CHAPTER 28
Sterling stupidly smiled as he tried to hide it. Despite the gentle warmth bloomed in his palm, a simple, unexpected comfort. He didn’t tighten his grip, only held her hand with a careful reverence, as if it were something fragile and precious.
The feeling was completely foreign to him.
His world was one of firm handshakes, cold exchanges, and calculating gestures. He had never simply held a woman’s hand like this, not as a statement of ownership or a prelude to something more, but as a silent, mutual understanding.
He could feel the soft, worn skin of her knuckles and the subtle pulse of her trust. He thought of her earlier words, of the deep, personal sting of shame she had endured. And still, she had given him this.
She had placed her faith in the man who had so carel
