Page 35 of Gift from the Wing

CC…Uncle Orien…Uncle Oreo…whatever…xoxo

I laugh at the signature. I can almost picture his puzzled face, not knowing which name to sign it as. The troubles of wearing many masks, I guess, but no matter the name, we know who he is. The multiple parts of him.

Blinking away the water soaking my lashes, I clutch the letter close to my chest, then look around at the perfection in front of me.

They really did get it right the first time. They knew exactly what to make of my space within the first week of me being here, and there isn’t a thing about it I want changed.

Speaking of which…

My head whips to the other side of the room as I hustle to the bathroom and throw the door open. You barely hear my relieved sigh over the laughter coming from behind me. Men just don’t understand the importance of a bathroom, and my oasis is by far the best. Nothing about it should ever change.

Walking back into the room with them, Draken grips my hand and leads me to the only real change we see. At the mansion, between my bookshelves, sits my comfy reading nook that I like to laze on. Here, there’re French doors that open to the outside.

Draken laughs as he pushes them wide, exposing the beautiful balcony, and my eyes eat up thelittle space.

An awning spreads out above us, shading most of the area with cool shadows. A cozy couch rests against the wall, a table in front of it, and I can already imagine myself there—sleepy mornings with a cup of coffee, snuggled up beside someone.

To one side, a patio table with five chairs faces an expanse of green that fades seamlessly into the forest. On the other, if you lean over the railing, you can catch a glimpse of our garden and the gravel path, but from our height, we’re concealed from sight. The space feels wonderfully private.

“This is fucking nice,” Draken says as he plops down on the couch, and I follow right along with him.

“I’d have to agree with you, Draken,” Tillman says, taking up my other side. “We should’ve thought about this.”

“No. I love my reading nook,” I say, shaking my head and squeezing his hand.

“We’re going to stay in the wing today, princess. Chef, Mrs. Grace, and the others are prepping the kitchen now. We’ll see my parents tomorrow,” Corentin declares, sitting down beside Tillman and lacing his fingers behind his head.

“How? No one can get through the ward but us?” I ask, sitting up so I can look at him.

“When I touched the plaque, I felt their signatures already on the quarters. The ward knew to allow them entry through their doorway. They can come and go now through their rooms,” he says as he closes his eyes, letting his know-it-all smirk linger on his lips.

“And your parents?”

“Already let them know the plan. They’re fine with it and they’re taking their own time today coming to terms with the memories that unlocked for them. That’s the plan for everyone today.”

I can’t help but smirk and settle in between Draken and Tillman. If Corentin’s already taken care of it all, fine by me. Once Caspian finally decides to take a seat on Draken’s other side. I really do relax.

My mind silences. My heart beats normally for the first time today. And my soul sings out in completeness.

For now, everything’s okay.

Five

Caspian

This is infuriating.

It’s no secret at all, emotions haven’t been my strong suit for the larger part of my life. Since my kidnapping, I found it much easier to separate the feelings from the logic.

Well, at least I could if I didn’t allow my anger to swallow me whole. That’s about the only feeling I allowed myself to have.

If it made logical sense, so be it. It didn’t need to be explained or labeled. A feeling didn’t need to be attached to it. It was what it was.

The little temptress, who’s currently sound asleep on my chest, came into my life, brought all my emotions to the surface, and now, I can’t separate them from logic.

It’s fucking maddening.

Before her, I could’ve found out everything we did today, and it would’ve gone one of two ways.

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