Page 35 of Somnium

She tugged at the fabric, trying her best to make it lay right against her frame so she could at least pretend she had her life together. Her scalp tingled, pulling her attention away from her preening to a group of female fauns, their delicate tails flicking back and forth as they watched her from their place in line.

Cadi cleared her throat and shot the trio a tense smile before quickly turning and cutting a path back to her table, doing her best to ignore the giggles that chased after her.

It didn’t matter anyway. The last time Elias saw her, he had been cleaning blood off her face; it’s not like he would be passing judgement now that she had chosen an outfit that wasn’t in her color wheel. Besides, it was just Elias.

Slipping back into her seat, Cadi carefully avoided the look of bewilderment Sera was casting her from across the table, instead choosing to study the path of the string lights hanging above them. From the corner of her eye, she saw Sera’s attention shift away from her to a spot over her shoulder, and a flurry gathered in her gut when she felt a new presence at her side.

Elias appeared next to the table, his expression light as he bent down to place a welcoming kiss on Sera’s cheek. He turned, and the muscles along Cadi’s spine grew tense as her mind began to spin. Gods, what if he tried to do the same with her? What if he didn’t? But he didn’t lean in, didn’t step closer. He simply looked at her with a softness that she hadn’t expected as he lowered himself down into the seat between them.

“Hi,” he said, the deep resonance of his voice settling against her.

“Hi,” she echoed, though her tone felt off to her ears. Had she said that too fast? Too loud? Was there a rule about how long someone should wait between being asked a question and answering it? Fuck, when did speaking become so complicated?

“How are you doing?” Elias asked, interrupting her analysis. She looked up, not missing the way his eyes darted to her forehead. Reflexively, her hand began to move to touch the spot where her bruise lay partially hidden, but she quickly covered the motion with a dismissive wave.

“I’m fine, just a bit of a headache. But I’m fine.”

He nodded, his eyes scanning her almost as if he were checking for himself, searching for anything she may be trying to hide beneath her ego.

“I’m glad to hear that,” he said at last, seemingly satisfied. Cadi’s breath snagged, and she forced herself to clear her throat. First speaking, now breathing. What was next? Vision?

“I was just telling Cadi about how we should go to The Crow this weekend for that band you booked,” Sera interjected, startling Cadi slightly with the reminder of her presence. Her brows bunched together as she searched for any memory of the conversation Sera had just referenced.

“Wait, you were?”

Sera shrugged, folding her arms in front of her. “Well, I was about to,” she said, then her eyes went wide. “Unless you don’t feel comfortable, which is totally understandable. We could⁠—”

“No,” Cadi rushed out, “I’ll be okay.”

Damon had caused enough upheaval in her life as it was. She refused to let him worm his way any deeper.

Sera smiled, throwing her a wink before turning to Elias. “I need Friday off.”

Elias let out a breath of laughter.

“Of course you do,” he said, leaning back against his chair and extending his arms behind his head. “I suppose I can find someone to cover.”

He spoke through the stretch, the movement lifting the hem of his faded band t-shirt. Cadi didn’t even notice her eyes drifting to the strip of exposed skin along his abdomen, but her mind went blank when she caught sight of the faint trail of hair disappearing beneath his waistband.

She sucked in a breath, quickly pulling her gaze back to her hands where they rested on the table just as the muffled sound of her alarm drifted from her pocket.

“I have to get going,” she said, standing from her seat, grateful for the timely interruption. “Let me know the details about Friday. I think I will definitely need a few drinks by the end of this week.”

Sera stood and stepped around the table to pull her into another embrace. “I will. You deserve it, my dear. We’ll have fun.”

Cadi smiled at her, turning to leave and finding Elias now standing next to her, his expression soft but hesitant. He moved like he was about to step forward, then paused. His arms lifted, and Cadi felt herself brace, as unsure about how to navigate their farewell as she was their greeting.

But instead of a hug, he just smiled down at her, resting his hands against her elbows and squeezing them once before pulling in a breath.

“See you Friday?” he asked.

Cadi let out a sound of confirmation and nodded. Looking back at Sera, she gave her one final wave before striding away to slip back into the crowd, not entirely sure what had just happened.

Or why her elbows were still tingling.

11

CHAPTER ELEVEN