(Aurora's POV)
He carried me back inside and set me down on the sofa with the same calm efficiency he brought to everything. The fireplace threw orange light across the room.
He crouched down in front of me, bringing himself level with my eyes.
He looked at me for a long time without speaking.
When he finally spoke, his voice was low and rough, barely above a murmur.
"When the divorce judgment comes through," he said, "will you come with me to the registry office?"
I blinked. The warmth from the wine seemed to recede all at once.
I sat up straighter. "What did you just say?"
He didn't repeat it. He just looked at me, steady and unblinking, with an expression I had never seen on him before - not cold, not calculated. Just certain.
"I have never asked anyone this," he said. "I won't
