Chapter 5:Beneath His Gaze
1634 Words
Selene knew the moment she made the wrong move.
It wasn’t when the stranger spoke.
Not when he stepped too close.
Not even when he mentioned Damian.
It was when she froze.
Fear was a language men like him understood.
And she had just spoken it fluently.
“…or claim what’s his?”
The words still echoed in her head, cold and precise, as if they had been carefully chosen to break something open inside her.
Selene forced herself to turn slowly.
Not too fast.
Not panicked.
Controlled.
Always controlled.
“I think you’re confused,” she said.
The man smiled.
Not kindly.
Not politely.
Knowingly.
“I don’t get confused,” he replied. “I observe.”
Her pulse ticked upward.
“Then observe this,” she said, lifting her chin slightly. “You’re making assumptions based on nothing.”
“Nothing?” he echoed softly.
His gaze dropped again.
That same place.
That same unbearable awareness.
Selene’s stomach twisted.
She resisted the urge to cover herself, to step back, to shield.
Don’t react.
Don’t confirm anything.
“You’re tense,” he continued. “Protective. Careful in ways that don’t match your words.”
“That sounds like imagination.”
“That sounds like instinct.”
Silence stretched between them.
Uncomfortable.
Heavy.
Dangerous.
Selene shifted her weight, forcing her body to relax.
“I don’t know who you think I am,” she said, “but I’m not part of whatever game you’re playing.”
He chuckled softly.
“That’s the interesting part,” he murmured. “You don’t know what game you’re in.”
A chill ran down her spine.
“I’m not in any game.”
He tilted his head, studying her like she was something worth dissecting.
“Everyone in that ballroom is,” he said. “Some just don’t realize it until it’s too late.”
Her throat tightened.
“Then I suggest you find someone else to study.”
She turned again.
This time, she didn’t stop.
Didn’t hesitate.
Didn’t give him another opening.
Her heels clicked sharply against the floor as she moved back toward the ballroom, forcing her breathing to stay steady, even, normal.
Do not look back.
Do not show weakness.
Do not let him follow.
But she felt it anyway.
His gaze.
Still there.
Still watching.
Still thinking.
And that was worse than if he had said anything else.
Because it meant he wasn’t done.
Not with her.
Not with whatever he thought he had seen.
Selene stepped back into the ballroom, the noise hitting her all at once.
Music.
Voices.
Laughter.
Too loud.
Too bright.
Too fake.
Her chest rose and fell unevenly as she tried to ground herself.
Think.
You need to think.
One man noticing was dangerous.
Two was catastrophic.
Damian.
And now him.
Her hand drifted to her bracelet again, fingers trembling slightly as she touched the small charms.
Courage.
Love.
Luck.
“Pick one,” she whispered under her breath.
Because she wasn’t sure she had all three anymore.
“Talking to yourself again?”
Selene stiffened.
No.
Not again.
Slowly, she turned.
Damian.
Standing just a few feet away.
Watching her.
Closely.
Too closely.
Her heart dropped into her stomach.
How long had he been there?
How much had he seen?
“You have a habit of appearing when I don’t need you,” she said, forcing her voice to remain calm.
His expression didn’t change.
“You have a habit of disappearing when I do.”
The words hit harder than they should have.
Selene looked away briefly, scanning the room as if searching for an escape.
There wasn’t one.
Not tonight.
Not anymore.
“I thought you had somewhere to be,” she said.
“I did.”
Her pulse ticked up.
“And?”
“And I decided this was more important.”
That wasn’t good.
That was very, very not good.
Selene crossed her arms loosely, a subtle barrier between them.
“You’re persistent.”
“You’re avoiding.”
“I’m busy.”
“You’re lying.”
Her jaw tightened.
“This conversation is getting repetitive.”
“Then stop giving me the same answers.”
Their eyes locked.
Tension sparked instantly.
Sharp.
Familiar.
Dangerous.
Damian took a slow step closer.
“Who was that man?” he asked.
Her breath caught.
Too fast.
Too direct.
“I don’t know.”
Another lie.
His gaze sharpened.
“You were talking to him.”
“So?”
“So you looked like you were about to run.”
Her pulse spiked.
“I needed air. Again.”
“And he followed you?”
Selene hesitated.
A fraction too long.
Damian noticed.
Of course he did.
“He said something,” Damian continued. “Something that got under your skin.”
Her chest tightened.
“You’re reading too much into it.”
