Amara's POV

I wanted him gone. Standing there in the doorway, Cassian’s shadow stretched into the living room, filling every corner I’d tried so hard to keep safe. My heart pounded painfully in my chest, each beat echoing the prayer I whispered silently: ‘Please, Cassian, just walk away. Don’t ask. Don’t look too closely. Please.’

But of course, he didn’t. He never did when it came to me. His jaw was set, his dark eyes sharp, reading every twitch of my expression like I was an ...