"Are you going to say anything, or should I hang up?" Lena asked, a thin thread of impatience woven into her voice.
Estelle closed her eyes for a brief second, exhaling through her nose. "I really wish I could deal with this right now, but I can't," she said, her tone tight but controlled. "If it can wait, then I'll deal with it later."
There was a pause, then Lena spoke again.
"I see," she replied, softer now. "And here I was thinking you'd want to know I threw him out. I'd rather stand with you than let a man play both of us."
Estelle's eyes flicked open. She rolled them, slow and unimpressed, even though Lena couldn't see it. If that was supposed to earn her trust, it missed. "I need to go," she said flatly.
"But you—"
Estelle ended the call before she could finish and the silence rushed back in. She stared at the phone for a moment, her jaw tightening. "Oh, Roman," she muttered under her breath, wheeling herself toward the door. "What have you done now?"
