#Chapter 30: She Said No

Logan I wasn’t looking for her. I told myself that again as I pushed through the tavern’s doors, the scent of sweat, ale, and smoke choking the air. This wasn’t about Evelyn. I just happened to be in the area. It didn’t matter that I had been told that she had been spotted heading into town in the direction of the tavern. I just needed a walk. Just needed— The lie crumbled the moment I saw her. She was slouched in a corner booth, an empty glass in front of her, another half-finished one in her hand. Her hair was slightly mussed, her cheeks flushed from drink, her eyes glassy and too bright. I knew that look. Knew it from patrol nights gone wrong and full moons that brought too much chaos. Like my soldiers after a battle won, she was utterly drunk. But she didn’t look wild or boisterous. She looked broken. Or maybe like she was trying very hard not to be. And I hated that I wasn’t the one she’d come to. But of course she wouldn’t have sought me out. Why would she