Chapter 226 A Heart Fed On Scraps

• Astrid stays awake long after she should’ve fallen asleep.
• The bedchamber is dark, the curtains drawn shut, but somehow that makes everything worse. Darkness leaves too much space for thoughts she spends the entire day avoiding.
• Beside her, Cassian breathes softly, not in deep sleep either. But she doesn’t turn to look at him. Somehow, facing him is harder than everything else, even more so than coming here despite promising herself she wouldn’t, and also letting herself believe every gentle word he whispers when he wants her close.