<span class="fixed-color" style="color:#ccff99">Ayla found it simultaneously hard to believe, and easy to see. She couldn’t imagine Lucian being so easily broken, so worn down like that. But it all sounded exactly like Ordenel. She’d only met him a few times, but there were little things she picked up on. And at the same time, it was part of why she prefered to stick to the lower levels of his parties, to avoid the man. The last thing she wanted was to get cornered and questioned about herself by someone so good at reading people.</span><span class="fixed-color" style="color:#a6ff4d"> “I…”</span><span class="fixed-color" style="color:#ccff99"> she let out a sigh.</span><span class="fixed-color" style="color:#a6ff4d"> “I’ve never been good about talking like that. I can’t explain anything right, and they end up frustrated, confused or misunderstanding…”</span><span class="fixed-color" style="color:#ccff99"> which was why she liked spending time with the few friends she’d chosen for herself. They didn’t pry.</span>