“Why are you doing this, Thal?” I asked, my voice trembling.
He took a step closer. Too close.
“Don’t you see, Daphne?”
“If I understood, I wouldn’t have asked.”
A slow, lingering smile stretched across his handsome face, softening his features with a hint of vulnerability.
“I care about you," he said, reaching up to touch my cheek. “Our time together didn’t leave me unaffected. You had quite the impact on me, Daphne.”
“That was just a temporary fling,” I reminded him, my voice steady but a little guarded.
He leaned in and challenged, “That doesn’t mean it wasn’t real, does it?”
I averted my gaze, unable to bear the depth of his stare, feeling as if he saw right through my defenses. It was as if his gaze could peel away the walls I had built, revealing the fragile vulnerability beneath. I fought the urge to break, to reveal how much I was still affected.
“Was it real?” he demanded.
Memories flooded my mind. Us tangled in passionate chaos, flames licking at the edges of our bond. It was wild and fierce, like a wildfire that swept everything away, scorching hot and unforgettable. The heat from that moment, of us lost in each other, stirred a familiar pulse in my chest. Neither of us had forgotten.
When I looked back at him, he was still fixated on me, eyes unwavering and unrelenting.
I took a breath, steadying myself before murmuring, “It was real. But it’s over, Thal.”
The softness inside me threatened to spill out. Being around Thal left me feeling vulnerable, made me question every defense I’d put up between myself and his memory. But here in front of me like this? There was no denying the sparks flying between us. I took a step back.
“What are you offering?” I asked, my voice just above a whisper, as I tried to concentrate on the matter at hand, while ignoring the ache in my body that longed for his touch.
“Protection, plain and simple,” he replied with a shrug, his tone almost nonchalant, which hid the weight of his words.
“In exchange for what?” I asked.
His eyes met mine, showing a brief flash of confidence before he replied, “Knowledge. You, more than anyone, understand the complex workings of Zeno’s empire.”
His proposal sparkled with temptation, offering a path to the life I had always imagined, a life free from shadow and peril. However, behind that appeal was the danger of ruin, with death and destruction concealed just ahead.
The promise of safety was tempting enough to make resistance difficult.
“If Zeno discovers this, he’ll kill us both,” I warned.
His eyes rested on mine, searching intently, before he spoke with a calm, steady voice. “I’ll never let that happen.”
Thal's arrogance was undeniable, with an ego as immense and radiant as the sun was dangerous in its brightness. The wisest choice would have been to step back and avoid the edge. However, he then broke through my defenses, his tone softening as he held my face with his warm hand.
“Zeno doesn’t really care about you, Daphne. If he did, nobody would be following you, definitely not me. Has he everlooked out for your safety? Let me protect you. It would kill me if anything ever happened to you.”
Fuck.
His words were gentle and reassuring yet felt genuinely sincere. I trusted him. Every instinct told me Thal was honest. That rare certainty made a deep impression. I realized that once I left him, my warning signals would heighten when dealing with others. Without meaning to, he had planted a powerful seed of paranoia in my thoughts.
“Daphne, I’m not claiming to be your hero. I believe in your strength. You can save yourself. But may I offer you a small sanctuary, please?”
The word “sanctuary” lingered in my mind. In Thal’s arms, I experienced that rare feeling of safety for the first time. Zeno’s world was a whirlwind of chaos and unpredictability, and I suspected Thal’s life was no different, especially here in Vegas. But there, amidst turquoise waters and peaceful island scenes, I truly thought of that place as a sanctuary.
Maybe he said it on purpose, or maybe I just imagined it altogether. I couldn’t remember if I even voiced that thought out loud while we were there. Still, the feeling hit me hard, breaking through my defenses and making me tremble with unspoken emotion.
I looked into his eyes, sensing an undeniable connection that pulled me toward him, even as my resolve wavered and almost broke.
