Claire buried her face in her hands, the weight of Lucas’s words pressing down on her like an anchor. You’re mine now. The way he’d said it, so calm yet so absolute, sent a chill down her spine. She wasn’t sure if it was fear, anger, or the unsettling truth behind it that shook her the most.
She needed to think, to breathe, to pull herself out of the swirling storm of emotions that threatened to drown her. But even in the quiet, his scent lingered—earthy, woodsy, and intoxicating. It clung to the sheets, her skin, and her mind, an inescapable reminder of everything that had happened.
Dragging herself out of bed, Claire wrapped the sheet tighter around her and stumbled toward the bathroom. The cold tiles against her feet brought a small measure of clarity, but as she stared at herself in
