Chapter 10 The Date

• Ava's POV
• Brandon returned a few minutes later, but he wasn't the same guy who had left the table. The teasing smile that had been playing on his lips all evening was gone, replaced by a distant look that made my stomach twist. He slid back into his chair without saying a word, picked up his glass, then set it down again without taking a sip. His fingers tapped lightly against the table while his gaze drifted somewhere far away.
• I didn't have to ask. Whatever Esmery had said to him had gotten to him.