Anabel.

I had received a tip that Noah was around.

The moment the words reached my ears, whispered through the hallway, passed between two guards who didn’t even know I was listening, my heart leaped like a startled deer. Noah, he finally came around here, after all these years. I had thought he would decline the invitation.

I couldn’t contain the bubble of excitement swelling inside me. It felt as if every nerve in my body came alive at once, tingling from my fingertips to my toes. Without thinking twice, I spun on my heel and hurried down the corridor, nearly stumbling in my haste. The walls felt narrower, the lanterns brighter, every step echoing my pulse.

I needed to confirm it was him, needed to see his name, room number, anything, before my imagination pushed me into fantasies that would crash like fragile glass.

I reached the records room, breathless and flushed, and practically snatched the ledger from the desk. My eyes scanned the names feverishly, flipping through the pages until.. There, Noah Alfred.

A grin spread across my face before I could stop it. He was here. Under the same roof. Just a few steps away.

A thrill shot up my spine, and immediately my mind began racing, thinking of all the things I wanted to say, all the ways I wanted him to see me now. No longer a skinny girl trailing behind him like a shadow. No longer the child they all dismissed as though I had no voice and no future. I was grown. Beautiful, even. Strong, confident, and so very ready to make him notice.

I hoped, prayed, even that this time, he wouldn’t look at me the way he once did.

Like a younger sister, like someone needing protection.

This time, I wanted him to see a woman.

A woman he could touch, admire, maybe even claim.

I chuckled softly at the thought, heat rising to my cheeks as a mischievous idea crossed my mind. I could almost imagine my brothers’ reactions if I dared ask them to betroth Noah to me. They’d likely choke on their words or drag him to the elders’ council before I finished my sentence.

Perhaps I wouldn’t go that far,at least not yet but the thought warmed me from the inside out.

With my confidence building and my heartbeat pounding with anticipation, I finally arrived at his doorstep. I didn’t pause to knock, didn’t stop to consider who might be inside. The world had narrowed to one single point, him.

I pushed open the door and lunged forward instantly, arms wide and bursting with joy.

"Noah!"

I tackled him with all the enthusiasm I had stored over the years, and he stumbled back with a surprised laugh, collapsing onto the bed beneath us. My arms wrapped around him tightly, face pressed against his shoulder, drinking in the familiar warmth I had once missed so deeply.

For a moment, everything felt perfect.

Just how I imagined it.

Just how it should be.

But when I finally released him and straightened myself, slipping off the bed so he could breathe, my joyful haze shattered.

Because my eyes picked up a face I hadn’t expected to see.

She was standing there, too close to him, too comfortable as though she belonged in the same air he breathed. A girl I barely recognized at first, but whose presence felt like a stain on my imagined reunion.

My smile faltered. The warmth drained from my cheeks. Confusion prickled down my spine and suddenly I felt exposed, like I had barged into something I should not have seen.

My gaze snapped to her sharply, and the words tumbled from my lips before I could smooth my tone.

"What... what are you doing here?" I asked, my voice tight with surprise, curiosity, and a flicker of territorial unease, directed squarely at her.

"I was assigned to bring him to his room," she replied, her voice even but her eyes very deliberately avoiding mine.

I saw it instantly, the tightness in her jaw, the faint tremble in her fingers, the way she stared at the wall as though if she met my gaze for even a second, she would betray herself. Like she was afraid I would see something she didn’t want exposed.

Or worse...something I wasn’t meant to see.

I scoffed inside my head, masking every thought behind a practiced, sweet expression.

"Oh, right. You’re a rogue!" I said more to remind myself bitterly.

Of course she had to bring him here.

Of course she had been the one to show him around and carry his luggage like a loyal little servant. That was what rogues were for, errands, deliveries, chores and nothing more.

Still, a flare of relief spread through my chest anyway. So that was all she was doing. I pivoted back toward Noah with renewed confidence, my mood lifting instantly like a weight had been shaken out of the air.

"You definitely brought something for me, right?" I asked brightly, allowing a playful tone to color my voice as I glided toward him.

I didn’t just sit beside him, I nestled myself onto the mattress, practically molding myself to his side, looping my hand through the crook of his arm like it belonged there.

Like I belonged there.

But he didn’t respond.

There was no laughter nor a little smile for him, not even a teasing remark. Instead, his gaze, his full, undivided gaze remained fixed on her.

Maria.

A hot spark of irritation flared inside me, pulsing like a heartbeat.Why was he looking at her like that?

Why did she still have his attention when I was the one sitting beside him? I was the one finally grown, finally beautiful, finally old enough for him to consider.

My jaw clenched, and I forced my lips tightly together as my thoughts coiled like smoke.

What the hell was she still doing in this room? Did she seriously not understand?

Was she too oblivious to feel the air in here thick with tension and unspoken intention?

Anyone with half a brain could read the room and know when they were supposed to leave.

But not her, apparently.

Noah still didn’t say anything, still didn’t tear his eyes away from her, and that only fanned the heat under my skin. Maybe he was too shy to ask her to leave. Maybe he didn’t want to sound rude. Not the Noah I knew. He always tried to be too kind.

But that attention—his attention—was mine.

Every second of it should belong to me alone. Not shared with a rogue girl standing like a statue.

My patience snapped.

"Get out, rogue," I commanded sharply.

I didn’t even try to soften the anger in my voice anymore. I didn’t need to. This was my moment with him, not hers.

Maria flinched slightly, shoulders drawing together, but she didn’t protest. She didn’t argue. She didn’t even dare to look back.

She simply turned, quickly, like she couldn’t leave fast enough, and made her way toward the exit, her steps clipped and silent.

The door clicked shut behind her, and only then did I exhale, tension slowly melting from my shoulders as the room finally belonged to us again.

Or so I hoped.

"You shouldn’t have spoken to her that way," Noah said the moment the door shut behind Maria, no pause, no hesitation. His voice was firm, sharper than I expected, like the words had been sitting on the tip of his tongue waiting to leap out.

I blinked, startled. "She is just a rogue, Noah. There is no need to be bothered about her," I replied, trying to keep my tone light, casual, like the whole situation was nothing more than brushed dust on a sleeve.

But Noah’s expression hardened, and for the first time since I entered the room, he looked genuinely annoyed.

"Just a rogue?" he repeated, disbelief thickening every syllable. "She is still human, Anabel. What the hell has gotten into you?"

The reprimand stung deeper than I wanted to admit. I opened my mouth, tried to pull up an excuse, a justification, anything that sounded reasonable. But nothing came.

Instead, all I managed was a small, clipped, "I’m sorry."

The words tasted grudging and uncomfortable in my mouth, but I knew better than to push the argument. The last thing I wanted was to get into a fight with Noah, especially not over someone insignificant. Someone who didn’t matter.

Still... the apology didn’t erase the twist of heat in my chest, tight and sour. She is just a rogue, why did he care so much?

Why did it matter how I spoke to her?

Had he really... defended her? Or was this some bigger principle he suddenly cared about? Was he standing up for her, specifically, or defending every rogue under the sun?

Either way, my heart thudded unpleasantly, and all I could do was swallow the feeling and force a smile, pretending it didn’t bother me at all.

But it did.