36.

Lily's POV

I got to the door of my room and opened it, closing it behind me with a careful click. It felt as though I was walking in sharp silence, as jagged and as deadly as icicles. Aiden Blackwood's grim disapproval and his cutting words still rang in my head like a bell.

As I sat on the edge of my bed, I felt a storm of emotion inside me. Guilt nibbled at my conscience for delving into Aiden Blackwood's study. Perhaps all of that was too forward of me. I was, after all, just a visitor here.

Fear tiptoed in as I continued thinking. The study had been like a sanctum for him. Entering there and raiding the entire place felt like I was intruding on something private and intimate, all for a single letter that provided as little information as possible. Was it all worth it to see that look in his eyes?

Would he send me out of his house now? I kept imagining his inevitable reaction upon his discovery of me.

But among these conflicting emotions, anger surged within me. I groaned and lurch