Cassius couldn't tell what expression Arabella wore now while looking at him. Once, her gaze had been full of warmth, the kind of love that could quiet storms and soften even his most monstrous moods. But now? Now, he wasn't sure if he could bear to see those same green eyes stripped of that affection, gazing at him as though he were a stranger trespassing in her life.
He didn't think he was ready for that yet.
Even if she did look at him, he knew those lost memories wouldn't suddenly return. The thought made something deep inside him twist painfully.
For now, all he could do was bring them back, those memories, those fragments of her heart that belonged to him. Only then could he have her back, the Arabella he knew.
"You have acquired the forbidden book," Cassius said quietly.
