The night pressed against the windows of the Alpha’s residence, a heavy, breathless quiet settling over the halls. Mira hadn’t left her room all afternoon. She couldn’t. Not after what she had seen, not after the way Dante had looked at her, like a storm he couldn’t control, like she was the single thing in the world he couldn’t afford to lose but couldn’t figure out how to keep either.
She curled up on the broad window seat, watching the lights of the city glitter below like scattered diamonds. She wrapped her arms around her knees, trying to steady the tremor in her chest. Everything felt too big now. Too dangerous. Too close.
The door opened without a knock.
She didn’t turn. Only one person in this house entered rooms without asking.
Dante.
His footsteps were quiet, but the tension
