CHAPTER 7 : One Night

Twyla Nightveil’s POV

My head snapped toward him. “No.”

“I wasn’t asking you to marry me.”

“I know exactly what you meant.”

His jaw tightened. A muscle jumped near his temple, but he kept his voice controlled. “Then stop making this difficult.”

“Your penthouse isn’t an option.”

“Why?”

“Because it’s yours.”

He stared at me as though that were the stupidest answer he’d ever heard. His brows drew together, disbelief flashing across his face. “The roads are closed. Your apartment is inaccessible. The hotel is closed.” He stepped closer. “You have nowhere else to go.”

I swallowed. “I can stay here.”

“Of course not. I’m not leaving you alone in an empty building.”

“I’ve survived four years without you.”

His expression changed, the faintest flicker of something wounded crossing his eyes before it disappeared. “I know.”

The two words came out quieter than I expected. I looked away. “Just let me wait until the rain stops.”

“It won’t stop anytime soon.”

I didn’t answer, and he walked toward the door. His footsteps echoed through the nearly empty office before he stopped with his hand on the door handle. “Come on.”

I stayed where I was. “Cody.”

He stopped. He glanced back over his shoulder, his expression unreadable. “You’re not going to touch me.”

His eyes met mine. “I didn’t say I was.”

“You’re not going to force me to do anything.”

His expression hardened. “I don’t need to force you.”

My heart skipped, and heat crept up my neck at the implication. He seemed to realize how that sounded because his jaw tightened, then his voice became calmer. “You’ll have the guest room. I’ll stay in my room. You can leave the moment the roads open.”

I stared at him and he waited. He didn’t move closer. He didn’t try to argue. He simply stood there, waiting for me to make the decision myself. No pressure, no argument, just that unbearable confidence that somehow made refusing him feel harder. I looked toward the windows where the rain continued to pour, the city beyond the glass blurred by sheets of water. I thought about my parents, about Xerius, about the closed road, then looked back at Cody.

“One night.”

His eyes darkened. “One night.”

I picked up my bag and followed him out. The moment I stepped into the hallway, the weight of what I had just agreed to settled heavily in my chest. I told myself it was only because the roads were closed, only because I had nowhere else to go, only because Xerius was safe. But the moment the elevator doors closed and Cody stepped beside me, his shoulder brushing mine, I knew I was lying to myself about one thing.

“Should I prepare myself to see anyone there?”

Cody turned his head slowly toward me. For a moment, he said nothing. Then one corner of his mouth lifted. “Anyone?”

I finally looked at him. “You know what I mean.”

His eyes held mine, amused and far too perceptive. “Are you worried about someone?”

“No.” I looked away again. “I just want to know what to expect.”

A quiet breath of laughter left him. “There’s no one.”

The answer should have relieved me. Instead, something inside me tightened. I hated that a part of me had needed to ask.

“Just me,” he added, his voice lower this time. “And you, for one night.”

My fingers curled tighter around the strap of my bag.

One night.

That was all this was supposed to be. I wasn’t afraid of being alone with him. I was afraid of what might happen if I wasn’t strong enough to resist him.

So why did it suddenly feel like I had just stepped back into the life I had spent four years trying to escape?