Right-Hand Person

I came to a halt and gazed up at the full moon, which illuminated our surroundings during this quiet moment. The distant sounds of the party on my family's vast estate filled the air.

"Celeste," he called my name in his hoarse voice, causing me to turn towards him.

"Hmm?" I responded.

He furrowed his brow and turned to face me, his eyes filled with an intense fear that caught me off guard.

Was this related to what I had witnessed earlier?

"Why, Arik?"

"Please, be mad. Aren't you mad with me for what you saw earlier?" His voice was pleading, and it nearly made me chuckle.

He reached out and took hold of my hands.

"Should I be angry?" I asked him simply.

The crease on his forehead disappeared, but he still seemed perplexed. His jaw clenched as he gazed at me with affection.

When I had seen him hugging Hannah and crying, my first thought was to inquire why she had returned from the UK and why she was in tears.