EMMALINE
The door creaks open before I can steady my breathing.
Alexander steps inside, his presence filling the room instantly. The guards hesitate in the hall before the door shuts behind him, and for a brief moment, it’s just us—me tangled in sheets, heart racing, and him standing there like a storm barely held at bay.
He doesn’t speak right away. His gaze sweeps over me, sharp and assessing, as though checking for injuries he can’t see.
“They said you screamed.”
I swallow hard. “It was just—” My voice cracks. “A dream. A bad one.”
He moves closer, his footsteps nearly silent against the floorboards. “Another one?”
I nod, unable to meet his eyes. “No. Not another one. The same one I’ve been having for years. But this time it felt… different.”
He sits at the edge of the bed, clos
