78

AURORA

“Aurora!”

Two steps into the library and I end up with an armful of Selene whose voice cracks as she cries my name. Her tiny hands clutch at my jeans and her thick curls bounce around as she shakes her head.

“Hey, sweetheart, what’s wrong?” Scooping Selene into my arms, her wet cheek presses against mine when she slides her arms around my neck.

“Dad didn’t come to tell me a story last night, an’ he’s busy tonight too!” Fat tears follow her wailing, and she buries her face into the side of my neck.

Immediately, I rock her back and forth, soothing her gently while rubbing her back. “Oh sweetie, I know. I know he’s sad about it too because he loves to read to you, doesn’t he?”

He’s been so busy with Cassian I can’t blame him, and I’ve known him long enough to know that only truly important things keep him away from his daughter. Her little sobs pitch and she nods against me.

“He’s just very busy, but I know he’ll make it up to you. It’s okay to miss him and to be sad about it.” Dotted around the library, standing between the stacks of books, stands a few guards who now look incredibly relieved that they don’t have to deal with a crying child. It’s a little amusing. Carrying Selene, I move to the plush, comfortable seats near the fire. Flames dance high behind safety glass, and the warmth is enticing as it chases away the cold clinging to my clothes.

What a day.

Sinking into the seat, Selene slots perfectly into my lap as her tears finally begin to slow. My hand moves in circles, soothing her the best I can.

“How about we read a story instead?” I offer. “And then we can go and do some baking before bed? Does that sound like fun?”

Selene turns her large, hazel eyes up at me and they shine with tears. The flames dance through her tears, casting shadows across her cheek as she nods quickly.

“Okay.”

It amazes me just how quickly her mood can change. Within two minutes, all traces of Selene’s tears are gone as she tucks under my arm with a book in hand.

“Aurora?”

The familiar voice of Selene’s tutor catches my attention. I tip my head back against the chair and glance up while he gives me a small wave and clutches his briefcase.

“Hey, is everything alright?”

“Yes. I'm just popping in to let you know I’ve given Lucian a report on Selene’s progress, and that’s me done for the day.”

“No worries. How is she doing?”

He glances over my shoulder and smiles warmly. “As talented as ever.”

My smile widens. “That’s great. Have a good night.”

“You too.”

When he leaves, I turn my full attention back to Selene and interrupt her reading by lightly tickling her side.

“Did you hear that? You’re doing amazing!”

Selene beams up at me with the toothiest smile and my heart soars. Out of all the things that have happened here that give me pause against my mother’s orders, Selene is the strongest one. She’s adorable and utterly innocent. It doesn’t escape me that if my mother succeeds, Selene will end up in the same place she was all those years ago.

Things like that make my decisions much tougher.

I focus on Selene as she slowly reads to me, following along with the words and gently correcting her any time she makes a mistake, which is rare. She reads right to the end, then snaps the book shut with a laugh.

“Did you like that one?”

“Yes,” she declares. “I wish I could climb a beanstalk.”

“Well, you never know.” The book ends up on the side table, and I scoop Selene up into my arms. “There’s all sorts of wacky plants around these days. I’m sure we could find you a beanstalk if we really looked for one.”

“Really?” Her eyes turn to saucers. “Not one that leads to a giant, though.”

“You wouldn’t like to meet him?”

“And be turned into bread?!” Selene is so aghast that I can’t hold in my laughter.

“You’re right. Being turned into bread would stink. Come on, we can use some leftover dough to make something much better.”

I carry Selene with me to the kitchen, keeping one eye on the clock. It’s late enough that I really should consider putting her down to bed soon, but with how tense things have been with my mother, I need to earn back some brownie points.

As if tending to Selene can ever make up for my undercover role here.

“What are we going to make?” Selene hurries over to the pantry and pulls out her stool as I gather the leftover dough from the fridge.

“How about…tarts? You like strawberry tarts, right?”

“Yes!” She claps her tiny hands together. “Yes!”

Within minutes, the familiar scent of raw dough tickles my nose as Selene works her fists into the piece I sectioned off for her. Her technique is really improving and when I stand next to her, my chest aches with a pull of yearning. Doing this with my own mother when I was so little was such a simple time. I didn’t know the darkness of our family’s past, and the hardest thing I faced was waiting for the tarts to cool before I could eat them.

How different life is now.

“Am I doing it right?” Selene uses her whole upper body to knead and her hair falls forward in the process. Abandoning my own dough, I scoop her hair back behind her ears and secure it in place with two hair ties.

“You’re doing amazing. Just keep doing that and once it’s as soft as I taught you, you can roll it out.”

“Okay!” Her little face scrunches up with concentration.

Taking my spot on the opposite side of the counter, I turn my attention to the puree that we’ll drizzle over the fruit. We fall into an amicable rhythm while Selene fills me in on her day. She recites wild stories of hide and seek, coloring, an adventure escapade with her teddy, and, of course, boring school with the mean tutor.

