The silence after his words was louder than any scream.
I didn't move. Not right away.
My heartbeat was thunder in my ears, drowning out thought, reason, everything but the heat of his breath on my skin and the ghost of his fingers on my cheek.
"To be caught."
The door was behind me. Open. Unlocked. No guards. No Jasper. No hands on my wrists, no threat in his voice.
But I stood there, frozen in the eye of the storm, still clutching air where the duffel had been.
I should've run.
My muscles twitched with the echo of the docks. The memory of pavement beneath me, the wind against my face. But that had a flight. Purr and animal instinct.
This was different. This was choice. And he knew it.
Aiden didn't move. He just watched me, eyes steady, like he was memorizing the exact shape of m
