"Are you nervous?" her mother asked for the third time that day, as if she could somehow sense her feelings.
Nervous? Elle thought, feeling the walls of her throat turn rough like sandpaper as she swallowed. She didn't truly know how she felt at this moment, another night away before her wedding day. If she had been asked this question yesterday, when excitement had still filled her chest, she would have replied no without hesitation. How could she be nervous when she was marrying Eryx, a man who made her curious about the outside world and eager to step into it?
But she dared not tell her mama what worried her now.
So she smiled at her through the mirror, where her mother was fixing and gently combing her hair for the night. "No. Am I supposed to be nervous, Mama? You've been asking me this every time your eyes meet mine," Elle said softly, watching her mother's beautiful face reflected behind her.
