My body freezes. The soft smile on my face shatters, vanishing completely.
Shock, cold and sharp, douses the warm, morning-after glow.
What... is HE doing here?
Moon Arden sits on the plush couch as if he owns it, his posture the picture of relaxed indolence. His sharp blue eyes trace over me from head to toe—taking in the messy silver hair, the soft sleep pants, the lack of my usual armor.
I stare back, silent for a beat, then force my legs to move. I walk over and sit opposite him, the low table between us like a fragile barrier.
I paint a soft smile on my face.
"Dear cousin. What a great surprise, seeing you so early in the morning."
He sets his coffee cup down on the saucer with a quiet clink. His gaze doesn't waver; it bores straight into mine.
He's the most difficult character in this whole novel to read—a chameleon. One second a playful, spoiled star, the next… this. A predator watching its prey with unnerving focus.
