Chapter 29: After the Lights
The ballroom lights dimmed to a soft amber as the last guests trickled out. The quartet packed their instruments, waiters cleared the last champagne flutes, and the place started to feel empty in that way big rooms do when the party's over. Bella and I lingered near the edge of the dance floor, her head resting on my shoulder while we watched the staff move like ghosts through the space.
She hadn't let go of my hand since we came back upstairs from the garage. Her fingers stayed laced with mine, thumb tracing slow circles over my knuckles. I could feel the faint tremble in her every now and then—not fear, just the body catching up to the adrenaline crash.
"You want to stay a little longer?" I asked quietly.
She shook her head against me. "No. I want to go h
