Layla could not sleep that night.
It had nothing to do with the unfamiliar room. It was everything that had happened during and after dinner.
She lay on her bed for what felt like hours, staring blankly at the ceiling as the same thoughts kept circling through her mind. Every time she closed her eyes, she saw Lara.
Her return had changed something, and she was scared.
Layla could feel it.
Finally, unable to bear the restlessness any longer, she threw off the covers and climbed out of bed.
She reached for the pack of cigarettes and lighter on the bedside table. She hesitated for a moment before slipping them into her hand.
Her brothers didn't know she smoked.
She had made sure of that.
She picked up the habit in college, but she had always kept it carefully hidden. None of the Norse brothers smoked, and if they ever discovered her secret, she knew exactly what would happen.
They would lecture her.
And if that wasn't enough, they would tell their parents.
