The song was just ending as Eli led Kit back inside, and as the new one began, he offered her his hand, placing the other on her narrow waist. He could tell that the anxious feeling he had inside wasn’t his alone but that she was also unsure of what this new development would mean for their friendship. In all the years that they had known each other, both of them had been fairly certain that the current predicament could never be—that even if somehow Eli were to be selected by his province, Rona would make sure that something occurred to prevent him from taking his place among the other Representatives. Now that he was here, it was difficult to digest what this could potentially mean.