#Chapter 36 Warning Signs

Kaine I sit through three meetings and remember nothing from any of them. My mind keeps circling back to Ember’s face yesterday, the calm way she answered when I asked about Jasper. She didn’t deny his interest. She just brushed it aside, like it didn’t matter. But it does. It shouldn’t, but it does. When the final meeting finally comes to a close, I excuse myself before anyone can stop me. I need air, distance, anything to quiet the way Rafe has been pacing all morning. The corridors give way to sunlight as I step into one of the outer courtyards. I don’t have a place in mind. I just need space. My temporary relief quickly fades when I see Jasper lounging near the garden’s edge, two noble girls draped on either side of him like ornaments. He throws his head back at something one of them says. I move to turn around, but he spots me before I can make my escape. He says something to the girls, dismissing them with a lazy smile before strolling over. “Brother,” he says. “Out