Date = 9 November
Place = San Francisco (Mel’s house)
POV - Melaena
Candles. Wine.
And a long, indulgent bath filled with lavender-scented foam — exactly what the doctor would prescribe if he knew my life.
And he knows. He’s my brother.
I slide into the bubbles, heat seeping into my bones, and close my eyes. For a moment, the world quiets.
I wonder if Damion and Logan are already on the plane.
The thought barely settles before my phone rings, slicing clean through the calm. One glance at the screen and my stomach tightens, that familiar, treacherous pull low and sharp.
How does he do that? Even from miles away.
I accept the video call, angling the phone so only my face shows — though between the steam, bubbles, and bad lighting, he wouldn’t see much anyway.
“Hello.”
It’s not Ha
