Chapter 59

CILLIAN

Sunlight filtered through the curtains, casting a purple glow throughout the room. When I inhaled deeply, I tasted the lavender at the back of my throat. A sleepy smile drifted over my lips as I stretched and rolled over to face Ciara. With her eyes closed and looking so peaceful, I didn’t have the heart to wake her. It seemed like forever since we’d been able to sleep in. While staying at my parents’ place did have some perks, one of the downsides was having to wake up on their schedule.

While I didn’t mind waking up at the rising of the sun, or even before it, Ciara had never been a morning person. She loved her lazy Sunday snoozes that kept her in bed till mid-morning. Ciara mumbled quietly under her breath, and no matter how I strained my ears to hear her, I couldn’t.

“Hey there, pretty lady,” I whispered as I caressed her cheek gently. Ciara swatted her hand at me as if I were nothing more than an annoying fly buzzing about her head.

“Rise and shine,” I said a bit louder,