RHEA’S POV
Without another word, Talia turns on her heels and storms out, leaving me standing in silence, the tension thick in the air even after she’s gone.
I let out a frustrated sigh, running a hand through my hair, trying to push away the nagging worry building in my chest.
How could she be so stupid?
A sharp knock at my door startles me out of my thoughts. I open it to find Cade standing there, holding a single, dark red rose. His brow lifts as he glances down the hall where Talia disappeared. "Was that… Talia? What was she doing here?"
"Just… stopping by," I say, a bit too quickly, but Cade’s piercing gaze doesn’t miss a thing. He tilts his head, eyes narrowing, prying for the truth I’m reluctant to share.
"And what did she want?" he presses, stepping inside without waiting for an invitation, his tone calm but pointed.
I falter, the temptation to spill everything—my doubts, my fears, the dangerous secrets hanging between Talia and Lucian—tugging at me. It would be so easy to unload it all, to let Cade know the weight I’m carrying, the fractures forming in my loyalty to her. But something holds me back, some flicker of guilt or loyalty, an instinct to shield Talia even as resentment festers.