The lantern flame flickered low and steady, bathing the chamber in warm golden light that seemed to breathe with the night.
Eleanor waited on the bed.
She lay on her back atop the light sheets, the blue robe fallen open and pooled to either side of her body like spilled ink. Her black hair spread across the pillow in thick, glossy strands, each one catching faint highlights from the lantern as they fanned outward. Her eyes found mine the moment I stepped through the curtain, calm, steady, waiting, the pupils dark and wide in the soft glow.
I crossed the room.
The golden stones were warm under my bare feet, each step pressing heat upward through my soles. Residual water still clung to my skin, tracing slow, cool paths down my shoulders and chest.
