Chapter23: The Facade

Chapter 23: The Facade Lumina "I wanted to apologize," I said directly to Sophia, keeping my tone neutral and professional. Last thing I wanted was for Xenois to see that I was bluffing my way through this bullshit. "Xenois mentioned that our conversation yesterday may have been... misunderstood. If I said or did anything that made you or Riley feel unwelcome, that wasn't my intention." The words tasted bitter in my mouth, but I forced them out. This was just a performance, a necessary measure to get Xenois to back off from me so I can focus on what's truly important. Sophia's eyes widened slightly, as if she hadn't expected me to actually show up and apologize to her. She seemed to be looking at me intently, probably trying to figure out my plan here. Was she counting on me being too proud to apologize that she could use it to fuel the tension between me and my mate.  For a moment, she looked almost... disappointed? But then her expression changed back to that fragile mask she wore so