ISABELLA'S POV
Xavier’s question extremely caught me off guard that I even forgot how to breathe for a moment. His intense gaze pinned me in place, overflowing with emotions I couldn’t fully comprehend. There was something in the way he looked at me that made my heart race, leaving me breathless. I felt like he was searching for an answer I wasn’t sure I could give.
"Answer me, Isabella," he demanded, his voice low but laced with frustration. Yet, beneath that frustration, I sensed something deeper. There was a tinge of hesitation in his tone too, as if asking me this question was harder for him more than I realized.
I snapped back to the present, feeling my heart thud wildly in my chest. His question just now echoed in my mind, reverberating through the bond that linked us.
Did I reg
