Her eyes well, and before the first tear spills, I wrap my arms around her.

“I’m sorry,” she mumbles against my shoulder. “I’m going to ruin your dress.”

“Don’t apologize. It’s just a dress. You’re more important.”

“It’s these hormones. I cry over everything now.”

“It’s more than just hormones,” I whisper into her hair. “You’ve been through so much.” What she can’t acknowledge is how she has a reason to shed her pain.

It’s then I realize we both do.

Iron willpower is my only defense against a breakdown. I blink the tears away and pull myself together. “You’ll need to touch up your makeup before dinner,” I say, gently wiping the tears from her cheeks.

She nods, rising in a fluid motion, her tears already drying on her skin. Elise is a pillar of strength in that moment, and if I’m half as strong as she is, I’ll make it through another dinner with the Brotherhood just fine.

An hour later, I arm myself with that thought as I follow Landon into the dining room on the first floor. With Elise an inspiration at my side and Landon as my shield, I smite down any trace of lingering fear.

Until the sight of Mr. Bordeaux elicits an unexpected knee-jerk reaction. The breath stalls in my lungs as I come to an abrupt stop, my knees trembling with the urge to kneel. Noticing my frozen state just inside the open doors, Landon nods in encouragement.

“You’re not in the House of Taurus anymore, my queen. He has no authority over you.” He speaks with reassuring confidence as he glances at the man in question, who’s already seated at the giant round table of zodiac signs.

Heath Bordeaux doesn’t seem to have a care in the world. My presence is inconsequential to him, not even a blip on his radar. If he can forget my existence, I should be able to do the same. I shove the memory of his cold, unbending cruelty to a place deep in my mind and put a lock on it. As my heart rate evens out, I continue to my chair at Landon’s side, while Elise slides in next to me.

Another month, another beginning at the altar of this unconventional table. Among the first to arrive, we spend the next several minutes watching the members of the Brotherhood enter.

Liam makes my heart tumble in happiness.

Vance and his reserved demeanor make me nervous, since I’ll be his subject next month.

Then Sebastian saunters in and all the activity in the room fades into the background. The sight of him sends a flood of heat to my core. With feigned nonchalance, I cross my legs, pressing my thighs together, and pray my cheeks aren’t as hot as my pussy.

This is ridiculous.