But another part, quieter and harder to ignore, wanted to believe it.
To lean into the gravity of him.
To trust the unspoken promise in his presence.
Claimed.
Seen.
Safe.
The last word snagged.
Safety wasn’t a truth she believed in.
Not easily. Not after everything.
Not when a rose on the floor could shake her.
Not when lavender came laced with unease.
Nothing in her life had come without strings.
Without cost.
And yet…
Gideon hadn’t offered her comfort. He wasn’t warmth wrapped in illusion.
He was storm. Fire.
Unapologetically sharp-edged.
And maybe that was the only reason she believed him.
Because nothing about him had ever been easy.
Beside her,Penny had one earbud in, singing along to a song only she could hear while her fingers scrolled aimlessly across her phone.
Earlier, she’d launched into a full-color monologue, her dad baking through a new bread cookbook, her mom’s excitement bordering on party-planningmode, and a younger sister named Mia who, according to Penny, might actually be louder and more unfiltered than she was.
Arden wanted to focus on that.
On the comfort wrapped in Penny’s stories.
A family messy in the best ways—loud, affectionate, alive.
The kind of chaos that didn’t require armor.
She wanted to believe she could step into it.
If only for a day.
Even as an outsider.
But could she?
Would she ever fit in a space built on ease and belonging?
