Chapter 4
866 Words
The city shimmered below them like a sleeping giant, alive with lights and late-night secrets. Alara sat across from Kade, their hands still loosely intertwined over the small café table. She’d never been one for rooftop moments or slow-burning eye contact, but somehow with him, it didn’t feel like a movie.
It felt like falling.
Not in the loud, dramatic way she’d experienced before — not like falling off a cliff. No, this felt like falling into water. Weightless. Quiet. Surprising only in how natural it felt.
Kade traced circles on her palm with his thumb, his eyes on the horizon. “What scares you most right now?”
The question caught her off guard.
She looked at him, a flicker of fear in her chest. “Being wrong. Again.”
“About me?”
She hesitated, then nodded.
He looked down at their joined hands. “I don’t blame you. You’ve got every reason to build walls. Hell, I’ve lived behind my own for years.”
“What changed?”
“You,” he said simply. “You looked like someone who wasn’t pretending. And I’m tired of pretending too.”
Alara exhaled. There was so much she didn’t say — that she’d sworn off men like him. That she’d promised herself no more fast connections, no more dangerous eyes or reckless choices. But here she was. And every minute spent with Kade made her feel more like herself than she had in months.
She glanced down at their hands. “I should go home soon.”
“Yeah,” he said quietly. But his fingers didn’t let go.
And neither did she.
They stood together a few minutes later. He walked her down the fire escape in silence, but it wasn’t uncomfortable. The kind of silence that carried weight, not emptiness. When they reached the street, the night had grown colder. She shivered.
Kade immediately slipped off his leather jacket and placed it around her shoulders without a word.
Alara looked up at him. “Chivalrous biker. You really are full of contradictions.”
He chuckled. “Don’t spread that around. I’ve got a reputation to maintain.”
They walked the short distance back to her car in near silence. Alara wanted to prolong the moment, but her mind had already begun spinning — doubts trying to find cracks in this strange, perfect night.
When they reached her car, she turned to face him. “Thank you… for everything tonight.”
He leaned against the driver’s side door, arms folded. “Thank you for not walking away.”
“I almost did.”
“I know. I almost didn’t come talk to you.”
She smiled. “Why did you?”
Kade looked at her, serious now. “Because something told me if I didn’t, I’d regret it. And I’ve had enough regrets for a lifetime.”
The words sat between them for a beat too long.
Alara swallowed hard. “So what now?”
He stepped a little closer, his eyes softer than she’d ever seen them. “That depends. If this is just tonight, I’ll remember it. Every second. But if it’s not—if there’s more—I want to find out.”
Alara’s heart thudded.
This wasn’t a line.
It wasn’t lust wrapped in pretty words.
This was vulnerability.
Hope.
And it scared her to death.
But still, she nodded. “I want to find out too.”
Kade smiled.
And then he leaned down — slowly, as if giving her the chance to stop him — and kissed her.
It wasn’t rushed. It wasn’t hungry. It was patient. Warm. The kind of kiss that tasted like a beginning, not an end. His hand cupped the side of her face, thumb grazing her cheek. Her fingers curled into his shirt without realizing.
When they pulled apart, she was breathless.
“Goodnight, Alara,” he said.
“Goodnight, Kade.”
She slid into her car, still wearing his jacket. He watched her drive away, his figure shrinking in her rearview mirror — but his presence lingering like the beat of a song she couldn’t forget.
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Later That Night
Alara stood in front of her bathroom mirror, brushing her hair in silence.
Kade’s jacket still hung on her shoulders.
She should’ve taken it off, but something about the weight of it felt grounding — like part of the night was still holding her.
Her phone buzzed on the counter.
1 new message. Unknown number.
> “You looked cozy tonight, Alara. Moving on so fast?”
—J
She froze.
Her heart lurched.
She knew that initial.
Jared.
Her ex.
How did he know where she was? Had he been watching her?
A chill ran down her spine.
Before she could respond, another message followed.
> “Don’t forget who really knows you. Who saw you first. You’re not as hard to read as you think.”
Her hands trembled.
The illusion shattered. The fragile peace of the night cracked under pressure. The ghosts she thought she’d buried had followed her out of the club.
And worse — Kade didn’t know.
Did she drag him into something he didn’t deserve?
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- Writer
