Chapter 57

Valerie

I was exhausted.

The efforts of the day crept over me like a shadow the moment we arrived back at the castle. I curled up on a soft satin couch, watching the empty bed across from me where Lucas was to sleep for the night.

He wasn’t in the room, and the bed looked awfully tempting. I half-considered crawling into it myself.

The moment we had returned to the castle, Lucas had been stopped by Marvolo, who insisted that they needed to talk. I assumed he was still busy with that, and I was thankful for his absence.

I didn’t want to face him before I fell asleep. It had been a long, grueling day and I could barely keep my eyes open.

And every time I thought of Lucas, I felt the ghost of his breath on my neck. The sound of his voice in my ears—pained and full of want.

I shivered and rubbed at my nape, trying to shake the memory of him away. Heat beat against my cheeks just at the thought of what had happened.

It was so embarrassing…and a bit confusing, too. I knew biological