Everything smells like her now. My couch. My sheets. My shirt that she wore. Her scent is embedded in every surface, and it’s driving me mad.
My phone buzzes in my pocket, shattering the silence. I pull it out and see a message from my father: Zion has returned from his mission. Family dinner tonight.
I stare at the screen, the words blurring together. My brother, Zion. He’s back from wherever father sent him this time.
I don’t want to see him. I don’t want to see anyone right now. However, I respond: I’ll be there.
I take the burnt bacon off the stove and close my eyes, grief settling within me. I fucked up. I should never have let her in. I should never have slept with her.
But when it comes to Violet, I forget everything, including my damn pride.
Chapter Thirteen
Violet
I make it to Emma’s door before my legs start shaking.
She greets me with a smile that brightens when Cinnamon appears next to her leg. “There she is! We had such a good time, didn’t we, sweetie?”
Cinnamon launches herself at me, all wagging tail and excited yips. I crouch down and bury my face in her soft fur, fighting to keep myself together.
“Thank you so much for watching her.” My voice comes out steadier than I feel. “I really appreciate it.”
“Anytime. She’s such a sweetheart.” Emma hands me the leash, then tilts her head, studying my face. “Are you okay? You look exhausted.”
“Just a long night. Work stuff.”
She doesn’t look entirely convinced, but she doesn’t push. “Well, get some rest. And seriously, if you ever need someone to watch her again, just let me know.”
“I will. Thank you.”
I practically flee back to my apartment, Cinnamon trotting besideme. The moment my door closes behind us, everything I’ve been holding together falls apart.
My legs give out. I slide down the door, my back scraping wood until I’m curled on the floor. Cinnamon whines and nudges me, confused.
What have I done?
I rake my hands through my hair, tugging hard enough that it stings. The pain doesn’t help. Nothing helps. Because I can still feel him. Still feel Darius’s hands on my hips, his mouth on my neck. Can still see way he looked at me like I was everything.
I slept with him. My stepbrother. The alpha heir.
Heat floods through me at the memory, and I hate myself for it. I hate that my body still wants more even though my mind knows how wrong this is.
Cinnamon whines again and tries to climb into my lap, licking at my face. I wrap my arms around her, holding on like she’s the only thing keeping me from shattering completely.
Then, something inside me moves.
That sensation. The same one I felt when Darius was inside me, when pleasure was tearing through my body and I thought I might break apart from it. That stretching, unfurling feeling. Like something that has been sleeping my entire life has suddenly remembered how to breathe.
My chest tightens. My heart pounds so hard, it hurts.
No. It can’t be.
I gently push Cinnamon aside and look up.
At the end of the foyer, there’s a full-length mirror. Even from here, even slumped on the ground like this, I can see myself. Wild-haired, wearing Darius’s sweatpants, with eyes that…
Eyes that flash golden.
