Chapter 80
I Chose Him
Grandmother Halton turned to him, her expression was calm.
"Uncomfortable? Nonsense, Dafa. Alayna is a smart girl. She can handle a little honest conversation. Or are you afraid of what she might say?"
Dafa didn't answer at once. He let the challenge hang between them, his composure a quiet mirror to hers. Then he turned his head slowly, deliberately, and met her gaze. When he spoke, his voice was low and even, like a river flowing over stone. It was steady, but anchored by something unmovable beneath.
"I'm not afraid of Alayna's voice. I trust it," Dafa said.
The words loosened something deep in my chest. No more than that. They unraveled it completely.
He wasn't claiming me.
He wasn't shielding me.
He was doing something far rarer, placing his faith openly in my autonomy and letting that choice stand, unguarded, before the most formidable woman in the room.
