He sipped, pausing to decide how he felt about the taste. “Besides, if this were old times, I wouldn’t hesitate to watch you sleep.”
“Do not lie, you still watch.”
He smirked and lifted a shoulder.
I sat comfortably on the sofa, pulling my silk robe tighter to hide the thin nightgown.
He placed his cup on the coffee table as he sat next to me.
“Why are you here?”
“Is it so hard to believe that I wanted to say good morning?” He laughed and draped his arm along the back of the couch. His fingers lightly traced along my shoulder. It made me shrink.
“It is hard to swallow the idea of you being any sort of cordial or kind.”
“Is it really? I think your memory must be rotten if you cannot think of a single nice thing I’ve done for you.”
I shook my head and finished eating my orange, leaving the pile of peels on the table so I could use them later as fire starters.
Silas took my hands in his. He slipped the ring Phoebe gave me off my left hand and placed it onto the fourth finger on my right hand.
“What are you doing?”
“Making room.”
“For what?”
“Did you think that I wasn’t going to get you a ring after all that trouble?” He shook his head. “You reallydothink low of me.”
