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Oh.

Oh, he saw it now.

He was in danger.

He was just doing what he had to—avoiding her, avoiding the pull, keeping his focus on the one thing still standing between him and the promised land.

But to her? It probably looked like avoidance. Like he wasrunning.In hindsight, he could see it.

And she’d had two—well, almost three—days to let those thoughts spiral. There was no telling what she’d already found him guilty of doing, feeling,thinking.

“I was… making you something.”

Of all the things he could’ve led with, a gift was statistically his best shot in any situation. Taly liked presents. Historically, they’d been more effective than explanations, apologies, or reason.

She exhaled a slow stream of smoke, her expression unreadable, which only made him more nervous. “Yeah,” she said after a moment. “I figured.”

“… huh?”Smooth.

“Ivain said I wasn’t allowed in the workshop. Connect the dots, Em.”

Skye huffed a laugh, relief hitting hard and fast. Right. This was Taly—she knew him. She knew how he could disappear into a project, lost in the need to bring an idea to life. She wasn’t like other women, getting mad at the drop of a hat.

“What I find more surprising,” she said, taking another drag, “is that you bailed right after we had that big talk abouthow I was afraid we were going to mess everything up… and thought a present was really going to make up for it?”

Shit. He wasn’t safe yet.

“Don’t worry,” she said through a lazy exhale. “I’m not mad.”

He sighed.

“But I could be.”

Damn it.

“That was fucked up, Em. You know how my imagination gets away with me. I just started thinking all these horrible things. I think I’m going to need at least two presents. Just to get me through it.”

Skye’s mouth twitched before pressing into a line. Right. This was Taly—she knew him. And right now, she was toying with him like a cat with a piece of string.

“You know what. Move over.”

Then he leaned down, wrapped an arm around her shoulders, another under her knees, and lifted her—blanket and all. She squawked in indignation, but he just sat back down, arranging her neatly in his lap.

“So, does Ivain know that you’ve already sniffed out his stash of cigars?”

Taly kicked and wriggled her way back onto the bench. “If Ivain didn’t want me stealing his cigars, he would learn to hide them better.”

“With that logic, I give it three days before the old man puts you back in the loop.”

“Asshole.” But her mouth almost twitched into a smile.

“So, why are we sad?”

Taly exhaled smoke, considering. “Who says I’m sad?” She offered him the cigar.

“Oh, I don’t know,” Skye said, taking it from her fingers. “Your eyes. Your tone. The way you’re glaring at me right now.”He brought the cigar to his mouth. The ember flared. “Should I go on?”

She clicked her tongue, stubbornly silent for a few more moments before she gave in. “I got a delivery today.” From beneath the blankets, she produced an envelope. It had no address, just her name written in a looping script. “It came with the post.”