Aiden returned after dark with the temple escort. The joint watch still held the perimeter. Word of the caravan's successful first leg had already reached the temple; the northern house's signal was clean and the road behind them quiet.
Elizabeth waited in the upper private chamber she had used before. The door was closed but unlatched. A single lamp burned low. She stood by the window in a simple dark robe, hair unbound, arms folded.
She did not waste time.
"You've been busy," she said. "I don't need the list. I already know enough."
Aiden shut the door and set the latch. "Elizabeth—"
"I'm not asking for monogamy. I'm not a child. I need you here when you're with me. Not half your mind somewhere else. Not measuring the next doorway or the next body. Presence. Honesty in the moment. Can you give me that tonight?"
"Yes."
She studied his face for a long second, then nodded once. "Good. Then get undressed."
