Chapter 380: The Offer of Power
Lyria's POV
Earl Hawthorne was quiet for a long moment.
The silence stretched between us, filled only by the gentle crackling of the fire and the distant murmur of the palace beyond my chambers.
I watched him carefully.
He seemed to be considering my words rather seriously.
At last, he exhaled through his nose and inclined his head.
"I stand corrected."
He regarded me for another moment before continuing.
"I had been rather too generous in my judgement."
I tilted my head.
"Too g-generous?"
"Indeed."
He folded his hands behind his back, his posture straightening almost instinctively. Even in the privacy of my chambers, there was something unmistakably aristocratic in the manner in which he carried himself.
"I had assumed that because your intentions were pure, the matter was therefore quite acceptable. I confess, I was rather of the opinion that because it was you, it would be all right."
I frowned.
