"Before he turns twenty-seven?" Ceres blurted out, her voice cutting through the quiet sanctuary of the alcove as the shocking revelation hit her. "Then why on earth are you leaving right now? Isn't he twenty-six? When exactly is his twenty-seventh birthday?"
The sudden spike in Ceres's volume drew a few curious glances from a couple of staff members walking along the distant brick path. Seeing that it was just two women talking on a secluded bench, they quickly went back to their own business—with the sole exception of Dr. Larry.
Charles had been stepping out toward the rear pavilion, entirely planning to avoid them, when the mention of the age constraint halted him in his tracks. He had no desire to intentionally eavesdrop on his colleague's assistant, yet a sharp, inescapable curiosity flared within him. Twenty-seven? The exact number felt like a direct tug on a thread he couldn't see.
