Cassien stepped into the café without hesitation.

The bell above the door chimed, soft but sharp enough to cut through the low hum of voices and clinking cups. Damien felt the shift before he looked up. His spine straightened on instinct. His shoulders locked. A familiar weight settled in his chest, heavy and tight, the kind that always came with Cassien’s presence.

Across from him, Ivy was mid-story, relaxed, unaware.

“So I told him,” she said, one brow lifted as she stirred her drink, ...