ELRETH
She didn't even bother keeping her footsteps quiet on the trail. If Aaryn was out there, watching, she wanted him to know where she was. Just in case he came back.
Or maybe he was back at her cave already? Waiting for her?
She picked up her pace, but she wasn't even halfway across the meadow outside the royal cave when she heard heavy footsteps behind her.
Her heart thrilled as she turned… to find her father walking towards her in the dark. Eyeing her warily.
He was out of his feast clothes and just in his leather trousers. She didn't want to think about what he'd been doing in the hour since she'd seen him, or why he was still up.
"Are you okay, Elreth?" he asked quietly, the moonlight cutting shadows under his jaw and cheekbones. "Interesting night."
Apparently this was the night she was seeing people with new eyes. She stared at him, and had a sudden glimpse of why her mother always smiled when she saw him.
