SILENT SINS
The omissions sat in the air between them, obvious and untouched.
He did not probe. He only nodded once, slow, and refilled her mug with fresh ginger tea.
“You will talk when the talking does not cost more than the silence,” he said. “I can wait. Okay?” He tickled her cheeks playfully and she smiled lightly.
“Okay,”She said. The restraint in his voice undid something in her more effectively than any demand could have. She looked at the tattoos that climbed his forearm, at the careful stillness of his hands, and felt the old want rise again—sharper now that there was no tower, no staff corridor, no threat between them.