The room fell silent as everyone turned to stare at Soren. Once again, Cassian was the first to speak up.
"Hell no! You can't be trusted to be alone around her!" Cassian spat out. "The last time you were alone, you nearly ended up marking her. If you leave with her again, we won't get Samuel here until Willow really wakes up on her own!"
Rowan was similarly displeased. "I agree with Cassian," he said with a glower. "You should not be alone with Briar."
Soren frowned. "You're just being biased―"
"I'm being realistic," Rowan interrupted. "What if Violet finds the two of you together and decides to slap Briar for a change?"
Clearly, Rowan didn't think much about Soren's ability to defend me when push came to shove. Frankly, I wasn't super confident either.
