Neither of us moved.
The air between us turned thick, heavy, and impossibly tight. The quiet rustle of the library seemed to fade into nothingness, leaving only the sound of my ragged breathing and the terrifying, magnetic pull drawing me toward him.
Something shifted inside me, something fundamental, terrifying, and completely out of my control.
I stared down at our touching hands, feeling utterly helpless against the sudden wave of emotion crashing over me. I had tried so hard to dislike him, to view him as nothing more than an arrogant bully who ruled this school with an iron fist. But in this quiet, frozen second, all my defenses cracked. The overwhelming intensity of his presence didn't terrify me the way it used to rather, it consumed me.
Gabriel’s fingers froze against mine. He
