Ashley was still dead asleep when Vance slipped into her room that morning. He’d timed it perfectly—calculating how many hours she’d snooze, how long she’d take to lazily eat breakfast, and figured eight o’clock was the sweet spot to check on her prep.

Instead, he found her knocked out cold, just as peacefully as when he’d left her the night before. Vance let out a long sigh, shaking his head in disbelief, then leaned down to nudge her shoulder.

Ashley’s brows scrunched, and ...