She mustered a small, lopsided smile and dared the rest of the sunroom with a peek. No one said anything. No one had to. Tommy's delighted cackling carried all the way from the opposite end of the garden, echoing off cracked stone and trellises that still remembered grapes.
The Vineyard's morning routine resumed, a little louder than before, a little less careful. Victor left Felicity at the kitchen window beside a vase of something that might once have been daisies and went to deal with supply lists and mutie sightings. He was gone ten minutes. When he returned, Felicity was exactly where he'd left her, but now with company.
Ash towered over her, posture ramrod straight, shoulders squared as if he could stare the embarrassment off her skin by sheer force of will. He didn't lower his voice. "You don't have to put up with it, you know."
Felicity blinked, unsure what he meant.
"If he's too much. He gets like that, in case you haven't noticed."
