Adeline stood before him as he shifted his chair slightly.
"Your mother wouldn't have chosen someone like me for you if she were alive, would she?" Gideon asked, one eyebrow arched in amusement.
"Why?" Adeline asked. She reached out to fasten the chain, leaning down to focus on the clasp. She was entirely unaware of how close she was or that Gideon's eyes were tracing the soft lines of her face with intense focus.
"Because no mother would voluntarily sacrifice her daughter the way your stepmother did," Gideon stated. "You were terrified of me, too, until you saw me protecting you."
Adeline secured the hook and let her hands drop, the pendant resting against his strong neck. As she pulled back, she frowned slightly, looking at how the chain sat on him. "It seems a little tight. You are quite... big," she murmured, not realizing what she just said.
"Quite big? Where, exactly?" Gideon smirked, his eyes glinting with a dangerous sort of amusement.
