Lyra's POV
The following evening found me in an even worse state than before, something Poppy picked up on immediately. Maybe it was the way I had been stirring my cereal in endless circles for the past hour. Or maybe Poppy was just that good of a friend to notice when something was wrong.
"Want to tell me what's bothering you?" she asked gently, watching my spoon push another waterlogged cheerio around the bowl. I gave her a halfhearted shrug.
"Nothing much to discuss," I muttered. "Every single one of my fated mates despises me."
"Lyra," Poppy said matter-of-factly. "You've got four of them. There's no way they all feel that way about you."
I shot her a look and raised my index finger.
"Ash is convinced I'm playing games with him and Alaric—"
My middle finger joined the first.
"—Alaric is still planning to marry Roxanne and wants me completely out of his life—"
Ring finger up.
"—Killian despises me so intensely he severed our mate bond entirely—"
Finally, my pinkie.
