“Now I tighten control,” he says. “And I remove threats.”
Threats.
The word sits heavy, and my throat goes dry.
Because I know what a threat looks like to someone like him.
It’s not just a vampire with a blade. It’s anything that can destabilize power. Anything that can be used against him.
Anything he cares about.
Me.
The thought flashes so fast it makes me dizzy.
Orpheus turns back to me. “You shouldn’t be walking home alone.”
I let out a short breath. “I’ll be fine.”
“You were attacked in my club,” he says, voice colder. “Then you were nearly caught in an ambush meant for me.”
“I wasn’t caught,” I mutter.
“You stepped in front of a weapon,” he snaps, and for the first time since we came inside, his composure cracks. Not rage exactly. Something sharper. Fear, maybe, wrapped in anger.
It makes my stomach flip in a way I don’t want to examine too closely.
“I’m not going to be coddled,” I say, forcing the words out. “I don’t need to be carried around like I’m delicate.”
Orpheus’s eyes narrow. “You are delicate.”
I bristle. “Excuse me?”
He steps closer, and I instinctively hold my ground. I won’t back away. I won’t.
“Compared to them,” he says, voice low. “Compared to what lives in the shadows of this city. Yes. You are.”
My chest tightens. “I’m not helpless.”
“I didn’t say you were.”
He pauses, gaze locking on mine.
“But you’re human,” he adds.
I force my voice steady. “And you keep saying that like it’s an insult.”
“It’s a fact,” he replies. “And facts get people killed when they’re ignored.”
I laugh once, bitter. “You think I haven’t been around dangerous things before?”
His eyes sharpen instantly. “What did you just say?”
I freeze.
I shouldn’t have said it. I shouldn’t have let that slip. My mouth is too loose around him. My thoughts come out before I can lock them back up.
Orpheus tilts his head slightly. “You’ve been around dangerous things.”
