Lyra's POV
"It's just me," Alaric said quietly, his voice carrying a weight I'd never heard before. "Only me."
I caught my lower lip between my teeth, processing his words. There was something achingly lonely in the way he said it, as if admitting to some profound isolation he'd carried for years. My chest tightened with the urge to reach out, to close the distance between us and tell him he didn't have to be alone anymore. He had me, even if neither of us fully understood what that meant yet. I bit down harder on my lip, fighting the impulse before finally finding my voice.
"I feel like I know absolutely nothing about you," I said, my tone gentle but probing.
