Cordia sat through dinner doing everything in her power to act nonchalant about Julia and Will coming over later that evening. Her father had been so excited himself, he was bubbling with glee all through their meal. "It will be so nice to hear from someone who has actually been in battle," he was saying.
Cordia wasn't really eating. It was more like she was conducting some troop movements of her own, maneuvering the various items of food around her plate so that it looked like she was consuming it. Her mother had noticed though. Finally, she said, "Cordia, dear, you don't have to eat it if you aren't hungry. I know it must be very sad for you to see Will. Probably just a reminder of your dear Jaris."
If that's what it took to get out of pretending to eat, then she was willing to accept
