Page 206 of Dream On, Liar

I put it back and reached for another.

She used to read constantly in the cabin. Always with a book somewhere on her—on the sofa, in the kitchen, half-buried in blankets, left open on the counter like she’d just stepped away for a second and might return any moment.

Sometimes I’d find them in places she hadn’t even been.

Like she was leaving pieces of herself behind without noticing.

A faint smile pulled at my mouth before I could stop it, before a voice snapped my attention.

“It's not her best work.”

Everything in me went still.

I didn’t need to turn to know who it was.

But I did anyway.

Maeve stood a few steps behind me.

Coat folded over one arm. Book in the other. Hair tucked behind her ear like she’d done it without thinking, like she hadn’t just walked into the exact place I was trying not to think about her.

My chest tightened so sharply it felt physical.

For a second, I forgot how to breathe properly.

“How do you know?” I asked, and my voice came out flatter than I meant it to.

She gave a small shrug. “I’ve read it.”

I placed the book back on the shelf like it had burned me. “Good for you.”

The words were automatic, the emptiness not forced. Just present.

Her smile flickered, then faded. “Rihaan.”

Hearing my name in her voice did something I didn’t have the patience to deal with. Grabbing my bags, I turned away, already looking for a way to move past her for the exit.

She stepped closer. “Can we talk?”

The question hit harder than it should have.

I didn’t look at her. “No.”

She blinked, like she hadn’t expected it. “I just wanted—”

“I already said what I wanted.” Silence stretched between us. I could feel her there without looking. That was the problem.

I didn’t need to see her to feel her.

“What?” she asked quietly.

I finally turned. And the moment I did, something in my control slipped. Because she looked the same. And not the same at all. And I hated that my body reacted before my mind could catch up.

I wanted to touch her.

That was the first thought.

Immediate. Uninvited.