Julius woke up groggily.
For some reason, his right arm felt numb. It took him a moment to realize why. Someone's head was resting on it.
He turned slightly.
Isolde's sleeping face came into view, her body pressed close against his.
"Ah…"
Only then did the situation fully register.
He had slept with Isolde.
He hadn't expected it to happen. Their relationship had always been strictly business, or at least, that was how it had started. Yet somewhere along the way, that line had blurred, then disappeared entirely.
If someone were to ask him whether it was a mistake, he would deny it without hesitation.
Julius knew how he felt.
He liked Isolde. Not just out of convenience or familiarity, but genuinely.
And yet, when he thought back to his relationship with Aiseline, something inside him hesitated.
A quiet sense of fear plagued the back of his mind.
That he might hurt Isolde the same way he had hurt Aiseline.
