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“Fine,” Callum grumbles, sighing.

“Now,” Emery starts, “both of you close your eyes and inhale deeply. Allow each breath to guide the steady rise and fall of your chest. Allow your breaths to sync to one another. Feel it, be present with it.”

Callum’s heartbeat continues to thrum a steady rhythm against my palm as his chest rises and falls. The music overhead seeps through the warmth of the steam around us, the soothing aromas pulling me into a blissful state. I feel at peace, so aware of myself and the person sitting across from me.

This thing that started as nothing more than my physical attraction to a man in a mask—who also happened to play in my favorite band—has blossomed into more than I could have imagined. It’s surreal, so far from what I expected. This game of cat and bigger, grumpier cat has led me to the discovery that I am enough.

All of the horrible things my mother made me believe come crumbling down like a tower of cards. Tears roll down my face, an echo to all of the abuse that’s now overshadowed by the love that this man has shown me. The painful memories of the past seem to fade, to hurt less as the light outshines them.

Callum Thorne loves me, and that absolution hits me hard and fast. His love is the kind that gives. For the first time in my life, safety doesn’t feel like a transaction. Callum sees me for all that I am, unconditionally. The enlightening awareness of that fact heals something within me that’s been broken for far too long. His love is a love that heals.

“Good.” Emery’s voice pulls me from my thoughts. “Now allow all of the energy you feel to move through you. Imagine that it moves through the soles of your feet and upward, exiting through your heart and into your partner’s hand. Allow your souls to dance among one another. Feel the warmth across your skin as your souls align. Listen to the hum beneath your skin as your heartbeats sync.”

My hand remains pressed firmly to Callum’s chest, but it feels like I’m touching something deeper—like a part of his soul has reached out to hold onto mine. It feels like everything we’ve endured has led us here, to this quiet realization that broken doesn’t mean unworthy. That, together, we make something entirely whole.

“Now, feel what remains,” Emery says, her voice a quiet beacon. “Feel the residual energy, the connection, the emotion. Feel everything.”

I inhale deeply, taking in the way this entire moment feels like a reckoning. I exhale slowly, releasing the resentment for my mother that I’ve carried with me all these years. Silently, I forgive her for all the trauma and my loss of a true childhood.

The darkness within me recedes with the ghost of my mother, the light filtering in through the cracks. At once, the air feels lighter, and my breathing comes easier. Slowly, my heart expands to make room for the man across from me.

“Now open your eyes,” Emery says, her voice nearly a whisper. “Let the light in.”

I open my eyes slowly, finding Callum staring right back at me. Though he doesn’t realize it, he is the light. The look in his eyes tells me that this experience was as meaningful to him as it was to me. I smile, placing my opposite hand over the one he still holds to my chest.

“Great work, guys,” Emery says. “Now for this next part, I’d like you to climb into Callum’s lap and wrap your legs around his waist.”

My eyes widen, taken aback by her request. Callum raises a brow, eyeing me curiously. When I turn and catch Emery’s gaze, she only smiles and nods once.

Okay, then. We’re doing this.

I push onto my knees and then scoot closer to Callum, watching his eyes darken with desire. He reaches out, grabbing either side of my waist and lifting me onto his lap. As instructed, I wrap my thighs around his waist and interlace my ankles behind his back. My arms reach up and wrap around his neck instinctively. His hands slide down my waist to my lower back, pulling me closer. He smirks when I inhale sharply at the feel of his erection pressed against me. Emery clears her throat again, letting us know that she’s still in the room.

“Good, great, yes. Um,” Emery stutters.

We both turn, watching as she averts her gaze to the floor between us. A deep crimson blush creeps over her cheeks. When she goes to speak again, she’s interrupted by someone at the door.

“Hey, Em, I … Oh, shit.”

I press my lips together, grimacing when Callum turns and spots Kai in the doorway. Kai leans against the doorframe, his hands in the pockets of his black skinny jeans, and a huge giddy grin on his face. He nods up and down a few times, and then back and forth as if he can’t believe what he’s seeing. His bleached blonde hair hangs in messy waves over his forehead, his light blue eyes shining with that familiar electric glow. He really is attractive, in that Machine Gun Kelly kind of way. In fact, the two of them could probably pass for twins.

“Cal, you really did it. You got the girl and managed to keep her. Good for you. I love love, and this makes me so happy. You guys are going to have the cutest fucking babies, like—”

“Malakai,” Callum barks, interrupting Kai’s rambling.

I steal a glance at Emery, doing a double take when I find her staring at Kai like she’d love to be in the same position with him as Callum and I are right now. I narrow my eyes at her, trying to sense what’s going on between the two of them. When she catches me staring, she rights her expression.

“What is it, Kai?” Emery asks, her tone stern and professional.

All evidence of the desire I saw in her gaze seconds before has vanished, replaced by stoicism and virtue. She knows how to save face, I’ll give her that.

“I finished group early, figured I’d come and see if you were free to”—Kai glances at Callum and me before returning his gaze to Emery. He reaches a hand up, biting his chipped black nails between his teeth—“to go over that, that um—”

“Your self-reflection notes,” Emery interrupts, clearing her throat. Is she covering for him? My eyes dart between Kai and Emery, trying to figure them out.

“Yes, of course. I’ll be finished with this session shortly,” she says.

“I can finish the session,” I say, in offering. “I’ve taken several classes. I can guide us through the rest. Go on, Emery. Kai needs you more than we do.” Emery’s eyes widen briefly at my tone, and Callum pinches me in the side, making me yelp.