LOGIN--- Elowen's POVFour weeks passed in a steady, unhurried rhythm of discipline and quiet transformation.By mid-November, the damp autumn chill over Paris had deepened, turning the leaves along Rue de l'Université into dark bronze velvet beneath the grey sky. But inside number forty-two, the atmosphere was no longer defined by medical routines or cautious steps.The transport wheelchair sat folded in the corner of the entryway, covered by a light sheet. I hadn't sat in it for ten days."Three more steps, Elowen," Marie said, standing two paces ahead of me in the living room with her arms loosely opened, ready but no longer hovering. "Keep your hips level. Don't lean into your right side."I took a breath, letting it out slowly as I shifted my weight.My right foot moved forward, pressing firmly onto the polished parquet floor. Then my left. T
--- Elowen's POVThe ride back across the 7th Arrondissement took less than ten minutes, but every second inside the dark cabin of the car stretched into an eternity.Neither of us spoke. Killian sat with his arm resting against the doorframe, his gaze fixed rigidly on the passing streetlamps of Rue de Grenelle. His jaw was locked tight, his profile carved out of shadow and hard marble. Beside him, I stared straight ahead at the driver's partition, my hands folded tightly over my lap to hide the tremor in my fingers.When the car pulled up to the heavy timber gates of number forty-two, the driver jumped out to lower the rear ramp.Killian stepped out into the damp night air first. He didn't wait for the driver to assist me. In silence, he guided my transport chair out of the vehicle and up the smooth stone threshold into the entryway. His movements were smooth, efficient, and precise
--- Elowen's POVBy seven in the evening, the drizzle over Rue de l'Université had completely stopped, leaving the cobblestones glistening under the amber glow of the wrought-iron streetlamps.I sat in my wheelchair near the hallway mirror, checking my reflection one last time. I wore a simple cream knit sweater, dark tailored trousers, and a soft cashmere scarf draped loosely around my neck. No heavy makeup, no formal evening dress—just as he had instructed in his text.A quiet vibration against the wooden vanity made me look down.Killian: At the front gate.I let out a slow, steadying breath, unlocked my wheel brakes, and navigated down the tiled entrance corridor toward the front timber door.When I opened it, Killian was standing on the stone steps outside. He wore a dark wool overcoat over an unbuttoned charcoal shirt, his
--- Elowen's POVTwo full days passed without a single sound from across the courtyard.No sudden knocks on the conservatory door. No uninvited visits with antique chessboards. Not even a shadow moving behind the second-floor linen drapes of the opposite stone house.By the second afternoon, the silence in the townhouse had turned thick and heavy.I spent the morning alone. Marie had a scheduled day off to visit her daughter in Versailles, leaving me with explicit instructions to keep to my light floor stretches and not push my luck on the standing bars without supervision. I kept my promise, but sitting on the sofa with a mug of herbal tea, my eyes kept wandering back to the dark windowpanes facing the garden.A bitter, restless heat slowly coiled in my chest.Forty-eight hours.After everything he had pulled—after
--- Elowen's POVI stayed flat on my back in the center of the large bed for long minutes, staring up at the intricate plaster rosette on the high ceiling.My chest was still heaving softly. My skin felt flushed, prickling with the ghost heat of a touch that had never happened. The silence in the bedroom was broken only by the steady, muffled tick of the clock in the hall and the occasional hiss of tires on wet pavement out on Rue de l'Université.I rolled onto my side and dragged a hand down my face, letting out a sharp, frustrated breath against the cold linen pillow.Why?Why was he in my head like this? How had Killian—a man I had spent months treating as a dangerous, calculating threat—managed to hijack even my subconscious?The sheer intimacy of the dream made my skin burn with shame. It wasn't just the physical pleas
--- Elowen's POVIt started with the press of his mouth against mine, soft at first, almost testing. Rain still clung to his hair from the courtyard, cold droplets sliding onto my cheek when he leaned in. I tasted the storm on him—wet wool, night air, and something warmer that was purely him. My hands found the front of his sweater, fingers curling into the soft knit.He framed my face with both palms, thumbs brushing the corners of my mouth while he kissed me deeper. There was no rush yet, only a slow, deliberate claiming. His lips moved over mine with quiet certainty, coaxing them open, drawing a soft sound from my throat that made him smile against me. That private smile sent heat spiraling low in my stomach.“Elowen,” he murmured, the name roughened by breath. “Tell me if this is too much.”I shook my head, rising onto my toes. “It isn’t.







