The hall was alive with clinking cutlery and the low murmur of voices that blended with the smell of broth and baked bread. Lamps along the walls glowed with a steady amber light, softening the edges of the long tables where students and workers gathered in clusters.
Iyisha lifted her hand and waved when she spotted Mary and Ester seated near the far end. Both women smiled back, their faces bright despite the tired slump in their shoulders after a long day.
At her side Malcolm lingered in silence, his presence heavy in the press of bodies moving around them. He did not sit until she lowered herself onto the bench, his hand brushing the table as if testing its strength before he eased down beside her.
She felt the weight of him even without his touch, the steadiness that drew her and the distance that unsettled her. For a moment she busied herself with straightening her sleeve, aware of how her pulse quickened simply because he was waiting on her.
