Real.
Xavier leaned into the touch, turning his head slightly to press a kiss to my palm. His eyes never left mine.
“You planned all of this.” I whispered.
“From the moment I knew Dresner had you.” His voice dropped. Roughened. His hand covered mine where it rested on his cheek. “I was never going to leave you there.”
The weight of that statement settled between us.
He’d walked into Dresner’s trap knowing it was a trap. Performed dying well enough to fool both Dresner and me. A clinical psychologist obsessed with measuring responses and a trained ER nurse who’d seen hundreds of seizures. Orchestrated an escape that depended on perfect timing and absolute trust.
All to get me out.
“You said you’d do anything. Told Dresner to reactivate the chip.”
“I needed him convinced. Needed him to believe I was broken enough to beg. Desperate enough to trade my autonomy for survival.”
Xavier’s jaw tightened, the muscle there flexing under my fingers.
The memory hit fresh. Voice cracking, pleading with Dresner to kill him or fix him. The raw desperation in his tone. All performance.
“That’s what he wanted to measure. My reaction. Whether I’d let him do it.”
“He got his data. You fought for me. Even when I was begging him to do it. Even when it looked like the only option.”
Xavier’s smile was cold, nothing gentle in it. But his hand was still covering mine on his cheek, thumb stroking my wrist.
I couldn’t speak. Could only stare at him. This man who’d orchestrated his own convincing death and resurrection just to save me.
His forehead dropped to mine. Close enough I could feel his breath. “I thought I lost you,” I whispered.
“Never. I told you. You’re worth everything.”
His hands framed my cheeks now, both of them, holding me like I was something breakable and precious.
Then he kissed me again. Deeper this time, more desperate. His fingers slid into my hair, angling my head, and I gripped his shoulders hard enough to hurt. Needing him closer. Needing to feel him alive and whole and here.
When we broke apart, we were both breathing hard.
The vehicle took a sharp turn. We were moving fast through dark streets, putting distance between us and Dresner’s facility. Trees blurred past the windows. Occasional streetlights creating strobing patterns across Xavier’s features.
I finally let myself collapse against his chest. Let the shaking take over. Let the wetness come.
His arms tightened around me immediately. One hand stroking my hair in long, soothing passes. The other pressed flat against my back, grounding me. Solid weight. Steady presence.
He pressed another kiss to the top of my head. Then my temple. Then my cheek. Small reassurances that I was here, he was here, we were both alive.
“We made it.” I managed through the sobs.
“We made it.” But his voice carried an edge I didn’t miss.
I pulled back just enough to see, still close enough to feel the warmth of him.
Something in his expression. Careful. Controlled.
“What?”
Xavier hesitated. His hand came up to tuck hair behind my ear, fingers lingering at my jaw. “Dresner knows now. About the bond. About what you mean to me. About how far I’ll go.”
