I sat on the wooden floorboards, aggressively rubbing the bridge of my nose where the heavy, leather-bound ledger had just hit me square in the face.
A few feet away, Tessa was sitting on her heels, completely failing to cover her mouth as a fit of bright, uncontained giggling escaped her.
She looked back and forth between me and her grandfather, thoroughly enjoying the sheer absurdity of the situation.
Zen let out a long, exhausted sigh, rubbing his weathered temples with thick, calloused fingers.
"Really, Tessa? With the way you phrased that, you were just about to make me kill this brat right in my own study."
"Like if you can," I mumbled into my hands, my voice muffled but dripping with defensive snark.
Zen's sharp, predatory eyes instantly snapped to me. The sheer, suffocating pressure of a seasoned warrior leaked into the small room for a fraction of a second.
"You wanna find out, boy?"
