Michael arrived the next day.
He texted me the moment he got home, while I was still at work, and relief hit me so sharply I had to sit down.
I missed him.
God, I missed him.
“What do you want for dinner?” he asked.
I knew exactly what I wanted.
“You. With a side of fries and ice cream.”
He sent a laughing emoji.
“I’m going to cook you a nice dinner… and then I’m going to have you for dessert.”
My whole body pulsed.
After everything — the fear, the dreams, the demon — I needed this release like oxygen.
The workday dragged painfully. Nothing left for me to do; they were just giving me meaningless tasks to justify keeping me in the building.
At 6 PM I put on my jacket and headed outside—
And froze.
Michael was standing in front of my office building.
Waiting for me.
I ran int
