Seraphina's Point Of View
Lydia stared down at our joined hands as if I had just dropped a live grenade onto the tabletop. Her breath hitched… a tiny, ragged gasp escaping her wet lips, as she traced the path from my fingers to my wrist, then up my arm, until her eyes finally crashed into mine. She looked utterly, completely shocked, as though she expected me to suddenly laugh in her face, yank my hand away, and announce it had all been a cruel joke.
The disbelief in her expression cut deeper than I expected, revealing just how thoroughly I had convinced her over the years that I was incapable of kindness toward her.
