(Mira)
Ridge stepped inside, shut the door behind him, and looked at me. His expression changed the second his eyes landed on me, the hard edge easing in a way most people would never notice. I noticed because I always did.
“There you are,” I said.
“Long enough to prune.”
I looked down at my fingers and lifted one hand from the water.
“Rude.”
“Accurate.”
He leaned against the counter with his arms folded, watching me in that quiet way of his that always felt heavier than words.
“You look better.”
“I feel better.”
“Good.”
I tipped my head.
“How was Dane?”
“Still ugly.”
“That wasn’t the question.”
“It was the answer I had ready.”
I splashed water at him. Most of it fell short, but the point still landed.
“Violence before breakfast,” he said.
“You deserve worse.”
He pushed