As we chat, she rolls the pastry and I whip up the puree to the right temperature. While the pastry cases bake in the oven, filling the air with the warm scent of dough that feeds the blossoming warmth in my chest, we wash up and I tell Selene an abridged version of my day. She’s intently curious about my mother but the pastry cases are ready to be filled before I need to give any details.

Several spoonfuls of cream and delicately placed strawberries later, the tarts are almost complete.

“I’m so hungry,” Selene whines, shamelessly licking the cream from the spoon. “Can I give one to Daddy?”

“Of course.” One last spoonful of puree over the fruit and they’re ready. “Let me just see if he’s available.”

The phone in the kitchen connects to several main lines within the house; all it takes is a press of a few buttons to connect to the office. While I know he’s surely busy, I try anyway. The call connects and rings through to the office, but as I stand there, no one answers. Lucian is likely still too busy.

“Selene, I’m sorry,” I say as I hang up and turn back to her. “It looks like he’s?—”

The kitchen is empty and two tarts are missing from the cooling rack. She wouldn’t go looking for him by herself, would she?

I know the answer as soon as the question pops into my mind.

“Shit.”

Cursing aloud, my stomach drops. One of the most straightforward rules I must follow is to ensure Selene never goes anywhere alone. There is a rule about making sure she doesn’t disturb Lucian, but as I sprint from the kitchen and down the hallway, I know that rule pales in comparison.

With any luck, I can get to her before she barges in on her father.

My heart races and my lungs complain as I run down two corridors and skid around the corner to Lucian’s office. I already have an apology on my lips in case I’m not in time.

The door is ajar. My heart sinks and races in my gut, causing fluttering behind my belly button as I run into the room.

Selene sits on Lucian’s lap, licking cream from her fingers as he bounces her lightly on his knee. A couple of crumbs cling to the corner of his mouth, the only evidence of where the second tart ended up. He’s talking sweetly with her and doesn’t even look up when I arrive.

“Lucian,” I gasp, pressing a hand to my breastbone. “I’m so sorry!”

How did she even get here so fast? The little rascal.

“Aurora!” Selene lurches upward, held safely by Lucian’s hands. “Daddy loved them!”

Finally, Lucian lifts his head and his intense eyes lock onto mine.

“I’m so sorry,” I gasp, struggling for air from the running and the weight of his attention. “I shouldn’t have taken my eye off of her. I turned my back for just a second and she was gone. She really…” I gasp in a breath. “She really wanted to give you a tart.”

“So good,” Selene explains, then she yawns widely.

Lucian doesn’t reply. Instead, he looks past me to one of the guards hovering near the wall. “Can you take Selene back to the kitchen and get her a drink to wash down the tart?”

Only in front of his daughter does he ever pose an order as a question.

The guard steps forward and holds out one hand, which Selene rushes to take after being kissed by her father and sliding from his lap. As they leave, I turn to follow and briefly close my eyes.

Somehow, Lucian not saying anything is almost worse than being yelled at.

“Not you.”

Two words from him and I’m frozen in place. Maybe he does want to yell after all.

“Look at me.”

He holds such command with so few words, and I’m powerless to resist even if I wanted to. I turn on the spot and come face-to-face with Lucian who got so close to me without making a noise. His warm scent fills my nose and my eyelashes flutter. From here I can see the soft curls of dark chest hair peeking out from the top of his loosely buttoned shirt.

I choose that as my point of distraction for when the yelling starts.

“Aurora.”

My eyes flick up to his own and air punches out of me when his gaze locks onto me. He’s so beautiful. This close, it’s difficult not to look everywhere. I hunger for every detail of his handsome face and ache to trace each swirl of ink with my lips.

“Orion tells me you met with your mother.”

Oh.

My lips part, uncertain of what to say. My cheeks flare warm on their own, and the heat creeps down my throat as he holds my gaze.

“Yes,” I say.

“She seems less…kind and somewhat stressed. Is everything alright?”

Shit. Did Orion overhear us? Is Lucian toying with me to see how honest I will be?

I can’t speak. The warmth seals around my throat like a collar, restricting all words.

Then Lucian grasps my chin. The floor wobbles. He holds me there and I can’t look away. He’s like the sun, and I’m willingly caught in his gravitational pull. With eyes this intense and a touch that sears against my skin, I can’t lie. I can’t say anything.

“If your family is in trouble, if someone is ill or needs help, you tell me and I will help you.”

It takes all my strength to stay upright. He’s not playing games. He’s not toying with me. He’s offering me support because he thinks my mother’s stress is due to some family trouble that I’m dealing with alone.

He’s close, but on the wrong track.

“Thank you,” I croak out, fighting not to get lost in his touch. When he releases me, the chill that takes his place as he steps away is jarring and I instantly crave his closeness once more.

Get it together, Aurora!

“Thank you, sir.” My final words fly out in a blur, and I hurry from the room, nearly tripping over my feet. With a hammering heart and a full body flush so hot that I might as well be in a sauna, I stumble back to the kitchen.

How on earth am I supposed to betray a man like that?