Alaric walked back into the room smiling like a man who had just won something big and knew exactly how good it felt. It was not the kind of smile he wore in strategy meetings or on the road at night. It was open and real, and it caught everyone off guard for a moment.
Silas looked at him and didn't smile back yet. He crossed the space between them and started checking Alaric over carefully, running his eyes across his arms, his sides, his hands, looking for anything that was being hidden behind that smile. Alaric stood there and let him do it without arguing because he understood that this was not distrust it was something closer to care.
Nick watched them from across the room for exactly a few seconds before her expression said she had seen enough of that. She turned and walked toward the door without a word, She was almost through the door when something made her stop and look back, just for a moment long enough to take it in properly.
