“Because being near you—beingcloseto you—it warms me. It calms me. You make the world quieter. Brighter.Bearable.”
His eyes locked on mine like he didn’t dare breathe.
I stepped toward him, slowly.
“The first day we met—in that carriage—you didn’t know me. Or Finn. But you still saved him. Without hesitation. You didn’t evenknowwhat you were saving him from. But you did it. You did it for me.”
Another step. He looked shaken.
“Then you taught me to control my shadows. You didn’t flinch when they lashed out. You didn’t try to change me. You just sat there—calm, patient—like you believed I could handle it, even when I didn’t. You told me I could be strong. And for the first time in my life… I wanted to believe it too.”
I stepped again. He didn’t move. Didn’t run.
“You lay with me on the floor when I had nightmares, and you just listened. You never judged. You didn’t try to fix me. You never flinched, never asked for anything. You were just… there. Because I needed you to be.”
My voice softened—almost a whisper.
“And that night… after Vael’s attack nearly killed me… you would’ve given me everything you had to save me. Wouldn’t you?”
He nodded once.
“Yes.”
I swallowed, shaking slightly. “I’m not good with feelings. I don’t know how tohavethem… well. But if you think for one godsdamn second I don’tfeelthem—”
I shook my head, tears rising.
“I love you, Phoenix. I fuckinglo—”
His mouth was on mine in an instant.
He caught me like a storm.
I barely had time to breathe before he pushed me back—gently but unrelenting—into the curve of a tree behind us.
His hands framed my jaw. His lips weredesperate.
And gods help me, I kissed him back like I’d been waiting my whole life.
The tree was solid against my back, and Phoenix was all heat and tension against me.
His hands gripped my hips, grounding and desperate.
His mouth moved like fire across mine—then lower, tracing the line of my jaw, my throat.
I gasped, fingers digging into his jacket as his hands slid beneath mine—around my waist, my back.
I didn’t want him to stop.
Gods,I wantedmore.
My head tipped back against the bark as he kissed down the side of my neck, and I felt like I was burning from the inside out.
Just beyond the court gardens, past the old marble path, was a private meadow—tucked in behind the hedges, ringed with trees. I remembered it from earlier walks. Quiet. Secluded.
I reached for his hand.
Tugged.
