The question lingered in the room long after Emma asked it.
“Do you love me?”
It didn’t echo.
It didn’t need to.
It settled between them—quiet, heavy, impossible to ignore.
Dominic stood still.
For once, there was no immediate response, no calculated reply, no controlled statement ready to neutralize the moment.
Just silence.
Emma watched him.
Not with hope.
Not even with fear.
Just… waiting.
For the truth.
Or whatever version of it he was willing to give.
Dominic’s jaw tightened slightly. His gaze didn’t leave her, but something in it shifted—something uncertain, unfamiliar.
He opened his mouth.
Closed it again.
A second passed.
Then another.
Too long.
Too telling.
“This isn’t the time for this. You are not emotionally stable.”
The words were calm.
Measured.
And co
