Alex's POV
I couldn’t help it.
Ever since Jaxon told me the truth about his scar, about his heart, and about the pills that kept him alive, something in me shifted. I’d always been aware of him, even when he kept me at a distance, but now? Now it felt like every time I looked away, every time I let him sit in silence by himself, something could happen. Something I wouldn’t be there for, and something I couldn’t undo.
It was ridiculous, I knew that. Jaxon was older, stronger, smarter, and more guarded than I could ever hope to be. He didn’t need me hovering. In fact, I could practically feel how much it irritated him when I did, and yet, my chest burned with this need to stay close, to keep him in one piece, even if it drove him mad.
Normally, outside our room, we kept our distance. He
