*Luca*
We’re back at the cottage, the room dim and warm from the dying fire. Outside, the night hangs heavy and silent, broken only by the steady watch of our guards, spread out beneath the ancient oaks. Their soft footsteps and low whispers seep through the thin wooden walls, a constant reminder that danger still lurks just beyond our fragile shelter.
I lie beside Ava on the woven blanket, her breath evening out now in sleep, but my mind won’t calm. The night, the feast, the dancing beneath the moon, and the way she moved with such grace and fire, replay over and over. Most of all, I remember the way she felt beneath my hands, the heat of her skin, the softness and strength of her body pressed close to mine. Making love with her for the first time was a passionate reckoning, and a promi
