~Fallon~
It was nearly midnight when the car arrived.
The engine idled softly outside the house, headlights casting long beams over the ivy-draped walls. I didn’t even know I was expecting someone until I heard the knock. Not the tentative kind. Not the polite, uncertain one of a visitor.
This one was solid. Certain. Like the person on the other side already knew the door would open.
I padded toward the foyer slowly, barefoot on the cold marble floor. I hadn’t changed out of the same hoodie I’d thrown on hours ago. The house was quiet. Elena had gone to bed. The staff had faded into the background like always.
And there he was.
Reid.
Leaning slightly into the frame, like he wasn’t sure how long I’d keep him standing there. His face was tired, but not wrecked. It wasn’t exhaustion I saw—it was the weight of wanting something so badly and not knowing if it would be handed back to you.
“You’re here,” he said, voice low and raw.
I didn’t move from the threshold. “I didn’t come for you. I
