When I step into the common room, Gianna doesn’t move. I sink into the couch opposite her. “What are you watching?” I ask.
With a subtle flick of her wrist, she uses her Cosmic magic to pause the program. A brooding, pale-faced actor freezes mid-sentence, his chiseled features etched with a tortured expression. “Some vampire romance.”
“Is it any good?” I ask. I’ll ease into asking about Fynn.
Gi shrugs. “I think the main character is based on Prince Vane.”
I chuckle. “So, what? He’s a romance cover model reject?”
A faint smirk plays on her lips, a glimmer of her former self shining through the cracks in her newest mask. A mask that tells everyone that life in Aurora has been great, despite being attacked, and nearly killed. “Slow your judgment. Someone may look at you with all those tattoos and piercings and think you’re a bad boy cliché.”
I examine my inked hands and forearms. “Are you kidding? These are works of art. It’s not as if I got barbed wire or biomechanical designs.”
“I think Ry has a series of gears tattooed on him,” she says.
“He does.” I laugh, and it feels good. I haven’t laughed much in recent days.
Gianna snorts, a sound so unexpected that it makes me laugh harder.
“Where is he?” I ask. Ry’s been trailing after Gianna like a lost puppy since she arrived.
“He went somewhere with Pallas.”
I nod, noting the slight change in her tone, the way her eyes flicker with an emotion I can’t decipher.
Pallas arrived yesterday. Eddo took one look at him, huffed, and walked off, leaving me to deal with yet another one of his issues. Pallas hasn’t told me what he did to get sent here, but I know it has to do with Leigh and what she was up to that day in her kitchen. I doubt it is legal. Eventually, I’ll get it out of him, but for now, I focus on the broken girl before me.
“You and Ry have been spending a lot of time together,” I remark.
Gi lifts a brow. “Yeah, so? He’s nice.”
“So is Meg when she wants to be,” I say carefully. My friends have made it their mission to see which one of them Gianna will fall for first.
“She is.”
“Pretty, too.”
Gianna’s eyes narrow. “I never pegged you for a gossip.”
I blink. It dawns on me that I’ve annoyed her, which wasn’t part of the plan. “I’m sorry. I know they both like you, and I wanted to see if there’s a chance you returned either of their feelings. I thought that if you can’t find information on your birth father, then maybe a winter romance wouldn’t be such a bad idea. I didn’t mean to upset or pry into your personal life.”
Gi sighs. “Look, ever since my Emergence, my future has been meticulously planned. First, it was Fynn, and then Hammond Bishop—always someone who could provide the bestfinancial security for me and my family. I’ve never had the luxury of choosing a partner based on genuine attraction or connection. Honestly, I don’t know where to begin when it comes to dating without first assessing what they can offer me.”
Gianna fidgets with the hem of her linen shirt. She inhales a deep breath, her voice a whisper as she continues, “I’m pathetic, right? A shallow, calculating girl who can’t see beyond the superficial?”
“You are not pathetic. You are just . . .” I consider how to say what I want to without sounding like an ass, but I also believe Gianna would appreciate the honesty right now. Her entire life has been a lie. “Lost.”
Gianna nods. “Yeah. That sounds about right.”
“Can I ask you something about Fynn?” I ask as gently as possible. I need to know more about what I might be walking into when Leigh arrives. It would be enormously helpful if Gi knew whether the rumor was true.
“What about him?” Gi asks.
I drape an arm across the back of the couch to appear more casual, though my heart is pounding so hard I’m sure Gianna can see it.
“Stellan’s article—has Leigh confided in you?” I ask.
“No.” She shakes her head. “She hasn’t, but I’ve been thinking about Fynn a lot.”
