Something that I’ll take because it was from her.
“Alright then,” I said quietly. “Christmas it is.”
Aurora brushed a strand of hair behind her ear, nodding again. “Just until my arm heals,” she whispered, voice small but real.
“Yeah,” I lied, nodding once. “Just until then.”
Chapter Forty-One
Aurora
The elevator ride felt too fast.
I barely had time to think before the doors slid open to his floor, and suddenly my reflection stared back at me in the elevator mirror: soft cardigan, green like pine leaves, white trousers pressed neat, soft curls tucked behind my ear.
Too much. Definitely too much.
I told myself I was coming for Honey.
Honey needed me.
Honey stays with Joshua.
Honey is safe here.
Not for the human. Never for the human.
Still, I caught myself smoothing the cardigan before knocking.
The door opened almost instantly.
He looked… different. Relaxed, even. Hair messy in that deliberate kind of way, sleeves rolled up, towel thrown over one shoulder like he’d been tasting or plating something.
And then, the smell.
Warm, savoury, rich.
It hit before I even stepped in.
I walked toward the counter, blinking at the spread: golden roast potatoes, carrots glazed like glass, Yorkshire puddings puffed perfectly, and a roasted chicken steaming at the centre.
“I—Roast dinner?” I asked, unable to hide the shock in my voice.
He nodded, leaning back on the counter as if he hadn’t just performed a miracle. “I looked it up. What English people eat for Christmas. Alex was useless; he just said, ‘a roast’. But… what kind of roast? I figured—”
He paused, meeting my eyes for a second before looking back at the food.
“—you might miss home.”
I did.
I didn’t even realise how much until that moment.
Oxford. The cold cobblestone streets, the ringing bells, the smell of winter markets, the chatter of students carrying Christmas parcels.
Here, it was just neon, palm trees, and sunlight that never felt warm. And somehow, he noticed.
I swallowed the lump in my throat and stepped closer to the counter, running my finger along the edge of a plate to give myself something to do.
