He studies me for a long second before answering.
“Don’t pretend last night didn’t happen.”
My breath catches.
Because that’s exactly what I was about to do.
Bury it.
Compartmentalize it.
Push it somewhere deep enough I didn’t have to feel it.
Same way I survive everything else.
“I wasn’t pretending.”
His look says otherwise.
And annoyingly—
He’s right.
I shift slightly, trying to create space between us.
Pain immediately flares through my side.
A sharp breath escapes me.
Russ’s hand tightens instinctively against my waist. “Easy.”
“I’m fine.”
“There it is again.”
I glare weakly at him. “You’re impossible.”
“Yeah.”
His gaze drops briefly to my mouth before returning to my eyes.
The look in them steals the air from my lungs.
No armor.
No distance.
Just him.
Raw enough to scare me.
“You almost died,” he says quietly.
The words settle heavily between us.
“I didn’t.”
“No.” His jaw tightens slightly. “You didn’t.”
