Something in his expression eases. "Good."
Daithí steps forward next. He pulls me into a quick hug before resting his hand on my shoulder.
"You look happy," he says.
I blink. "Is that a surprise?"
He shrugs. "A little."
"Rude."
The corner of his mouth twitches, then all humor disappears. "You look tired," he says.
"I slept fine."
"Not what I meant."
I sigh. "Daithí?—"
"What?" He lifts a shoulder. "I'm just saying."
I stare at him, but he stares right back with his unwavering gaze. "You're annoying."
"So I've been told."
I roll my eyes and he grins.
Conn is next. He steps up, hugs me, and for a second, neither of us says anything, then he steps back and frowns.
"What?" I ask, feeling a little self-conscious.
"You're shorter than I remember."
I stare at him in disbelief. "I'm the same height," I grind out.
He raises a brow as he glances down at me. "Hmm."
"Conn," I snap.
"Hmm."
I swat his arm, and the corner of his mouth lifts. "There she is."
Valentina shakes her head. "You all are impossible."
"We've been told that before," Caden says.
"Frequently," Daithí agrees.
Val sighs dramatically. "Come on. We can sit in the library before Marco starts questioning why there's a crowd blocking his hallway."
"Now that," Conn says, "sounds like a threat."
"It is."
I laugh as we head toward the library together.
Caden drops into one of the chairs and looks around. "Of course you'd find the library."
