Viya's POV
This was the only thing I had left that my mother's hands had touched.
I could still picture that evening—her arms wrapped around me, her fingers carefully creasing each fold as I watched in wonder.
Lucius smiled faintly. "It was always yours."
"Oh—" He turned toward the elevator alcove and retrieved a large bakery bag. "When I went back to Wilde Estate earlier, I passed that cake shop you like. I picked up a few things."
He held it out to me. "Share them with Sophia."
I hesitated. "I don't need—"
"Didn't we just agree to be friends?" There was a note of gentle exasperation in his voice. "Friends can't accept cake from each other?"
"Alright." I shifted the bottle to one hand and took the bag with the other. "Sophia will appreciate it too."
After he l
