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For a split second, insecurity washed over her face before she hid it with a smile. “Of course not.”
She followed them inside and to the office. He stepped behind the desk and opened one of the drawers, grabbing the small box he’d hidden from her since Wednesday. She was standing by the door trying to hide her nerves, but her speeding heart gave it away. Amon standing behind her was likely not helping.
Trying to conceal his excitement, he walked back around the desk. “Would you please give this to your sister from us and wish her a happy birthday?”
She looked at the little jewelry box in his hands, her face had lost all its color. She was as pale as the moon and her lungs had stopped filling with air. Worried, he looked at Amon who seemed just as concerned. Just as he was about to say something, she slowly inhaled and reached for the box, her hands shaking, her heart beating irregularly.
“You didn’t have to.”
“It’s our pleasure.”
She didn’t look up, hiding her face, but the smell of saltwater was filling the air.
“Thank you,” she said with a quiet, shaky voice before she rushed out and into her apartment.
Just as she closed the door behind her, he heard quiet sobs.His eyes met with Amon, his expression mirrored exactly how he felt. Rayen hadn’t meant to make her cry–he wasn’t even sure what he’d done wrong. Women always loved gifts and he never had anyone cry because of some jewelry, especially not one that they hadn’t even seen yet.
Silas appeared next to Amon in the door, his face filled with disapproval. “You made her cry,” he stated, his voice more of a growl than actual words. “Fix it.”
Amon came to Rayen’s rescue. “I don’t think that’s wise. We could make her feel even more uncomfortable than she already is. We aren’t even supposed to know she’s crying.”
“That doesn’t change the fact that she is crying because of you.”
“We all agreed to get her sister a gift. It would be rude to have bought something for her but not her sister,” Rayen tried to defend himself.
He still had no clue what he’d done wrong. She was still sobbing, somewhere close to the door and it took all his strength not to go to her and comfort her.
Silas turned, wanting to do what Rayen forced himself not to do.
Amon laid his hand on his shoulder and held him back. “She doesn’t want us. She walked away hiding her tears.”
Silas slapped Amon’s hand away and started walking towards Gwendoline’s door anyway. Amon and Rayen acted right away and jolted forward. Amon grabbed Silas’s left side, while Rayen held his right. They both quickly dragged him down the hallway and up the stairs. Amon had a tight grip on Silas’s throat and Rayen silenced him with a hand over his mouth.
“Silas, you would scare her if you went in. Those are her private rooms, and you have no permission to go in there.” Amon’s voice was calm yet stern. “If you want her to stay with us, we need to respect her boundaries.”
It took Silas a few more moments before he relaxed his body and Rayen felt safe enough to let him go. “Look Silas, I don’t think she’s upset because we hurt her. Maybe she just wasn’t expecting it.”
Silas nodded and in the blink of an eye, he was gone. Amon looked after him before walking to his own room, leaving a baffled Rayen all to himself in the hallway.
***
Eight
Gwendoline
Gwen woke up the next morning with a dark cloud fogging her brain. All week she’d tried to forget about Evangeline’s upcoming birthday party. Yesterday evening though, when Rayen and Mr. Seavey surprised her with a gift for her sister, she’d lost her cool. She herself, hadn’t even bought her a gift. She’d stopped doing so the second birthday after the accident. Her childish heart had hoped for a reaction from Evangeline after opening her presents, and it had broken Gwen’s heart not to see one. So, since then she’d stopped buying anything.
When Rayen had handed her the little jewelry box, her heart had exploded in pain and hurt. Of course, he and Mr. Seavey had only meant well, they didn’t know about Evangeline. She’d tried to hide her pain, but it hadn’t worked and now she felt not only pain, but shame.
Since there was nothing scheduled for the day, she printed out all the open houses and made her way to the office. Mr. Seavey was sitting all alone behind the desk and looked up when she came in. His usual hardened face seemed softer.
“I just wanted to give you the open house schedule for today and tomorrow.”
He reached for it and took it out of her hand.
“Is there anything else you will need?”
“No, Ms. Moore.”