“No,” he said quietly. “I’m reading you.”
The words sent a shiver through her.
Because that was exactly what she didn’t want.
Not from him.
Not from anyone.
“Then maybe you should stop,” she replied.
“I don’t stop when something doesn’t make sense.”
“And I don’t explain myself to people who assume things.”
Another step closer.
Too close again.
“You’re shaking,” he said.
“I’m fine.”
“You keep saying that.”
“Because it’s true.”
“It’s not.”
His voice dropped lower.
“You weren’t like this before.”
Her heart twisted.
Before.
Before everything broke.
Before she walked away.
Before she found out
“People change,” she said again.
He shook his head slightly.
“No,” he said. “Something happened.”
Her breath caught.
Too close.
Too accurate.
Too dangerous.
“Nothing happened,” she insisted.
“Then why do you look at me like you’re hiding something?”
Her chest tightened painfully.
Because I am.
Because it’s yours.
Because everything changed the moment you touched me.
But she couldn’t say any of that.
Wouldn’t.
Instead, she lifted her chin slightly.
“Maybe I just don’t trust you.”
That landed.
She saw it.
The flicker.
Quick.
Sharp.
Gone almost instantly.
But not fast enough.
“You trusted me once,” he said quietly.
Selene swallowed.
“That was a mistake.”
Silence fell between them again.
He didn’t react immediately.
Didn’t argue.
Didn’t push.
Which somehow made it worse.
Because it meant he was thinking.
And when Damian thought
He figured things out.
“You’re wrong,” he said finally.
Her pulse jumped.
“About what?”
“About it being a mistake.”
Her breath caught.
No.
Don’t say that.
Not now.
Not when everything is already falling apart.
“You don’t get to decide that for me,” she said.
His gaze held hers.
Intense.
Unrelenting.
“I think I already did.”
Her chest tightened painfully.
This was dangerous.
Too emotional.
Too close to something she couldn’t control.
Selene stepped back.
Just one step.
But it was enough.
Enough for him to notice.
Enough for him to follow.
“You keep doing that,” he said.
“Doing what?”
“Pulling away like you’re afraid of me.”
“I’m not afraid of you.”
“Then prove it.”
Her breath hitched.
Before she could react
His hand moved.
Fast.
Precise.
Closing around her wrist again.
Selene froze.
The contact sent a sharp wave through her body, her pulse instantly spiraling out of control.
“Damian”
“Stop running,” he said.
“I’m not running.”
“You are.”
His grip wasn’t painful.
But it was firm.
Unyielding.
And worse
Familiar.
Her body remembered him.
Even when her mind told her not to.
“Let go,” she said.
“Not until you tell me what’s going on.”
“There’s nothing going on.”
“Another lie.”
Her heart pounded.
“I’m serious.”
“So am I.”
He stepped closer.
Too close.
Again.
Always too close.
“You show up out of nowhere,” he continued, voice low, controlled. “You act like the past doesn’t exist. You avoid every direct question. And now there’s someone else watching you like he knows something I don’t.”
Selene’s stomach dropped.
He noticed that too.
Of course he did.
“Maybe you’re not the center of everything,” she said sharply.
His eyes darkened.
“That’s not what this is about.”
“Then what is it about?”
Silence.
A beat.
“You.”
Her breath caught.
The word landed harder than anything else.
Because it felt real.
Too real.
“You don’t get to walk back into my life like nothing happened,” he said. “And expect me not to question it.”
Her chest rose and fell unevenly.
“I didn’t walk back into your life,” she said. “I walked into a room.”
“And I was in it.”
“That’s not my fault.”
“No,” he said quietly. “But this is.”
His gaze dropped again.
Slow.
Intentional.
Settling exactly where she didn’t want it.
Selene’s entire body tensed.
No.
Not again.
Not here.
Not now.
His grip on her wrist loosened slightly.
Not releasing.
Just shifting.
As if he was about to move his hand somewhere else.
Her pulse exploded.
“Don’t,” she said quickly.
Too quickly.
Too desperate.
And that was it.
That was the moment.
The exact moment everything changed.
He didn’t stop.
His eyes lifted to hers.
Sharp.
Certain.
And filled with something she hadn’t seen before.
Understanding.
“Selene,” he said slowly,
his voice no longer questioning
but dangerously calm.
“Why are you protecting your stomach like it matters more than anything else?
- Writer
- chap_listContents
- likeADD