Bound By Blood
And I had walked willingly into it.
I stumbled toward the basin, splashing cold water on my face, trying to wash her out of me. But the harder I scrubbed, the more her presence clung. The way she trembled yet refused to break, the way she looked at me, not as master, not as husband by contract, but as a man. A man stripped bare.
I cursed under my breath and forced myself to breathe, to rebuild my mask. By dawn I was dressed in my armor again black suit, tie knotted too tight, my reflection giving nothing away but sharp lines and discipline. A man in control.