Page 44 of The Sovereign: Part One
Maxim nodded, taking a sip of his drink.“We should make more of them.”
“We should.”
He took that as an invitation to float ideas for upcoming outings, some practical, others indulgent.Volunteer work, something at the service centers, maybe even a recreational retreat just beyond the wall if we could get clearance.I listened to him talk as I ate, finding comfort in the way he spoke so easily, as if he’d been considering these things long before now.
I had just set my fork down, dabbing at the corner of my mouth with a napkin, when a shadow stretched across the table.
“Isara?”
I knew that voice.Even before I lifted my head, I knew.
Joss.
Chapter Eleven
The café suddenly felt too small, the air too heavy, as if something was about to shift.Joss hadn’t moved, but he might as well have been an intruder, his presence pressing in on the fragile calm Maxim had just helped restore.Maxim’s attention narrowed on Joss, as if assessing not just the man, but the millions of scenarios that could unfold from this unexpected disruption, each one carrying its own potential consequences.
I tilted my head upward just enough to look Joss in the eyes, my fingers tightening around the napkin.“You shouldn’t be here.”
His jaw clenched.“We need to talk, Isara.Come outside with me.”
“Who are you?”Maxim asked, an undercurrent of indignation in his voice.
“This is, er… this is Joss.He’s an old friend.”
Joss scoffed.“A friend.Okay.”He shook off the perceived slight and continued, “I need you to come outside with me, Isara.We have things to discuss.In private.”
When I didn’t move, Joss sighed, reaching for me.
Maxim rose in one fluid motion, his presence imposing, clearing Joss by nearly three inches.His voice was calm, but there was no mistaking the edge beneath it.“She’s not going anywhere with you.And there’sno chanceshe’s going anywhere with you alone.Isara is mine to protect.I don’t know who you are, but you came here uninvited, and that was a mistake.Leave.Now.”
Joss blinked, his expression twisting with something close to disbelief.“I thought you’d started your Vesture?Where’s your Supplicant?”
“I have,” I said carefully, my pulse jumping at the implication.Joss had mistaken Maxim for a Sovereign because a Supplicant was never aggressive unless there was a sense of clear and present danger.“Joss, this is Maxim.We’re on Day Two of our Vesture.”
“Maxim…” Joss said, as if he were testing the name.His brows knit together.“My apologies,” he said to Maxim, then looked down to me.“After our last conversation, I thought you’d come here to talk.I didn’t know who he was, so I made it sound urgent.”
“The venue was my idea,” Maxim said coolly, giving Joss a slow once-over before meeting his gaze again.“You’re still here.”
A beat of silence passed.He wasn’t asking.He was waiting.
Joss exhaled sharply, shaking his head before stepping back.“Isara?”
I glanced at Maxim, his glare locked onto Joss with the sharp intensity of a predator tracking its target.
“You should go,” I said.
Joss’s chest rose and fell in a staggered breath, as if my words had knocked the air out of him.
“We do need to talk, Is.It’s important.Please reach out soon,” Joss said, his voice tight, edging on desperation.He hesitated, then extended his hand to Maxim.“It was nice to meet you.Congratulations.Isara is… She’s wonderful.”
Maxim’s gaze flicked to Joss’s outstretched hand before meeting his eyes with finality.His silence carried more weight than words—there would be no second warning.
Joss let his hand fall.“If you’ll excuse me,” he said, turning for the threshold.
I watched him leave, my throat constricting, torn between the past we shared and the undeniable presence at my side.
Maxim remained standing for a moment longer before lowering himself back into his seat, though the muscle in his jaw ticked.He looked at me, eyes sharper now, searching for something.
