It’s not dramatic. But it feels seismic. Like the axis of my world just tilted. Like my body’s already aching for the place his lips didn’t land.
He pulls back, his smile soft and sleepy. “Thank you,” he whispers.
He finally stands, stretching with a yawn, and I watch him gather his things. Coat, scarf, phone. He glances back before leaving, his eyes locking with mine one last time.
“See you soon?” he asks.
I nod, unable to summon anything clever. Not anymore.
Just yes.
When the door clicks behind him, the apartment quiets. My fingers drift to where his lips touched. Even my shadows are still, savoring the rare calm.
But as minutes stretch, Levi’s warmth recedes and is replaced by something colder. Doubt seeps in. Reminding me of what I’ve risked. I broke my own rules tonight, the ones I made to survive this endless half life.
In all these years after the Act, my brothers never seemed toneed rules like mine. Zane and Porter learned to live freely, to let go. But I couldn’t. I can’t. I was the one left behind, again, and someone had to keep order when everything else fell apart.
My shadows stir, restless and uneasy, echoing the fear I can’t silence.
If I lose control now…if I blur the line between what I want and what I’m meant to protect, I could jeopardize all of it. The loophole. The life I’ve carved. The fragile balance that’s kept me safe for centuries.
And then I’d have nothing left to stand on.
I grab my coat and yank it roughly over my wrinkled T-shirt and sweatpants, shoes half tied, hair refusing to obey. I’ve never looked less like myself, or maybe, for once, I look exactly like the man I am. Reckless, unraveling, reaching for something I was never meant to touch.
Levi knows, and that single truth is all I can think about.
• • •
I’m breathless whenI shove open city hall’s heavy wooden doors. My shadows coil around my feet, agitated by my loss of control as I storm toward the familiar office, the lone glow of a lamp beckoning me forward.
“Constance!” My voice cuts sharply through the stillness.
“Oh dear,” Constance says lightly, emerging from the room with a steaming cup of tea cradled between her hands. She looks me over, eyebrows arched in mild astonishment. “Someone’s certainly had an eventful night. Tell me, Hayden, is it laundry day?”
Lorraine steps out beside her, eyes amused. “Seems serious if you’ve abandoned your grooming standards.”
I grit my teeth. Embarrassment burns at the edges of my anger, but I push it aside, refusing to acknowledge their mockery.
“This isn’t a game,” I snap.
Their smiles suggest otherwise.
I force back the sharp retort pressing against my lips. “You knew what you were doing,” I growl. “You pushed me and made sure Levi was there to witness.”
Constance sips her tea. “Did we push? Interesting interpretation. I merely attended a party. You know how I love to mingle.”
I cross the space between us in three quick strides, closing the distance until I’m staring directly down at them. “Don’t insult me,” I snap. “This isn’t some accident or coincidence. This was deliberate.”
“Everything we do is deliberate,” Agnes murmurs quietly, appearing in the doorway behind the others, her eyes sharp. “You’ve known that for centuries.”
“Then why?” My voice cracks, revealing more vulnerability than I intended. “Why force my hand now, after all this time?”
Lorraine’s lips curve gently, eyes deceptively soft. “Force your hand? We didn’t make any decisions for you, Hayden. You told him because you believed he already knew.”
“You backed me into a corner,” I snap, shadows flaring. “You pushed him toward the truth.”
Agnes shrugs elegantly, infuriatingly detached. “We set things in motion. How you respond is entirely your own doing. Actions, consequences…you remember how it works.”
