He let out a breath and looked down. “And I’m terrified I might never feel this way again.”
My throat tightened.
This was Kross—Kross—the same guy who made half of Thalvion tremble with just a stare. The guy who was rumored to have broken someone’s ribs during sparring without blinking. The guy who made Wilde end up in the infirmary.
Now he stood in front of me, completely stripped of armor, telling me I was his first real feeling.
Gods, I hated this.
Because he looked honest. He sounded honest. And my traitorous heart wanted to believe him.
But I couldn’t afford it.
Couldn’t afford him.
This… whatever this was, it had to end here. Before it grew roots and turned into something I couldn’t rip out without bleeding.
I looked up at him, steady. “I hope to never see you again, Kross.”
