#Chapter 57: Smile

Elara Alaric’s arm tightened instinctively around my waist, his hand pressing firm against the small of my back. I stared up at him, my breath caught somewhere between my lungs and throat. I couldn’t tell if the thudding pulse in my ears was his or mine, the bond flaring unexpectedly between us after weeks of silence. We were too close—closer than we had been in what felt like ages. His body was flush against mine, broad and warm, and yet all I could think about was the blank, distant look in his eyes just moments ago. He wasn’t just sitting at his desk. He had been somewhere else entirely, like a shell of himself. “Alaric,” I whispered, watching the faint flicker of awareness bleed back into his gaze. “What was that? You looked…” Like a zombie. Like he wasn’t even in his own skin. His hold on me slackened as the realization suddenly seemed to dawn on him. “I was sleepwalking,” he muttered, stepping back as if the sudden proximity between our bodies