EMMALINE
At first, it feels like floating.
Weightless. Endless. Peaceful in a way I haven’t felt in a long time.
The air around me is soft, warm even, brushing gently against my skin like silk. I can hear the faint rustle of wind through trees, the whisper of leaves moving in rhythm with something calm and steady. Then, there’s a scent—familiar and comforting. Pine. Smoke. Rain.
Alexander.
My chest tightens. I turn, searching, desperate for the face I’ve seen only in my dreams these past endless nights. For a moment, there’s nothing but golden light filtering through a canopy of trees. Then—he’s there.
He steps out from between the trees, the sunlight catching on the sharp lines of his jaw, the dark sweep of his hair. His eyes meet mine, and the world stills.
I can’t breathe.
He l
