He says nothing, but the tension in his jaw tells me he's unimpressed with me bringing up the old argument.
I sigh, reining in my frustration. My fuse where Atticus is concerned is shorter than usual, but his lack of patience is what got him in this mess in the first place.
"Sorry," he grumbles, working his jaw, and I know it's not just that he's eager to get this plan in motion, he's buzzing with anticipation about being able to speak to her. "I?—"
"I'll get them," I interrupt. "But you need to calm down."
Atticus nods tersely and heads for the library as I climb the stairs and rap twice on Sev's door.
"Who is it?" he calls.
"Eli."
"Come in, man."
I'm greeted with the scents of waffle, honey, and sex as I step inside.
Aurora lies back against Sev's headboard, twisting the pin on a gilt music box Sev stole from the collection of a member of the British royal family.
"Morning," she says in greeting, watching the little ballerina inside the box twirl as the tinny music plays.
"Morning, Angel." I cough to clear my throat. "Atticus is ready to go over everything. Sounds like he was hoping to actually put a few pieces on the board today, so…"
Her face falls, but she picks it back up, giving me a strained replica of a smile. "Right, I'll go get dressed."
As she crawls from the bed, I notice the white bandage on her stomach and my own drops.
I rush over, pushing the fabric out of the way, gripping her waist, checking the rest of her abdomen for signs of injury. "What happened?"
"What?"
"What happened?" I repeat. "Did you burn yourself out at the gravesite?"
She laughs and covers my hand with hers, luring me to meet her eyes.
"No," she says, elongating the word with a look that tells me I'm definitely overreacting. "Seven gave me a piercing."
I reel back, relieved, but also irrationally angry that he went anywhere near her with a sharp object.
"Oh."
Sev pulls on a pair of jeans, giving me a smirk as he does them up and wanders into his closet for a clean shirt.
"I'm fine," she reiterates, and I realize I still haven't let her go, and straighten up.
"Sorry, I?—"
She shuts me up with a quick, chaste kiss.
"I know," she whispers against my lips as Seven comes out with a pair of gray sweats and a matching T-shirt in his hands.
"Wear these for now."
He hands the pile to Aurora.
"I'll be swimming in them."
"There's a drawstring," Sev counters, and Aurora scoffs, but steps into the massively oversized sweats, and pulls the T-shirt over her bare breasts nonetheless.
