They fell silent.
She wanted to kiss him, and Reagan wouldn’t move. No, he wouldreciprocate.
Pressing myself against the wall, I covered my mouth and nose, trying to quiet the rasp of my breathing.
"May I freshen up?" she asked, and I looked again.
They turned toward the door, and Reagan stepped ahead to guide her out.
Thank the Gods. I nearly collapsed, bowing my head. Nausea still roiled through me. The door closed, and I exhaled sharply.
"You could have said something."
I jumped, my heart lurching. Reagan stood at the end of the aisle, his face set in serious lines.
I opened my mouth, clearing my throat before I spoke. "I didn’t mean to be here."
"But you stayed," he said stoically. I noticed the tension shaping his shoulders and arms, the faint thinning of his lips as he watched me.
"Didn’t want to interrupt," I replied, stiffly. I wished he would leave before the tremor in my hand betrayed me, before I lost whatever composure I had left.
"You heard everything?" Reagan asked.
I forced myself to meet his eyes as he neared me, the twin storming skies. "Enough."
"Then you know,” he said, low and bitter, “what it looks like when I try to move on.”
Tiny bumps rose all over my skin. Was he angry with me afterIhad endured that entire scene? I doubted he wanted me here while he was courting someone.
"She clearly enjoys touching you," I said, unable to hide the resentment that spilled out of me.
Reagan stared at me for a long, aching moment. "I didn’t feel it."
It didn’t comfort me. Not in the slightest. Heat pressed behind my ribs, as if some wild part of me wanted to claw at him, rake my nails over his skin. Mark him, ruin him for anyone else.
The self-serving urge was painful to handle. But I wasn’t selfish like that. I wouldn’t become a worse version of myself with this need.
Breathing was hard as I said, “You should choose someone you like. Someone like Niamh.”
It wasn’t the same, but at least he enjoyed the company of Mountheim’s leading runesmith, and I knew she returned the sentiment.
His jaw set hard, storms gathering behind his eyes, and I could almost feel the lightning against my own skin.
“She must be coming back soon,” I murmured, stepping past him. “I should go.”
He didn’t look at me again before I closed the door behind myself.
My thoughts whirled like leaves in a rising wind, the sting behind my eyes a losing battle. I refused to stay in the same wing. I walked and walked and walked, putting as much distance between myself and the study as I could.
Of course, the last person I needed to see emerged at the far end of a corridor.
It sobered me instantly. I swallowed the tears, the hollow ache in my chest tightening like a vice.
Varian’s smirk was visible as he approached.
“This is not the way to the staff meeting,” I warned. “Shall I have the battle mages escort you to the correct room?”
“Jane Darling, so lovely to see you as well,” he drawled, ignoring my question as his gaze swept my face for far too long. “Perhaps we could walk together, as two highly important members of this staff.”
