No threat waiting in the shadows.
Just her.
Tessa stands near the window, the soft glow of the outside lights brushing across her skin, catching in her hair. The shop is closed. Locked up. Safe.
Safe.
That word still feels new.
She exhales slowly, like she’s finally letting something go. Not all of it—maybe not ever—but enough.
I lean against the doorframe for a second, watching her.
Taking her in.
Because I almost lost this.
Almost lost her.
And that thought?
It still sits heavy in my chest.
“You’re staring again,” she says quietly, not turning around.
A small smile tugs at my mouth.
“Can’t help it.”
She turns then, slowly, and the look in her eyes—
Yeah.
That hits harder than anything we just went through.
Not fear.
Not uncertainty.
Something steady.
Something real.
“You always say that,” she murmurs.
“Because it’s true.”
I push off the wall and walk toward her.
No rush.
No urgency.
Just… choice.
Every step closing the distance between us feels different now. Not driven by adrenaline. Not by danger.
Just by wanting her.
