I shook my head, barely able to speak. “I’m not running.”
Something shifted in his expression. Something softer. Almost disbelieving.
His lips returned to mine, slower this time. Deeper and more intimate. The kind of kiss that felt like surrender and possession tangled together. I melted fully against him, my forehead resting briefly against his chest as I tried to steady my breathing.
His arms wrapped around me completely.
For the first time, I didn’t feel trapped. I felt held.
His chin rested on the top of my head, and after a long, silent moment, he pressed a soft kiss into my hair.
Not demanding. Not consuming. Gentle.
“Stay,” he whispered, and for once, I didn’t question it. I nodded against him.
That was when the sound shattered everything. A slow, deliberate clap from behind us.
Lucien’s body went rigid instantly. His arms didn’t loosen, but his entire presence changed, protective, lethal.
We turned together.
Standing at the far entrance of the terrace, partially concealed in shadow, was a man I had never seen before.
Tall. Composed. Smiling faintly.
“Beautiful,” he said calmly. “Truly beautiful.”
Lucien stepped slightly in front of me without even looking back, shielding me with his body.
“You shouldn’t be here,” Lucien said coldly.
The man tilted his head. “And yet I am.”
My stomach dropped because the stranger’s gaze shifted from Lucien to me and he smiled like he knew me.
“Hello, Seraphina,” he said softly. “You look just like your mother.”
The words hit like a blade between my ribs.
My mother was dead. She had died when I was a child.
Lucien’s hand tightened around mine, not possessive now, but warning.
The man took one slow step forward.
“You’ve been lied to,” he continued, voice smooth as silk. “About many things.”
The world tilted.
Lucien’s voice was ice. “Leave. Now.”
The man only smiled wider. “I think it’s time she learns the truth.”
For the first time since Lucien had ever touched me, I felt something stronger than desire.Fear.
The wind shifted violently across the terrace, carrying the scent of rain and something metallic, sharp and unfamiliar.
“You’ve been lied to,” the stranger repeated calmly.
