LOGIN"I don't want to go back to what we were," she said. "I'd burn it down before I let that happen." Her chin lifted slightly. "So whatever this is," she said, "it has to be something we've never been." "From the ground up." The air between us had changed. Nothing had moved to change it. My finge
Edward's POV A flight of stairs. Elena's door was ajar when I reached the landing. I pushed it open and stepped inside. She was at the window. Coat still on. I shrugged mine off and set it on the chair by the door. The click of the latch made her shoulders tighten once before they released. "Y
Thursday. The registry doors opened before I fully reached them, air still adjusting around the gap, carrying paper dust and ink heat and the low sound of decisions being processed without ceremony, none of it pausing for me. My name came almost immediately. Not because I was expected—because the
Alicia's POV Apartment light warmed the room before I crossed the threshold. Elena stood at the counter, spoon tracing slow circles through a pot resting on low heat. Steam rose in thin strands, breaking apart under the ceiling light before it could gather into anything defined. My shoes paused b
Edward's POV I didn’t remember walking into the estate. I remembered the gate. Then nothing clean after that—just fragments of motion stitched together without pause. Headlights fading into the drive. The slow roll of tires over stone. The way the house lights adjusted as if it had already antic
The car didn’t stop at the main entrance. It passed the glass frontage of the building, continued past the visible entry point, and turned into the service approach that only functioned as an entrance once the guard stepped aside. No signage. No announcement. Just controlled access. I didn’t que
Always Edward. I excused myself to the powder room twice, to breathe. To stand in front of the mirror and remind myself I was still here. Still whole. The second time I emerged, Lucy was waiting in the hallway. "There you are," she said brightly. "I was hoping we'd get another chance to chat." M
Alicia's POV Lily's room had transformed since that first terrifying night. Sunlight streamed through windows no longer blocked by emergency equipment. Cards covered every surface, bright splashes of color against sterile white walls. Someone had brought a small stuffed bear that sat on the window
I stepped closer, closing what little space remained. My lips found hers. The kiss was hard, claiming. Her fingers found my shirt, gripping it. I pulled her closer, my hand sliding into her hair. She gasped, breath short and fierce. I broke away just enough to look at her. Her eyes burned. Her che
Edward's POV My hand closed around her wrist before I thought about it. The room was still watching. Whispers rippled outward like water. Lucy stood frozen, wine dripping down the front of her gold dress. Dark red against bright gold. Impossible to miss. Her mouth opened in shock that looked almos







