Back in the countryside, Eloise slipped away from Jane and Odette to steal a moment alone with Damien.
Since it was their last day, she wanted to spend as much of it as she could beside him before they returned to the capital and he was consumed by his duties again.
Eloise entered the bedchamber without knocking, hoping to catch him off guard, but he was already looking towards the door.
"I thought you'd be asleep," Eloise said, pouting as she shut the door behind her. "I wanted to surprise you."
"You wanted to watch me sleep. That is a little unsettling," Damien said, shifting his arm to rest across his forehead.
Eloise's eyes moved over his figure on the bed. He lay without a shirt, the warm afternoon light spilling through the windows and settling across him in a way that made it very difficult to leave. She wanted to join him, but she had taken on the responsibility of watching over Jane and Odette.
