NARINE’S POV
I watched as he wiped the blood from my hand with such care. His touch was warm, unlike the countless hands that had dragged, struck, restrained, or defiled me in the past. His were different. Not just in size, but in intention. They didn’t want to take. And that… unsettled me more than I could explain.
My fingers trembled slightly in his hold, but I didn’t pull away.
A shaky breath escaped me as I thought back to those awful few seconds suspended in the air. I had thought I wanted death. Believed it was the only mercy the universe might ever offer me. But the moment I lost my footing… the instant my body tipped over that ledge… I panicked.
I feared it.
Every inch of me screamed to live.
And when he caught me when those strong arms pulled me from the jaws of what could h
