Elijah’s gaze sharpens slightly.
“Talk to Lucian first,” he says. “And Christian. Make sure you’re protected before you move.”
I nod.
“Yeah. I will.”
Because he’s right.
This isn’t just about saying something. It’s about doing it right. I look back at Lia. Really look at her.
And something in my chest locks into place.
Determination.
Certainty.
Resolve.
No matter how messy this gets, no matter how loud it becomes, no matter what it costs, she’s still my first choice.
And I’m not letting the world take that from me.
Not now.
Not ever.
sixty-five
Liana
The apartment is quieter than it should be.
Not silent.
Just… heavy.
Like everything that’s happened in the last twenty-four hours is still sitting in the air, unseen but pressing in from all sides.
Jackson’s pacing again. Not fast. Not frantic.
But restless enough that I can feel it from where I’m sitting, curled into the corner of the couch with my legs tucked beneath me. His phone is in his hand, lighting up every few seconds, the screen flashing with notifications he keeps checking, even though I know he wishes he wouldn’t.
Zach is in the kitchen, leaning back against the counter, watching him with that calm, measured focus he always has when things start to spiral. He’s not intervening yet. Just observing. Waiting.
Elijah is standing near the window.
Still.
Completely still.
But I know him well enough now to feel the tension in that stillness. It’s not calm. It’s control. It’s him holding everything in place by sheer force.
I sit there for a moment, watching them.
Feeling them.
The way each of them is reacting to this in their own way.
