Sienna’s POVDarkness always sharpened things.The moment the lights died, my world reduced to breath, touch, and instinct. The garage vanished, replaced by the solid heat of Desmond’s hand wrapped around mine and the echo of boots scraping concrete in panicked disarray. Someone swore. Metal clanged. A weapon discharged blindly, the sound too loud, too close—then nothing but the red pulse of emergency lights bleeding back into existence.I didn’t let go of Desmond.Five minutes, forty-two seconds.The number burned into my vision, reflected on the polished curve of the SUV, stamped across the far wall like a brand. Not a clock. A threat. A promise.“Move,” Desmond murmured, already pulling me backward, angling us between two pillars as shadows reorganized themselves into men again. His voice was steady, but his pulse was not. I could feel it through our clasped hands, rapid and controlled, like a countdown trying to outrun itself.Someone groaned nearby. One of them was down. Not enou
Last Updated : 2026-01-12 Read more