Soft and sweet and completely unaware of what she does to me.
Her hair catches the light, turning it a goldish mix of pink.
Her skin glows.
She's an angel in a place built for animals and hard work.
And I'm the devil who wants to corrupt her.
"Like you're jealous," she finishes quietly.
I should deny it. Should laugh it off. Should do anything except what I'm about to do.
Instead, I set down the pitchfork carefully—because if I don't, I might break something—and take a step toward her.
She doesn't back up.
Smart girl.
Running would just make me chase her.
"What if I am?" My voice comes out rough, raw. "What if I have been for years? What then, Grace?"
Her eyes go wide, those brown depths reflecting surprise and something else.
Something that looks like hope. "Shadow, you can't—we can't—my dad would?—"
"I don't give a fuck what your dad would do."
The words hang between us, heavy and dangerous.
Because they're true.
I don't care that she's Phantom's daughter.
Don't care about the twenty-year age gap that should make this impossible.
Don't care that I'm supposed to be the responsible one, the loyal soldier, the man who keeps his hands to himself and his obsession hidden.
I'm done caring.
I'm done waiting.
"You've been watching me too," I say quietly, taking another step. "Don't pretend you haven't."
Her throat works as she swallows hard. "I don't know what you mean."
"Yes, you do." Another step. I'm close enough now to see the rapid flutter of her pulse in her throat, to smell her perfume mixed with the scent of her skin. "I see the way you look at me when you think I'm not paying attention. The way your pulse races when I get too close. The way you squeeze those pretty thighs together when I work out here without my shirt."
Her face flushes deep red, spreading down her neck. "That's—I don't?—"
"Don't lie to me, darlin'." I'm close enough now to touch her, close enough that the heat of my body should be reaching hers. Close enough to smell her shampoo, to see the tiny freckles scattered across her nose. "For years I've kept my distance, I've played it safe, I've watched you and wanted you and kept my goddamn hands to myself."
"Shadow—" Her voice is barely a whisper.
"I'm done waiting."
The words come out like a vow.
